INTRODUCTION TO GGGI

The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization dedicated to supporting and promoting strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth in developing countries and emerging economies. To learn more please visit about GGGI web page.

GENERAL INFORMATION

• Project: Mainstreaming Bioeconomy workstreams in GGGI regions and country programs
• Duty Station: Colombia
• Contract Duration: 30 August to 31 December 2024.
• Consultant Level: 2
• Total Fees: USD 9,000

PROJECT BACKGROUND

Since 2019, the Colombian Government and GGGI have been supporting the development of the bioeconomy sector and the implementation of the long-term Green Growth Policy (GGP). This has been achieved via technical interventions such as the development of:

• An online Green Growth Course (including a Bioeconomy module).
• The design and development of the National Bioeconomy Strategy: “For a living and diverse Colombia Power: towards a knowledge-driven Society”.
• The design, launch, and scale-up of the Bioeconomy Projects Acceleration Mechanism – MAPBIO.
• The development of bioeconomy Open Innovation challenges to seek solutions through science, technology, and innovation to business and/or sectoral problems that can be addressed by biotechnology.
• The set up of an interinstitutional bioeconomy taskforce that includes the ministries of Commerce, Tourism, and Industry; Science, Technology, and Innovation; and Environment and Sustainable Development.

Such experience can be summarised in the development of 3 tools: i) the Accelerator Mechanism for Bioeconomy Businesses (MAPBIO), ii) the Open Innovation Challenge, and iii) the Bioeconomy Taskforce.

It took a 5-year journey to improve the design of these three critical tools for developing Colombia’s bioeconomy sector. This learning curve represented a significant investment in research, hands-on learning, thoughtful design, and rigorous validation through practical application. Sharing this unique experience and lessons learned represents an essential chance for other countries to adapt lessons learned by the Colombia country program while saving investment in time and money in the design of bioeconomy interventions.

Bioeconomy is gaining international attention from donors, investors, and politicians. Now, it is easier to hear about the necessity of promoting bioeconomy Indigenous alternatives for Brazilian communities to maintain the Amazon Forest. GGGI can contribute to the acceleration of bioeconomy workstreams around different countries. However, there is currently no established portfolio of programs in this area, especially in LAC and Africa, where there is an opportunity window to develop the bioeconomy sector due to its natural capital, research capabilities, rural community engagement, and donor willingness to work in those regions.

After GGGI’s spring meeting of 2024, there is a recognized need to create a flagship publication based on the expertise of GGGI Colombia, which aims to disseminate the tools, lessons learned, and recommendations that have been produced to support the effective development of bioeconomy projects.

GGGI will gather all the technical-knowledge documents generated over the experience of providing technical support to the government. For example, the 25 high-added value bioproducts accelerated by MAPBIO and the Open Innovation Challenges or the series of recommendations for interinstitutional articulation made by the bioeconomy taskforce initiative.

GGGI Colombia will also review bioeconomy research papers and other international cooperation programs that support the development of the bioeconomy sector, generating an updated publication that includes the latest main findings. In addition, we will conduct interviews with significant individuals who were involved in the program to get knowledge and insights regarding the outcomes and valuable insights received (MAPBIO beneficiaries, task force ministries representatives, and universities, among others).

The flagship will contain the following sections (subject to be modified):

1. Context and relevance of the bioeconomy sector, challenges and opportunities.
2. Biotech business opportunities.
3. The bioeconomy sector in Colombia:
   1. The policy development journey.
   2. Strategic areas and key stakeholders.
   3. Bioeconomy horizons.
   4. Contributions and challenges for gender equality and poverty erradication.
4. Implementation mechanisms:
   1. Accelerator Mechanism for Bioeconomy Businesses (MAPBIO).
   2. The Open Innovation Challenge.
   3. The Bioeconomy Taskforce.
5. Future perspectives and opportunities.

To present the insights of the report and receive feedback, GGGI (together with LAC/Colombian representatives) will present the results and methodologies developed at the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2024, that will take place in Nairobi, Kenya. During the workshop, GGGI will screen activities, interests, and opportunities for bioeconomy initiatives in prioritized countries from the Latin American / the Caribbean – LAC, African, and Middle East and Northern Africa – MENA regions, to propose programs, mechanisms, and tools. Additionally, it will create a comprehensive list of funding sources, partners, and stakeholders to implement bioeconomy projects in these countries. Failure to pursue this technical intervention wastes the accumulated knowledge and resources earned through years of effort and exposes countries to obstacles while learning by doing.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

GGGI seeks to recruit a bioeconomy flagship consultant to support GGGI Colombia team to gather and analyze relevant documents, lessons learned and good practices, identify key stakeholders, prioritize and conduct interviews, and organize information in a comprehensive manner in order to support the Colombia Team in writing the flagship publication.

