Handicap International - Humanity & Inclusion
Terms of Reference
Land release exploratory mission – Libya
Period of the mission
November 2022- January 2023
Duration of the mission
1 month
Location of the mission :
Tunisia and Libya (upon issuance of visa by Libyan authorities)
Budget :
Y14_010 TA38 F000_999 000 FEDE
1. Context of the mission
Mine Action Context
Mine Action in Libya falls under the responsibility of the Libyan Mine Action Centre (LibMAC), under the Ministry of Defence of the Government of National Unity (GNU).
The LibMAC started to operate in 2011 and was officially mandated by the Libyan Ministry of Defence to coordinate humanitarian mine action activities in early 2012. It is currently operating under the Government of National Unity (GNU).
The LibMAC prioritizes survey and clearance operations by issuing task orders, ensuring quality control and quality assurance over mine action activities, leads accreditation processes of mine action organizations and coordinating the collection of accurate and comprehensive data on activities conducted. The LibMAC has a dedicated RE/VA department, for which it fulfils similar responsibilities.
UNMAS is integrated into the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) and has also been providing technical support, institutional and operational capacity development to the LibMAC, especially to strengthen accreditation processes for Mine Action operators. Recent initiatives have included training military engineers from East and Western Libya, and the provision of EOD and medical kits to previously trained governmental operators.
There is no National Mine Action Strategy for Libya yet.
The ERW and IEDs pollution situation worsened sharply in the first half of 2020, in the south and east of Tripoli (reconquered by the GNA), as well as in the suburb of Sirte (newly established front line). Indeed, in these urban and densely populated areas, the intensity of fighting and bombing on the one hand and intentional mining on the other (including intentional IED booby trapping) dramatically increased the number of accidents affecting both demining teams and civilians, particularly IDPs seeking to return home. The clearance of these areas has been initially handled by the Libyan and foreign (Italian, Turkish) military, then humanitarian actors also progressively oriented their mine action response to these locations. However, given the heavy level of contamination, the depollution of the country will take years to achieve…
HI presence in Libya
HI has been operational continuously in Libya since 2011, and up until the end of 2014 delivered a large-scale Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) programme from bases in Tripoli, Misrata and Sirte. During that period, HI teams protected countless civilians from the risk of death and injury due to explosive hazards through the clearance of over 302 km of land, including schools, agricultural land, beaches and residential areas; removing and destroying over 112,000 mines and ERW in the process. More than 1,000 people were trained to deliver mine/ERW/SALW risk education; whilst HI teams reached more than 110,000 civilians with life-saving risk education messaging. With the outbreak of renewed violence in 2014 and the delocalisation of international staff to Tunisia, HI redesigned it programme in support of persons injured by mines, ERW and SALW, as well as persons with disabilities more widely. Between 2016 and 2022, HI has delivered health and protection services including physical therapy, provision of assistive devices and psychosocial support to persons directly impacted by the ongoing crisis, as well as targeting health and rehabilitation centres in Western and eastern Libya with technical capacity development and donations of much needed and otherwise depleted equipment.
In 2017 HI relaunched risk education activities in the Nafusa Mountain region, south of Tripoli for returning populations displaced since 2011. In the same year HI initiated support to the LibMAC for enhancing assistance to victims of explosive hazards, through bringing together national authorities and civil society to raise awareness of the collective responsibility towards persons directly affected by conflicts.
At the end of 2018 HI opened a new office in eastern Libya, in Benghazi where it developed also health and protection activities in synergy with the West part of Libya. HI has also developed a longer- term strategy of support to Mental Health for Libyan institutions, professionals, CSOs and populations suffering from more severe mental health disorders, in an effort to contribute to a better resilience of Libyan population. Following an assessment mission on mine action needs and gaps in Libya, HI also relaunched its land release activities the same year, until the organization had to suspend this type of operations in April 2019 in link with the deteriorating security situation, when the Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) launched an offensive to take control over Tripoli.
As of mid-2020, following the stabilization of the security situation in the country and related humanitarian impact, HI has reduced the volume of its direct services and has conversely increased its support to local health facilities and CSOs in the thematic of physical rehabilitation and mental health & psychosocial support, building on stronger partnership with health actors and MoH.
In 2022, HI has also reinitiated its risk education activities in Tripoli and strengthened the victim assistance component of its intervention, with an objective of enhancing data collection in the aim to improve injury surveillance and case management for EO victims on the longer run. On health, HI focused on the institutional technical capacity building of the health care providers on rehabilitation and MHPSS component by providing series of technical trainings. In addition, HI also focused on strengthening inclusive humanitarian action providing series of awareness raising session to the government, national and international humanitarian actors working in Libya.
This mission is in line with the HI’s interest to redeploy actions in the field of land release. It answers the need to have a better knowledge of the context (needs, stakeholders, donors, constraints etc.) in order to develop a relevant and feasible strategy of intervention.
2. Objectives and expected outcomes of the mission:
The objective of the mission is to support the redeployment of HI’s land release (LR) activities in Libya. The LR consultant will ensure a thorough analysis of needs, gaps, priorities and opportunities for land release activities in Libya, support the framing of strategic outlines of HI’s future clearance intervention, feed into HI’s fundraising strategy in Libya in the HMA sector and establish a concrete action plan for redeployment of LR activities where relevant.
The expected deliverables of the mission are as follow:
- A comprehensive analysis of the LR needs, gaps, and priorities, as well as analysis of legal, political, technical environment is conducted;
- A framing of the strategic outlines of HI’s LR intervention in Libya, in light of all the constraints and prerequisites to be taken in account, is proposed;
- A standard project concept note is elaborated, for later dissemination to donors by HI;
- A clear overview of key steps for the re-opening of land release activities in Libya is proposed.
3. Context and needs analysis
Conduct an assessment of needs, gaps and priorities regarding land release efforts in Libya, both through primary and secondary data collection.
The analysis shall include, at minimum, the following aspects:
-Type of contamination and contamination “practices”: e.g. type of explosive ordnances (e.g. ERW, mines, IEDs, etc.), conflict practices (bombing/shelling, urban warfare, trapping civilian houses, laying minefields, etc.), targeted use (e.g. military opponents vs. civilians, protection of strategic premises), locations particularly contaminated, etc.
– Information on impact of contamination and land release priorities: e.g. accidents, areas where unsafe rehabilitation programs are ongoing, populated areas where unsafe return movements are noted, key agricultural areas, strategic roads, other type of socioeconomic development impediment, any already available information on local population knowledge, attitude, behaviours towards EO contamination, access possibilities to contaminated areas, strategic priorities considered by relevant authorities, etc.
– Current HMA stakeholders (operators, authorities, donors) and efforts (4W) and HMA coordination structures/dynamics both in the East and in the West;
– Analysis of legal (e.g. key registration, accreditation, importation processes, existence of national standards, access constraints, etc.), political (e.g. important power relationships to be take into account, control over certain portion of the territory, conflict sensitivity aspects, etc.) and technical aspects (e.g. in-country available or lacking material, equipment and skills, etc.)
Information should be collected through primary and secondary data. In this regard, besides desk review, it is expected from the expert to conduct meeting with key HMA stakeholders (authorities, operators, etc.) as a mean to directly collect relevant information and feedback. If access to the field is granted, the expert should collect information also through direct observation.
4. Define a land release strategic outlines for HI
- Framing and proposing the strategic outlines of HI’s future land release intervention based on the context analysis and HI’s capacities/experiences and timeline. The expert will make his recommendations on the broad lines of a strategic positioning of HI in demining (including areas, type of demining, direct operations vs. capacity building, idea of appropriate set-up, etc.) ;
- Underlining opportunities for synergies with other AVR components of HI’s recent intervention (Risk education, VA specific efforts) would be welcomed.
- The strategic outlines will present and take in consideration all the constraints to anticipate and necessary prerequisites for the implementation (including all the security, logistic aspects related to available equipment, import constraints, available human resources etc.)
5. Develop a standard project concept paper
- Meet with various donors in collaboration with the regional team and the HI Libya staff
- Update the mapping of donors with an interest in HMA in Libya
- Draft a standard project concept paper with different activities on HMA that HI can submit to the donor and adapt according to the interest
6. Develop a re-opening action plan
Based on the validated strategic outlines, the expert will elaborate a re-opening action plan indicating the main steps to be followed and the key aspects to be considered (e.g. administrative, HR, security, technical etc.). The precise content of the action plan could be discussed in further detail with the expert during the assignment.
7. Dates and conditions of the mission
Dates
The estimated duration of the consultancy is one month, which can be spanned over a three-month period: November 2022- January 2023. A detailed chronogram will be defined in consultation between the consultant and the HI teams at HQ/field level.
Location of the mission
The issuance of visas for entry into Libya is currently suspended by Libyan authorities.
This implies that a least a part of the the mission will be carried out remotely and from Tunisia (where the Regional Direction of the Program and part of the HI Libya team is located, as well as a number of international agencies, donors, and NGOs operating in Libya).
Upon issuance of visa by relevant authorities, the mission is to continue on Libyan territory.
HI will put at the disposal of the consultant a workstation in its offices in Tunis or Tripoli (the HI’s office in Benghazi is closed since July 2022).
Communication and follow-up mechanisms between the consultant and HI
The mission will be monitored by the HI regional staff based in Tunis.
The technical follow-up will be ensured by the Armed Violence Reduction Division in HI headquarters.
8. Deliverables
Deliverable Draft of needs assessments report on Land Release in Libya
Deadline : November 30th
Deliverable : Final needs assessments report on Land Release in Libya
Deadline : December 15th
Deliverable : Presentation of strategic outlines to relevant HI’s departments
Deadline : January 5th
Deliverable : Final land release strategic outlines document
Deadline : January 20th
Deliverable : Draft of project concept note presented to relevant HI’s departments
Deadline : January 20th
Deliverable : Final standard project concept note
Deadline : January 31st
Deliverable : Mapping of stakeholders (operators and donors)
Deadline : January 31st
Deliverable : Presentation of re-opening action plan to relevant HI’s departments
Deadline : January 31st
Deliverable : End of mission report
Deadline : January 31st
9. Profile required
Mandatory
- EOD3+/IEDD certification and a minimum of 4 years in a Chief of Ops or similar position (military or demining experience)
- Experience of field work with an NGO in the humanitarian/development sector
- Good communication and writing skills in English
- Proven previous business development experience
Desirable
- Knowledge of the Libyan context / past experience in Libya
How to apply
10. Offers
Bids must be in English and include the following elements:
About the consultant
- Curriculum vitae
- References
- Cover letter
- Photocopy of identification
- Certificate of fiscal regularity
- Declaration of absence of conflict of interest
About the technical and financial proposal:
□ A technical proposal for conducting this mission including a timeline
□ A financial proposal including details of consultancy fees and operational costs of the mission (international travel to Tunis and Libya, accommodation in Libya, communication…).
Please note that HI will provide the necessary means to ensure travels in Tunisia and Libya (vehicle with driver). HI will also provide a guest house (collective) in Tunis. In Tripoli, the expert shall provide for its accommodation.
The consultant shall ensure that a financial proposal is made in accordance with its applicable tax regime. If required by the law of the applicable tax jurisdiction, tax withholding may apply.
The consultant shall maintain at its own expense all necessary insurance (including repatriation and liability coverage) and provide HI with the corresponding insurance certificate.
HI is committed to the protection of children and the protection of beneficiaries against sexual abuse and exploitation. The selected consultant will be expected to endorse and abide by these ethical policies and the Code of Conduct: Integrity, Prevention of Abuse and Safeguarding.
The consultant commits himself to the strict respect of HI’s security rules on the field.
Submission of offers:
The offers should be sent by email to: [email protected]. The deadline for submission of applications is October 27th, 2022.