Call for Consultancies – Implementation of Exemplary Business Models in the GCF Knuckles project area

Reference number: 2641

Job status: In-progress

Job category: Consultancy

Duty station: Colombo, with travel to Project sites as required, Sri Lanka

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Landscape Alliance

Landscape Alliance transforms science into action, unlocking the power of trees, forests and agroforestry landscapes to
advance planetary health and human well-being. Landscape Alliance is the operating name of the Center for International
Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the International Centre for Research on Agroforestry (ICRAF). CIFOR and ICRAF are
independent International Organizations and CGIAR Research Centers.

Landscape Alliance is looking for a

Call for Consultancies – Implementation of Exemplary Business Models in the GCF Knuckles project area

Overview

The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land & Irrigation of Sri Lanka (“MoALLI”), in partnership with the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (“ICRAF”) is implementing the project titled “Strengthening Climate Resilience for Subsistence Farmers and Agricultural Plantation Communities Residing in the Vulnerable River Basins, Watershed Areas and Downstream of the Knuckles Mountain Range Catchment of Sri Lanka” (hereinafter referred to as the “GCF Knuckles Project” or the “Project”).

The Knuckles region is endowed with unique biodiversity and traditional ecological knowledge systems that present exceptional opportunities for the development of high-value spice and herb value chains, with strong potential for pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and cosmetic applications, as well as export markets, while simultaneously supporting biodiversity conservation. The region’s elevation gradients, microclimatic variations, and rich cultural heritage create favourable conditions for the cultivation of premium medicinal and aromatic plants.

In furtherance of the foregoing, ICRAF, in its capacity as an Executing Entity of the GCF Knuckles Project, hereby invites Expressions of Interest (“EoI”) from qualified and experienced consulting firms, institutions, individuals or consortia (each, a “Consultant” or an “Applicant”) in value-chain development for the implementation of Exemplary Business Models (“BMs”) within the GCF Knuckles Project area, on the terms set out in this document.

Duties and responsibilities

The
overall objective of the assignment is to develop and operationalize
location-specific, commercially viable, and climate-resilient exemplary
Business Models at enterprise level in value chains of coffee, spices
(including pepper), herbs, rice, tourism, and processed foods within the GCF
Knuckles Project area, thereby strengthening the livelihoods and climate
resilience of subsistence farmers and agricultural plantation communities,
while contributing to the conservation of the Knuckles Mountain Range
catchment.

Geographic coverage

The assignment shall cover the GCF Knuckles Project
area in its entirety.

Scope

The scope of work shall specifically encompass:

• Implementation
  of the exemplary coffee and pepper Business Models at enterprise-level in the
  Hulu Ganga sub-watershed and other priority areas of the project to be combined
  with Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) mechanisms, Sustainable Land
  Management (SLM) and Green Value-Chain (GVC) development, where appropriate and
  feasible; and

• Incubation
  of twelve (12) Business Models at enterprise-level in value chains of tourism,
  specialty rice, processed foods, spices and herbs, within the priority areas
  previously identified within the Project boundaries.

Role of ICRAF

ICRAF, as the Executing Entity, shall provide the Consultant with the
following:

• Share
  knowledge gained through previous studies conducted under sub-contractors of
  ICRAF, including Farmer-specific constraints and issues affecting efficient
  cultivation and productivity, market information in relation to supply and
  demand trends, aggregation, processing, quality, and market access
  requirements, details of existing farmer/producer groups, community-based organizations
  (CBOs), and other relevant value chain actors and resources; climate risk
  analysis and technical information on value-chain level business models
  developed under the Project.

• Necessary
  technical and finance assistance for required infrastructure as agreed upon.

Summary of
responsibilities

1.

2.

The
Consultant shall undertake, but shall not be limited to, the following tasks:

Development of Location-Specific
Business Models

• Facilitate
  existing business models to scale up benefiting the local communities,
  streamlining business activities, making them more inclusive, and catering to
  the project objectives.

• Based
  on the value chain-level Business Models identified previously, support
  enterprise-level business model incubation among cooperatives and other SMEs.
  It involves smallholders transforming early-stage, innovative ideas into
  independent, scalable ventures which respond to the market opportunities
  identified and are adapted to local conditions and opportunities.

• Map and
  connect existing resources, capacities, infrastructure, services, knowledge,
  finance, and market opportunities optimizing the operations in the value chain
  developments liaising with enterprise forums and other relevant governance
  structures in operation (including what to be established).

• Facilitate
  beneficiaries to develop their own bankable business plans, co-designing each
  Business Model’s value proposition, target beneficiaries, products/services,
  revenue streams, and cost structure.

• Identify
  gaps between the resources/capacities and market requirements to be met and
  develop a capacity building program to address these gaps.

• Implement
  the capacity building program through delivery of technical assistance and
  training and, where appropriate and feasible, connecting to governmental and
  non-governmental organizations offering complementary capacity building.

• Identify
  opportunities and needs for mobilizing responsible finance for the start-up and
  maturation phases, including private-sector investment and Payments for
  Ecosystem Services or other forms of co-financing.

• Identify
  the conditions required for each incubated Business Model to achieve economic,
  social and environmental sustainability beyond the period of Project support.

• Identify
  the specific gaps that must be addressed to operationalize the Business Models.

Identification of Key Players and
Beneficiaries

• Identify
  and map all key actors, including but not limited to farmers/producer groups,
  CBOs, input suppliers, service providers (technical, business, financial),
  aggregators/processors, traders/buyers, financial institutions, responsible
  investors, government agencies, and intermediaries.

• Define
  the roles, responsibilities, incentives, and expected benefits of each actor.

• Identify
  the direct and indirect beneficiaries of each Business Model.

Capacity Building, Intermediary
Mechanism and Institutional Arrangements

• Develop
  road maps for the incubation for each selected cooperative or other SME for the
  project lifetime and beyond. This may include both the technical and financial
  training modules including financial literacy improving the financial acumen of
  the beneficiaries.

• Determine
  which identified Capacity Development (CapDev) needs can be addressed through
  own delivery of technical assistance and training, and which require the
  involvement of complementary intermediary/facilitating entities (governmental
  or non-governmental service providers).

• Establish
  linkages between farmers/CBOs and relevant value chain actors through the
  intermediary entities.

• Define
  the roles, responsibilities, incentives, and accountability, and modalities of
  the intermediary entities.

• Facilitate
  the operationalization of, and coordination among, participating actors.

• Develop
  appropriate governance, decision-making and monitoring mechanisms.

Resource-Gap Assessment and
Costing

• Identify
  gaps in infrastructure, equipment, working capital, market information,
  technical services, and institutional arrangements.

• Develop
  detailed costing for the establishment and operation of the incubated Business
  Models.

• Clearly
  distinguish between existing resources/contributions; contributions expected
  from actors; initial Project investment; recurring operational costs; and
  potential future financing.

• Prepare
  the proposed Project support package for ICRAF’s review and approval.

Monitoring, Evaluation and
Learning (MEL) Framework

Develop and implement a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)
framework to assess, inter alia:

• Business
  Model performance and financial viability.

• Farmer
  participation and benefits.

• Number
  of households benefiting.

• Number
  of people with additional full-time and partial employment.

• Production
  and productivity improvements.

• Market
  access and sales (volumes and values).

• Income/value
  captured by different actors.

• Performance
  of the intermediary entities.

• Resource
  utilization.

• Environmental
  and watershed-related outcomes, where relevant.

• Lessons
  learned and adaptations required during implementation.

Risk Assessment, Mitigation and
Adaptive Management

• Identify
  technical, climatic, market, financial, institutional, and social risks.

• Develop
  a risk matrix comprising risk description; likelihood and impact; early-warning
  indicators; mitigation measures; and responsible party.

• Establish
  an adaptive management mechanism to modify Business Models based on incubation
  experience and climate vulnerabilities.

• Include
  contingency measures for major disruptions.

Implementation

• Ensure
  the expansion of existing business models and establishment and up-running of
  the incubated Business Models successfully over a period of eighteen (18)
  months with.

• Co-create
  bankable business plans, theory of change, activity plan, and business
  mentoring plan

• Facilitation
  to establish required infrastructure as agreed.

• Establishing
  intermediary mechanisms and institutional linkages.

• Provision
  of capacity-development support as required.

Expected outcomes of the
assignment

• Providing
  scaling up support for at least ten (10) lead firms in each business
  category—spices and herbs, tourism, and food processing—and support at least
  three (3) lead firms under the rice business model.

• Provide
  incubation support for at least fifteen (15) start-ups in each business
  category and at least three (3) start-ups under the rice business model.

• Create
  at least twenty (20) employment opportunities in each business, with a
  satisfactory level of women’s participation.

• Engage
  at least eight (8) households in each business category.

Documentation, Learning and
Knowledge Management

• Document
  the implementation process, challenges, innovations, and lessons learned.

• Training
  modules, curriculars, handbooks, trainer guides in local languages.

