TOR For Consultancy Services to Implement the iCRA Agribusiness Coaching Model at Rikolto

TOR For Consultancy Services to Implement the iCRA Agribusiness Coaching Model at Rikolto

TERMS OF REFERENCE (TOR)

For Consultancy Services to Implement the iCRA Agribusiness Coaching Model in the Singida and Dodoma Regions

Introduction

Rikolto Tanzania is part of Rikolto International, a Belgian NGO dedicated to transforming food chains to ensure food is produced with respect for people and the planet. For over 40 years, we have worked in Tanzania to promote sustainable and inclusive food systems and are part of a global network operating in 18 countries worldwide.

Rikolto is currently implementing two projects funded by the World Food Program (WFP): Vijana Kilimo Biashara (VKB) and the Joint Program on Accelerating Progress Towards Rural Women’s Economic Empowerment (JP RWEE). These projects focus on strengthening food systems to empower smallholder farmers and youth involved in the sunflower, sorghum, and horticulture value chains in the Dodoma and Singida regions. Both initiatives contribute to the government’s efforts to transform the rural economy through sustainable farming practices.

Rikolto has conducted an assessment to identify the opportunities and challenges within Agricultural sectors. The assessment revealed that while there are significant opportunities, innovative approaches are needed to address the following challenges:

1. Weak capacity of FBOs: Sorghum and sunflower farmers in the target regions are predominantly smallholders with farm size ranging from 0.1 to 2.0 hectares. These smallholder farmers are the least organized actors in the market system, and as such they are the most vulnerable to manipulation by other actors. The few FBOs and farmer groups that exist have been initiated by WFP and government mainly as entry points for good agronomical practices training and coordination. The few existing aggregators and MSMEs networks in Singida and Singida regions have too few members to enable them to have adequate leverage in the market. The farmer-based organizations (FBOs) often lack adequate organizational, leadership and entrepreneur’s agribusiness skills, and the necessary capacities to provide services needed by their members
2. Inadequate access to business development services (BDS), including finance: Despite demand for business development services, the accessibility and availability of the services have been difficult for sunflower and sorghum farmers. The few financial institutions that finance the two sectors often charge very high interest rates and request collateral. This leads to farmers using their own funds or borrowing from relatives and Village Community Banks (VICOBAs), which limits the ability of the farmer and the FBO to grow their business.
3. Inadequate use of harvesting and post-harvest handling technologies; Despite the increase in cereal crop production at the national level, estimated at 11 million tons per year, Post-harvest Losses are high, approximately 4 million tons per year. This means up to 30% of the annual national production of cereals is lost under post-harvest alone. For example, Usually, it takes days to thresh piles of sorghum and winnow them to separate the chaff from the grain. Losses are high due to scattering of the beans, especially during transportation from the farm before threshing
4. Low production and productivity within the sunflower and sorghum value chains: Inadequate use of improved inputs such as certified seeds from seed multipliers and less certified Quality Declared Seeds (QDS) at the district level. SHF are recycling using food crop seed instead of improved seeds that lower production prosperity, and smallholder farmers have limited knowledge and limited use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) such as use of agriculture limestone to rectify the salinity level. Most of the SHF in sunflower and sorghum are used recycled seeds in each planting season.

Objectives of the Assignment

The consultancy aims to implement the iCRA Agribusiness Coaching Model to establish and operationalize 24 agribusiness clusters, providing structured support to small and medium enterprises within targeted value chains. Through this approach, the consultancy will strengthen business relationships among farmers, agribusinesses, and key stakeholders, fostering collaboration, knowledge sharing, and joint problem-solving. The initiative will enhance the capacity of cluster members, promote sustainable market linkages, and contribute to long-term growth, competitiveness, and resilience of the agribusiness sector.

Scope of Work and proposed methodology

The consultant will undertake the following key activities:

1. In collaboration with Rikolto, support the identification and selection of local coaches in the target regions and districts.
2. In collaboration with Rikolto, support the identification of entry points for agribusiness cluster formation and strengthening.
3. Facilitate Diagnosis and Design (D&D) processes to enable cluster members to jointly analyze value chain constraints, opportunities, power relations, and market dynamics.
4. Support clusters to define a shared vision, strategic objectives, and priorities based on market demand, competitiveness, inclusion, and sustainability.
5. Through the cluster approach, support the strengthening of farmer organizations (FBOs) to improve their operations, governance, and reliability as business partners.
6. Strengthen governance and coordination mechanisms within clusters and FBOs, including roles, decision-making processes, transparency, and accountability structures.
7. Coach cluster members to build trust and effective collaboration among farmers, SMEs, buyers, service providers, financial institutions, and other stakeholders.
8. Support the establishment and strengthening of business-to-business (B2B) relationships, including structured contracts, service agreements, and market linkages.
9. Enhance cluster and FBO capacity in business planning, financial management, and cost–benefit analysis.
10. Provide continuous, hands-on coaching and mentoring to FBOs, local coaches, and cluster leadership structures.
11. Facilitate reflection, learning, and adaptation sessions to assess progress, address implementation bottlenecks, and refine strategies.

Deliverables

• Mapping and validation of entry points for cluster formation and strengthening, including priority value chains, key stakeholders, and a validated list of identified local coaches in the target regions and districts.
• Completed Diagnosis and Design (D&D) processes for supported clusters, including analytical reports detailing value chain constraints, opportunities, power relations, and market dynamics.
• Co-developed cluster visions, strategic objectives, and practical action plans that integrate market demand, competitiveness, inclusion, sustainability, and climate considerations.
• Functional and strengthened clusters and farmer organizations with improved governance and coordination mechanisms, operational systems, and enhanced capacity in business planning and financial management.
• Established or strengthened business-to-business relationships, evidenced by contracts, MOUs, or service agreements, alongside documented coaching processes, reflection sessions, good practices, and lessons learned for scaling and replication.
• Regular monthly progress reports outlining activities implemented, progress against deliverables, challenges, lessons learned, and next steps, and a final consolidated report summarizing overall achievements, outcomes, and recommendations.

Duration and Timeline

The Agribusiness Coaching Model is expected to be implemented over nine months, from April to July 2026, across 24 agribusiness clusters. This timeline is designed to ensure that key stakeholders within each cluster are engaged, trained, and supported in strengthening their business relationships, enhancing financial access, and promoting gender-responsive strategies to empower women. The structured timeframe will allow for continuous capacity building and monitoring to ensure that the clusters develop sustainable and resilient agribusiness practices.

Required Qualifications and Experience

The consultant should meet the following criteria:

• Extensive experience in agribusiness development, business development services, or value chain facilitation, especially within the sunflower and sorghum sectors.
• Proven expertise in implementing cluster-based development through the iCRA Agribusiness model and working with youth and women in rural and agribusiness contexts.
• Familiarity with the local socio-economic dynamics in Singida and Singida.
• Demonstrated ability to apply gender-responsive methodologies and digital tools for agricultural development.

Application Process

Interested consultants are invited to submit:

• A cover letter highlighting relevant experiences.
• Detailed CVs of the consultant and key team members.
• A technical proposal outlining the proposed approach and methodology.
• A financial proposal detailing the budget and payment terms.

Interested candidates can submit their CV and application letter to: eastafrica.recruitment@rikolto.org by 2nd March 2026.