Consultant for Technical Assistance and Capacity Building

TFO CANADA – REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

CONSULTANT FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING

OF JORDANIAN SMEs PROCESSED / MANUFACTURED FOOD EXPORTERS FOR ACCESSING THE CANADIAN MARKET.

TFO Canada (Trade Facilitation Office Canada), a non-government non-profit organization, funded by Global Affairs Canada, seeks proposals from firm/individual(s) to work closely with implementing partners in Canada and Jordan to:

1. Prepare and deliver an awareness raising seminar on The Opportunities in the Canadian Market to Jordanian SMEs exporters and to deliver one-on-one consultation sessions to pre-selected SMEs exporters.

1. Provide technical assistance (though Skype, e-mail or teleconference) to selected 10 Jordanian SMEs to address the needs identified during the one-on-one sessions and to prepare them to participate in SIAL Montreal 2018.

1. Support Jordanian SME exporter mission to SIAL Montreal 2018.

1. Support 10 Jordanian SMEs to close deals with Canadian buyers after the trade show.

A detailed Terms of Reference (ToR) for this role, as well as background on this project and its objectives, is provided in the annex.

Proposals should be submitted no later than 16.00 hours (EDT) onMonday,October 30th, 2017, should be in English.

Proposal Requirements

The proposal should include the following elements:

1. A presentation of the firm/individual making the proposal highlighting their relevant experience and current activities which demonstrate their capacity to fulfill the responsibilities of this position. The presentation should include a current C.V. of the individual making the proposal; if the proposal is made by a firm, the CV of the proposed consultant(s)/resource person(s) must be provided.
2. A brief description of three (03) recent projects that the proponent has worked on that are similar in nature and which demonstrate your prior experience working in support of women exporters.
3. A workplan in line with the ToR and timeline presented below. PLEASE HIGHLIGHT ANY SUGGESTED AND/OR REQUIRED CHANGES TO THE TOR.
4. A compensation proposal which does not exceed the budgetary parameters provided in the terms of reference. TFO Canada estimates that it will require a total of up to 77 days to complete this assignment.

Selection Criteria

In the assessment of submissions, consideration will be given to technical competence, qualifications and experience, including:

• Master’s degree in Business Administration, International Marketing or a related field
• At least ten years of relevant experience and track record of providing business development support/consulting services in developing countries (preferably in the Middle East), including, but not limited to,export readiness assessment, training needs assessment and facilitation of capacity development programs and technical assistance (one-on-one consultations, B2B matchmaking etc.) for trade missions to Canada for SME producers/exporters.
• Knowledge of the Canadian processed/manufactured food market.
• Demonstrated experience promoting women exporters.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, in English.

Selection Method

Following the assessment of submissions, the most technically capable and appropriately experienced applicant will be invited to negotiate a contract to provide the consultancy services. TFO Canada reserves the right to accept or reject late applications or to cancel the present invitation partially or in its entirety. It will not be bound to assign any reason for not engaging the services of any applicant and will not defray any costs incurred by any applicant in the preparation and submission of proposals.

Proposals should be submitted to Marta Recinos, Project Manager-Asia & Middle East, TFO Canada () with the subject line “Proposal: TPRF-Jordan” no later than 16:00 hours on Monday, October 30th, 2017. Any questions/clarifications required in order to complete a proposal can be sent via e-mail between 09:00 and 16:00 hours Monday to Friday.

Many thanks for your interest in this assignment and for your time and effort in preparing your proposal

ANNEX

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Technical Assistance and Capacity Building of

Jordanian SME Processed / manufactured food exporters for

Accessing the Canadian Market

______

BACKGROUND

Trade Facilitation Office Canada (TFO Canada), a notforprofit organization founded in 1980, confronts the challenge of global poverty by promoting sustainable economic development through export information, advice and contact. TFO Canada facilitates access to the Canadian marketplace and shares Canadian trade expertise for the benefit of smaller exporters in developing countries.

TFO Canada is currently implementing the Trading Partners Responsive Facility (TPRF) with Jordan. TPRF is a component of the Canadian Market Access and Capacity Building Services Project (CMA-CBS) funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by TFO Canada between 2014 and 2018, inclusive. Projects approved within this component will assist developing countries, and in particular their SMEs, take advantage of new export opportunities created by free trade agreements with Canada. The Facility is intended to respond to priorities identified by the countries themselves, through their exchanges with Canadian Government officials, particularly in the context of trade negotiations or subsequent trade agreement implementation activities. The Facility places a particular emphasis on initiatives that will help ensure that free trade access to Canada will ultimately contribute to job growth and poverty reduction in developing countries, and those which also address gender inequality or environmental concerns in doing so.

