West Africa Coastal Areas Resilience Investment Project 2: Consultancy Service for the Drafting of Regulations for the Community Resource Management Area (CREMA) Under the Wildlife Resources Management Act, 2023 (Act 1115)

NOTICE AT-A-GLANCE

Project ID: P175525

Project Title: West Africa Coastal Areas Resilience Investment Project 2

Country: Western and Central Africa

Notice No: OP00310774

Notice Type: Request for Expression of Interest

Notice Status: Published

Borrower Bid Reference: GH-MESTI-441727-CS-CQS

Procurement Method: Consultant Qualification Selection

Language of Notice: English

Submission Deadline Date/Time: Sep 30, 2024 05:00

Published Date: 16-Sep-2024

Description: CONSULTANCY SERVICE FOR THE DRAFTING OF REGULATIONS FOR THE COMMUNITY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AREA (CREMA) UNDER THE WILDLIFE RESOURCES MANAGEMET ACT, 2023 (ACT 1115)

Details:

CONSULTANCY SERVICE FOR THE

DRAFTING OF REGULATIONS FOR THE COMMUNITY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AREA (CREMA) UNDER THE WILDLIFE RESOURCES MANAGEMET ACT, 2023 (ACT 1115)

INTRODUCTION

The Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, has recently enacted the Wildlife Resources Management Act, 2023 (Act 1115). This Act represents a comprehensive legislative framework that revises and consolidates all relevant laws related to wildlife and protected areas management in the country. Passed by Parliament on 28th July 2023 and assented to by the President on 1st March 2024, Act 1115 seeks to provide a coherent framework for implementing modern policies and international commitments, including the Forest and Wildlife Policy, 2012, and the Forestry Development Master Plan (2016-2036).

The Act aligns Ghana's wildlife management practices with current international best practices and establishes a robust legal framework to support sustainable wildlife management and conservation. Additionally, it provides a solid legal basis for the creation and management of Community Resources Management Areas (CREMAs), thereby promoting local community involvement in wildlife conservation.

Section 37 of Act 1115 mandates the Minister, on recommendation from the Forestry Commission, to enact regulations on relevant matters including CREMAs. The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources under the WACAResIP 2seeks the services of a consultant to draft these regulations using the laid down procedures.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The West Africa Coastal Area (WACA) Program was developed in response to countries’ requests for solutions and finance to help protect and restore the ecological, social, and economic assets of coastal areas in the subregion. In recent years, West Africa’s coastal communities have become highly vulnerable to the impacts of coastal erosion, flooding, pollution, and coastal retreat resulting in the loss of housing, assets, land, and other important ecosystem services.

The degradation of these coastal and marine ecosystems could lead to a significant and potentially irreversible loss of critical ecosystems such as beaches, wetlands, and mangroves which are key for sustainable livelihoods, food security, and storm protection.

These challenges are often transboundary, multisectoral, and beyond the ability of one country or development partner to finance or effectively tackle. Consequently, to address these shared regional challenges, the WACA Resilience Investment Project (ResIP 2) was approved by the World Bank in December 2022.

The WACA ResIP 2 supports site-specific grey, green,and hybrid physical investments, and social subprojects at the community level to achieve measurable increases in protection from coastal erosion and flooding, pollution control, and to promote climate-resilient and nature-based coastal development. Project activities are expected to directly benefit people at project sites in the three beneficiary countries, i.e. Ghana, the Gambia and Guinea Bissau who live along the coast and depend on it for their livelihoods.

In Ghana, the Project is designed to address these challenges and to unlock the potential of its blue economy to ensure a resilient seascape for the communities who depend on it for their livelihood and wellbeing. Notable among the challenges in Ghana are coastal erosion, flooding, pollution; ecosystem degradation; and inadequate institutional coordination of policies and programs. Under component three (3) of the WACA ReSIP 2 in Ghana, there is the need to strengthen the legislation framework to support collaborative resource management and community engagement in the country WACA ResIP 2 in Ghana is being led by the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) with support from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR) and its Technical Agencies (Wildlife Division of the Forestry Commission), Ministry of Works and Housing (MWH) together with Ghana Hydrological Authority (GHA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other partners. Details of the project design and implementation arrangement is available in the Project Appraisal Document which will be provided as part of the Client’s Input to the assignment.

The overall objective of WACA in Ghana is to strengthen the resilience of coastal communities in addressing coastal challenges. The overarching strategy to achieve this outcome is to focus on strengthening Ghana's blue economy and to restore and protect critical coastal ecosystems which provide essential services to nearby communities, including income generation and protection against natural disasters.

OBJECTIVE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

The objective of this assignment is to support the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and its Agencies to prepare a Legislative Instrument to guide the setting up and operationalization of Community Resource Management Areas (CREMAs) model in the country.

The specific objectives of the assignment are to:

• engage stakeholders to elicit their views in drafting a comprehensive collaborative resource management regulation.
• build consensus among a wide array of stakeholders on the draft regulation on CREMAs.
• support engagement processes with Attorney General’s Department and various Committees and Sub-Committees of Parliament leading to the parliamentary approval of the legislation.

