Consultancy -

Joint documentation, multimedia content collection, case story development Borena Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia

Supporting Borena Pastoralists and Agro-Pastoralists to Integrate into Inclusive Market Systems and Build Resilience to Climate-Induced Shocks in Guchi, Dire, and Moyale of Borena zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Project Code: 2023-PRYC-000281

Financed by: Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID)

Implementing Partners: Ayuda en Acción Ethiopia, CIFA, and ILRI

Implementation Period: March 2024 – August 2026

1.          Introduction:

Ayuda en Acción (AeA) is an International Non-Governmental Organization founded in 1981 in Spain, dedicated to addressing the structural causes of poverty, inequality, and exclusion by empowering communities to achieve sustainable, dignified livelihoods. Operating globally across 18 countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe, including Spain and Portugal, Ayuda en Acción has been active in Ethiopia since 2002 through partnerships supporting development and humanitarian efforts. Following the establishment of its Ethiopia country office in 2018, the organization has expanded its programs to Oromia (Arsi and Borena zones), the South Ethiopia Region (Gamo, Wolaita, Konso and Derashe), and Afar Regional State (Zones 1, 2, 4 and 5). Its country strategy focuses on three pillars: sustainable livelihoods and resilient food systems (emphasizing market development and women/youth employment), quality education and labour market transition, and humanitarian assistance integrated with resilience-building through a nexus approach.

2.          Background of the project:

Over the past 30 months (February 2024 – August 2026), Ayuda en Acción (AeA) as the lead organization, alongside consortium partners CIFA and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), has implemented the project ‘Supporting Borena Pastoralists and Agro-pastoralists to Integrate into Inclusive Market Systems and Build their Resilience to Climate-induced Shocks and Stresses in Dire, Moyale, and Guchi Woredas of Borena Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia’, funded by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). The project has been under implementation from February 2024 to August 2026.  The overall objective of the project is to increase the resilience of climate-affected pastoralists and agro-pastoralists in Borena Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia, with the specific aim of improving inclusive, resilient, and sustainable livelihoods capable of withstanding climate-induced shocks. The project has been implemented in three districts, Dire, Moyale, and Guchi, covering nine kebeles, and directly reached 10,746 households (50,995 household members).

The project interventions are structured around three mutually reinforcing results, each targeting specific groups and institutions within the pastoral system.

·         Result 1: Strengthened Market Position of Pastoralists and Agro-pastoralists. Through strengthening eight primary multi-purpose cooperatives and the Oda Roba Cooperative Union, improving governance and financial management, promoting women’s leadership, establishing market linkages, financial inclusion through derisking model, and fostering public-private and multi-stakeholder partnerships, the project enhanced livestock market participation and access to financial services. A regional pastoral area livestock market system multi-stakeholder platform was initiated to foster coordination and collaboration among actors in the region. As a result, 5,026 households (3,151 male and 1,875 female) targeted to improve their bargaining power, household income, and market access, while cooperatives become more resilient and inclusive.

·         Result 2: Improved Livestock Production. Through training and deploying Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs), strengthening veterinary pharmacies, supporting fodder production enterprises backed by dry land fodder research (led by ILRI), rehabilitating communal rangelands, and promoting climate-smart livestock management practices, the project improved livestock health, productivity, and ecosystem resilience. Upgraded pastoral extension services (managed by ILRI), and information centers enhanced access to quality livestock services, benefiting 1,931 pastoralists and agro-pastoralists (1,062 male and 868 female) through reduced livestock mortality, increased productivity, and improved access to fodder and animal husbandry support.

·         Result 3: Enhanced Adaptive Capacity to Climate-induced Shocks: The project has been enhancing resilience to climate-induced shocks by promoting Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI), strengthening disaster risk management systems, supporting SACCOs, and introducing guarantee funds to improve financial inclusion for vulnerable women, youth, and pastoral dropouts. It has also been upgrading the Haburu digital mobile platform for real-time climate information, diversifying livelihoods, and expanding climate information and early warning systems. These interventions have been boosting financial inclusion, climate risk financing, income diversification, and access to digital services, enabling 3,789 households—including 1,977 women, pastoralist dropouts, and youth—to reduce vulnerability and strengthen adaptive capacity.