• Business
  cases, capturing evidence of what works and what does not work under different
  local conditions.

• Promotional
  materials developed for beneficiary enterprises.

• Maintain
  records of costs, revenues, partnerships, and outcomes.

Scale-Up and Exit Strategy

• Define
  criteria for continuation, modification, replication, scaling-up, or
  discontinuation of each incubated Business Model.

• Develop
  a scale-up pathway for successful Business Models.

• Define
  how ownership and responsibility will transition to local/private-sector actors
  following the conclusion of Project support.

• Ensure
  that each Business Model has a clear pathway toward financial and institutional
  sustainability.

Key coordination/interactions

• Internally
  with ICRAF project team.

• Externally
  with the staff of Project Management Unit of MoALLI, other partner ministries,
  consultants and stakeholders.

Education, knowledge and experience

The Consultant shall submit the following deliverables, in a format acceptable to ICRAF and within the timelines to be confirmed in the contract:

• Within the first month of the assignment
• Inception Report, including a detailed work plan and methodology
• List of selected cooperatives and other SMEs to be supported in business model incubation, including location- and value chain-specific Business Model design elements
• Stakeholder mapping and beneficiary identification report
• Institutional and intermediary arrangement framework
• Resource-gap assessment and detailed costing report
• Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) framework
• Risk matrix and adaptive management plan
• Copies of the bankable business plans
• For the rest of the contract period with the implementation of BMs
• Business mentoring plan
• Ground level implementation of BMs with relevant stakeholders
• Attend to capacity development needs of stakeholders
• Identify infrastructure and equipment needs and assist in mobilizing resources for infrastructure establishment and acquisition of equipment
• Monthly progress reports (physical and financial) along with ground level implementation of BMs
• Documentation and lesson-learned reports as required
• Scale-up and exit strategy report
• During the last month of the contract – Final Report

Terms and conditions

• This is a consultancy position.
• The assignment shall be implemented over a period of eighteen (18) months from the date of contract signing, subject to satisfactory performance and any extension as may be agreed in writing between the Parties.
• This is a Call for Expressions of Interest only and does not constitute a solicitation of proposals, a tender, or an offer by ICRAF to enter into any contract.
• ICRAF reserves the right, at its sole discretion and without incurring any liability to any Applicant, to accept or reject any or all Expressions of Interest, to annul this process at any stage, or to modify the scope of the assignment prior to the issuance of any contract.
• Submission of an Expression of Interest does not entitle the Applicant to any claim, compensation, or reimbursement of costs incurred in its preparation or submission.
• All information submitted in connection with this Call shall be treated as confidential by ICRAF and shall be used solely for the purpose of evaluating the Expression of Interest.
• Work location: Colombo, with travel to Project sites as required.

Application process

• The application deadline is 17 November 2026, 05.00 pm IST.
• Only shortlisted Applicants will be invited to submit a full technical and financial proposal; ICRAF is under no obligation to communicate the outcome of the evaluation to unsuccessful Applicants.
• Intellectual Property: All products, deliverables, and intellectual property developed under this contract shall become the exclusive property of the GCF Knuckles Project, upon contract completion and final payment. This ownership transfer includes all technical reports, databases, models, software tools, training materials, and other knowledge products created during contract implementation.
• Expressions of Interest that meet the eligibility requirements shall be evaluated on the basis of: (i) relevance and quality of institutional and team experience; (ii) demonstrated technical capacity in the relevant value chains; (iii) proposed approach and understanding of the assignment; and (iv) financial and organizational capacity. Shortlisted Applicants will be invited to submit full technical and financial proposals, which shall be evaluated in accordance with ICRAF’s standard procurement procedures.
• Interested and qualified consulting firms, institutions, individuals or consortia are requested to submit an Expression of Interest comprising the following:

? A cover letter expressing interest in the assignment.

? A technical profile of the firm/institution, including a list of capacities and skills in response to the requirements listed above and other relevant past experience on comparable assignments

? Curriculum Vitae(e) of key proposed personnel.

? A brief statement of the proposed technical approach and methodology (not exceeding 10 pages).

? Contact details of at least two (2) references for similar assignments completed within the preceding five (5) years.

To apply, please visit our career site at:

https://www.landscapealliance.org/about/work-with-us/

To learn more about Landscape Alliance, please visit our websites at:

https://www.landscapealliance.org/

Landscape Alliance promotes Gender Diversity – Applications from women professionals are encouraged.

Landscape Alliance is an equal opportunity employer. It fosters a multicultural work environment that values gender equality, teamwork, and respect for diversity.