Short Term Consultant –
to develop Olive Sector
Marketing Strategy

1. Scope of Work Summary:

The scope of this consultancy assignment is to assist PEEP, Olive Foundation and Olive Development Group in developing a comprehensive Olive Sector Marketing Strategy document.

2. Background:
Punjab Enabling Environment Project (PEEP) is a five-year project financed by USAID and implemented by Chemonics International. Goal of the project is to improve the enabling environment for the agriculture sector in Punjab to promote private sector led growth, especially focusing on the horticulture, livestock and dairy sub-sectors. The project is working to build a strong business enabling and policy environment to help boost private sector investment in the three subsectors. The project efforts are contributing towards USAID’s development objective of Increased Incomes and Employment in target sectors.
Govt. of Punjab (GoPb) has launched a 5 years project (2015-20) to help develop Potohar region of Punjab into an Olive Valley, targeting 15,100 acres for olive cultivation. PEEP is supporting GoPb in this initiative through facilitating meetings and agenda of Olive Development Group (ODG), capacity development of the sector players and provision of matching grants for investment mobilization.

PEEP is supporting Olive Foundation for its capacity development through a grant. PEEP support aims to help Olive Foundation increase its member-base, enhance service delivery to its member base and consequently enhance private sector role in Olive sector development.

3. Objective and Purpose of the Consultancy:
PEEP intends to engage services of a short-term consultant to assist in developing “Olive Sector Marketing Strategy”. The consultant will carry out necessary research, consultation and analysis to submit a strategy document on Olive Sector Marketing Strategy for this assignment.

4. Principal Duties & Responsibilities:

I. Have a meeting with COP of PEEP, BEE specialist of PEEP and key Olive Development Group members at the start of the consultancy, to understand objectives, scope and deliverables of the assignment and to chalk out the work plan and the timeline of the assignment.
II. Conduct background reading to understand need, context, rationale and direction for devising a comprehensive strategy document for Olive Sector; after having incorporated the inputs from various stakeholders, using a robust framework to propose strategy.

5. Specific Tasks of the Consultant:

Under the overall guidance of the Chief of Party PEEP, the consultant will accomplish the following, using his / her education and experience, knowledge and additional understanding gleaned from available resources on Olive Sector:

Conduct a background reading of documents relevant to Olive Sector in Punjab/Pakistan. Identify gaps needing additional research.
Consult technical team of PEEP, members of ODG including Secretary Agriculture, Government of Punjab and private sector to understand the sector vision and aspirations regarding olive sector development; Conduct remote (telephone, email, etc.) interviews to supplement existing documents. Travel to the field to conduct interviews as needed to complete the research.
Prepare an end-market study synthesizing information from the various sources, following the outline given below.
Submit a comprehensive report to propose Olive Sector Marketing Strategy.
• Situational Analysis of olive supply, demand (domestic and international)
• Propose Strategy in line with Vision and growth objectives of Olive Sector in Punjab/Pakistan;
• Propose implementation roadmap (3-5 years)

6. Deliverables:

The following are the key deliverables of this consultancy:
I. A brief work plan/inception report containing a table of contents for the final report to be approved by PEEP within 05 days of the commencement of the consultancy.
II Final Report: Submit a final report describing the current end markets for the Olive value chains and the dynamics acting upon them, together with initial recommendations for how Potohar olive suppliers can compete in domestic, regional and/or international end markets. The report should include the following information:
Current end markets—location, size, channels and characteristics of various end markets; national and regional hubs; perceived and actual characteristics of domestic versus imported value chains; consumer preferences; marketing and branding; consumer and retailer behaviour (weights and measures used, frequency of purchase, type of purchase, reasons for purchase)
Market trends—where the value chains have opportunities, constraints and competition; changes in demand over time.
Market segmentation, including high-potential market segments and risk profiles of these markets—identification of the segments of the larger market that offer the greatest opportunity for the value chain, given its capacity, consumer preferences and what drives these preferences (price, quality, convenience, etc.) and therefore demand. Also include an analysis of the risks associated with the various market segments
Benchmarking—how the value chain suppliers compare within a given market segment to the major competitors according to criteria important to buyers (generally including price, quality and reliability). The benchmarking will clarify those criteria most important to consumers and buyers and thus relates to consumer preferences
Market positioning—given the market trends and the market position of competitors in high-potential market segments, what position in the market is most strategic for the value chain to be competitive (efficiency, product or operational differentiation and untapped markets or demand
Market Plan for olive oil and value added olive products for domestic and export markets identified as per Olive Marketing Strategy above.

7. Consultant’s Qualifications:

• Advanced university degree in a related field, preferably in economics, business, marketing or development studies.
• At least 8 years of professional experience as a consultant for developing strategy documents / business plans.
• Good understanding of agriculture / horticulture sector of Pakistan and of other countries.
• Strong analytical and writing skills, and experience of presenting complex technical information in a comprehensible way for non-specialist readers.
• He / she must be well versed with the vision and strategy documents, so far been developed by governmental or development agencies for institutional development or value chain development/market development.
• Good communication skills and fluency in English and Urdu.
• Willingness to travel in Punjab if needed.
8. Duty Station:

The duty station for this consultancy is Lahore, but travelling to other cities of Punjab particularly the Potohar regions may be required.

9. Reporting:

The consultant will report to BEE Specialist and USAID-PEEP COP and all the deliverables will be approved by COP PEEP or his designee.

10. Duration of the Assignment:

This assignment is planned to take place in July/August 2018, for a total of 22 days LOE.

The consultant will work for 40 hours (5 days) a week, in line with the working schedule, chalked out by PEEP nominee. The PEEP COP or his nominee will sign the time sheet of the consultant.

The detailed breakup of the LOE is given below: