Background
Rural development is a process that delivers improvements in the quality of life and economic well-being of people living in relatively isolated and sparsely populated rural areas. Rural development, traditionally, has focused on the exploitation of land-intensive natural resources, such as agriculture and forestry. However, changes in global production networks, increased urbanization and dynamic links between rural and urban environments have changed the character of rural areas. Increasingly tourism, niche products and recreation have replaced resource extraction and agriculture as dominant economic factors.
The need for rural communities to approach development from a wider perspective has created more focus on a broad range of development goals rather than merely creating incentives for agricultural or resource-based businesses. Education, entrepreneurship, physical and social infrastructure, biodiversity protection and enhancement, climate change adaptation and mitigation all play an important role in developing rural regions. Rural development is also characterized by its emphasis on locally produced economic development strategies.
The EU signed an Association Agreement (AA) with Georgia in June 2014. This aims to deepen political and economic relations between the parties and to gradually integrate Georgia into the EU’s internal market. This entails, as one element, creating a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between the EU and Georgia. Under Article 333 of the Association Agreement (Cooperation between the Parties in the field of agriculture and rural development), there is provision for ‘facilitating the mutual understanding of agricultural and rural development policies’. This was the basis for the formulation of a Rural Development Strategy for Georgia which will in turn yield specification of measures which will benefit from funding under the European Neighborhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD).
Rural development has an important role to play in the sustainable development of Georgia. Government of Georgia approved the first ever National Rural Development Strategy and Action Plan in 2017. The goal of the Rural Development Strategy (RDS) for Georgia 2017-2020 is to support Georgia’s sustainable economic development through enhanced social-economic activities in rural areas and improved living condition of rural population. It provides the country’s vision for 2017-2020 in key areas of rural development – growth and diversification of local economies, improvement of social and public services, sustainable use of national resources and local engagement in the development process.
The EU financed and UNDP implemented project “Improving Rural Development in Georgia” (IRDG) specifically targets eight municipalities, one of which is Borjomi municipality. This municipality is known for its strong tourism potential which is, however, not fully exploited. A previous analysis showed that there is a significant coordination problem: Sites and events are not developed in a sufficiently comprehensive and coordinated approach. There is little coordination between Borjomi municipality and its adjacent municipalities.
Duties and Responsibilities
The overall objective of this technical assistance is to support Borjomi municipality and, to the required extent, its neighboring municipalities, to develop a Tourism Master Plan (TMP). The assignment has thus two major components: Process facilitation to enhance understanding and intra- and intermunicipal coordination and cooperation, and provision of technical expertise to actually develop that plan.
Specifically, the Senior Consultant will be expected to:
- Engage with Borjomi municipality and key stakeholders to develop a broad work plan and framework for the assignment;
- Obtain overview over touristic potential and sites (incl. supply and demand for tourist accommodation). Identify further key stakeholders to be involved in the process (incl. neighboring municipalities);
- Deliver first report;
- Engage with Borjomi municipality and key stakeholders to advise on and identify tourism focus/vision – a shared view of the destination’s desired qualities in the long-term (e.g., family, wellness and sports tourism);
- Deliver updated report;
- Based on the identified focus/vision, conduct:
- Destination Assessment – A comprehensive assessment of the destination brand, attractions, product quality, and a thorough assessment of tourism’s enabling environment and policies;
- Focus on Demand – Analysis of visitation levels and travel habits to and within the destination among important niche traveler segments.
- In close collaboration with the stakeholders, review and revise results of the assessments and the destination Vision;
- Deliver updated report;
- Engage in a capacity-building planning exercise with stakeholders of the Master Plan. The TMP of larger Borjomi Municipality tourism area should include at least the following:
- Visitation Goals and Sales Targets – Targets for visitor arrivals in the short-term and long-term delineated by visitor profile;
- Product Development Action Plan – Approach for the creation or improvement of tours, lodging, attractions, events, and visitor services that can enhance the visitor experience. Includes opportunities to attract investment;
- Marketing Goals and Opportunities – Strategies to increase awareness among target markets, driving sales, and reaching visitation goals;
- Monitoring and Evaluation Plan – Key performance indicators with time bound targets and a methodology to collect the data to analyze the success of all destination initiatives.
