Terms of Reference (ToR) - ESG Advisory Consultant

Alfanar Venture Philanthropy

Terms of Reference (ToR) - ESG Advisory Consultant

Engagement Type: Day Rate Basis

Duration: Up to 12 months (milestone-based)

Portfolio: 4 Social Enterprises — EdTech & Circular Economy

Application Deadline: 19 April 2026

Submission: tamara.alqubaj@alfanar.org.uk

1. Background

About Alfanar: Alfanar Venture Philanthropy (VP) supports high-potential social enterprises across the Arab region. Its model combines catalytic capital with structured technical assistance, with the objective of enabling enterprises to transition from grant dependency toward financially sustainable, investment-ready organisations. Alfanar VP strengthens enterprises across financial performance, institutional maturity, governance, and impact — preparing them for engagement with impact investors.

About the Impact Investment Readiness Hub (IIRH): Alfanar has established the Impact Investment Readiness Hub (IIRH) as a dedicated technical facility designed to bridge the gap between post-acceleration and investment. Operating across a 24-month program cycle, the Hub provides:

• Structured diagnostic assessment using a proprietary investment readiness rubric
• Targeted, rubric-driven technical assistance delivered by specialist consultants
• Investment packaging and deal preparation support for enterprises approaching fundraising

The Hub currently supports four social enterprises operating in the EdTech and Circular Economy sectors. All enterprises have completed their initial diagnostics and readiness assessments. The TA Facility is now in active gap-closure and advisory phase.

ESG Component: The Hub's investment readiness rubric integrates governance and impact dimensions as core assessment criteria. To align with impact investor expectations, where ESG due diligence is now standard, the Hub requires a proportionate, low-burden ESG framework that integrates into existing assessment, advisory, and reporting functions. This framework must be feasible for enterprises with limited data maturity and practical for a part-time advisory consultant. This consultancy is designed to provide that ESG expertise on a part-time basis, working alongside the internal program team throughout the assessment and early advisory phases.

2. Objectives of the Consultancy

The ESG Consultant will support the Hub in embedding a proportionate, investor-aligned ESG framework into existing assessment and advisory processes. The engagement is advisory in nature — the Consultant guides, refines, and quality-assures rather than leads implementation:

• Refine the existing investment readiness rubric by adding or modifying specific ESG criteria — with clear, written rationale for each change
• Identification of material ESG risks and gaps based on the pre-executed diagnostics
• Integrate ESG priorities into the Social Entreprises’ transformation plans
• Define a minimum viable set of 4–6 ESG indicators (covering environmental and social domains), with sector-specific notes distinguishing EdTech from Circular Economy enterprises
• This assignment is advisory in nature and does not include full ESG system development or compliance certification.

3. Scope of Work

The Consultant will engage on a part-time, rolling basis aligned with the Hub's program structure. Total engagement is expected across approximately 9–12 months, with inputs concentrated at key program milestones rather than on a continuous retainer basis. Day-rate fees will be invoiced against confirmed days worked.

• Phase 1 — Month 1: ESG Framework Refinement & Diagnostic Alignment
• Phase 2 — Months 1–2: ESG Integration into Transformation Plans
• Phase 3 — Months 6–12: ESG Monitoring & Reporting Support

Note: The total level of effort is estimated at up to 10–12 working days across the duration of the assignment. This includes inputs across all three phases (framework refinement, integration into transformation plans, and monitoring & reporting), and will be deployed on a milestone basis. Actual days will be agreed in advance with the Portfolio Success Manager based on program needs.

Phase 1: ESG Framework Refinement & Diagnostic Alignment

In this phase, the Consultant works with the Hub team to ensure ESG is meaningfully and practically embedded in the existing assessment framework, without duplicating what the impact and governance dimensions already cover.

Rubric review & ESG integration
Review and refine the existing investment readiness rubric and identify specific line-item additions or modifications for ESG dimensions (environmental and social).
2 days

Minimum ESG framework design
Define a minimum ESG framework referencing the IFC Performance Standards (principle-level only, not full compliance). Include 4–6 indicators maximum, split as:

• 2–3 environmental indicators
• 2–3 social indicators

Provide one separate note for EdTech enterprises and one note for Circular Economy enterprises explaining which indicators differ and why.
1 day

Phase 1 advisory session
Facilitate one 90-minute working session with the Hub team to:

• Present the proposed ESG methodology
• Confirm priority areas for each of the 4 enterprises
• Agree on sequencing (which ESG actions happen in which months)

Output: A single-page summary of session decisions, circulated within 3 working days.
1 day

Phase 2: ESG Integration into Transformation Plans

In this phase, the Consultant supports the program team incorporating ESG priorities into each enterprise's active transformation plan — ensuring ESG actions are realistic, sequenced, and investor-relevant.

ESG risk & gap review (per enterprise)
Review each enterprise's draft transformation plan and provide written input on material ESG risks, gaps, and recommended priority actions. Delivered as structured review notes.
2 days

Shadow advisory session
Participate as a shadow advisor in one or two of each enterprise advisory sessions to provide ESG input in context.
1 day

Phase 3: ESG Monitoring & Reporting Support

In the final phase, the Consultant provides light-touch, periodic review and quality assurance — ensuring ESG progress is tracked consistently across the portfolio and that enterprises can produce investor-ready ESG reporting.

ESG reporting template development
Develop a standardized ESG assessment and summary output to be used by all four social enterprises and shared with investors. The output should be concise, structured, and comparable across enterprises.

The ESG summary should include:

• ESG Performance Overview: Environmental and Social performance using a simple visual scoring approach (e.g. Red/Amber/Green), supported by brief justification
• Key ESG Risks and Actions: Up to 3 material risks, each with a corresponding action and indicative timeline, linked to the transformation plan
• Core ESG Indicators: A set of 4–6 indicators tracked consistently across enterprises

The format should be concise (1–2 pages) and easy to use for enterprises.
2 days

Periodic progress reviews (x2)
Review ESG progress updates from each enterprise and provide written feedback. Identify emerging risks or gaps. Confirm consistency and comparability across enterprises.
1.5 days

4. Deliverables

• Refined ESG integration within the investment readiness rubric, with highlighted and annotated rationale for additions or modifications — Phase 1 — Updated Rubric
• Minimum ESG framework and indicator set, with sector-specific notes for EdTech and Circular Economy enterprises — Phase 1 — 2–3 page framework
• ESG diagnostic review notes for each enterprise, identifying material gaps and recommended priority actions — Phase 1–2 — Written review notes (per enterprise)
• ESG integration guidance for each enterprise's transformation plan, including sequenced action priorities — Phase 2 — Structured input notes
• Standardized ESG reporting template covering: ESG score summary, key risks and actions, and core ESG indicators — Phase 3 — Reusable reporting template
• Periodic review notes and final portfolio ESG quality review — Phase 3 — Written review notes

5. Fee Structure

The Consultant will be engaged on a fixed day-rate (proposed in financial proposal). Fees are invoiced against confirmed days worked, authorized in advance by the Portfolio Success Manager. A competitive day rate should be proposed in the financial proposal, reflecting milestone-based nature of the engagement.

6. Qualifications

• Minimum 7 years of paid, client-facing advisory experience in ESG or sustainability
• Experience working with social enterprises
• Demonstrated ability to translate ESG concepts into practical, implementable frameworks
• Fluency in English, and Arabic (desired)

7. Application Process

• Interested consultants are invited to submit the following to Tamara.alqubaj@alfanar.org.uk by 19 April 2026:
• Updated CV(s) highlighting relevant experience
• A brief Technical proposal outlining methodology with a financial proposal (day rate)
• Examples of relevant previous work
• Contact details for two professional references