The project integrated cross-cutting priorities to ensure equitable and sustainable outcomes, promoting women’s leadership and access to resources, youth inclusion through skills and enterprise development, climate resilience via preparedness and sustainable livestock management, environmental sustainability through ecosystem restoration and responsible resource use, and social inclusion by prioritizing vulnerable and marginalized groups for fair access to benefits.

The project employed a combination of Market Systems Development (MSD), Disaster Risk Management (DRM), livestock production enhancement through improved services and practices, financial inclusion, risk financing, cooperative strengthening, and digital innovations to improve resilience and adaptive capacity among vulnerable households.

 

3.          Purpose of the Assignment:

The overarching purpose of this consultancy is to systematically capture, synthesize, and package project milestones, lessons learned, and dynamic multimedia content into a comprehensive dissemination-ready knowledge and communication package. Building on a robust foundation of technical knowledge products, such as research reports, guidelines, manuals, innovations, and community-level impacts generated throughout implementation, the assignment focuses on:

·         Create a unified narrative demonstrating how the project successfully strengthened pastoral resilience through inclusive markets, climate adaptation, financial inclusion, animal health services, and digital solutions.

·         Collect high-quality visual evidence and multimedia communication materials that vividly capture stakeholder experiences and beneficiary voices.

·         Develop human-interest feature articles and case stories framed directly around the project's core resilience narrative.

·         Systematically organize and package technical outputs and lessons for wider dissemination among government institutions, donors, development partners, research organizations, private sector actors, and pastoral development practitioners.

Communication products will be used for institutional positioning, policy influence, learning, scaling, and future resource mobilization.

4.          Objective of the consultancy:

The consultancy shall:

General Objective:

Document and communicate the key achievements, impact stories, innovations, and lessons from the 30-Month Pastoral and Agro-Pastoral Resilience Project through professional multimedia and storytelling products.

Specific Objectives:

·         Capture compelling beneficiary and stakeholder stories.

·         Document project achievements through high-quality photography and videography.

·         Produce case studies and success stories demonstrating project impact.

·         Develop feature articles highlighting key interventions and results.

·         Document lessons learned and generated evidence to inform future resilience programming and investments.

·         Produce a documentary-style project video.

·         Generate communication materials suitable for dissemination through digital, print, and social media platforms.

5.          Scope of work:

The consultancy firm or individual consultants shall undertake field missions and documentation activities across selected project locations in Borena Zone and Addis Ababa. The assignment shall focus on the following thematic areas:

·         Cooperative Governance, and Livestock Market Systems: Document governance improvements among primary multi-purpose cooperatives and Oda Roba Cooperative Union, their engagement in livestock market systems, business competitiveness, market linkages, guarantee fund mechanisms, and women's participation and leadership.

·         Resilient livestock production system: Capture evidence on market-based veterinary service delivery, strengthening of Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs), private veterinary sector engagement, fodder production and commercialization initiatives, rangeland management practices, including revitalization of traditional Kalo systems and establishment of commercial feed enterprises

·         Financial Inclusion and enterprise development/strengthening: Document experiences and achievements related to SACCO strengthening at primary and union levels, guarantee fund beneficiaries, women's and youth economic empowerment, pastoral dropout livelihood diversification, and SME establishment and growth.

·         Risk Financing (IBLII): Capture experiences of livestock insurance beneficiaries, accessibility

Job Requirements

Required Qualifications and Experience

Consultants (Firms or Individuals) must demonstrate expertise in development communication, multimedia production, visual storytelling, and strategic content creation for humanitarian and rural/pastoral development programs.

​Entity / Individual Profile

Requirement

Consultancy Firm

Individual Consultant

Experience

5+ years in media production, journalism, or strategic communications.

5+ years leading similar multimedia/documentation assignments.

Track record

Proven work with UN agencies, INGOs, or donor-funded/government projects in resilience, employment, agriculture, climate, or food security or related field

Demonstrated expertise in end-to-end multimedia production and field operations.

Key assets

Owns professional equipment, quality control systems, and field mobilization capability.

Strong portfolio: capacity to work independently and lead an associate team.

Preferred

Experience in Ethiopia's pastoral/agro-pastoral regions (strong asset).

Ability to conduct extensive field travel in remote/pastoral areas.

Samples produced within the last 5 years

·         3x Videos (Documentaries, testimonials, or impact stories)

·         3x Written Pieces (Case studies, success stories, or feature articles)

·         3x Photo Sets (Professional photo stories/portfolios)

·         All samples must detail: Client name, year, scope, role, and online links.

Key personnel requirements and competencies

• ​Team Leader / Dev-Comm Specialist: Master’s degree + 5 years experience. Proven track record in project management, stakeholder engagement, and leading multidisciplinary teams.

• ​Documentary Producer / Lead Videographer: Bachelor’s degree + 5 years’ experience. Expertise in field production under remote/challenging conditions using high-end video and audio equipment.

• ​Writer / Content Specialist: Relevant degree + 5 years writing experience. Skilled at translating complex technical interventions into engaging human-interest stories.

• ​Photographer: Relevant training + 5 years experience in development photojournalism, editing, and ethical photography standards.

• ​Video Editor / Multimedia Specialist: Relevant degree/diploma + 5 years post-production experience. Proficient in motion graphics, color grading, audio mixing, and software (Adobe Creative Suite, DaVinci,

• ​Mandatory fluency and publication-ready written English.

• Deep commitment to safeguarding, informed consent, gender sensitivity, cultural respect, and "Do No Harm" principles in pastoral contexts.

• ​ Strong digital asset management, flexibility in field logistics, and strict adherence to deadlines.

• Trade license for the firm renewed for 2025, QR receipt and VAT registration for the consultancy firm

Successful applicants must demonstrate a combination of technical excellence, storytelling capability, multimedia production expertise, understanding of pastoral development contexts, and the ability to produce strategic communication products suitable for donors, policy audiences, and public dissemination.

2.          Technical & Financial Proposal Submission Guidelines:

Interested consultancy firms or individual consultants are invited to submit separate Technical and Financial Proposals.

​A. Technical Proposal (Max 15 Pages)

​The Technical Proposal must demonstrate the applicant's understanding of the assignment, methodology, relevant experience, and capacity. It should include:

1. ​Understanding of the Assignment: Appreciation of objectives, scope, outputs, and the specific pastoral/agro-pastoral communication context.

2. ​Methodology and Approach: Detailed strategy for field data collection, interviews, photography/videography, story development, quality assurance, ethics, safeguarding, and consent procedures.

3. ​Work Plan: Activity schedule, fieldwork plan, and deliverable submission timeline.

4. ​Team Structure: Staffing roles, responsibilities, and level of effort (LoE) for key personnel.

5. ​Qualifications and CVs: Company profile, individual track record/experience, CVs of key personnel, and references to similar past projects.

6. ​Portfolio and Samples (Completed within the last 5 years):

• ​3x Documentary films or impact/storytelling videos

• ​3x Written communication products (case studies, success stories, feature articles)

• ​3x Professional photography sets / photo stories

• ​Each sample must include Client name, assignment title, year, scope, role, and accessible web/digital links/reference letters.

• ​References: Contact details for at least three past clients from similar assignments.

• Trade license for the firm renewed for 2025, QR receipt and VAT registration for the consultancy firm.

​B. Financial Proposal (Submitted Separately)

​The Financial Proposal must be submitted in Ethiopian Birr (ETB) with clear unit rates, quantities/days, sub-totals, relevant government taxes, and grand totals. The budget breakdown must cover:

• ​Professional fees and personnel costs

• ​Accommodation and per diems and other operational costs

• ​Equipment rental if any especially for individual consultant

• ​Post-production (editing, graphic design, translation, transcription, subtitling)

·         Any additional direct costs required to complete the assignment.

• ​Administrative and statutory tax costs/for individual 30% tax will be applied.

Note: exclude Logistic / transportation fee from your financial proposal as it will be covered by AeAE.

​C. Proposal Evaluation Criteria (QCBS Method)

​Selection will follow the Quality and Cost-Based Selection (QCBS) method with a 70/30 weight.

 

Evaluation Component

Weight / Max Points

Passing Threshold

Technical Evaluation

70 Points

50 Points Minimum

Financial Evaluation

30 Points

Qualified Technical Bids Only

Total Score

100 Points

Highest Combined Score

Technical Breakdown (70 Points)

• ​Understanding of Assignment: 10 pts

• ​Methodology and Technical Approach: 15 pts

• ​Relevant Organizational/Consultant Experience including sample work: 20 pts

• ​Team composition, qualifications and experience of proposed experts (including the Lead): 15 pts

• ​Work plan and implementation schedule: 10 pts

Note: Ayuda en Acción (AeA) reserves the right to accept or reject any proposal, request clarifications, interview shortlisted candidates, and negotiate the scope, work plan, or budget prior to final award.

The Consultant must adhere to all AeAE policies concerning Code of Conduct, Safeguarding, and Safety and Security.

3.          Terms of Payment

Payments will be made according to the following schedule:

·         30% up on submission and approval of the Inception Report, detailed work plan, methodology, and production schedule.

·         40% upon completion of field documentation, submission of draft communication products (documentary, stories, feature articles, photography, videos, and repository).

·         30% after submission and acceptance of all finalized communication products, multimedia assets, and consolidated knowledge repository incorporating AeA feedback.

How To Apply

1.          How to Apply

Interested consultants/training providers are invited to submit a Letter of Interest, Technical Proposal, Financial Proposal, and all supporting documents listed below, in PDF format only, exclusively through the Ayuda en Acción Talent Clue platform linked below, within 10 consecutive calendar days from the date of this advertisement.

https://empleoayudaenaccion.talentclue.com/node/127500983/12623479

Submissions through any other channel or in any other format, including email or hard copy, will not be considered. The email addresses provided below are for clarification purposes only and must not be used for submitting applications.

Required supporting documents:

·         Technical Proposal.

·         Financial Proposal.

·         Company Profile for consultancy firm

·         Valid Business License, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) Certificate and VAT Registration Certificate for consultancy firm

·         CVs of the proposed team members.

·         Evidence of similar assignments, including at least three completion certificates, recommendation letters, or client references.

For clarification prior to submission, please contact:

• Ermiyas Tadesse, Programme Director  etadesse@ayudaenaccion.org or Bitsit Endale, Operations Director bendale@ayudaenaccion.org or

• For inquiries related to application procedures, please contact Andenet Tadesse, HR and Admin at atadesse@ayudaenaccion.org

• Only applicant firms that meet all qualification and experience requirements will be contacted for further consideration.

• Ayuda en Acción Ethiopia reserves the right to cancel or modify this assignment at any time in line with project requirements

2.          Guiding Principle:

The consultancy firm should adopt AeA safeguarding and protection policies, which will be signed by the selected consultancy firm.

Qualified female candidates are highly encouraged to apply!

In all selection processes, we will consider the criteria of NO discrimination based on sex, race, skin colour, religion, political ideas, social origin, sexual orientation, age, etc., providing a transparent and equal opportunity process for all candidates, as stated in our Code of Conduct. "Treating all people with respect and rejecting any kind of harassment, discrimination, intimidation, exploitation or any other action against Human Rights".

At Ayuda en Acción we have zero tolerance for behavior related to sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, and/or sexual harassment, which is why, in accordance with our Child Protection Policy, we are committed to carrying out a series of checks prior to hiring by requesting information from previous employers through the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (The Misconduct Disclosure Scheme misconduct-disclosure-scheme.org)  no the event that said employers are members of this platform.

In addition, Ayuda en Acción also undertakes to provide the other members of the MDS with the information corresponding to this type of event on employees who have worked for the Organization. Therefore, by submitting this application, the applicant accepts and authorizes the performance of these pre-employment checks in order to continue in the selection process and the conservation of his/her data for subsequent consultation by MDS members.  The information extracted from this application for references will be used in a Private, Confidential and Internal manner and will only be used for the selection processes of Ayuda en Acción in which the candidate has registered. Therefore, by submitting this application, the applicant accepts and authorizes these checks to be carried out in order to continue in the selection process. In addition, it will be compulsory to present the "Negative Certification of the Central Registry of Sex Offenders" prior to the incorporation.

Job Requirements The successful candidate should have 5+ years of professional experience in media production, journalism, or strategic communications, including at least 5 years of experience leading multimedia and documentation assignments. Proven experience working with UN agencies, international NGOs (INGOs), donor-funded projects, government programs, or development organizations is highly preferred. Experience in areas such as resilience, employment, agriculture, climate change, food security, or related development fields is an advantage. How to Apply Submit your non-returnable application and CV along with supporting documents in Via email etadesse@ayudaenaccion.org or bendale@ayudaenaccion.org