- Continuously update report in accordance with major progress achieved;
- Deliver final TMP report (English version) adjusting upon the comments from the UNDP. Report should include description of the methodology and results from assignment, as described in this TOR.
The TMP should be created with a blend of in-depth research and personal consultation with local businesses, government officials, and residents. At the end of comprehensive process, Borjomi Municipality TMP should have a 5 to 10-year strategic vision, strategy, and action plan for developing tourism in a sustainable manner for the benefit of local residents, investors, and tourism operators. The master planning process must secure national and local buy-in/ownership so that both consider it as their dominant document for tourism investment guidance. It must clearly define the actionable steps needed to achieve common goals and provide the stakeholders with the ability to track results and adapt to changes when needed. Each report needs to have a summary check-list sufficiently brief and simple that the implementing entity, ARDA (MEPA), can quickly check business proposals against the check-list to decide if they are covered by the TMP or not.
The Research Consultant will work together with the Economic Diversification Coordinator under the direct supervision of Project Manager and Technical Leader of the “Improving Rural Development in Georgia” project and in consultation with the UNDP Economic Development Team Leader.
Competencies
Corporate competencies:
- Demonstrated commitment to UNDP’s mission, vision and values;
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
- Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.
Functional competencies:
- Knowledge Management and Learning:
- Shares knowledge and experience.
- Development and Operational Effectiveness:
- Ability to undertake analytical work and prepare narrative parts of working papers, reports and studies;
- Strong communication skills;
- Advanced computer skills including Microsoft Office and web-based applications;
- Proven ability to deliver quality output working under tight deadlines;
- Excellent communication and facilitation skills;
- Strong and proven research and analytical skills.
- Leadership and Self-Management:
- Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
- Leads teams effectively and shows conflict resolution skills;
- Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
- Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
- Builds strong relationships with clients and external actors;
- Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
- Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Advanced university degree in economics, business administration or other related discipline (minimum requirement).
Experience:
- 5 years of relevant work experience, with a particular focus on strategic planning in tourism sector (minimum requirement);
- 3 years of experience of working with Government and/or international organizations or NGOs (minimum requirement).
Language requirements:
- Fluency in English and Georgian (both written and oral).
Evaluation:
- Offerors will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis, against combination of technical and financial criteria. Technical evaluation stage encompasses desk review and interview of applications. Maximum obtainable score is 100, out of which the total score for technical criteria equals to 70 points (70%) and for financial criteria 30 (30%). Technical criteria is composed of desk review (40 points) and interview (30 points). Offerors who pass 70% of maximum obtainable scores of the desk review (i.e. 40 x 70% = 28 points as a result of a desk review of applications) will be invited for the interview. Those not meeting any of the minimum technical qualification requirements will be automatically excluded from the list of candidates for further technical evaluation. Those offerors who pass 70% of maximum obtainable scores for interviews (i.e. 30x 70% = 21 points) will be considered as qualified and requested to submit a financial proposal.
Financial Proposal:
- The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum, with the breakdown of the costs. Payments are based upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR. All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal. This includes all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel. In general, UNDP does not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources;
- Maximum 30 points will be assigned to the lowest price offer. All other price offers will be scored using the formula (inverse proportion): Financial score X = 30* the lowest price offer.
Deliverables and Payment Schedule:
The Consultant should be paid as per the below schedule upon submitting of the deliverables:
- 20% of lump sum - workplan, first report (2 and 3) in Georgian – by 30 September 2019;
- 30% of lump sum – second, updated report (4, 5, 6, 7 and 8) in Georgian and English – by 24 October 2019;
- 20% of lump sum – updated report (9 and 10) in Georgian – by 16 December 2019;
- 20% of lump sum – updated report (9 and 10) with all aspects included as draft in Georgian by 10 March 2020;
- 10% of lump sum – final TMP (English and Georgian version) adjusted upon the comments received from UNDP and approved by involved municipalities. Report should include description of the methodology and results from assignment, as described in this TOR – by 10 June 2019.