Request for Proposal – LKR land degradation impact consultancy
Summary of procurement
World Resources Institute intends to award a fixed term consultancy contract to individuals or organizational consultants to (1) analyze the socioeconomic impacts of land degradation on food security, income, poverty and labor productivity; (2) to develop a land use land cover analysis and identify potential restoration opportunities in the Lake Kivu & Rusizi River Landscape, building on initial data baseline developed by WRI.
About the World Resources Institute
Founded in 1982, The World Resources Institute (WRI) is a global environmental think tank that goes beyond research to put ideas into action. We work with governments, companies, and civil society to build solutions to urgent environmental challenges. WRI’s transformative ideas protect the earth and promote development because sustainability is essential to meeting human needs and fulfilling human aspirations in the future.
Background
The Lake Kivu and Rusizi River (LKR) landscape, covering Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is a critical ecological and economic zone with over 11 million population as of 2020 across a total area of 13,449 km², divided into 2,706 km² (20.2%) in Burundi, 6,227 km² (46.5%) in DRC, and 4,452 km² (33.3%) in Rwanda (ABAKIR, 2020). This landscape includes Rwanda’s Western province, DRC’s North and South Kivu provinces, and Burundi’s districts of Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rural, Cibitoke, Bubanza, Rumonge, and Bururi (figure 1).
The LKR landscape provides essential ecosystem services such as food, water, and biodiversity; and supports energy generation through hydropower plants. Its rich biodiversity, fertile soils, and freshwater resources sustain vibrant fishing, agriculture, and energy industries, making it indispensable for regional economies. However, rapid population growth, unsustainable agricultural expansion, unregulated charcoal production, and natural resource extraction have contributed to serious environmental challenges, including land degradation, deforestation, and soil erosion on steep, hilly terrain. These pressures not only threaten local ecosystems but also jeopardize the food and water security and the resilience of local communities (GIZ, 2021).
In the Lake Kivu and Rusizi River basin, historical records suggest that the mid-1980s marked a period of significant land cover changes in western Rwanda, which contributed to substantial landscape degradation. During this time, the region experienced deforestation, soil erosion, and unsustainable land-use practices, which disrupted ecological balance and led to severe environmental issues. The degradation has exacerbated natural disasters, with landslides and flooding becoming more frequent and severe, particularly in areas with steep slopes and deforested hills. These events have had lasting impacts on local communities, agriculture, and infrastructure, creating a cycle of vulnerability and degradation in the landscape (Nsengimana et al., 2016).
Despite some records on land use changes in specific parts of western Rwanda, there remains a gap in comprehensive historical data across the entire Lake Kivu and Rusizi River basin. This lack of data complicates efforts to understand the full extent and causes of degradation across the landscape, which is essential for designing effective restoration strategies. Restoration interventions that do not fully address the primary drivers of land degradation might struggle to achieve lasting impact, as they risk overlooking root causes like population pressure, agricultural expansion, and inadequate land management practices. Without a holistic understanding of these drivers, interventions may only offer temporary relief rather than long-term solutions for ecosystem recovery and resilience.
Furthermore, a feasibility study for landscape restoration conducted around the Rusizi River provides initial mapping of parts of the landscape. While additional mapping and geospatial analyses exist, there is inconsistency in target years and land cover classes, making data aggregation a challenge. To create impactful restoration interventions in the Lake Kivu and Rusizi River basin, it is therefore critical to address the landscape’s unique historical context. Comprehensive baseline data, incorporating both historical land use land cover changes and current socio-economic conditions, will be instrumental in guiding strategic and effective restoration efforts that directly mitigate the underlying causes of degradation, enhancing resilience against future environmental challenges (FAO & UNEP, 2020).
WRI is looking for a comprehensive land use and land cover map analysis that provides historical and contextual information about the LKR landscape, forming a critical basis for identifying degraded areas and guiding restoration efforts. This mapping will establish a baseline that captures historical land degradation trends in LKR, along with their biophysical and socio-economic impacts at both local and national levels. Such a foundation is crucial for assessing the severity of degradation and planning effective interventions. Alongside this mapping, gaining insights into farmers’ knowledge, preferences, and perceptions of sustainable agronomic practices, particularly agroecology and regenerative agriculture, will be vital to identify gaps and opportunities for adoption. The baseline data from this study will also serve as a foundation for monitoring and evaluating the long-term impacts of restoration initiatives.
Scope of work
The objective of this 5-month consultancy, spread over 120 days is to (1) analyze the socioeconomic impacts of land degradation on food and nutrition security, income, poverty and labor productivity; (2) to produce a land use land cover change and degradation analysis and potential restoration opportunities in LKR.
First, the consultant will develop an inventory of potential restoration interventions that could reverse the trends of land degradation, particularly those impacting food production and agricultural livelihoods. These interventions will also address the key degradation drivers of affecting food systems.
The consultant will lead primary socioeconomic data collection in the 3 countries of the landscape which will allow the establishment of a socioeconomic baseline for analyzing the impacts of land degradation on the key livelihood aspects of the local communities, including food security, agricultural income, and labor productivity in the LKR.
Second, in line with the second objective, the consultant will begin with developing an inventory of relevant LULC datasets and conducting a thorough desk review to identify key land degradation and land cover change events across LKR, highlighting significant dates. The aim is to establish a foundational understanding of past landscape changes that can inform current and future interventions. Following this review, the consultant will create new geospatial LULC datasets for LKR from 2015 to 2023/2024, capturing data at 3-year intervals. The consultant will integrate the datasets with other information to identify and map out land degradation hotspot across the LKR landscape. Additionally, the consultant will produce maps indicating areas suitable for restoration interventions, distinguishing between tree-based and non-tree-based approaches. This work will provide valuable guidance for targeted restoration strategies within the LKR.
The consultant is expected to:
It is important to note that while the design of the questionnaire and sample protocols will be led by the WRI technical team, the consultant will be responsible for carrying out field data collection activities and day-to-day management of the enumerators. Importantly, the socioeconomic analysis will take into consideration a social gender equity lens.
Finally, the consultant will also be responsible for the writeup of the detailed methodology, data used, and model results. The draft report of the consultancy will be incorporated into the project progress report that WRI core team is developing.
The consultant will report to the LKR Food Systems Specialist and the Quality Data Analyst at WRI and collaborate with other members of the LKR landscape team as needed.
More specifically, the consultant will complete the following activities:
Activity 1: Collect primary socioeconomic data for establishing the baseline and submit preliminary draft report on agronomic and restoration practices for food
Activity 2: Data analysis and drafting technical report
Activity 3: Review and Analysis of Existing Geospatial Layers
Activity 4: Generating New Geospatial LULC Layers
Activity 5: Identifying potential areas for Restoration
Activity 6: Engage in technical discussions and support other project staff as needed
1
Deliverables
Deliverable Number | Deliverable Name | Deliverable Description/ Acceptance Criteria | Delivery Date | Payment upon acceptation of the deliverable by WRI |
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1.1. Inception Report | The report should outline the consultant(s)’ understanding of this assignment as discussed during the inception meeting. It should clearly define the proposed methodology, tools, and analysis methods for the assignment. Additionally, the report should address any adjustments to the deliverable timeline that may be necessary based on insights gained during the inception meeting. | Mid-January 2025 |
20% |
1.2 Developed a list of data required to complete this assignment.
1.3 A document detailing analysis of existing geospatial datasets identified, reviewed and gaps identified. |
Once the list of data is reviewed and agreed upon with WRI, the consultant then can go ahead and start Activity 1 and corresponding deliverables. Completed means meetings to review the content have occurred and content has been approved by WRI.
This deliverable should provide a brief overview of the purpose of the document, key findings from the analysis, and highlights of identified gaps and drivers of degradation. It should capture the existing datasets identified, main insights of the analysis, how the findings relate to the project objectives, and a concise summary of recommendations for addressing the gaps. Completion of this deliverable means meetings held and findings communicated through power point presentation and approved by WRI. |
Mid-January 2025
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2. | 2.1 Conduct primary data collection for analyzing the socioeconomic situations, and farmers context – status, agronomic and restoration practices and their impact on food
2.2 Preliminary draft report for implementing food-restoration integration |
End of January 2025 |
20% |
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3 | Maps showing land use land cover change from 2015 to 2023/2024 | This deliverable should have maps for the years stated and corresponding change maps between the years. It should be accompanied by a document that provides details of methodology, classification scheme, visual and analytical representation of changes in land use and land cover (LULC) over the period from 2015 to 2023/24. It should also detail statistical summaries, to depict the spatial and temporal changes in various land cover types and land uses as well as key observations and recommendations. The deliverable will be deemed complete when meetings have been held with the LKR team and findings from the LULC assessment shared and approved by WRI. | February 2025 | |
4 | Completed maps and documents showing key restoration opportunities and interventions distinguishing between tree based and non-tree-based suitable areas. | The deliverable should present a compilation of maps and supporting documents that identify key restoration opportunities and proposed interventions within the LKR landscape. It should detail the methodology, and the criteria used for identifying the potential areas. The deliverable will be deemed completed when meetings have been held and findings communicated through power point presentation and approved by LKR team | Mid-March 2025 | |
5 | Data analysis and drafting technical report | 5.1 Completed means meetings to review the content have occurred and content has been approved by WRI
5.2 This report outlines all activities carried out under the defined Terms of Reference (ToR). It should include an executive summary, comprehensive overview of the objectives, methodologies, key activities, findings, outcomes, and recommendations. The activity will be deemed completed when the final report has been submitted, final presentation done for WRI team and key stakeholders in the LKR landscape |
End March 2025 | 60% |
1
Timeline
4 months consultancy (spread over 90 days), starting upon the signature of the contract. However, deliverable 1 must be completed by Mid-January 2025 and deliverable 2.1, 2.2 and 3 by 28 February 2025.
Financial support
Compensation will be based on a total fixed fee for delivery of the Blue Paper. Therefore, WRI will not reimburse for miscellaneous costs (e.g., travel, office supplies). Rather, these costs should be built into the total cost of the contract. If the consultant sub-contracts other individuals or organizations to assist in the performance of the services, the consultant shall be responsible for any payments to such individuals or organizations. Each payment will be based on the receipt and acceptance by WRI of a product/deliverable and invoice.
Please note that WRI is an IRS-registered 501(c)3, tax-exempt organization. WRI is not VAT exempt. All prices or quotes should include VAT and tax, as applicable.
GUIDELINES FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION
Required Qualifications
The Lead consultant:
The Consulting team:
Proposal content and grading
Prospective vendors should submit:
1. Technical Proposal (60%)
– Tean Leader: 15 points
– Experts: 10 points
2. Financial Proposal (40%)
Expression of Interest, Deadline for Questions, and Proposal
All expressions of interest and questions about this RFP must be received via email to the contacts below by 22 November 2024, 11pm (Rwandan time). Answers to the questions will be shared will all parties who have asked questions or otherwise expr