SCOPE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

The scope of the assignment would cover stakeholder consultation and consensus building towards the drafting of the proposed CREMA Regulation and processes leading to Parliamentary approval of the regulation including engagements with the Attorney General’s Department, Committees and Sub-Committees of Parliament. In line with the fact that the CREMA legislation is going to be national, the consultations and consensus building activities will cover the whole country. The MLNR FPU in consultation with MESTI will agree on the zoning of the areas to ensure efficiency in the process.

TASK TO BE PERFORMED.

The consulting firm will be expected to develop comprehensive regulations that amongst others:

1. 1. prescribe the contents of the constitution establishing a Community Resource Management Committee.
   2. providefor the establishment and management of Community Resources Management Areas (CREMAs), ensuring local community involvement in wildlife conservation.
   3. provide for the manner and form of registration of CREMAs.
   4. provide for the content and procedure of local byelaws to be enacted by CREMAs that are established.
   5. stipulate in detail the permitted activities and procedures of the CREMAs, to ensure transparency and accountability.
   6. ensure the regulations support the implementation of the Forest and Wildlife Policy, 2012, and the Forestry Development Master Plan (2016-2036).
   7. identify and address any legal gaps or inconsistencies that may hinder the effective implementation of the Act.
   8. clearly define the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders in the management of natural resources.
   9. ensure consultations with relevant stakeholders, including local communities, government agencies, and international partners, to gather input and ensure broad support for the regulations.
   10. Ensure the regulations are comprehensive, enforceable, and align with national policies, other existing wildlife and protected area laws and international commitments and best practices in wildlife management and conservation.
   11. operationalize the provisions of Act 1115 relating to protected areas.

To achieve the above listed, the consulting firm will perform the tasks in the table within the consultancy period to achieve the goal of the assignment.

Table 1: Detailed Activities

	Activities	Tasks
1	Development of draft Legislative Instrument for Wildlife Resources Management Act, 2023 (Act 1115)	Review and analyse provisions on CREMA under Act 1115, as well as existing policies and guidelines on the CREMA
		Conduct in house consultations with the MLNR and FC to obtain legislative drafting instructions
		To conduct wider stakeholder engagements during the execution of the assignment and participate in dissemination meetings to understand the context and dynamics of the proposed Regulations from the stakeholder’s perspective
		Produce zero draft legislative Instrument
2	Participation in Stakeholder consultations and Validation Meeting	Subjectthe draft LI to stakeholder engagement including Expert reviews and Focus Group Discussions
		Revise the LI and submit to the MLNR
3	Chaperoning L.I. prior to laying in Parliament	Attend follow-up meetings and facilitate informal meetings of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee of Parliament to validate the draft Regulations before legislative drafting instructions are sent to the Attorney General’s Office and Ministry of Justice
4	Reporting	Produce Stakeholder Consultaion Report and the End of Assignment report

Table 2: DELIVERABLES AND EXPECTED TIMELINE

Deliverables	Proposed Deadline
Inception Report with detailed work plan, methodology, and timeline.	One (1) week upon signing the contract
Submission of Draft Regulations: Initial draft of the regulations for review	Eight weeks (8) upon signing the contract
Stakeholder Consultation Report with summary of inputs and feedback from consultations.	Sixteen Weeks (16) upon signing the contract
Submission of Final Regulations: Revised and finalized regulations incorporating stakeholder feedback	Twenty-Weeks (20) upon signing the contract
Consultant’s end of assignment report to guide development of complementary mechanisms.	Twenty- Four Weeks (24) upon signing the contract

DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT: Six months starting from 1stAugust to 2024 to 28thFebruary 2025

QUALIFICATION OF CONSULTANCY FIRM

A consultancy firm which is duly registered with the Registrar of Companies with qualified individuals or professionals and support staff available to be deployed to execute this assignment. The team should consist of a team leader, researchers or experts specialized in the different aspects required for the task. In the case where a foreign firm is selected, the firm shall partner withrelevant local organizations in accordance with the laws of Ghana.

Experience and Expertise of Firm/Organization

• Highly organized entity with the ability to produce quality work and meet tight deadlines.
• Proven experience in working on similar projects and assignments of this nature or related field. Proven track record of having successfully completed at least one similar assignment.
• Proven track record of drafting Legislative Instruments in Ghana.
• Proven track record of client engagement.
• Demonstrable experience with stakeholders’ engagement with local communities, government institutions.

A minimum of five (5) years of experience providing services for similar assignments is required of the consultancy firm.

Team Composition

The consulting firm shall use Key Experts for the execution of the assignment. Only one CV shall be submitted for each Key Expert position. Experience working in Ghana and/or other West African countries will be an added advantage.

The Firm is responsible for meeting all tax liabilities, insurance, proof of incorporation and other related liabilities arising out of the Contract.

