Post of Duty: Washington DC
The IDB Group is a community of diverse, versatile, and passionate people who come together on a journey to improve lives in Latin America and the Caribbean. Our people find purpose and do what they love in an inclusive, collaborative, agile, and rewarding environment.
About this position:
Established in 1959, the Inter-American Development Bank (“IDB” or “Bank”) is the main source of financing for economic, social, and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. It provides loans, grants, guarantees, policy advice and technical assistance to the public and private sectors of its borrowing countries. In 2016, IDB, the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Government of Canada established a co-financing facility called “The Compete Caribbean Partnership Facility” (GN-2851), which is a continuation of the Compete Caribbean Program that funded over 100 private sector development projects over the period 2010-2016 in the Caribbean. These projects generated nearly 12,000 jobs, a 23% increase in exports (USD$37M) and a 41% increase in the revenue of participating firms and clusters (USD$153M), as well as an improvement in the business climate for some countries through policy or regulatory reforms. The purpose of the Compete Caribbean Partnership Facility (CCPF) is to drive inclusive and sustainable economic growth through greater competitiveness and innovation in the private sector of 13 Caribbean countries[1].
The Compete Caribbean Blue Economy Project is funding the project for the development of the Jamaica Conch Cluster (JCC). The project’s objective is to provide technical assistance to the JCC to conduct: (i) the required assessment for full Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Fishery and Chain of Custody certification for the queen conch fishery; (ii) value-added product development, market research, product development, diversification, branding, packaging, and labelling (iii) policy and legislative review and development, and (iv) development and capacity building of the JCC. To this end the components under the project are as follows:
· Component 1 - Application for and obtain MSC certifications (Certification of Fishery)
· Component 2 - Increase total sales of the cluster by at least USD 15Mil by targeting the United States of America and Chinese markets with 2 new value-added products by 2024.
· Component 3 - Negotiate legislation/policy with MICAF and National Fisheries Division to get sign-off on individual transferable quotas amongst the sectors 13 players by 2026
· Component 4 - Capacity Development of Cluster
The queen conch (Lobatus (=Strombus) gigas) fishery is one of the most important commercial fisheries in Jamaica providing direct employment to an estimated 2,000 persons (fisher folk and fish processors) and indirectly to about 7,000 persons. With the average family size of 5 persons, the multiplier impact of employment in the conch sector, though seasonal[2], is high.
Among the Jamaican fisheries, queen conch is unique, being the most profitable and sustainably managed. It is also the only fishery that is subject to an export levy and contributes directly to its management through revenues generated from the levy.
The industrial conch fishers consist of 12 private firms representing approximately 650 employees of which 100 are permanent and 550 are temporary. Four (4) of the 12 industrial firms have partnered to establish the Jamaica Conch Cluster (JCC).
The Jamaica Conch Cluster, fully cognizant that their core business is predicated on a natural renewable resource that is vulnerable to climate change and other anthropological and natural impacts have developed a long-term sustainable business strategy to ensure the continued sustainability of the Jamaica queen conch fishery and by extension the viability of the livelihoods. Analysis have shown that there are several gaps that must be addressed if the JCC is to realize their vision and business goals. A long-term goal of the JCC is to achieve value and brand recognition through Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification to facilitate price increases in their current market and to penetrate environmentally conscious market segments in North America.
The Compete Caribbean Partnership Facility (CCPF) seeks a professional consultant with extensive experience in fisheries policy and law development, and outstanding facilitation skills to prepare a synthesis report on the assessment of existing legal, policy and operational instruments with justification and drafting guidelines for new provisions and/or amendments to the existing fisheries and related policy, laws, and regulations.
Policy and legislative improvements are key success factors identified to address critical gaps that impedes the realization of the Jamaica Conch Cluster’s (JCC) sustainable business strategy. Key aspects of the business strategy are:
a) leveraging the sustainable management and high food safety and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards through Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification to increase the value of queen conch products and by-products.
b) a phased approach to eliminate waste and utilize the full range of queen conch products and by-products.
c) a strategic phased development and roll-out of queen conch value-added products (canned conch soup, etc.).
d) diversification of markets focusing on countries with favorable trade regimes and the Caribbean diaspora in the United States (US), European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK) and Canada.
e) product development and penetration of specialized niche markets such as live conch in China and other Asian countries
f) leveraging among other things, economies of scale, enhanced advocacy, and bargaining power through expansion of the JCC to incorporate all Jamaican queen conch private firms and enhancing the capacity and capability of the JCC.
g) establishing a formal mechanism to ensure meaningful participation of the JCC in the governance of the Jamaican queen conch industry and to facilitate and influence policy and legislative interventions to safeguard the livelihood of queen conch industry members.
What you’ll do:
The consultant will provide technical support, facilitation services and policy and legal advice to the JCC to establish a formal mechanism to ensure meaningful participation of the JCC in the governance of the Jamaican queen conch industry to among other things, facilitate and influence policy and legislative interventions to safeguard the livelihood of queen conch industry members. A participatory approach is essential throughout the process to reach consensus on a common vision, objectives, priorities, as well as detailed activities, roles, and responsibilities.
You will work in the Competitiveness, Technology and Innovation Division, part of the Institutions for Development Department (IFD/CTI).
1. Conduct desk research to become familiar with the value chain, institutional infrastructure, policy, and legal regime relevant to the queen conch industrial fishery in Jamaica.
2. Organize consultations with the JCC, queen conch industry stakeholders and relevant regulatory Government entities. These consultations must commence at the start and continue throughout the consultancy. At least two workshops will be held one at the beginning of the consultancy, and another at the end.
3. Engage industrial queen conch industry members to gain a full understanding of their concerns and recommended actions to address issues and problems relevant to the economic viability of their businesses and the sustainability of the queen conch fishery. The Consultant will identify convergencies and divergencies among industrial queen conch industry members with a view to address efficiently and effectively the areas of agreement and “low hanging fruits.”
4. Analyze the existing plans, projects, and programs of the National Fisheries Authority to determine if these plans, projects, and programs addresses the issues and problems impacting the queen conch industry and if the expected outputs/outcomes are in alignment with the recommended actions to address the issues and problems in a manner that is acceptable to the queen conch industry members. The Consultant will further determine if the interventions can be successfully implemented under the existing policy and legal frameworks or if policy and legislative changes are required.
5. Review and assess the draft National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (NFAP) and the Fisheries Act, 2018 (FA, 2018) and Regulations to determine if:
§ the problems, issues and concerns relevant to the ecological and economical sustainability of the queen conch industry are identified and addressed.
§ the existing policy initiatives and the provisions under the FA, 2018 are consistent with the recommended actions necessary to address the problems, issues and concerns identified by the stakeholders.
§ the existing policy requires amendment or new policy initiatives are required.
§ the existing provisions under the FA, 2018 requires amendment or new provisions are required.
Using the results of the review, consultations, and assessments conducted, the Consultant will develop a policy and legislation strategy and action plan which will at a minimum detail critical tasks and timelines to achieve the desired policy and legislative milestones and impact desired by the JCC.
The policy and legislation strategy will categorize specific policy and legislative changes into urgent, short, medium, and long-term initiatives. During the consultancy, emphasis will be placed on identifying policy and legislative changes that are (a) urgent and are required in the short-term to address critical issues in the queen conch industry; (b) feasible based on agreement from all parties and can be achieved within a short timeframe. Urgent and short-term interventions will be prioritized for action by the Consultant.
6. Prepare drafting guidelines with relevant explanatory information that details inter alia, the rationale, objectives, mischief being addressed and key context for each provision. Where possible, the consultant shall assess each draft provision (received from the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC) through the (NFA)) to ensure that its formulation properly addresses the intended issues. If possible, the consultant shall provide feedback (that is, further explanatory information, recommendations, etc.) to ensure the adequacy of each draft provision(s).
Deliverables and Payments Timeline:
The consultant will undertake and submit the following deliverables:
Deliverables Completed
Payment percentage
Deadline from signature of contract
Deliverable 1 – Submission and acceptance of Inception report which includes a detailed work plan and proposed methodology in carrying out the tasks under this assignment.
10%
October,2023
Deliverable 2 –
(i) Interim report addressing: