To interested companies.

Request for Proposal No.: RFP-SOM-HGA-2026-002 - CONSULTANCY FOR DEVELOMENT OF MARKET SYSTEM ACTION PLANS WITH PRODUCER AND MARKETING ASSOCIATIONS

Dear Sir/Madam,

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC), as part of the Somali Resilience Programme (SomReP), is implementing the SIDA III Project: Inclusive Livelihoods for Vulnerable Pastoral Groups in Somaliland and Puntland. The project aims to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable pastoral, agro-pastoral, and peri-urban communities through improved livelihood opportunities, enhanced market access, and sustainable economic growth.

To support the achievement of Outcome 3 of the project, DRC intends to develop Market System Action Plans with selected producer and marketing associations in Arabsiyo, Baligubadle, Jaleelo, and Salahley. The action plans will provide practical guidance for improving market access, strengthening producer organizations, enhancing market linkages, and addressing key constraints within targeted value chains.

In this regard, DRC Somaliland invites qualified consulting firms with demonstrated experience in market systems development, value chain analysis, livelihoods programming, and producer organization strengthening to submit technical and financial proposals for a Consultancy to Conduct Market System Assessments and Develop Market System Action Plans.

The consultancy will involve conducting market systems and value chain assessments in Arabsiyo, Baligubadle, and Jaleelo; reviewing and synthesizing assessment findings from Salahley; assessing the capacity of selected producer and marketing associations; facilitating participatory action planning sessions; and developing practical Market System Action Plans for all four target locations.

Your proposal must be expressed in English and valid for a minimum period of 60 days.

I.                     Tender Details

The Tender details are as follows:

Line

Item

Time, date, address as appropriate

1.RFP published

09th June 2026

2.Closing date for clarifications

18th June 2026 at 05:00 PM

3.Closing date and time for receipt of Tenders

22nd June 2026 at 11:59 PM

4.Tender Opening Location

DRC Hargeisa office and Virtual on teams

5.Tender Opening Date and time

23rd June 2026 - TBC

PLEASE NOTE: NO BIDS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THE ABOVE CLOSING TIME AND DATE

II.                   Important information regarding this RFP:

This RFP is launched for the purpose of establishing a contract for the consultancy to develop market system action plans with producer and marketing associations.

•       DRC may choose to cancel the contract if deemed necessary.

•       The expected maximum duration of this service shall be 60 days from the date of Contract signing. DRC may terminate the contract if the supplier fails to deliver services on time.

•       No advance payment will be paid to the awarded Consultant. The awarded Consultant is expected to mobilize own resources for the provision of the contracted services.

•       Interested consultant firms are requested to submit their proposed budget, encompassing all project-related costs (work payments, Enumerators, travel, accommodation, etc.).

III.                 Selection and Award Criteria

The criteria for awarding contracts resulting from this Tender is based on ‘best value for money’. For the purpose of all tenders DRC defines best value for money as:

Best value for money should not be equated with the lowest initial bid option. It requires an integrated assessment of technical, organizational, and pricing factors in light of their relative importance (i.e., reliability, quality, experiences, and reputation, past performance, cost/fee realism, delivery time, reasonableness, need for standardization, and other criteria depending on the item to be procured).

For all bids deemed technically compliant as per the specification stipulated in Annex F – Terms of Reference (ToR), DRC will give a weighted combined technical and financial score. The weighted score will determine the contract award.

• Qualifications and relevance of proposed experts.
• Please provide the CVs of the relevant proposed team members.

i.                     Market Systems and Value Chain Expert (Lead Consultant) Bachelor’s or master’s degree in Agricultural Economics, Agribusiness, Economics, Development Studies, Business Administration, Rural Development, or a related field. Minimum 5 years’ experience in market systems development, value chain analysis, livelihoods and economic recovery programming, private sector engagement, producer group support, and development of market action plans or market linkage strategies. ii.                   Economic Recovery / Livelihoods Specialist: Bachelor’s degree in Agribusiness, Business Administration, Agriculture, Economics, Development Studies, or a related field. Minimum 3 years’ experience working with producer groups, cooperatives, marketing associations, MSMEs, VSLAs, and community-based economic groups, including governance strengthening, business planning, aggregation, collective marketing, and buyer linkages. iii.                  Data Analyst / Report Writer: bachelor’s or master’s degree in economics, Development Studies, Business, Social Sciences, or a related field. Minimum 3 years’ experience in data analysis, synthesis of assessment findings, report writing, and preparation of high-quality technical reports and recommendations.

o    Proposed experts exceed the required academic qualifications and years of relevant experience, and the CVs demonstrate strong technical relevance to the assignment across market systems development, value chain analysis, livelihoods/economic recovery, producer/marketing association support, private sector engagement, data analysis, and technical report writing = 10 marks

o    Proposed experts meet the required academic qualifications and minimum years of relevant experience, and the CVs demonstrate adequate technical relevance to the assignment = 5 marks

o    Proposed experts have the required academic qualifications but have less than the required years of relevant experience, or the CVs show limited direct experience in key areas required for the assignment = 4 marks

Proposed experts do not meet the minimum qualifications and experience, CVs are weak or incomplete, or the proposed team does not demonstrate adequate capacity to deliver the assignment = 1 mark

A.                  Email submission No hard copy bids will be accepted. All bids should be submitted by email ONLY to the following dedicated, controlled, & secure email address:

[email protected]

When Bids are emailed, the following conditions shall be complied with:

·         The RFP number shall be inserted in the Subject Heading of the email.

·         Bid documents required, shall be included as an attachment to the email in PDF, JPEG, TIF format, or the same type of files provided as a ZIP file. Documents in MS Word or excel formats, will result in the bid being disqualified.

·         Email attachments shall not exceed 4MB; otherwise, the bidder shall send his bid in multiple emails.

Failure to comply with the above may disqualify the Bid.

DRC is not responsible for the failure of the Internet, network, server, or any other hardware, or software, used by either the Bidder or DRC in the processing of emails.

DRC is not responsible for the non-receipt of Bids submitted by email as part of the e-Tendering process.

Bids can be submitted electronically/Via email ONLY.