Consultancy for Green Finance Landscape Assessment of the Manufacturing Sector in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam

Request for Proposal

Green Finance Landscape Assessment of the Manufacturing Sector in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam

About ISC

The Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) is an international non-governmental agency working to unleash the power of people to transform their communities in the face of climate change. ISC’s mission is to help communities, cities, and industry around the world address environmental, economic, and social challenges to build a better future shaped and shared by all.

Background

Aiming to strengthen the lower Mekong region as a competitive and environmentally sustainable manufacturing hub, the Mekong Sustainability Manufacturing Alliance (The Alliance) program is a newly awarded 3-year USAID-funded Alliance, led by ISC, driving private-sector adoption of improved environmental and social safeguards by factories in the food processing, electronics and textiles sectors. The program will focus primarily on Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, with both country-specific and region-wide activities.

Scope of Work

ISC is seeking a Consultant (individual or organization) to conduct a landscape assessment of financing opportunities available for the manufacturing sector to advance their environmental, social and governance performance. The Consultant must be able to quickly understand the context and needs of the program to better understand the financing needs of manufacturers and the barriers they face. The landscape assessment should also be able to propose recommendations to make finance available and accessible for the manufacturing sector to improve their environmental, social and governance performance, with a special focus on advancing gender and social inclusion (GESI). 

While the program is being implemented across Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, the Consultant can express interest for a specific country(ies) or specific sectoral focus (eg, social compliance, environmental sustainability or governance performance) based on expertise and experience. To increase the range of experience and expertise, applicants are encouraged to form partnerships or a consortium to respond to this request.

As part of the assessment, the Consultant will specifically:

• Analyze the financing needs of manufacturers and the barriers they face.
• Provide recommendations for addressing financing barriers that manufacturers face.
  
  • Analyze existing green finance initiatives – whether funded by donors, host countries, or the private sector – to determine opportunities for initiatives and partnerships that will expand finance for manufacturing sector’s increased adoption of environmental, social and governance best practices.
  • Coordinate with USAID’s Regional Development Mission for Asia to connect with relevant regional and bi-lateral U.S. Government green finance initiatives.
• Propose appropriate financing models such as direct financing from a financial institution, shared savings through ESCOs, project insurance and partial risk guarantee schemes, equipment leasing, etc.
• Develop materials to orient and provide customized training and technical assistance to advance understanding of unique considerations for environmental, social and governance investments in the manufacturing sector, based on the landscape assessment.
• Develop tools that enable financiers to assess their ROI and to manage their lending risk.
• Identify data requirements and conduct stakeholder consultations and secondary research to gather necessary information.
• Present research/tools in an organized and useful format, such as excel matrices, PowerPoint slides, etc.
• Record and present all data and information sources.

Qualifications

The Consultant must have: 

• Strong research and analytical skills; experience conducting primary and secondary data gathering;
• International development program experience conducting landscape and/or market assessments; preference for factory/industry experience in Asia, preferably Thailand, Vietnam and/or Cambodia.
• Demonstrated knowledge of social compliance, environmental sustainability and/or governance performance standards.
• Experience with supporting factories to secure finance for sustainability investments, including practical skills in working with banks, non-banking financial institutions, and donors in increasing access to finance.
• A Master’s degree in business, finance, economics, environmental sustainability, or a related discipline appropriate to the role. 
• Minimum of five years relevant experience successfully addressing environmental sustainability and access to finance in the private sector in the region.
• Self-starter, detail-oriented, thorough and well organized with ability to produce high quality deliverables under challenging deadlines.
• Excellent spoken and written English is required; Thai and/or Vietnamese preferred. 
• Well-developed interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills working with a small team.

Submission Requirements

Interested consultants must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services, along with cost information, by submitting a proposal via email to [email protected], with RFP – Mekong Green Finance Landscape Assessment Consultant in the subject line. Deadline of submission is 17 June 2021.

Proposals should include the following information: 

• Name and contact details
• Narrative piece, that outlines the vision for the work along with suggested methodology, workplan
• and/or other technical inputs for the assignment. Also, include the geography and sector focus. (maximum 5 pages)
• Description of qualifications in a CV (maximum 3 pages)
• Three references who can speak to consultant’s successful completion of similar work, with contact details (email and telephone)
• Cost information. The consultant should submit a detailed cost proposal in USD. This should include the estimated number of days required to complete the assignment along with all fees including professional fee, travel and lodging expenses and any relevant taxes.