Request for Proposals

E-Commerce, Sustainability, and Market Access Support to Women-led Leather Goods Enterprise, Bangladesh

1.0 Introduction to CTIFThe Canadian Trade and Investment Facility for Development is a seven-year, CAD $11.6 million demand-driven program aligned with Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP) to support sustainable trade and investment-related policy reforms and economic development initiatives that promote women’s empowerment and inclusive growth and have a high potential to reduce poverty in ODA-eligible developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region. CTIF provides technical assistance based on the needs identified by potential beneficiaries and according to an assessment process jointly administered by the CTIF team and Global Affairs Canada (GAC). Technical assistance is provided by independent suppliers that specialize in the specific services being requested by the beneficiary. Cowater International (www.cowater.com) and the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (www.ipac.ca) jointly implement CTIF on behalf of the Government of Canada.

2.0 Assignment OverviewConsultancy title: E-Commerce, Sustainability, and Market Access Support to

Women-led Leather Goods EnterpriseBeneficiary Organizations: Leatherina Pvt. Ltd.Anticipated duration: 6 monthsAnticipated start date: February 2021Location of assignment: Consultant’s Home Office (remote)Summary of assignment: Following its successful application to CTIF through the

facility’s RFA related to building resilient e-commerce enterprises in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, CTIF has agreed to provide TA to Leatherina to strengthen its sustainability and growth prospects through the development of a comprehensive e-commerce platform that allows to review and purchase all its products remotely. Simultaneously, CTIF TA will assist Leatherina in accessing new clients in the North American market while strengthening its ability to adhere to environmental sustainability, social safeguarding, and legal standards expected by clients in such markets.Following the mandate’s completion, Leatherina will have at least a functional and interactive sales website (beta version) for its bulk and retail products. Leatherina will also be poised to receive and respond to orders of products from the North American market, and to establish at least one reliable client in the first year that can distribute its products in the North American market.

Terms of Reference: See Annex 1Maximum budget, excluding HST:

CAD 100,000

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3.0 Corporate Qualifications Interested bidders must possess the corporate capabilities and experience described in Annex 1 (TORs), which can be evidenced through project profiles included in technical proposals using the form provided in Annex 2. Contracts for projects profiled by bidders must have been active within the last five calendar years dating from the date of the release of this tender document.

4.0 Proposal Validity A proposal must remain valid and open for acceptance for a period of 90 days after the closing date of RFP.

5.0 Team Member Qualifications Bidders must provide CVs for the team members it proposes to undertake the assignment on behalf of CTIF and the beneficiary using the format provided in Annex 3.

6.0 Conflict of Interest – Unfair Advantage In order to protect the integrity of the procurement process, the Bidders are advised that CTIF may reject a bid in the following circumstances:

a. if the Bidder, any of its proposed Personnel including any of their respective employees or former employees was involved in any manner in the preparation of the bid solicitation;

b. if the Bidder, any of its proposed Personnel, including any of their respective employees or former employees, was involved in any other situation of conflict of interest or appearance of conflict of interest;

c. if the Bidder, any of its proposed Personnel including any of their respective employees or former employees had access to information related to the bid solicitation that was not available to other Bidders and that would, in CTIF's opinion, give or appear to give the Bidder an unfair advantage; or,

d. If the Bidder, its employees, or any of its proposed Personnel are related to an owner or employee of the Beneficiary or are currently working with the Beneficiary in a volunteer or paid capacity as an employee, consultant or director (board member).

7.0 Rights of Cowater International/IPAC: As CTIF’s lead executing agency, Cowater/IPAC reserve the right to:

a) reject any or all Proposals received in response to the RFP;b) enter into negotiations with Bidders on any or all aspects of their Proposals;c) cancel the RFP at any time;d) reissue the RFP;e) if no compliant Proposals are received and the requirement is not substantially modified,

reissue the RFP by inviting only the Bidders who responded to resubmit Proposals within a period designated by Cowater; and

f) negotiate with the sole compliant Bidder to ensure best value to DFATD.

8.0 Coordination and ReportingThe Service Provider will be contracted by Cowater International and report to the CTIF Project Manager. More details on reporting requirements are provided in the attached TORs.

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9.0 Proposal Structure and Evaluation MethodologyProposals will be evaluated using the cumulative analysis method. The proposal with the highest cumulative scoring will be awarded the contract. Applications will be evaluated technically and financially, and points will be attributed based on the assessment criteria detailed below.

Technical Proposal and Evaluation CriteriaThe format and content of technical proposals shall align with the structure and content provided below.

Table 1: Proposal structures and scoring methods

Content Details Weighting Max Score

Page Limit1

ExperienceExperience managing or implementing assignments of a similar nature in a similar geographic context.

12 72 10 pp.2

Proposed approach and methodology

Quality of the proposed approach and methodology for delivering the assignment’s intended results, including a detailed workplan and work schedule, and performance framework integrating the assignment’s intended results and CTIF’s intended outcomes.

12 72 8 pp.

Project management and oversight

Quality of proposed approach to project management, including monitoring and reporting.

4 24 2 pp.

Proposed teamQuality and relevance of the proposed team members’ skills and experience

12 72 10 pp.3

Technical criteria Total score: - 240 -

Scores of 0 – 6 noted above shall be awarded based on the interpretations in Table 2 below.

Table 2: Score Attribution Criteria Score Criteria

6Demonstrates expert understanding of the TORs and proposes innovative and appropriate solutions that address all requirements. Responses are well-tailored to the client’s requirements in all aspects. Level of detail and quality of information provide a high degree of confidence in certainty of delivery.

5Demonstrates a strong understanding of the issues in the TORs. Responses are tailored in most aspects and includes some innovation. The detail and quality of information provided gives a strong level of confidence that the requirement will be delivered to a high standard.

4 Demonstrates a good understanding of all issues relating to delivery of TORs. Responses are tailored to the client’s requirements in some respects and

1 Use Ariel 10, normal margins.2 Bidders shall utilize the project profile template provided in Annex 2 to complete this section.3 Bidders shall utilize the CV template provided in Annex 3 to complete this section.

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demonstrate that proposals are robust. Provides sufficient detail and quality of information to give a good level of confidence that they will deliver.

3Some misunderstandings of the issues relating to delivery of the TORs. Poor appetite to tailor to the client’s requirements where required. Generally, a low level of quality information and detail leading to insufficient confidence that they will deliver.

2Major misunderstanding of the issues set out in the TORs. The information is poorly tailored to the requirements or of a low quality. Poor quality or lack of information provides a low level of confidence that they will deliver.

1Complete failure to address all material requirements of the TORs. Little or no tailoring of responses to meet customer requirements. Poor quality responses providing little or no confidence that they will deliver.

0 Unresponsive or non-compliant.

Only bids receiving a minimum score of 70% against the technical evaluation criteria will proceed to the financial evaluation stage.

Financial Proposal and Evaluation CriteriaFinancial proposals must be in CAD and include all applicable taxes on a separate line. Payments will be made to the Supplier based on milestones or timesheets connected to each deliverable for Fees and actual receipts for Reimbursable Expenses. Financial proposals must be sufficiently disaggregated to allow evaluators to achieve a clear understanding of where resources will be invested to ensure value for money. To this end, financial proposals must include the following line items:

Fees: Names, titles and all-inclusive daily rate per team member Level of effort per team member Deliverable / Report.

Reimbursable expenses include4: International flights for trainers and trainees Daily allowances for trainers and trainees in accordance with NJC Travel Directive5

Accommodation for trainers and trainees Local transportation & miscellaneous travel expenses Office space and/or venue rental Communications & reporting expenses

Reimbursable expenses will be subject to negotiation prior to contract award and subject to CTIF approval prior to reimbursement, which will be at cost.

CTIF will not reimburse costs for normal tools of trade (e.g. portable personal computers)

The selected Service Provider will be solely responsible for arranging and payment of adequate health, dental, medical and accident insurance coverage for all its Experts working on this project. The Service Provider shall also make reasonable efforts to ensure the individuals engaged in the delivery of this project obtain immunizations and out-of-country travel insurance as required.

Financial proposals shall be evaluated as follows:

4 Receipts must be retained for all expenses; the list of expenses is not exclusive.5 https://www.njc-cnm.gc.ca/directive/d10/en

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The following calculations will be used to determine your commercial score:

Commercial Criteria

Comment Weighting

Competitiveness of fees

Mathematical calculation of competitiveness of the proposed daily fees in direct comparison to all tenderers in this competition. Lowest proposed fees/your proposed fees x 100

80

Competitiveness of expenses

Mathematical calculation of competitiveness of the proposed expenses in direct comparison to all tenderers in this competition.Lowest proposed expenses / your proposed expenses x 100

20

Determining best value offerThe weight given to the technical and commercial tenders are:

Technical: 80% Commercial: 20%

Your total score will be determined using the following formula:

Technical score x 0.8 + Commercial score x 0.2 = Final score

10.0 RFP TimelineCTIF will solicit proposals based on the timeline identified below:

Action Date6

Request for Proposals (RFP) issued January 6, 2021

Deadline for confirming intention to bid7 January 13, 2021

Bidders Clarifications Deadline January 20, 2021

Proposal submission deadline February 3, 2021, 5pm EST

Anticipated project start date February, 2021

11.0 Proposal Submission DetailsYour proposal should be submitted in English and be set out in three main parts. The Technical Proposal should be submitted in accordance with the Scoring Methodology and Evaluation Criteria and consist of:

• Part A: Executive Summary (one page)

6 The RFP timeline is subject to change and in such case CTIF will notify all interested parties accordingly.7 Mandatory: confirmations are to be sent via email to info@c-tif.ca .

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The proposal must be accompanied by a letter on your organisation letterhead showing the full registered and trading name(s), trading and registered office address of the Potential Supplier and, in the case of a company, the place of incorporation. It should be signed by a person of suitable authority to commit the Potential Supplier to a binding contract. You must quote the RFP Title.

• Part B: Contents page

1. Past experience (Annex 2 template)2. Proposed approach and methodology (narrative and Annex 5 template)3. Project management and oversight4. CVs of the proposed team (Annex 3 template).

• Part C: Financial Proposal (Annex 4 template)8 and a Rate Justification Form filled out for each proposed expert, who is not covered by the Standing Offer Agreement with CTIF (Annex 6 template).

Proposals shall be submitted to CTIF by February 3rd, 2021 5pm EST, by email to: info@c-tif.caProposals can be submitted by a single supplier, a consortium or a joint-venture arrangement.

Proposals must be submitted in two separate pdf format files. These may be attached as part of the same email.

a. Parts A and B – Technical Proposalb. Part C – Financial Proposal (should be password-protected).

We will request the password if your proposal is deemed technically compliant. Any submission of the financial proposal that is not password-protected will be disqualified. Also, any submission of the financial proposal together with the password will be disqualified.

Proposals shall be submitted to CTIF using the following subject lines:

CTIF– 055-Leatherina-Bangladesh – Technical Proposal CTIF – 055-Leatherina-Bangladesh – Financial Proposal

CTIF will confirm receipt of your proposal.

12.0 QuestionsBidders may submit to CTIF questions and/or requests for additional information, including, without limitation, inquiries related to substantive portions of the RFP, timing, clarifications related to definition or interpretation of this RFP. All questions and/or requests must be submitted in writing by email to Natalia Barankevych at natalia.barankevych@cowater.com on or before January 20th, 2021. CTIF will respond to a timely submitted question and/or request for clarifications by issuing addenda and/or response, which will be sent out to all the parties, who expressed interest in bidding on this project.

In the event you are the selected Service Provider in this procurement process, you will be expected to sign Cowater Sub-contractor Agreement and its General Terms and Conditions. A copy of this standard Agreement may also be requested from the CTIF team.

CTIF looks forward to receiving your proposal and thanks you in advance for your interest in CTIF procurement opportunities.

8 The budget template can be modified by the bidder.

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Annex 1: Terms of Reference

Mandate Title: E-Commerce, Sustainability, and Market Access Support to Women-led Leather Goods Enterprise

Beneficiary Name: Leatherina Pvt. Ltd. (www.leatherina.com )

1.0 BackgroundCTIF Request for Applications (RFA) - Building E-Commerce EnterprisesIn response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, CTIF initiated a series of mandates focused on building resilient e-commerce enterprises in the Asia Pacific region. Through this initiative, CTIF will deliver remote training to selected enterprises and/or industry associations to assist SMEs, particularly those led by women, with moving their businesses online or expanding their digital presence. In doing so, CTIF TA will help mitigate the economic impacts of COVID-19 through mandatory closures of retail stores and non-essential manufacturing facilities. In the medium to long-term, the training will better enable participating private sector organizations (PSOs) to adapt to and thrive in an increasingly e-commerce-driven world economy. Leatherina was one of three successful applicants selected by CTIF to receive technical assistance through this RFA process.

Leatherina Pvt. Ltd (Leatherina)Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Leatherina is a women-led small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) specializing in the production of sustainable, handmade high-end leather bags and accessories. Established in 2016, Leatherina exports a small range of products to the European market and offers a limited quantity of retail items to the local market under its brand name, Gootipa. Due to the small size of the organization, it has not been possible to develop a full-featured online presence and sales portal for Leatherina goods, and most business is obtained and conducted through personal references and word-of-mouth.

Leatherina’s main source of finished leather is a major tannery and exporter in Bangladesh with an established corporate identity. It also draws inputs from one secondary source of finished leather who is a freelance supplier and a leather technologist, and who sources from a wide range of local tanneries. Leatherina sources its textiles from leftover ready-made garments (RMG) stock from a variety of suppliers and upscales the quality of these inputs through its production process. Its accessories supplier is based in Hong Kong and is certified and ESQ compliant.

Leatherina is a member of ECOTA, the Bangladeshi forum for fair trade enterprises, as well as the Bangladesh Federation of Women Entrepreneurs (BFWE), the Bangladesh Handicrafts Manufacturers and Exporters Association (Bangla Craft), and the Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather goods and Footwear Exporters' Association (BFLLFEA).

Policy ContextLeather and leather goods such as footwear, bags and accessories represented 12% of Bangladesh’s exports in 2017-2018 and was identified as among the government’s ‘highest priority sectors’ in Bangladesh’s last two sets of Export Policies (2015-2018 and 2018-2021). The country’s latest Export Policy outlines 23 initiatives to support the leather industry, ranging from supporting export-orientation through activities including providing credit, capacity building, encouraging foreign investments and joint ventures, encouraging cooperation among industry players, trade fairs, strengthening necessary backward and forward linkages in the industry, and mitigating the industry’s environmental impacts such as by ensuring proper waste management and use of chemicals.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic Like many similar enterprises, Leatherina has experienced a drastic reduction in sales during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Demand has fallen, supply chain partners have been affected, and sales channels have been curtailed. The company’s sustainability is now a priority concern, and it considers a pivot into new strategies and markets will be critical in this regard.

While sales of Gootipa leather goods to the local market experienced a 200% increase from 2018 to 2019, growth has fallen to near zero in 2020. To partially compensate for this decline, leather goods

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production activities were temporarily diverted to producing facemasks and hygiene items with the primary goal to secure livelihoods of workers in this critical time. As a result, half of Leatherina’s turnover in 2020 has been in pandemic relief items, and the business’s human resources and equipment have been safeguarded from loss. To regain the pace of business growth in the post-pandemic era, Leatherina’s ownership believes that a large and functional investment in online sales must be made.

With e-commerce growing steadily in Bangladesh and globally over the last decade, Leatherina has been planning to invest in an online sales platform for some time; however, the pandemic has derailed and set back those plans significantly. Currently, its online marketing is done primarily through Facebook and a small volume through Instagram, however interested clients are all served through Messenger or phone calls, which the enterprise believes not to be a sustainable solution. Instead, its ownership believes that a speedy solution for online sales must be conceived and operationalized in the near term for Leatherina (and the Gootipa brand) to emerge from this crisis with minimal impact.

Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Considerations Gender imbalances in recruitment and discrimination in pay scale are common attributes of manufacturing industries of Bangladesh, and the leather industry is no exception. Leatherina’s ownership remains conscious of this reality and deliberately hires, trains, and retains proportionately more women in its workforce. It also offers targeted growth opportunities to its female workers to achieve parity in the medium term. Leatherina considers its 60:40 women-men ratio and continued rotation of resources on the production floor as a demonstration of its commitment to achieving gender equality.

As a woman-owned and led SME, Leatherina’s growth stands to directly contribute to Sustainable Development Goals 5 and 10 through women’s economic empowerment, poverty reduction, and reduction of inequality. A majority of Leatherina’s workers are women (60 percent), it strives to source materials from vendors where there is supply chain traceability, and it works to ensure fair wages and prices at each stage of production, from design to marketing, and from production to retailing. Its internal policies support the livelihoods of its workers through fair wages and decent working hours, a 360 degree ‘revolving skills generation program’, a benefits package, and through recent efforts to produce COVID-19 essentials including reusable cloth masks, washable bags, head covers, etc. In the future, Leatherina envisions further investments in the workplace such as a day care for worker’s infants and global standard maternity leave for employees.

In the meantime, Leatherina has made the following commitments related to gender equality and social safeguarding in the workplace:

Disciplinary action against sexual harassment at workplace. Its policy involves a progressively increasing system of reprimands for workers found to be in contravention of required conduct. All workers are given the chance to rectify early infractions.

No discrimination for women workers and employees in recruitment, promotion, and job distribution. Utmost efforts are made by the founder to ensure a better working environment for women workers given the difficult local social context for women working outside the home.

Ensure gender equity in policy for job promotion and career development. Allow preference in certain jobs for women, including considering their responsibilities at home, as

applicable, favourably. Provide counselling for women on legal, reproductive, and general health and career development. Counsel male workers and employees for gender sensitivity. Providing free sanitary napkin at the factory for female workers.

From an inclusion perspective, Leatherina also seeks to provide social security for all its workers, including fair wages, leave management and equal treatment. It has committed to providing each one of its workers with a fair wage (all full-time permanent staff), and subsequently a living wage by 2025. Leatherina also plans to subsidize health and other insurance plans for workers to strengthen livelihoods security and retain skilled workers.

Environmental Sustainability ConsiderationsLeatherina believes that its commitment to sustainable production, environment-friendly materials, and

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animal welfare make its products unique, and it considers environmental sustainability to be intrinsic to its strategy of reaching new markets. Leatherina is currently in the process of drafting its environmental commitment and responsibility policy, that will consistently guide all its procurement and production activities going forward.

As per its existing environmental policy, Leatherina practices upcycling, uses leather with minimal health and climate concerns, practices efficient manufacturing methods to economise the use of resources such as water and electricity, and optimizes the utilization of leather to leave the lowest possible quantity of solid waste. Its textile materials are fully upcycled from the RMG industry. Leatherina has also consciously committed – through its business practices, decision-making processes, and human resources policy – to mainstream environmental sustainability and mitigate climate risks.

Increasing its profitability through e-commerce and new markets will allow it to practice these approaches while realising its existing aspirations. These include investing in more energy efficient machinery, transitioning from clutch motor to servo motors, and improving production efficiency through continued staff training. Leatherina also plans to adopt a zero-waste project in the next year, with a target of reaching full zero waste discharge status for its two main raw materials by 2025, establish a ‘green factory’ within the next decade, and secure decent work conditions for all its employees.

2.0 Related International Cooperation ActivitiesAs a women-led and owned SME, Leatherina has garnered the attention of well-wishers and donors in Bangladesh and has received training from several stakeholders over the last several years. However, none of this assistance has included technological or e-commerce support. For example, Leatherina was selected by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) for training and hands-on coaching in bag-making, which provided the enterprise with direct exposure to global standards of sustainability and export-oriented production. Subsequently, Leatherina received training from the Export Council of Australia on global trading, then entered a five year 360 coaching program (currently ongoing) on⁰ international business, building Leatherina’s capacity to fare in the global market. Lastly, Leatherina is currently enrolled in UKAid’s Commonwealth SheTrades program, which facilitates the participation of women-owned businesses in international trade and promotes increased job creation in Commonwealth countries.

3.0 Linkage to CTIF Performance Measurement FrameworkThis mandate aligns with CTIF Immediate Outcome 1220: Increased capacity of Civil Society Organizations (CSO)s & Private Sector Organizations (PSOs) to support their constituencies in areas such as business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access, access to finance, and responsible business conduct.

4.0 Description of the Assignment

ObjectivesFollowing its successful application to CTIF through the facility’s RFA related to building resilient e-commerce enterprises in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, CTIF has agreed to provide TA to Leatherina to strengthen its sustainability and growth prospects through the development of a comprehensive e-commerce platform that allows to review and purchase all its products remotely. Simultaneously, CTIF TA will assist Leatherina in accessing new clients in the North American market while strengthening its ability to adhere to environmental sustainability, social safeguarding, and legal standards expected by clients in such markets.

Following the mandate’s completion, Leatherina will have at least a functional and interactive sales website (beta version) for its bulk and retail products. Leatherina will also be poised to receive and respond to orders of products from the North American market, and to establish at least one reliable client in the first year that can distribute its products in the North American market.

Leatherina views CTIF’s support as not only an avenue to increase its economic bottom line, but also to advance its overall mission. With assistance in the critical areas of online marketing and digital sales through eCommerce, it would allow Leatherina to focus on strengthening key social aspects of its

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business model including making its operational model more women-friendly and more welcoming of diversity. It would also allow Leatherina to provide opportunities to more responsible and small-scale suppliers and make greater investments from a social compliance perspective such as providing insurance and improved workplace equipment and conditions.

BeneficiariesThe direct beneficiary of this CTIF TA mandate will be Leatherina Pvt. Ltd., inclusive of its ownership and 45 employees (60% female). Its indirect beneficiaries will be Leatherina’s supply chain partners in Bangladesh’s leather goods sector.

Technical Assistance ActivitiesAs part of this CTIF TA package, the Consultant selected by CTIF will be responsible for delivering the following activities and deliverables to the beneficiary, Leatherina.

4.1 Scoping Study: The Consultant will first prepare a scoping study to guide the design and delivery of other mandate activities. This study will identify, illustrate or provide: (i) Leatherina’s business profile and export performance; (ii) Leatherina’s consumer profiles; (iii) Leatherina’s gender equality, social inclusion and environmental performance and challenges to address; (iv) requirements (including documents, cost to export and logistics) and standards of the North American market for leather and leather goods; (v) possible challenges, including technical barriers to trade and non-tariff measures, that Leatherina may encounter in accessing the North American market; (vi) recommendations on concrete export strategies for Leatherina; and, (viii) best practices in e-commerce and digital marketing strategies applicable to SMEs such as Leatherina.

4.2 E-commerce and Digital Marketing Plan: In close consultation with Leatherina, the Consultant will develop Leatherina’s E-commerce and Digital Marketing Plan and propose a detailed enhanced design for Leatherina’s existing website (www.leatherina.com). This plan will also include suggested new or enhanced content to inform the public and potential buyers of Leatherina’s commitments to environmental sustainability, gender equality, and social safeguarding.

4.3 e-Commerce Website Update: The Consultant will incorporate proposed additional contents developed under activity 4.2 into Leatherina’s existing website, with the initial costs of the content upgrade to be provided under this TA mandate and subsequent recurring costs to be borne by Leatherina. An enhanced online presence is expected to raise the profile of Leatherina's ethically produced goods in-country and increase its turnover by multiples of that if the website can have an international reach. 4.4 Advisory Support and Training for Selected Leatherina Staff: The Consultant will provide at least 20 person days of direct (virtual) advisory support and training to Leatherina’s ownership and selected employees to: (i) support the implementation of Leatherina’s E-commerce and Digital Marketing Plan; and (ii), to help improve Leatherina’s current policies/working documents on gender and sexual harassment, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability to ensure compliance with related international standards or norms.

5.0 Inputs to be provided by beneficiaryThe management and selected staff of Leatherina will be engaged directly with the Consultant as collaborators and trainees. Leatherina is also committed to ensuring the sustainability of the outputs and results of this mandate; for example, it will take on the reoccurring costs of maintaining and updating the website contents and documents produced following the conclusion of this mandate.

6.0 COVID-19-related travel restrictions CTIF anticipates that COVID-19-related restrictions on international travel will remain in effect throughout the duration of this mandate’s procurement and delivery. In this context, bidders are expected to propose an approach and methodology in which all activities will be conducted remotely/virtually.

7.0 Consultant Profile / Expertise Required The Consultant best suited to delivering this CTIF mandate will be able to demonstrate the following

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professional experience and capabilities at a corporate level or within their proposed team: Expertise and significant corporate experience assisting SMEs based in developing or emerging

market countries with becoming export-ready, and a demonstrated track record of enabling such SMEs to access new markets, ideally in North America.

Substantial experience developing e-commerce and/or digital marketing strategies or action plans for SMEs seeking to create or expand their online retail presence.

Strong e-commerce website/platform development and follow-up support capabilities. Expertise and significant corporate experience assisting SMEs with developing and implementing

environmental and social safeguarding measures, processes, and systems. Demonstrated experience delivering training and advisory services through virtual platforms using a

variety of engaging virtual tools and techniques.