In addition to providing dates, name of employing organization, titles of positions held, types of activities performed and location of the assignment, the Consultant’s Experts must provide contact information of previous works and employing organization(s) who can be contacted for references.

Consultant’s Experts must be available to undertake the assignment in case of an award. Any misstatement or misrepresentation will lead to disqualification by MESTI.

The total estimated workload for this assignment is six (6) calendar months.

The key professional staff required for the assignment are listed below:

• Team Leader
• Collaborative Resource Management Expert
• Social and Environmental Specialist
• Legal Expert

Minimum Qualifications for Key Positions

The minimum requirements for key staff are provided below.

Team Leader.

Must have at leasta minimum educational qualification of master’s in Natural Resource Management, Environmental Science or Governance, Project Management, Development Studies, Protected Areas Management, law or related disciplines. Have at leastten (10) years’ experience in legislature drafting. The leader must provide information to indicate qualification to perform the task, description of similar assignments, relevant experience and general qualifications. The Consultant is expected to have ability to co-ordinate and moderate the relevant deliberations on the proposed legislation and facilitate multi stakeholder groups on the subject matter.Should be a qualified and competent member of a professional body in their field of practice.

Collaborative Resource Management Specialist

Must have a minimum educational qualification of Masters in Natural Resource Management, Social Development or related fields to the assignment and a minimum of 10 years post-qualification experience in CREMA establishment and operationalization. Should be a qualified and competent member of a professional body in their field of practice.

Social and Environmental Specialists

A minimum educational qualification of master’s degree in social development / environmental engineering / science / management (forestry, wildlife studies) or a related discipline is required. At least 5 years of field working experience in protected areas, community engagement and consensus building. Knowledge of World Bank environmental and social standards is essential and experience in Ghana is an advantage. Fluency in English language is essential.

Legal Expert

Must have a minimum of master’s degree in law with over five (5) years of post-qualification experience. Should be a member of the Ghana Bar Association with extensive knowledge about drafting and public policy formulation.The legal expert must have experience in preparing a legislative instrument in Ghana

REPORTING AND COORDINATION

The assignment will be coordinated by the Project Implementation Unit (Procurement Unit) at the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI) with the support of the Focal Point Unit (FPU) at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR).

MESTI will oversee the procurement process, but the Consultant will be directly supervised by the MLNR FPU to ensure that the technical details and review meetings are held on time. The MLNR will involve MESTI PIU in all meetings related to the assignment to ensure that processes are not duplicated, and all signoffs are achieved concurrently to save time.

The Consultant must coordinate and convene monthly progressmeetingswiththeMLNR’ FPU with representation from MESTI to discuss progress of work and facilitate the timely approval of mandatory dependency phases of the assignment.TheConsultantmustsetuparecurringcalendar appointment with tentative dates for the progress meetings. The Consultant is expected to prepare and submit formal meeting minutes for MLNR which will be shared with MESTI.

The Consultant will take part in all expert review meetings, consultation, consensus building and validation workshops that would be organized by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources towards the goal of bringing multisectoral and subject matter experts’ contribution into the outputs of the assignment. The Consultant will be responsible for organizing the inputs of stakeholders from these engagements and prepare meetings reports in line with a template that would be agreed with MLNR.

The Consultant would be required to take part in missions with the World Bank and would make a presentation of the status of the work if the need arises. In this regard, MESTI and MLNR would give prior notice to the Firm not less than 5 working days to prepare for such meetings or missions.

INPUTS FROM MESTI AND MLNR

• WACA ResIP 2 Project Appraisal Document.
• WACA ResIP 2 Social and Environmental Safeguards Instruments.
• WACA ResIP 2 Project Implementation Manual.

Additionally, MLNR and FC will provide at least a team of two staff to work with the consultant to improve their capacity and will also coordinate meetings as requested by the consultant

SELECTION PROCEDURE

A consulting firm will be selected in accordance with the Consultant Qualification Selection (CQS) Method, as set out in the Consultant Guidelines’Selection and Employment of Consultants (under IBRD loan and IDA credit and Grants) by World Bank Borrowers, dated January 2011 and revised in July 2014.

Interested consultants may submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) that includes updated information on their qualifications and experience and how these are relevant to the provisions of the Terms of Reference to:

The Project Coordinator

WACA ResIP 2 Ghana,

Directorate of Environment

Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Email:peter.dery@mesti.gov.ghand in copy to the email addresses below:

frank.lare@mesti.gov.gh

danielnsowah@yahoo.com

procurement@mesti.gov.gh

For further information about the project or these Terms of Reference please contact:

For further clarification, kindly contact the following:

Procurement Specialist

Phone no.:0302662626/0244-842128

E-mail:frank.lare@mesti.gov.gh

CONTACT INFORMATION

Organization/Department: Ministry of Environment, Science Technology and Innovation

Name: Peter J. Dery

Address: Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation Ministries Accra

City:

Province/State:

Postal Code:

Country: Ghana

Phone: 0243646749

Email: peter.dery@mesti.gov.gh

Website: