Consultancy on Private Sector Engagement- Re-advertisement at Oxfam

Purpose of the assignment

To better influence and engage with the private sector in Kenya, Oxfam in Kenya is seeking the services of a consultant to:

1. Explore and analyse the current trends of the private sector work in Kenya, which helps facilitate co-creation of private sector engagement strategies and innovative programme ideas including but not limited to the global and national challenge and workstreams – valuing women’s work (VWW), climate justice and recovery, renewal and resilience (RRR).
2. Identify scopes and key areas of programme design, secure funding, and manage risks within the important sectors/areas and selected value chains, including opportunities and approaches to build partnership with the private sector, leveraging their investment
3. Identify the linkage, the ability and the opportunity to influence UK Government and UK based multinational businesses to take action to respect human rights and the planet, in-line with international standards and commitments, and to empower women and marginalised communities across their global supply chains.

SECTION 1 PS Trend and Priorities

Overall objective of the section:

1. Do mapping of current private sector work and key actors in Kenya (key economic dynamics, cross border supply chain dependencies, role of informal micro entrepreneurs, SMEs/MMEs and MNCs etc.)
2. Identify and analyses specific economic sectors (including food/agriculture, extractives, banking/finance, digital service), thematic areas of engagement (e.g gender, workers’ rights, living wage, decent work, climate change, humanitarian, land rights) and potential entry points for engagement (e.g local/national/international commitments/ standards in each sector/area)
3. Distinguish their roles including as advocacy targets, as allies, as interlocutors/brokers/funders and opportunities for Oxfam to engage them in their respective roles including in standard/ norm setting, corporate accountability (compliance with Business and Human Rights), in providing services and solutions including capital and social services among others
4. Identify the linkages/connections with UK-based companies (if any), the British investment trends/priorities in Kenya in accordance with the UK government’s partnership strategy and how Oxfam can leverage on the linkages for strategic advocacy

SECTION 2 Thematic Deep Dives

Overall objective of this section:

The thematic questions will be applied across selected sectors/ value chains and companies (focus on UK-based or with relation with UK-based companies)

Private Sector and Gender Inequality

1. What are thematic gender gaps/issues: Gender Pay Gap Reporting, Living Wage / Living Income, Gender disaggregated data, Unpaid care/domestic work, Women land rights/women workers’ rights, Women in senior leadership roles, Gender Responsive Policies and Practices
2. Which UK private sector actors are active in this space? (Either list of companies or sectors/value chains)
3. How are private sectors engaging in this space? E.g., what type of initiatives are undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies.

Business and Human Rights or similar rectified frameworks

1. What are the key themes and issues in the Business and Human Rights (B+HR) space, particularly the UN Guiding Principles (UNGPs)?
2. Which private sector actors are active in this space? (Either list of companies or sectors/value chains)
3. How are private sectors engaging in this space? E.g. what type of initiatives are undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies.

Private sector and climate change

1. What are the main areas of climate work (e.g climate risks, mitigation, adaptation, zero carbon, carbon offsetting, energy, waste management, climate finance, loss and damage, …)
2. What are the issues and initiatives in those areas?
3. Which private sector actors are active in this space? (Either list of companies or sectors/value chains)
4. How are private sectors engaging in this space? E.g. what type of initiatives are undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies.

Market Systems approaches

1. What are the key perspectives of the private sector with regards to their role in reducing inequality and vulnerability in global/national markets as well as within host countries?
2. What role are they taking up in influencing systems change?
3. Does the private sector do any responsive/inclusive businesses? What are those and how do they do?
4. How does the PS create opportunities for women to engage them with upward tiers of the supply chain?

Private sector & finance/investment:

1. What are the main areas of work (issues, initiatives, sources, cause and effect, including finance access) around the private sector in finance/investment, including sectors prioritised by the WB/IFC?
2. Which private sector actors are active in this space? (either list of companies or sectors/value chains)
3. How are private sectors engaging in this space? E.g. what type of initiatives are undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies.
4. Opportunities for co-financing and securing finance from the private sector?

Private sector & COVID/pandemic

1. What does PS’s behaviour in the post-pandemic look like?
2. What is role of private sector in practising pandemic recovery, including the support to value chain actors and how they are affected by the recent political unrest globally?
3. Any initiatives undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies

Private sector & digitalization

1. What are the main areas of work (issues, initiatives, opportunities and challenges) around the private sector in digitalisation, including potential impact of global taxation in digitalised business by global companies in Kenya1?
2. Which private sector actors are active in this space? (either list of companies or sectors/value chains) and how they are supporting other actors in supply chains.
3. How are private sectors engaging in this space? E.g. what type of initiatives are undertaken, including existing business models, good/bad practices and case studies.

SECTION 3 Future of Work: Innovation/PS partnerships

1. What are the key trends in corporate responsibility? And role of PS as intermediaries?
2. What are the main themes and value addition issues areas when it comes to creating partnerships with NGOs? Or engaging with them in general?
3. What are platforms where the PS is participating? How are those platforms playing their roles to advocate on policy issues (e.g responsible tax practices, gender inclusion and transformation, inclusion of marginalised groups, SDGs, Carbon offsetting etc.)?
4. What are the underlying drivers of the PS to seek partnerships with NGOs in the sectors that relate to Oxfam and selected areas of work?
5. What does the future space for partnering look like in response to inequality and poverty reduction, climate justice, circular economy/ green economy in relation to managing excess stock, and gender equality (expanding, contracting?)
6. What development issue areas receive the most corporate funding? And what broader consequences are there to these priorities?
7. Provide an alternative policy prescription, primarily targeted at the government, to make the existing value chains fair and sustainable, beyond preferential tax treatment/rate, deduction, exclusion or exemption, credit, deferral…

Methodology

Inception report to demonstrate the understanding of ToR, proposed methodology and budget. List of questions provided/agreed by Oxfam. Consultants confirm sectors/value chains selected with Oxfam before further analysis. Consultants confirm company and interviewee list with Oxfam before proceeding. Interviews with key informants, one from each sector/value chain. Verbal check-in with Oxfam to present top-line findings

Consultant qualifications, skills and competencies needed

The desired specification and qualities of the consultant(s) are as hereunder:

1. Demonstrated knowledge and experience of the private sector and their intersection with development issues
2. At least 8-10 years experience in research, analysis, policy development and advocacy
3. High quality skills and demonstrated experience in similar pieces of work
4. Strong communication (verbal and written) skills in English
5. Excellent research, analysis and strategy development skills