Retendering - Public Tender Announcement nb.83490400 "(2) Two STEs as ToT Trainers for CBT modules in Agrofood "PN#18.2208.9-002.00 QuAVET / Extension

Context

Brief information about the project

The Multi-Donor Action “Improving the Quality and Attractiveness of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Lebanon for vulnerable social groups” is jointly co-financed by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The joint action is implemented by GIZ as a specific Action within the wider BMZ project “Improving the Quality and Attractiveness of TVET in Lebanon (QuA-VET)”. The aim of the action is to orient the vocational training towards the qualification needs of the labour market in sectors with sustainable employment potentials, therefore improving the employment capacities for poor and vulnerable social groups living in Lebanon. The implementing partner, the Directorate General for Vocational and Technical Education (DGVTE), requires further support in involving the private sector in vocational education and training. Thus, the project’s emphasis is placed on improving the partnership between vocational training institutions and the private sector. This includes developing modularized and practice-oriented training programmes in selected sectors, digitalizing e-Learning Lessons for the technical theoretical subjects of the promoted TVET programs and General Subjects and enhancing the quality of in-company training for employees and work-based learning for vulnerable individuals. The target groups of the project are vulnerable youth and young adults (aged 15-35), including Syrian and Palestinian refugees, individuals from hosting communities, TVET Lebanese students, unemployed or underemployed individuals (aged 17 to 35), and employees in Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) seeking to improve their employment prospects through relevant qualifications.

Background – The Baccalaureate Technique (BT) Curriculum

The agrofood sector plays a pivotal role in the Lebanese economy, combining agriculture with food production to meet the demands of a growing population. In line with current employment trends, the sector is rapidly evolving, driven by sustainability, innovation, and digitalization. As consumer preferences shift towards healthier, organic, and sustainably produced food, new career opportunities are emerging in areas such as food technology, supply chain management, and quality assurance. The agrofood sector remains a dynamic industry, offering diverse career paths that are increasingly aligned with modern workforce trends. Some of the public technical schools offer BT programs related to the agrofood sector, particularly in the “Hospitality - Food Production” specialization. These programs, along with others, have seen significant development through EU's VTE4ALL project, which introduced Competency-Based Training (CBT) modules in key areas such as dairy production, food preparation, packaging, export, safety, and social media marketing. These modernized CBTs, which are practice-oriented approaches, aim to enhance the existing curricula, reflecting the broader scope of the agrofood industry.

Currently, the BT “Hospitality - Food Production” program includes around 240 hours of Travaux Pratique (TP) annually, averaging approximately 6 hours per week. However, the program’s effectiveness varies, as some schools are equipped with modern kitchens and hospitality labs, while others lack such facilities, leading to inconsistent practical training. In such cases, students often rely on external internships at nearby hotels and restaurants to gain essential experience during their two-month internship per academic year. This approach, while valuable, may require updating to better align with current industry standards and practices, especially as new trends emerge. As Lebanon increasingly depends on locally grown products, there is a heightened emphasis on training students in sustainable practices and the use of local ingredients, which are becoming more integral to the agrofood sector. Therefore, by aligning the TP sessions with CBT modules, the curriculum ensures that students acquire practical, industry-relevant skills in a structured, competency-driven

environment. These TP sessions, which are rooted in the principles of CBT, are conducted in school workshops, where students actively engage with tools and techniques directly applicable to their future careers. Modernizing the curriculum is crucial to ensure it meets the evolving needs of the Agrofood industry. Once updated, the curriculum will allow educators to provide higher-quality training, increase flexibility for site visits and collaborations with industry stakeholders, and allow short-term CBT modules to cover more subjects as part of continuous education. These enhancements are essential to facilitating the transition of TVET students to the professional Agrofood sector and ensuring that their training remains relevant in a rapidly changing field.

The curriculum of a CBT module

A CBT module is a short-term course with 40 hours in the workshop in a school where the trainees practice the use of tools and materials typical of the occupation, the curriculum adopted is the same of the corresponding TP. At the end of this first in-school training a written assessment is carried out to issue a DGVTE certificate. Passing trainees will attend 80 hours of on-the-job training in a working site where they can practice in a working environment the skills acquired in the previous part of the course. At the completion of the experience in the workplace trainees’ skills are assessed by and a professional certificate is issued.

The curriculum of a CBT module is composed of the following documents:

Occupational standard: A4 page describing synthetically the processes to be carried out by the job holder.

Competence standard: A4 page defining learning outcomes grouped in competence unit (indicatively 4 Competence Units (CUs) per CBT module).

Assessment standard: A definition of the conditions and the criteria for the assessment of the learning outcomes of each Competence Unit included in the qualification standard. The certification of competences is provided on the base of the verification of the criteria stated in the standard by an external professional assessor.

Education standard: The document describing synthetically the topics covered in each classroom lesson (if any) and the practical activities in the workshop and in the workplace (internship) carried out by the trainee with the timing planned for each of them.

Training standard: The training standard is a guidance for the teacher and the trainer to deliver the lessons. The training standard includes, the guideline, the list of tools and materials, the formative assessment and the summative assessment related to each competence unit.

Training guideline: The training guideline is defining the topics covered in the lessons with some description for each topic and at the same time set the working procedure that are in line with best practice that should be implemented during the training program. The training guideline includes the links to tutorial videos (at least two) that were used for the development of the guideline.

Tools and materials: An indicative list of tools and materials to be purchased for each Competence Unit to conduct the CBT training with a brief description and picture of the items, the quantities required per trainee, workshop, or CBT module edition, along with any further comments.

Formative assessment: A definition of the conditions and the criteria for the assessment of each learning outcome of each Competence Unit included in the competence standard for improving the performances of the trainees.

Summative assessment: A definition of the conditions and the criteria for the assessment of each learning outcome of each Competence Unit included in the competence standard to provide the trainees with the certification of competences on the base of the verification of the criteria by an external professional assessor.

Outline of the mission:

Highly competent, qualified, motivated, flexible, and creative TVET teachers are the backbone of any TVET system; capable of adjusting to changing technological environments and creating conducive learning environments for their students. In the frame of QuA-VET project, GIZ is planning to organize Training of Teacher (ToT) courses, aiming to fill the gaps of TVET teachers in agrifood processing to help them deliver quality competence-based training effectively and sustainably. With the absence of standardized practical training procedures applicable to hospitality and food production in general, the ToT course will enable the teachers not only to gain skills in dealing with new technologies prevailing in the labour market, but also to develop practical experience in making teaching and training more responsive to the needs of the trainees and the labour market. The approach adopted for the ToT is that teachers should go through all the practical activities and assessments that students will later be trained on by those teachers within the corresponding curriculum “Hospitality – Food production” at BT level.

The STE will review, prepare, and conduct ToT trainings according to the CBT curriculum provided by the project, for up to 20 teachers from public TVET schools in Lebanon (up to 10 teachers per training – the same teachers will undergo more than one training depending on the module delivered), all of whom have a background in hospitality and food production. 

Tasks to be performed by the contractor

The contractor is responsible for providing the following services:

• • Examination of relevant project documentation (curricula and other materials provided by the Project Team) including written comments on the curricula
  • Active participation in selection of tools and equipment including defining specifications and quantities, throughout the curriculum development process
  • Participation in structured meetings with Project Team Leader, Project Team Members, staff of the DGVTE and of other organizations involved in the project as considered necessary
  • Preparation of the training material (PowerPoint presentation, study document, tests, etc.) under supervision of QuA-VET technical experts before the starting of the course, based on the given CBT curricula
  • Meeting with the Project Team for guidelines to conduct practical training in the workshop based on the CBT approach
  • Regular information and consultation with the Project Team members
  • Conduct field visits to be more familiar with the training locations and with the job-related equipment, materials, and consumables
  • Support and help setting the workshop during the delivery of equipment to the school, in coordination with the delivery of the material delivered by QuA-VET
  • Preparation of the daily training plans for the implementation of the ToT based on the given CBT curricula
  • Organization the training sites in a way that tools and materials purchased by the project team are available as well as personal protective equipment (PPE)
  • Delivery of the ToT training program applying the CBT model, using the curricula developed by QuA-VET
  • Recording the participants’ attendance to the ToT with the attendance sheets provided by QuA-VET
  • Implementation and documentation of the formative assessment of trainees as stated in the curricula
  • Coordination with QuA-VET team for communication with the school(s) in advance for the list of necessary school supplies (Classroom with projector, white board…)
  • Management of the proper use and storage of the training materials
  • Follow-up on the implementation of the training at the schools through coaching of the teachers
  • Ensure that all necessary activities are in place for the accomplishment of the required outputs / results
  • Write of mission report and required administrative deliverables
  • Available after the short term-mission through internet for follow-up discussion

Outputs/Results
The outputs / results requested from the Expert are:

Prior to training:

• Coordinate with school directors to schedule and conduct visits for assessing food production workshops.
• Draft a short report of 2 pages maximum (per school) with recommendations and modifications on the setting up the food production workshops, tools and materials at the school and sending it to the QuA-VET team for approval
• After the approval of the report from the QuA-VET team, conduct a second visit to the school and apply modifications of workshop in coordination with the school director
• Prepare a detailed daily training plan/agenda in coordination with the QuA-VET team
• Prepare and send to the QuA-VET team for approval the training documents (up to 5 modules) (ppt., list of videos, list of exercises…)
• Review the CBT modules developed, suggest modifications or additions on content (tools and materials, etc.)

During training:

• Deliver up to 15 ToTs x 40 hours of training (4 hours for 10 consecutive days per training module) in the afternoon in Arabic teachers in Hospitality – Food production of public TVET schools (locations to be defined by QuA-VET team)
• Follow-up on dropouts, document reasons, and inform the QuA-VET team
• Conduct formative assessment of the teachers for each unit of competence as defined in the Curriculum and document the assessments
• Fill all required administrative documents (Attendance sheet, formative assessment, etc.)

After the training:

• Coordinate with the assessor on logistics and attend the summative assessment with the third-party assessor
• Ensure that at least 1/3 of the teachers attending the ToT course should receive the qualification certificate (summative assessment will be carried out by a professional third-party assessor selected by the project)
• Conduct coaching sessions (equivalent to 5 working days or 40 hours) per trained school at their premises to follow up the implementation of training incl. short report on observations & recommendations. So, if the teachers of 5 schools are trained, 25 visits in total should be conducted to those 5 schools).
• Modify (if necessary) and share training material (Videos used, ppt created incl. modifications)

Administrative Deliverables:

• A comprehensive end of mission’s report submitted to team leader for revision and approval following the structure:
• Scope and objectives of the mission (incl. preparation of training with the school and training itself)
• Approach adopted for conducting the mission
• List of outputs produced during the mission (including meetings and people met)
• Description of the outputs produced during the mission
• Problems and challenges encountered during the mission (incl. preparation of training with the school and training itself)
• Recommendations for the follow-up of the mission
• Recommendations for the improvement of project implementation
• All documents produced should be delivered in hard copy and in digital form using exclusively MS-Office applications

Qualifications of the Short-term Expert

• Education/training : University degree at least a bachelor’s degree in Culinary arts, Hospitality,  kitchen management or any related subject and 7 years of work experience

Or alternatively a TS level or equivalent in Hospitality – Food production or any other relevant subject with additional 10 years of working experience in the food production sector.

• Language: C1-level language proficiency in English language.

C2-level language proficiency in Arabic language.

• General professional experience : 7 to 10 years of professional experience in the food production, processing technologies, quality control, and compliance with food safety standards (HACCP, ISO 22000, GMP).
• Specific professional experience : At least 3+ years of experience in training educators, preferably in TVET settings and using Competency-Based Training (CBT) methodologies (practical teaching). Proven ability to develop and deliver hands-on workshops, facilitate teacher training programs, and create structured learning materials.
• Regional experience : 5 years of experience in projects in MENA region, of which 2 years in Lebanon.Other : Hands-on experience with equipment validation, training delivery, and industry-relevant processing techniques is preferred

Note: the number of days is indicated as a total for each STE. The repartition of the modules among the 2 selected STE will be determined upon qualifications of CVs and availability for the trainings.

Note: Selected candidates will be contacted for an interview as part of the selection process.

Based on the interview, the technical and financial evaluation of the tender, the 2 best ranked candidates will be selected as short-term experts as trainers for ToT.