SCOPE OF WORK

The consultant is expected to do the following activities:

• Design the scope and structure of the flagship, gathering information from the last four years’ GGGI activities on the Bioeconomy workstream in Colombia.
• Conduct interviews with key stakeholders about the program’s results and lessons learned, prioritizing women-led SMEs and Indigenous or Afro Colombian SMES, or SMES whose workforce and value chains are composed by women, Indigenous and/or Afro Colombian people.
• Together with the Colombia Team, draft and write the publication according to the scope and structure, creating a clear, succinct, and compelling text that effectively communicates experiences and outcomes.
• Validate communication standards, review and gather feedback from key stakeholders (MinCiencias, MinAmbiente, and MinComercio) and GGGI Headquarters-HQ.
• Elaborate on the communication material, including PPT presentations and an executive summary (for different audiences such as women, young, SMEs, government, and private sector) to distribute in other GGGI country programs worldwide.

The consultant must submit the following deliverables:

1. Consultancy Workplan: The consultant must prepare a detailed workplan outlining the timeline of primary activities, methodology, milestones, validation meetings, and partial and final deliverables.

2. Initial assessment report:The document must include but is not limited to:

• Design and approach of the interviews (including questions and a list of relevant stakeholders to be interviewed).
• Revision of bioeconomy GGGI acceleration mechanisms such as MAPBIO, bioeconomy taskforce, and the Open Innovation Challenges.
• Maing findings and approaches that could be mainstreamed to different countries and regions.

3.Draft bioeconomy flagship document: The document must include but is not limited to:

a. Context and relevance of the bioeconomy sector, challenges and opportunities.

b. Biotech business opportunities.

c. The bioeconomy sector in Colombia:

• The policy development journey.
• Strategic areas and key stakeholders.
• Bioeconomy horizons.
• Contributions and challenges for gender equality and poverty erradication.

d. Implementation mechanisms:

• Accelerator Mechanism for Bioeconomy Businesses (MAPBIO).
• The Open Innovation Challenge.
• The Bioeconomy Taskforce.

e. Future perspectives and opportunities

4. Final bioeconomy flagship document: The document must include a final version of the bioeconomy flagship publication including the feedback received from GGGI colleagues, key stakeholders, interviewed beneficiaries, as follows:

a. Context and relevance of the bioeconomy sector, challenges and opportunities

b. Biotech business opportunities

c. The bioeconomy sector in Colombia:

• The policy development journey
• Strategic areas and key stakeholders
• Bioeconomy horizons
• Contributions and challenges for gender equality and poverty erradication.

d. Implementation mechanisms:

• Accelerator Mechanism for Bioeconomy Businesses (MAPBIO).
• The Open Innovation Challenge.
• The Bioeconomy Taskforce.

e. Future perspectives and opportunities.

f. A PPT file including the main aspects of the bioeconomy flagship publication

g. A compilatory document of the feedback received by GGGI and external stakeholders.

DELIVERABLES, TIMELINES AND PAYMENTS

Reporting arrangements

The Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Senior Associate shall provide supervision to ensure the timely and quality delivery of products outlined in the contractual objective.

The consultant’s work progress will be monitored primarily through periodic face-to-face (or virtual) review meetings, and periodicity will be previously agreed with the Contract Supervisor. In these meetings, it will be addressed, among other things, the overview of the contractual obligations, the development of activities, detailed information on achieved milestones, actual achievements made against the timeline initially set, and any other relevant progress details.

GGGI’s supervisor must approve all deliverables. All Deliverables must be completed in Spanish and English and must be completed by GGGI’s formatting requirements and submitted with proof of editable file back-up (e.g., .docx, .pptx) in the GGGI SharePoint system. Final products must be developed according to standard templates that GGGI will provide the Consultant. Where relevant, the Consultant shall also offer sets of raw data, research materials, and meeting notes related to the contractual objective.

Suggested methodology and competence requirements

The consultant should follow the specific methods provided by the Contract Supervisor. The consultant will make the best use of both primary and secondary sources of information to develop activities defined under the contract objective.

The consultant should demonstrate the credentials described below.

EXPERTISE REQUIRED

Academic qualifications:

• An Advanced Degree (MSc or MA) in social studies, sustainable development, climate change, environmental economics, pedagogy, or related fields is required.

Experience:

• Demonstrated experience writing international development reports.
• Preferred three (3) years of proven experience in bioeconomy thematic areas is a plus.
• Proven track record of working with international institutions, private sector, and government institutions on knowledge creation and related activities.
• Outstanding communication skills both in writing and in presentation.
• Excellent analytical and synthesis skills, able to present complex issues in a simple manner and to assess multiple layers of information to arrive at the desired output.
• Fluency in Spanish and English.

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION:

• Selection method/process: Competitive selection.
• Cover Letter, and CV must be sent in English.
• Date to close is Korean Standard Time (KST).
• Timeline of selection : 10 days.