8.0 Location and Proposed Timeframe Anticipated start date: February 2021 Duration of assignment: 6 months Location of assignment: Consultant’s Home Office (remote)

9.0 Deliverables

# Deliverable Deadline

1

Inception Report including the following content:a. An updated detailed workplan, work schedule and budget for the delivery

of the TA mandate; and,b. A completed CTIF mandate-level PMF template (see Annex 7), including

baseline data and targets against CTIF’s mandate-level performance indicators.

This report must be approved by CTIF and the beneficiary for the Consultant to proceed with mandate implementation.

2 weeks after contract

signature.

2 Scoping Study: As described in section 4.1 above. Week 6

3Mid-Term Progress Report: A concise narrative report describing a) activities completed versus the initial work plan, baseline indicators and targets; and b) any required variations to the project’s work plan through to its completion, and associated rationale.

Week 12

4 E-commerce and Digital Marketing Plan: As described in section 4.2 above. Week 12

5 e-Commerce Website Update: As described in section 4.3 above. Week 16

6Monthly Progress Reports: A brief (< 1 page) report documenting progress achieved over the past month and status of key deliverables. Format to align with template provided in CTIF TA Handbook.

3 business days before the end of

each month

7

Final Narrative Report on Mandate: The report shall: describe activities delivered and results achieved versus initial expected targets; describe how the mandate contributed to advancing the immediate outcome associated with this mandate as per section 3.0 above; note lessons learned of relevance to future CTIF projects; document expenses incurred by the Consultant in carrying out this mandate; document beneficiary staff trained through the mandate (name, gender, job title, institutional affiliation); and, include a one-page Story of Change to illustrate the change that has happened, or change that is occurring, as a result of this mandate (guidelines will be provided by CTIF).

Week 24

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Annex 2: Project Profile Template (to be used to evaluate experience)

Assignment name: Country:

Location within Country: Professional Staff Provided (names/titles):

Name and address of Client: Duration of Assignment (months):

Start date (Month/Year):

Completion date (Month/Year):

Approx. Value of Services (CAD):

Name of Associated Consultants, if any: No. of Months of Professional Staff Provided by Associated Consultants:

Narrative Description of the Project:

Description of Actual Services Provided by the Bidding Organization:

Assignments eligible for inclusion in a potential supplier’s bid must have been active within five calendar years of the bid submission deadline for this CTIF mandate.

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Annex 3: CV Format

PositionName and CitizenshipEducation

Present Employer and Position: if applicableLength of Service with Current Employer and StatusPertinent Experience: A summary of experience related to the rated requirements

Employment History: A history of employment and assignments in reverse chronological order

Publications (if applicable; limit to last 5 years)

References: name, title, phone and email

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Annex 4: Budget Template (tentative)

Mandate/Project Tittle:

Beneficiary Name:

Bidder name:

Budget Line Description/Unit Rate per day (CAD)

Total LOE (day)

Total budget cost (CAD)

First name, Last name Position title - - - -

Rate per unit Total (units) Total budget cost (CAD)

Airfare (regional) - Airfare (international) - Perdiems (country) - Perdiems (Canada) - Accommodation (country) - Accommodation (country) - Transportation - Transportation (airport transfer) - Visa - Visa Visa (Canada) - Health insurance per trainee (Canada) - Meeting costs Room & equipment rental -

-

Rate per unit Total (units) Total budget cost (CAD)

Training material customization (information resources, stake-holder meeting, printing, production, communication costs)

-

Rent of facilities (Canada) per day - Rent of facilities (country) per day - Meals (Canada) per person per meal - Meals (country) per day - Interpretation per day - Translation lump sum -

Stationery per participant - Domestic travel of local consultant per ticket - Accommodation in country per night -

- HST or other applicable taxesTotal Proposal Budget -

Sub-Total travel costs

Training Costs

Sub-Total Training Costs

Sub-Total - 1. Fees to Consultants

International Travel Costs

Fees to Consultants

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Annex 5: WorkplanActivity:Objective:Target Group:Location:

Measures for accomplishing the objective Data sources to measures the objectiveA. A.B. B.C. C.D. D.

Action Expected Deliverables

Responsibility Completion Date

Objective: statement(s) describing the results to be achieved and the manner in which these results will be achieved. Objectives should be SMART, that is, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-phased. For example: To meet the HR Ministerial objective of training 100 people in yearly orders, fifty public officers will be trained in the first quarter, and then another fifty in the third quarter.

