VAC-10909 National Consultant for Improved Fisheries Management Capacity in Hodeida and Hajjah

Background & context:

• The protracted conflict has made Yemen one of the poorest & most food insecure countries in the world. The conflict has destroyed livelihoods & the ability to purchase food. Fish contributes to poverty alleviation, food & nutritional security primarily in the coastal governorates of Aden, Taiz, Hadhramout & Al Mahrah as well as Hajjah, Hodeidah, Lahj, Abyan, Shabwah as well fish is marketed & consumed in the other inland governorates. Food prices, including fish prices have been increasing due to continued fluctuation of local currency, impacts of the COVID - 19 pandemic & ongoing conflict. While fish is a staple of Yemeni diet, there is evidence there is a significant number of households who do not utilize fish at a level it could be utilized & lack understanding of the nutritional benefits of using fish. The fishery sector provided job opportunities for more than half a million individuals which supported 1.7 million people, forming 18% of the coastal population prior to the conflict. It contributed up to 3% of the country’s GDP as the 3rd most important agricultural sector & second primary source of export earnings before the conflict. Yemen’s fisheries sector holds untapped promise in contributing to the national economy & food security, in which the potential of women is underutilized due to social norms. 

• Climate change is altering physical properties such as salinity, temperature & pH levels in the marine environment which can lead to adverse impacts on marine biodiversity. For example, there is increasing evidence that coral reefs in the northern part of the Gulf of Aden being damaged by unusual marine conditions & coral bleaching & mortality events, attributing to higher sea water temperatures. 

• Continued weak capacity to fisheries management & damaged infrastructure, weak monitoring control & enforce sector regulations leads to overfishing & possible depleting stock of species. Weak quality control, storage & cooling capacities & marketing capacities lead to decreasing revenues for the fishermen community & livelihoods as well as supply of fish to the local community contributing to addressing food.

• Our client intends to engage a consultancy service of an international & a national consultant to develop a proposal & project document for improved fisheries management capacity based on assessment of current capacities & infrastructures along the coastal line of the governorates of Hodeida & Hajjah as well as support to key actors in the fisheries value chain. The proposal & assessment will propose actions to address identified priority gaps in the targeted areas to ensure effective governance of the fisheries sector & prevent overfishing as well as allow natural ecosystems to regenerate to avoid depleting fish stocks & improved livelihoods of fisheries communities as well as empowering key actors in the fisheries value chain.

In general & among others, following are the key challenges constraining the development of the fishery sector in Yemen:

• Weak governance, technical & research capacities.

• Weak institutional management & capacities for strategic planning & implementation.

• Poor fisheries sector infrastructure including cold storge, maintenance workshop, processing & quality control labs & marketing services & high operation costs.

• Fragmented & unreliable information systems.

• Weak enforcement of laws & regulation.

• Weak monitoring capacities of fishing activities.

• Overfishing & unregulated fishing practices.

• Unknown fisheries stock carrying capacity.

• Underutilized fisheries potential.

• Weak capacities of fisheries cooperatives & associations.

• Underutilization of fishery communities especially women.

• Low productivity of fishermen community.

• Low quality of fish / fisheries products.

• Low quality assurance & compliance to international standards.

• Low income returns of fishing activities.

• Inadequate capacity & compliance to social & environmental standards.

• Limited aquaculture & SME’s development.

• Limited investment of private sector.

• Limited access to export markets.

• Standards below international competition requirement.

• Uncontrol fishing of foreign vessels.

Consultancy work objective:

• The consultancy service will develop a proposal for improved fisheries management in the governorates of Hodeida & Hajjah based on identification of gaps & areas for improvement including governance & technical capacities, infrastructure & fisheries value chain. This will include assessment & identification of governance gaps & proposing interventions measures in consultation with the local fisheries authorities, fisheries cooperatives / associations. As well as rapid assessment of damages & proposal for rehabilitation of key infrastructures including landing sites & services. Finally, it will also include studying the needs of key actors along the fisheries value chain for improved access of livelihoods opportunities.

• The consultancy team will consist of 2 consultants. The national consultant will work as a team with the international Lead Consultant. His / her role will be mainly to assist the international Lead Consultant in data collection, facilitation with the local authorities, communities & key stokeholds, organization of the meetings & undertaking preliminary assessments. The Lead Fisheries international consultant will be responsible & accountable for the delivery of the assignment.