The TPRF- Jordan project is the “Export Readiness for Jordanian Exporters in the Canadian Market”, and it is implemented together with the Jordan Exporter Association (JEA).

ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW

The project’s aim is to create awareness of Jordanian SME exporters (particularly those owned/managed by women) of processed/manufactured food about the opportunities in the Canadian market (especially under the existing Canada Jordan Free Trade Agreement –CJFTA) and build their capacity so that they establish business contacts with Canadian importers/traders.

The project activities to achieve this outcome are grouped into four stages, all of them consider the participation of at least 50% of women led / owned SMEs:

1. Awareness raising seminar in Jordan on the opportunities in the Canadian market to 40 SMEs exporters and 10 representatives from trade support/promotion organizations. This activity includes to carry out one-on-one meetings with 20 pre-selected SMEs to assess their export readiness for the Canadian market and provide them practical recommendations.

1. Addressing specific Canadian market access needs of 10 selected SMEs through in-depth technical assistance so that they are well prepared for participating in SIAL Montreal 2018 and meeting with Canadian buyers. This assistance will be provided through skype – email – teleconference.

1. Support exporter mission to SIAL Montreal 2018 for 10 SMEs. This include, promoting the selected Jordanian SMEs to Canadian buyers, setting up B2B meetings for each of them, be available on-site during the trade show to assist them, Support the organization and accompany the market familiarization tour and information session in Montreal, and write reports on each SME about their performance during the show and preliminary results.

1. Providing post SIAL 2018 support for 10 SMEs to close deals with Canadian buyers.This assistance will be provided through skype – email – teleconference.

ACTIVITIES

1. Awareness raising and one-on-one consultation

(Timeline: from November to December 2017; Duration: up to 19 days)

1.1Prepare and deliver a two days awareness raising seminar on The Opportunities in the Canadian Market to up to 40 Jordanian SMEs exporters from the processed/manufactured food sector and to up to 10 representatives from trade support/promotion organizations. The seminar will be held in Amman, Jordan, on/about December 7th to 8th, 2017. At least 50% of the SMEs attending the seminar shall be led / owned by women (20 SMEs).

1.2Pre-selection of SMEs for one-on-one consultation sessions. The Consultant will review up to 40 companies’ profiles that will attend the seminar on The Opportunities in the Canadian Market in order to pre-select up to 20 SMEs for the one-on-one consultation sessions, that will follow the seminar. At least 50% of the SMEs pre-selected shall be led / owned by women (10 SMEs).

JEA will be responsible for the distribution of the Company Profile Form among the participant companies. JEA will also provide support to Jordanian SMEs to fill out the form correctly. Likewise, it will be responsible for collecting the forms and sending them to the Consultant and to TFO Canada.

1.3Deliver a maximum of 45 minutesone-on-one consultation sessions to up to 20 pre-selected SMEs exportersbetween to assess SMEs export readiness for the Canadian market and provide them practical recommendations.This activity is going to be held in Amman, Jordan, between December 9th- 15th, 2017. Most of the One-on-one sessions shall take placeat companies’ facilities so that the Consultant can better assess their export readiness. The Consultant shall send through e-mail a summary of the recommendations made to each company (JEA and TFO Canada shall be copied on those e-mails).

Based on the assessment, the Consultant will select 10 SMEs for the remaining activities. At least 50% of the selected SMEs shall be led / owned by women (5 SMEs).

1.4Produce a summary report of this stage that include at least the following information:

• Seminar’s attendance list, agenda, and attendees’ evaluation form.
• Seminar’s pictures
• Observations identified of the market readiness and potential to export to Canada for each firm selected for the one-on-one session. Likewise, the recommendation made to each SMEs on products improvement/development/design, competitive positioning, pricing and distribution, among other aspects, should also be included.
• Recommendation of 10 SMEs with the higher export potential to Canada.

2Pre SIAL Montreal Support.

(Timeline from January to April 2018; Duration: up to 20 days)

2.1Provide up to 2 days of technical assistance (though Skype, e-mail or teleconference) to each of the selected 10 Jordanian SMEs on how to attend and benefit from international trade shows, advice on strategies to enter the Canadian market, products’ marketability, labelling, and other relevant Canadian regulations, in order to address the needs identified during the one-on-one sessions and to prepare them to participate in SIAL Montreal 2018.

3SIAL Montreal 2018 Exporter Mission Support

(Timeline from February to May 2018; Duration: up to 18 days)

3.1Promotion of Jordanian SMEs exporters' participation at SIAL Montreal 2018 and arrangement of Business to Business (B2B) Meetings: The Consultant will support TFO Canada to publicize the Jordanian delegation and their products at SIAL Montreal 2018 through the communication with Canadian importers.

Additionally, the Consultant will invite Canadian buyers to visit the Jordanian delegation booth at SIAL Montreal 2018 and will organize at least 5 B2B meetings for each company with Canadian buyers, importers, distributors.

3.2Support the organization of a Market Familiarization Tour in Montreal: Prior to the start of SIAL Montreal 2018, the Jordanian delegation can participate in a market familiarization tour organized by TFO Canada to learn about Canadian retail landscape, product presentation, prices and import procedures during the visit. Retail tour by bus will be organized by TFO Canada to several locations in Montreal.

3.3Accompaniment at SIAL Montreal 2018: the Consultant shall accompany the Jordanian delegation during the show, retail tour and business meetings, and will be available to offer on- site advice to participating companies.

3.4Produce a summary report on SIAL Montreal 2018. The report shall present the following information for each company:

• Collection of feedback on Jordanian products and market potential from Canadian buyers who meet the Jordanian exporters
• Company’s performance (Number of B2B meetings hold, potential sales, challenges to close deals, among other relevant aspects).
• Success stories (when applicable)
• Follow Up Plan that includes areas of assistance / support on the Post SIAL Montreal Support Stage.

4Post SIAL Montreal 2018 Support

(Timeline from May to August 2018; Duration: up to 20 days)

4.1After the Show and based on the Follow up Plans elaborated on stage 3, the Consultant will provide up to 2 days of advisory support to each of the 10 Jordanian SMEs to close deals with Canadian importers.

PROPOSED SCHEDULE & DELIVERABLES:

1. Contract signed with the consultanton/about November 10th, 2017
2. Participant companies fill out Profile Form between October 23rdto November 10th, 2017
3. Consultant prepares the seminar and the seminar’s material no later than November 14th, 2017.
4. Consultant pre-selects 20 SMEs for the one-on-one consultation session no later than November 20th, 2017.
5. JEA set up one-on-one consultation sessions with pre-selected Jordanian SMEs by November 27th, 2017.
6. Consultant prepares visit schedule with the support of TFO Canada staff no later than November 29th, 2017.
7. Consultant travels to Jordanbetween on/aboutDecember 5th to 17th, 2017. Seminar, one-on-one consultation sessions will be carried out within this period of time.
8. Consultant submits Summary Report for Stage 1 by December 22nd, 2017.
9. Consultantto provide technical assistance to each of the selected 10 Jordanian SMEs to address the needs identified during the one-on-one sessions and to prepare them to participate in SIAL Montreal 2018 during January 2nd, 2018 and April 30th, 2018.
10. Consultant to support Jordanian SMEs to attend SIAL Montreal 2018, promote Jordanian exporter participation in the Show, arrange B2B meetings, support the organization and accompany the market familiarization tour during February and May 2018.
11. Consultant to accompany the delegation and collects Canadian buyers’ feedback during SIAL Montreal 2018 during May 2nd and 4th, 2018.
12. Consultant submits summary report on SIAL Montreal 2018 by May 31st, 2018.
13. Consultant to support Jordanian SMEs to close deals with Canadian during May and August 2018.

BUDGETARY PARAMETRES

TFO Canada’s compensation for the Consultant will be CDN$ 600 per day (7.5 hours) for a total assignment of 77 days as detailed in the table below:

Table 1: Estimated Level of Effort (LOE) to complete this assignment is presented below.

1. Awareness raising and one-on-one consultation

1. Pre SIAL Montreal Support.

1. SIAL Montreal 2018 Exporter Mission Support

1. Post SIAL Montreal 2018 Support

TFO Canada will also arrange and pay for all trips and accompanying expenses (accommodation, meals, incidentals, internal transportation – when applicable) in Jordan and within Canada in consultation with the Consultant as per TFO Canada travel policy.

COMMUNICATION AND CO-ORDINATION

For all communications related to this assignment, the point of contact for TFO Canada will be Marta Recinos, Project Manager Asia and Middle East, at .