Technical Lead Consultant for Kericho CEP Development and clean cooking Knowledge product development.

Introduction
Practical Action is an international development organization putting ingenious ideas to work so people in poverty can change their world.
We help people find solutions to some of the world’s toughest problems. Challenges made worse by catastrophic climate change and persistent gender inequality. We work with communities to develop ingenious, lasting, and locally owned solutions for agriculture, water and waste management, climate resilience and clean energy. And we share what works with others, so answers that start small can grow big.
We are a global change-making group. The group consists of a UK registered charity with community projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America, an independent development publishing company and a technical consulting service. We combine these specialisms to multiply our impact and help shape a world that works better for everyone.
Context
In recent years, Kenya has emerged as a prominent player in the global effort to address energy challenges and promote sustainable development. These includes development the Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) Action Agenda and Investment Prospectus, the bioenergy strategy and the Energy Efficiency and conservation Strategy among other initiatives. As the country experiences economic growth and a rapidly expanding population, the demand for energy continues to surge. To meet these growing needs, it has become imperative for Kenya to develop comprehensive and well-structured energy planning strategies at both the national and county levels. Strengthening energy planning is not only crucial for securing a stable energy supply but also for fostering socio-economic progress, environmental sustainability, and energy security in the nation.
The Energy Act 2019 consolidates the laws relating to energy, to provide for National and County Government functions in relation to energy. The Act has further provided the legal framework for
integrated energy planning as defined in the INEP (Integrated national energy planning) Framework that provides the guidance for development of national and county energy plans.
Devolution, which grants substantial powers and responsibilities to county governments, presents a unique opportunity for localized energy planning tailored to specific regional needs. Each county possesses distinct energy resources and challenges, and an individualized approach will enable a more efficient and inclusive energy sector. Through enhanced county energy planning, there is potential for increased community involvement, localized job creation, and improved energy service delivery. Additionally, engaging local communities and stakeholders in the planning process can lead to better acceptance and support for energy projects, thus contributing to sustainable development across the entire nation.
The county energy planning process also provides a good opportunity to prioritize clean cooking which has hitherto not been at the center of energy policy, strategy and planning in Kenya. Prioritizing clean cooking in energy planning is crucial for Kenya’s sustainable development. It not only improves public health, mitigates climate change, and empowers women but also contributes to economic growth and aligns with global sustainability goals. By transitioning to cleaner and more efficient cooking methods, Kenya can create a healthier, cleaner, and more equitable future for its citizens while making a positive impact on the global fight against climate change.
In an effort to strengthen County level energy plan, strategy and policies on clean cooking, Practical Action in partnership with other stakeholders will be providing technical assistance to support the development of inclusive and integrated energy plan for Kericho county.
In this regard, Practical Action is therefore seeking the services of a consultant to provide support in the development of Kericho County Energy Plans (CEP).

Consultancy Objective
The main objective of this consultancy is to:
Coordinate the following pending activities:
i. Envisioning workshop to understand the priority sectors for the county.
ii. Key Informant Interviews.
iii. Focus Group Discussions.
iv. Community engagement workshops.
v. Solution Development.
vi. Additional cooking market study; and
vii. CEP write up.

Consultancy scope
The consultant will be assigned to the county to provide technical leadership in the development of a County Energy Plan. The work to be conducted by the consultant is described in five work packages below:
Work package 1:Baseline survey execution
Under this work package, the consultant will:
i. Collect primary data through a sample survey in the county to understand the status of energy access for households, community facilities and enterprises. Primary data gathering will be used to fill any data gaps remaining after the literature review, and to help triangulate findings, for example, where secondary data from the literature is less recent.
ii. Carry out qualitative surveys too get deeper insights on the context opportunities and challenges within the focus sectors through a range of data gathering activities on the ground including Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs).
iii. Conduct an in depth survey to understand the status on cooking energy in the county focusing on the market for both cooking technologies and fuels
iv. Support the county to complete baseline analysis and prepare for community needs assessment
In conducting these activities, the consultant shall pay attention to ensuring inclusivity of minority and marginalised groups(special interest groups) e.g., people with disabilities, youth, religious communities, female headed households.

