Consultancy for the Development of an Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) Regime Management Toolkit for The Gambia

Consulting / Research Job Overview 1. Background The Gambia is a Party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Nagoya Protocol. The Department of Parks and Wildlife Management (DPWM) is leading the national ABS Project, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as Implementing Agency. The above-mentioned project supports the development of national ABS instruments. This consultancy will translate relevant policy, legislative, administrative and regulatory measures, both in force and under development, into a practical ABS Regime Management Toolkit for competent authorities, researchers, communities, traditional knowledge holders and other users. 2. Purpose and basis of the assignment The purpose of this consultancy is to develop one consolidated Toolkit containing operational procedures, guidance and editable tools for administering access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilization in the Republic of the Gambia When developing the ABS Management Toolkit, the consultant shall confirm with the Project Management Unit (PMU) and relevant authorities the status and version of each source instrument. Measures in force -whether legislative, policy, administrative or regulatory- shall be clearly distinguished from draft instruments, including those developed under the GEF-funded UNEP Project. Any guidance based on draft instruments shall be labelled provisional and specify the approval or legal steps required before it can be used. The Toolkit shall neither amend nor supersede national instruments, nor create unsupported obligations or institutional powers. 3. Scope of work The ABS Management toolkit will be delivered through three complementary workstreams briefly presented below. 3.1 Inception, review and consultation The consultant will agree with the Project Management Unit (PMU) the work plan, Toolkit structure, consultation arrangements and review schedule. The assignment includes the review of relevant national instruments and applicable CBD and Nagoya Protocol provisions and will draw from selected comparable operational tools. The assignment will also identify gaps or inconsistencies requiring clarification by the responsible authorities. In addition, the assignment will require consultations with as appropriate and feasible, government institutions, communities and traditional knowledge holders, researchers, civil society and relevant private-sector actors. These consultations will cover the assessment of user needs, institutional interfaces and capacity gaps. Importantly the consultation process will ensure meaningful participation of women and groups facing barriers to engagement. Ultimately, all findings will be recorded concisely and used in the development of a comprehensive Toolkit with relevant annexes, as the main output of this assignment. 3.2 Toolkit development The consultant will prepare the integrated modules and annexes specified in section 4. In addition, existing official forms where available will be adapted to the context of the Gambia linking each procedure to its source instrument and distinguishing mandatory requirements from recommended practice. The Representative workflows and forms will be tested with intended users (to the extent pragmatically possible) and document be adjusted accordingly. 3.3 Validation, orientation and finalization Present and technically facilitate validation of the draft Toolkit, document feedback and prepare a comment-response matrix. Revise the Toolkit following Project review, deliver a practical orientation for designated users and incorporate the resulting usability corrections. The number of participants, duration of the orientation session(s) will be agreed at inception. 4. Required Toolkit content The Toolkit shall be a single coherent manual with integrated modules and cross-refer…