TIF - Business and Investment Enabling Environment (BIEE) Lead Consultant

1. Background and Context

The USAID-funded Lebanon Trade and Investment Facilitation (TIF) project’s goal is to facilitate exports of Lebanese goods and services and investments that simultaneously promote job creation, income generation, and improved livelihoods throughout the country.

TIF has three objectives:

1) Increased exports of Lebanese goods and services

2) Investment facilitation leading to increased domestic investment, and

3) Improved business and investment enabling environment.

These objectives cover four selected sectors:

1) Agro-Food Processing

2) Manufacturing

3) Knowledge Economy and Services

4) Tourism and Hospitality

Since 2019, Lebanon plunged into a dire economic collapse that rendered the country into a complete paralysis. The currency inflation, the crash of the banking sector next to the breakdown of governmental institutions forced the need for immediate and urgent reforms. For reforms to be effective, the broad-based business community needs to be involved in identifying the most important economic challenges, developing reform recommendations, and then advocating the implementation of reforms.

Under its objective 3, TIF is working to put in place national and sector-specific policy reforms that ultimately aim to improve the Business and Investment Enabling Environment (BIEE).

Accordingly, TIF seeks to hire a Lead Consultant to support the formulation of such policies in addition to procedures and/or regulations that will help improve BIEE and advance national level reforms.

The BIEE Lead Consultant will work closely with the Lebanese Business Leaders Association (Rassemblement de Dirigeants et Chefs d’ entreprise – RDCL) and under the umbrella of the Lebanese Business Alliance (LBA) created by TIF. More specifically, the BIEE Lead Consultant will lead on designing policy briefs, policy papers, policy agenda and white paper, in addition to organizing roundtable discussions with identified stakeholders, and one-to-one consultation meetings on a needs basis.

2. Tasks

The tasks of the BIEE Lead Consultant will be undertaken in coordination with TIF BIEE team.

Task 1: Formulation of the Proposal and Action Groups (GPAs):

• Develop a written description of what is expected of each GPA to guide the chair and members. The description should summarize the purpose of the GPA, its composition and selection procedure, and the specific duties of the GPA with expected timeframes

• Identify the GPA members (RDCL members and other relevant affiliates) and the Chair based on the above-mentioned purpose for the following areas: 1) Trade Facilitation, 2) Agricultural Development & Food Security, 3) Monetary Policy, 4) Banking and financial sector, 5) Business Environment, 6) Women Empowerment, 7) Culture and Tourism, 8) Innovation, 9) Industry and service sectors.

• Set the agenda for each GPA meeting and disseminate to chair and members.

Task 2: Stakeholders Analysis and Outreach Plan

• Assess, identify, and engage relevant stakeholders for each selected GPA ensuring representation of women and other marginalized groups
• Develop an outreach plan for engaging each selected stakeholders based on the stage of progress for each GPA
• Maintain a database of each stakeholder engagement highlighting the type and duration of engagement

Task 3: Facilitation of selected GPAs meetings

• Support the chair of each selected GPA to conduct roundtables successfully.
• Documenting findings of each roundtable meeting
• Conduct further research on selected topics as per GPA members’ request, and USAID TIF approval

Task 4: Policy Design and Drafting

• Devise policy briefs and policy papers for every identified topic, and one compiled policy agenda and white paper in addition to procedures that support BIEE issues either in development stages of analysis, drafting and consultation and/or legislative review

Task 5: Presentation to RDCL Board

• Prepare a presentation for USAID TIF and RDCL board, highlighting each GPA outcomes and status of progress and way forward

3. Location of Assignment

The location of this assignment is predominantly at RDCL’s office in Downtown, Beirut with periodical meetings to be held with TIF BIEE team at TIF’s office in Sin El Fil.  Local travel across Lebanon for certain tasks are also anticipated.

4. Level of Effort and Period of Performance

The period of performance is expected to extend from July 2022 to October 2022 with possibility for renewal. The BIEE Lead Consultant will consume a total of 60 days during the period of this assignment.  

5. Deliverables

The list below is illustrative and non-exhaustive. The below deliverables are relevant to the current period of performance. More deliverables may be requested throughout this period:

Task 1: Formulation of the Proposal and Action Groups (GPAs):

• Final compiled list of members of the GPAs along with potential stakeholders and/or experts to be included

Task 2: Stakeholders Analysis and Outreach Plan

• • A database of each stakeholder engagement highlighting the type and duration of engagement
  • A minimum of 15 private sector actors to be engaged or partnered with through Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), letter of commitment or other written commitment.
  • Monthly reports on newly identified stakeholders willing to engage and bring value to this activity

Task 3: Stakeholders Analysis and Outreach Plan

• • 4 roundtables organized with relevant stakeholders
  • 4 reports (1 report for every roundtable including main discussions, recommendations, and way forward)
  • Additional research reports as per GPA members’ request, and USAID TIF approval

Task 4: Policy Design and Drafting

• 4 Policy Briefs produced (1 policy brief per topic)
• 4 Policy Papers produced (1 policy paper per topic)

Task 5: Presentation to RDCL Board

• A final presentation about each GPA outcomes and status of progress and way forward approved by USAID TIF and RDCL board

6. Reporting and Supervision

The BIEE Lead Consultant will take direction from the TIF Deputy Chief of Party (DCOP) and the Senior Legal and Regulatory Policy Specialist in collaboration with TIF’s STTA Policy Reform Specialist to implement each task. To accomplish these tasks, coordination between TIF, RDCL and LBA must be maintained throughout the whole period of execution. The BIEE Lead Consultant will submit weekly progress reports to TIF BIEE team.

7. Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or MS degree or equivalent in economics, management, business, finance, public policy, or another relevant field
• At least 15 years of professional experience in economics, public policy, or related field
• Extensive knowledge of the Lebanese context explicitly its political and economic axes and connections with multi key stakeholders relevant to TIF’s sectors and field of operations
• Demonstrated professional experience in formulating policies, advising opinion leaders, advocating policy and decision makers with strong analytical skills
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to liaise with diverse stakeholder groups
• Strong communication skills – both written and oral – in English and Arabic.