Work package 2: Stakeholder Engagement and needs identification at community and sector level
Under this work package, the consultant will:
a. Work with the county CEP team to assess and establish the true needs and expectations of the local community in terms of development, welfare economic activities, health care, education etc and the role of energy in meeting these needs. This will be done through.
• Key informant interviews with actors from key sectors while taking a value chain wide approach to include producers, aggregators, transporters distributors end users…
• Focus group discussions on specific sectors to further scrutinize the views and priorities from the perspective of energy as an enabler
• Sectoral workshops to further interrogate the priorities derived from KIIs and FGDs linked to wider sectoral priorities and plans
b. Develop a long list of priorities based on the baseline survey findings. The long list will be based on the following structure:
• Needs at household level focusing on lighting, cooking, heating, productive use in cottage activities, education for children, security
• Needs at the community level for a range of community services such as health, education, access to credit, or community services related to economic activities (access to water, street or marketplace lighting, storage capacities, to training and sensitisation)
• Needs at the County level focussing on the macro-economic development (e.g agriculture, trade and industry) and the resulting need for development of energy sources. This shall help the counties to develop a vision for the energy plan and priorities to be implemented for the next 10 years. It will also identify the short-term priorities to be developed for the next 3/5 years and the medium-term priorities to be sketched and included in CIDP/ADPs

Work package 3: Development of energy solutions including mainstreaming of clean cooking in the CEPs
Under this work package, the consultant will guide the county to draft solutions that respond to the priority needs identified particularly those ones to be developed/answered by the first generation of CEPs. Other priorities will be developed in subsequent versions/revisions of the CEP (after 3 years). The process of solutions development will be guided by the INEP Frameworks stages 6-10
The solutions should cover the following aspects:
• Electrification for households, institutions and businesses(Grid and off grid options)
• Clean cooking
• Bioenergy
• Energy efficiency and conservation
Solutions development will further include:
• Identifying policies, programmes, and projects to be implemented in order to achieve the county vision and energy goals
• A financing strategy showing the financial requirements for different types of actions, potential financing sources and mechanism (grants, debt, Results Based Financing.
• Establish operational responsibilities.
• A risk analysis framework
• A plan for performance measurement and reporting.

Work package 4: CEP write up
Under this package the consultant shall;
• Coordinate the write up of the CEP involving compilation of inputs from different work streams and aligning these to the CEP template provided under the INEP framework.
• Present the draft CEP for review and validation by the County CEP Technical committee

Work package 4: CEP write up
• Develop at least three ICS/ sector knowledge products (booklet, audio or video).

Time Frame and Key Deliverables
Overall, the assignment shall be undertaken and completed within 40 days upon signing of the contract.

Selection process
The bidders shall submit a technical proposal responding on the following:
• The profile and experience of the bidders including demonstration of the eligibility criteria.
• Maximum 15 pages technical concept and approach excluding annexes on how the tasks listed in the section above (section 2) shall be delivered and achieved.
• Consultant’s CV showing relevant experiences.

Requirements Technical Lead Consultant
• Minimum of a master’s degree in a field related to renewable energy, environmental planning, environmental studies, natural resources, social sciences/ development studies.
• At least 7 years’ experience in clean cooking and bioenergy, renewable energy, energy planning, research
• Demonstrate experience in energy planning (demand assessment, solution design, modelling) and research and analysis.
• Experience with energy delivery model approaches(desirable)
• Experience in developing tools and templates.
• Experience engaging with counties governments is an advantage.

Costing requirements
As the contract to be concluded is a contract for works in line with the deliverables, the bidder should offer a lump sum price that covers all applicable costs but should be provided for each deliverable/milestone as illustrated in the table below. The price bid will be evaluated based on the specified lump sum price per deliverable.

Administrative and logistical support
Practical Action will cater for all travel, accommodation and subsistence incurred by the consultant during the assignment. Any additional costs must be agreed with Practical Action in writing. This will be done in line with Practical Action policies and upon approval of costs by the Project Manager.

A detailed TOR can be accessed on Practical Action Website using this link- https://practicalaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Terms-of-Reference-Technical-Lead-Consultant-for-CEP-Knowledge-Development.pdf