Target Group: Define clearly an institutions/community groups/etc. which will involve in the Activity

Location: is where the activity will be implemented.

Measures for accomplishing objectives: measures that are quantifiable criteria that describe whether or not the objective was accomplished. Measures might include target numbers (e.g., 100 public officers trained), or quantifiable changes (public officers reporting increased in formulating a policy relevant to economic growth after attending the training), or completion of an activity.

Data sources to measure the objective: sources may include rosters, logs, agendas, surveys, observations, interviews, or focus groups, profiles, and other data. Data sources are used to assess whether an objective has been achieved. The data sources should be kept, however, and should be available on the request of CTIF project officer during site visits/monitoring visits. Data sources should be summarized to report complete, partial, or unmet objectives in progress.

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Annex 6: Rate Justification Form

Date:    

Expert’s name:    

Client, Contract # and Date signed

Dates of assignment

Client Contact Name

Contact Phone #

Contract Duration (Days)

Daily rate Hours worked/per daily rate

Nature of Services

               

               

               

Organization's Name and Signature

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Annex 7. CTIF Mandate-level Performance Measurement Framework – 055-Leatherina-Bangladesh9

Mandate Title E-Commerce, Sustainability, and Market Access Support to Women-led Leather Goods Enterprise No. 055-CV03

Country/Region Bangladesh Budget (CAD) TBC

Consultant TBD Start - End date: 02/2021-08/2021

Beneficiary organization Leatherina Pvt. Ltd. CTIF Immediate

Outcome #: 1220

CTIF Ultimate Outcome Indicator(s) 1000.1, 1000.3 CTIF Intermediate

Outcome Indicator(s): 1200.1; 1200.2

Mandate Summary:

CTIF will provide technical assistance to the women-led SME, Leatherina Pvt. Ltd. to strengthen its sustainability and growth prospects through the development of a comprehensive e-commerce platform that allows to review and purchase all its products remotely. Simultaneously, CTIF TA will assist Leatherina in accessing new clients in the North American market while strengthening its ability to adhere to environmental sustainability, social safeguarding, and legal standards expected by clients in such markets.

CTIF Ultimate Outcome: More inclusive, sustainable and poverty-reducing trade and investment in eligible Asia-Pacific countries

Result Outcome or Output Statement Indicators from PMF Mandate

BaselineMandate Target

CTIF Intermediate 1200.1 Average # of markets reached by [Leatherina] 2 TBD

9 Indicators adapted to reflect the specific beneficiary of this mandate, Leatherina Pvt Ltd. Baseline and progress data will be collected directly by CTIF through electronic baseline and follow-up surveys.

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Outcome 1200

Increased access to markets and finance by Asia-Pacific-based SMEs and CSOs, particularly those led by women.

1200.2 Average # of sources of financing reported by [Leatherina] 1 TBD

CTIF Immediate Outcome 1220

Increased capacity of CSOs & PSOs to support their constituencies in areas such as business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access, access to finance, and responsible business conduct.

1220.1 [Leatherina’s] level of confidence in internal processes and tools to support their constituencies in areas such as business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access to finance, and/or, responsible business conduct

5/6 6/6

1220.2 [Leatherina’s] level of confidence of Asia-Pacific SMEs (women-led/male-led) in their ability to access new markets and sources of finance

5/6 6/6

1220.3 Level of knowledge and skills among [Leatherina] staff, particularly female staff, in areas such as business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access to finance, and/or, responsible business conduct

2/6 4/6

CTIF Output 1221

TA provided to CSOs & PSOs to support their constituencies in areas such as business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access, financing, and responsible business conduct.

1221.1 # of CTIF mandates delivered to CSOs & PSOs to support their constituents with business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access, financing, or responsible business conduct.

0 1

1221.2 # of CSOs & PSOs provided with financial and/or business development services through CTIF mandates.

0 1

1221.3 Perceived utility of CTIF TA to [Leatherina] in supporting their constituents with business growth, women’s economic empowerment, market access, financing, and responsible business conduct as reported by [Leatherina].

n/a 5/6

Task 1 Scoping Study

Task 2 E-commerce and Digital Marketing Plan

Task 3 e-Commerce Website Update

Task 4 Advisory Support and Training Delivery

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