ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA Department of Environment:  Terms of Reference Protected Area Business Planning Consultant

Closing Date: May 2, 2019

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Details:

Job Title

Protected Area Business Plan Consultant
Contracting Authority	Department of Environment, Ministry of Health and the Environment, Antigua and Barbuda
Date of Issue	1st May 2019
Deadline	15th May 2019
Duration	9 months
To Apply	Individual consultants and/or firms are invited to apply for this opportunity. Please email the Procurement Officer at DOE@ab.gov.ag and copied to antiguaenvironmentdivision@gmail.com the following: Request for Specific Consultancy Services Cover letter Technical Proposal Financial Proposal Contact information for three (3) references Please use email subject line: “…Application for PA business planning consultant”
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY (EEO)	The Department of Environment (DoE) provides equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, or sexual orientation. The DoE also strives to achieve equal employment opportunity in all personnel operations through continuing diversity enhancement programs.
LATE BIDS	Late Bids will not be opened and will be returned to Bidder.

 

 

Terms of Reference

Protected Area Business Plan Consultant

 

1. About the Department of Environment

The Department of Environment is a Government agency within the Ministry of Health and the Environment in the Government of Antigua and Barbuda.

The overall mission of the Department of Environment (DOE) is to provide technical advice on the environment and to design and implement projects on behalf of the Government and the people of Antigua and Barbuda. These interventions are designed to protect and enhance the country's environment, as well as seek common solutions to national, regional and global environmental challenges.

The Department of Environment accomplishes its mission inter alia through:

• An integrated environmental planning and management system established on the basis of public participation and interagency collaboration,
• Efficient implementation of appropriate programmes, projects and technical services,
• Providing accurate council on environmental management as well as effective and consistent enforcement of environmental laws and regulations, and
• Provide the public with easily accessible information and technical assistance on environmental issues.

The Department of Environment manages projects within four main Programmes, which are aligned with national legislation and international environmental agreements. These are:

1. Climate Change Programme (Adaptation, Mitigation, and Capacity Building)
2. Biodiversity Programme
3. Pollution Programme
4. Monitoring, Evaluation and Data Management Programme

The DOE has an active portfolio of 13 projects, with project sizes ranging from USD 50K to USD 15 million, with an additional 15 projects under development. Partners of the DOE include UN Environment, UNDP, IUCN, Caribbean Development Bank, Government of Italy, Global Environment Facility, Green Climate Fund, the Adaptation Fund, among others. The DOE was accredited as a direct access entity to the Adaptation Fund in 2015 and to the Green Climate Fund in 2017. The DOE is focused on designing high-impact, transformational projects that maximize funding directly available to the public, private and civil society actors in order to meet an ambitious environmental agenda.

2. Purpose and Objective of Consultancy

The Department of Environment is seeking a qualified and experienced individual to develop a National level and site-specific protected area business plan for a protected area within the Sherkerley Mountain Management Area.

• The Boggy Peak National Park

The Boggy Peak National Park (BPNP) is 1,039 ha of mountainous forested area located within the Sherkerley Mountain Management Area (SMMA) in the south-west of Antigua. The area includes significant biodiversity from wet and dry forest, plant and bird species to watersheds, outstanding scenery and genetic material for about 28 species of mangoes, and the famous Antiguan black pineapple.The SMMA supports populations of nine (of the 11) Lesser Antilles Endemic bird Area restricted-range birds, and harbours seven species of bats, including the near threatened insular single leaf bat Monophylus plethodon and the Brazilian free-tailed bat Tadarida brasilensis. One of the key objectives of establishing the SMMA is to create a conservation corridor linking the Wallings Reservoir (forest reserve) in the southeast part of the SMMA with the BPNP in the centre-west of the SMMA. This will minimize ecosystem fragmentation and support the conservation of the species, goods and services found within the entire mountain range.

The vegetation of the BPNP is dominated by a mixture of evergreen and deciduous-evergreen forest, lower montane forest within the wetter valleys and sheltered slopes, and drier slopes consisting mostly of woodlands. In total, 15 different types of vegetation communities have been described in this area (inclusive of the aforementioned), in addition to other land uses/types (mostly agricultural areas). Rural communities surounding the BPNP include John Hughes, , Cades Bay, Urlings, Johnson Point, Bendals, Bolans, Ffryes development, Crabbe hill, Jolly Harbour, Sweets and Jennings.Economic activities within and adjacent to the area include hotels (Carlisle Bay, Curtain Bluff, Blue Herron, Coco Beach, Jolly Beach), ecotourism resorts (Antigua Rainforest Canopy Tours, South Coast Horizons), Agricultural Stations (Claremont Farms, Cades Bay Pineapple Station, Christian Valley Agricultural Station), and the Urlings Fisheries Complex. In addition, some local residents engage in small-scale farming of crops and fruits and/or livestock raising, and there are some quarrying and groundwater extraction activities in the area.[1] The BPNP is situated just above the Cades Bay Marine Reserve, one of the premier coastal and marine conservation areas in the country, and establishment of the SMMA will benefit the marine reserve by reducing downstream flows of agricultural chemicals and runoff of soils due to agricultural and forestry activities.

While the Government of Antigua and Barbuda (GoAB) is committed to conserving biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, the country’s high debt ratios, reoccurring crises including hurricanes and increased incidence of vector-borne illnesses have greatly impacted the GoAB’s ability to finance and implement biodiversity and ecological conservation programs. The GoAB would like to achieve its national biodiversity preservation goals by supporting sustainable livelihoods and on finding financing for Antigua and Barbuda’s Protected Areas without an increase in public debt or on-budget public investment.

Purpose of consultancy

The ecosystem goods and services provided by the SMMA are vast. The goal of the protected area business plan is to guide the financial development which will be required to fully implement management practices as well as identify financial sources and opportunities provided by the protected area with the goal of focusing on triple bottom line revenue generation that promote protected area conservation goals.  

The business plan should include (not limited to) the following:

1. A Costing analysis: which outlines the estimated cost involved in managing the protected area. For this component the consultant will need to make estimates based on the best available data since the SMMA is not yet officially declared. While there is no management plan for the SMMA, the Boggy Peak National Park management plan (which is currently under development and will be completed by June 2019) will be available to the consultant as a guide for the management of the entire area. Moreover, the Wallings Nature reserve is currently operational and could provide further input. The plan should include cost estimates for the following:
   1. Administration and general operations;
   2. Surveillance and enforcement;
   3. Monitoring, evaluation and research;
   4. Equipment and maintenance, including physical infrastructure to be purchased or maintained on a recurring basis;
   5. Outreach and education;
   6. Alternative income generation programs; and
   7. Any other activities or programs vital to the successful management of the site

(The costing analysis can be a range of figures that represent the financial needs for basic to optimal management and should take into consideration whether the system is managed solely by the Government or in partnership with a private operator through a BOT or OMM agreement).

 

2. A Revenue Analysis: which is the analysis of current and potential revenue-generating opportunities.

3. A Long-Term Financial Plan: which is a detailed multi-year financial plan (10 years is ideal) that incorporates the figures from the costing and revenue analysis. It should also include the following:

1. Costs:
   • Protected area start-up costs transitioning to recurring costs;
   • Maintenance or improvements to infrastructure;
   • Periodic upgrading/purchase of equipment/technology;
   • Additional costs due to future threats; and
   • Inflation and/or market fluctuations
2. Revenues:
   • Projected growth in endowment capital through interest earned and/or fundraising, noting that: Endowment funds are generally undercapitalized at the outset; and it will take at least one year after an endowment fund is established before any income generated on the capital will be available for use.
   • Best estimates of future revenue streams, noting that: Projections should be estimated conservatively; it may make sense to ascribe percentage confidence levels or even apply risk discounts to assist with planning; Capital investments may be required to pursue some revenue streams (e.g. building roads and facilities for tourism, conducting enhanced monitoring for carbon offset program); and Income from certain activities (e.g., ecotourism, carbon) may be limited in early years and grow slowly over time.

The financial plan may include two or three scenarios representing best, worst and likely cases for markets, revenues, etc. The financial plan should be adaptable, so that updates can be easily made by the protected area managers to costs, revenues and other variables in the projections. It is important that the document should be easy to understand by those who will actually be managing the finances for the protected area.

4. A business plan narrative: which should identify the area’s key financial goals, how it will achieve them and what milestones should be used to measure progress. While the audience of the detailed long-term financial plan is primarily the protected area managers, the narrative section of the business plan should be designed to serve as a marketing and communications tool for the protected area. The audience is likely to include Ministers of Government, donors, government agencies and investors of various types. Therefore, the business plan should be clear and compelling, and should inspire confidence in the level of financial capacity of the protected area managers.

 

The Components of the Narrative should include:

 

• A general description of the site and its management structure based on the management plan and best available data;
• Key sections of the financial plan (often displayed in charts and tables) along with a description of methods and assumptions;
• An overview of the “goods and services” that the site provides and the markets and competition that may exist for those goods and services now and in the future;
• A detailed assessment of the start-up and ongoing costs of pursuing the most viable sources of revenue for the site (often two or three sources);
• A detailed assessment of the assumed benefits and income from those revenue streams, along with an assessment of risk;
• An assessment of the legal and political framework as it relates to pursing those revenue streams (e.g. whether tourism revenues will be directed at the specific PA or whether they must be submitted to the central government budget, whether the protected area has the legal authority to sell biodiversity or other ecosystem service credits);
• A discussion of the anticipated endowment fund’s role in the financial plan and general structure; and
• Detailed strategies, next steps, activities and investments required to capitalize on the most viable opportunities. This may include a short-term fundraising strategy to raise the needed capital to pursue a particular strategy.

The GoAB has established a Special Fund, the Sustainable Island Resources Framework (SIRF) Fund, to serve as the primary channel for environmental, climate mitigation and adaptation funding from international, regional and domestic sources. Established under the Environmental Protection and Management Bill, 2019 (a repeal and replace of the 2015 Act) the SIRF Fund is designed to be self-sustaining and to provide the framework financial mechanism to implement the EPMB. By serving as a sustainable financing mechanism for environment-related finance and technical assistance, the SIRF Fund is designed to catalyse internal and external funding sources to enable the country to meet its biodiversity, climate and environmental sustainability goals in a coordinated, systematic and cost-effective manner.

The objective(s) of the Consultancy is/are

1. Develop a ten-year strategic Protected Area System Business Plan for Antigua and Barbuda. The plan should be aligned with national goals and crosscutting policies, including, but not limited to: 
   1. the Medium Term Development Strategy,
   2. the Tourism Plan,
   3. the Sustainable Procurement Policy,
   4. the National Energy Plan, and
   5. the Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement.
2. Develop a Site-level business plan for the Boggy Peak National Park

3. Scope of Work

The scope of work is understood to cover all the activities necessary to accomplish the stated objectives of the project including but not limited to the following:

1. Conduct desktop research and communicate with all relevant stakeholders to acquire necessary information regarding costs and revenue streams
2. Develop national and site-level protected area business plans
3. Coordinate with the Protected Area Financing Task Force established by the Board of the SIRF Fund (this task force will include the Planning and Policy Unit within the Ministry of Finance, the private sector and other relevant persons)
4. Assess existing Protected Area financing mechanisms
5. Develop and/or strengthen potential Protected Area financing instruments, especially strengthening mechanisms for collecting Protected Area visitor fees.
6. Develop opportunities to focus on triple bottom line revenue generation that promote the SMMA

4. Deliverables

The consultant will provide the following outputs:

1. Strategic Business Plan for the Boggy Peak National Park based on the Boggy Peak National Park Management Plan
2. Ten-year strategic Protected Area System Business Plan developed for triple bottom line revenue generation for Antigua and Barbuda  

5. Reporting Requirements

 

Under the general supervision of Board of the SIRF Fund, the Consultant will be contracted to undertake and complete the specified activities, outlined in Section 3 – Scope of Work.

Seven (7) working days after the contract or agreement has been signed by the consultant and the Department of Environment (DoE), the consultant will submit a detailed Work Plan, inclusive of timelines for the submission of monthly and final reports.

Within fifteen (15) working days of completing the specified scope of work, the consultant will prepare and submit to the DoE, a Final Report.

The Final Report should be submitted electronically to Helena Jeffery Brown in Microsoft Word via Smartsheet. The Final Report should also be accompanied by a signed invoice in the amount claimed by the Consultant in Eastern Caribbean Dollars.  The invoice should include full banking instructions in order to facilitate wire transfer of funds by DoE.

6. Duration

The assignment should not exceed a total of 9 months for the Consultant.

 

7. Required Qualifications and Experience

• Advanced university degree (Masters or equivalent), preferably in Economics. A first level university degree with a relevant combination of professional training, certification and experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
• Minimum of 5 years working experience in protected area financing and environmental management;
• Work experience in the Caribbean or Small Island Developing States;
• Excellent English Language skills;
• Highly developed communication skills, including ability to draft/edit texts and to articulate ideas in a clear, concise style to a variety of audiences;
• Ability to identify strategic issues, opportunities and risks and communicate broad and compelling organizational direction;
• Advanced MS Office skills

 

8. Evaluation Criteria

 

The evaluation criteria and weightings that will be applied to this TOR are as follows:

Category	Description	Weighting
1	Qualifications of consultant and availability of named individuals including national experts	25
2	Adherence to TOR specifications and related requirements: Clear understanding of required deliverables	35
3	Experience with similar work	25
4	Demonstrated track record of success, supported by references	15
	Total	100