The ntional consultant will work under the supervision of the Team Leader of economic recovery & development unit & in close coordination / consultation with the Ministry of Fish Wealth, its governate branches, local authorities, fisheries cooperatives / associations, private sector & fisheries communities in the targeted areas to undertake the assessment & develop the proposal. The national consultant will support the international Lead Consultant & will coordinate the field work & consultations with the stakeholders. S / he will also undertake the initial rapid assessments. The assessment & proposal will include prioritized proposals for improved fisheries management capacities, equipment needs & rehabilitation of critical landing sites & facilities. The proposals should also take into consideration the following:

• Improved fisheries institutional & technical capacities.

• Support sustainable fishermen community livelihoods.

• Improved values chain for sustainable livelihoods.

• Climate change resilient & risk informed consideration in the rehabilitation of infrastructure.

• Sound waste management system for pollution control ensuring protection of the marine environment.

• Effective social & safeguard mechanism & hygiene practices.

• Provision of space for increased women involvement in fishery value chain activities.

The consultancy service will develop the fisheries management proposal based on identification of priority gaps & corresponding actions through consultative & participatory processes involving key stakeholders within the local authorities, fisheries communities, cooperatives, private sector & key actors along the fisheries value chain. The consultant will work closely with key stakeholders on assessment of the institutional & technical capacities, rapid assessment of the damaged infrastructure as well & propose priority intervention areas & actions for improvement of fisheries management in the targeted areas with indicative budgets & time frames. Field visits will be conducted to the fishermen communities as well as landing sites in the targeted areas. Following are key tasks of the national consultants:

• Conduct desk review of existing information, data & assessment reports on fisheries sector & value chain(s) overall & in Hodeida & Hajjah governorates. 

• Undertake rapid situation analysis & comprehensive fisheries sector review in the targeted areas.

• Conduct field visits & rapid assessment of fisheries landing sites in the targeted areas. 

• Consult with key officials & practitioners on fisheries markets & value chain analysis to determine threats, challenges & opportunities.

• Engage with fisheries communities, cooperatives & private sector to identify needs of target groups for sustainable livelihoods. 

• Support in identify opportunities difficulties & barriers facing key actors in the value chain & SMEs involvement the informal & formal enterprises & assess existing potentials for informal & formal businesses in the sector. 

• Support in defining & prioritize capacity gaps & needs of local authorities, cooperatives & fishermen communities, including institutional, technical, legal / regulations, information base, community participation & awareness capacities for sustainable fisheries management. 

• Support in studying gender dynamics in the overall fisheries management & opportunities for income generation strategies from the perspectives of vulnerable women & men.

• Assess capacities of landing sites, in terms of auction areas, cooling facilities, cold storage, power generation, quality control, administration & other facilities.

• Contribute to assessment of fish handling at the landing sites & fish quality, hygiene practices waste management.

• Contribute to assessment of guidelines & practices for application of application safeguard measures, hygiene & quality control, pollution control, protection of marine environment & waste management.

Following are the expected milestones & results of the consultancy work:

The national consultant will work in close coordination with the international consultant & under the supervision of the Team Leader of economic recovery & development unit & in close coordination / consultation with the Ministry of Fish Wealth, its governate branches, local authorities, fisheries cooperatives / associations, private sector & fisheries communities in the targeted areas to undertake the assessment & develop the proposal. Following are the key institutions & entities to be consulted & interviewed during the development of the proposal:

• Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation & Fish Wealth (MoAIFW).

• Supreme council for management & coordination of humanitarian affairs & international cooperation & its branch in Hodeida.

• Hodeida General Authority of Fisheries (GAF).

• Marine research & science authority.

• Environment & marine science faculty, Hodeida university.

• The Ministry of Planning & International Cooperation (MoPIC) branch office.

• Fisheries cooperatives & associations (FCAs).

• Fisheries communities representatives.

• Local authorities (governorates & districts).

• Yemen women committee / associations.

• Private sector active in fisheries sector.

• Chamber of commerce & industry.

• Fisheries experts / practitioners.

• Food Agriculture Organization (FAO).

• Our clients fisheries projects.

• Master’s degree or higher in environmental science, fishery science, economics, business administration, or related discipline.

• Relevant work experience for at least 10 years of professional work experience providing policy advice & program development & support in the general area of fisheries management, or economics is required.

• Experience in providing policy advisory services to the governments relating to sustainable development or fishery sector management.

• Experience with the design & / or implementation of fisheries management strategies, plans & projects.

• Experience working in crisis context is an asset.

• Experience working with multilateral organizations & / or the UN system is preferred.

• Experience in fragile & crisis contexts is an asset.

• Experience working with a wide set of stakeholders, such as the private & financial sector, government & civil society is preferred.

• Field experience in environmental management, climate change related projects in developing countries contexts is an asset.

• Good command of written & spoken English & Arabic is required.

This role has no team manegement responsibility.

Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply for this role.