VALUE CHAIN GAP ANALYSIS - ACTSMART Innovation Hub

1. Background

Berytech, through the ACTSmart Innovation Hub funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, is supporting the development of QEEMA – Lebanon’s Waste Valorization Cluster. Advancing waste valorization is key to tackling Lebanon’s waste crisis and unlocking economic opportunities.

Lebanon’s waste valorization value chains remain constrained by market and coordination failures — particularly around price formation, aggregation, quality and standards, and limited transparency between actors — resulting in weak operator viability and stalled investments.

This assignment will apply a gap analysis logic mapping the waste valorization value chain, identifying bottlenecks and root causes, and translating them into actionable public and market levers and implementable interventions.

2. Objectives & Intended Use

The objective of this assignment is to deliver a concise, evidence-based value chain gap analysis for selected waste streams in Lebanon, identifying where waste valorization systems are constrained and what types of interventions could unlock more stable, efficient, and scalable market functioning.

The analysis aims to generate evidence relevant to environmental performance and industrial market uptake, by identifying where waste valorization value chains fail to deliver reliable, quality outputs.

Specifically, the assignment will:

• Map the value chains for selected waste streams, including material flows, operational roles, and transaction points across formal actors.

• Identify and prioritize structural bottlenecks affecting market performance, with particular attention to pricing dynamics, aggregation challenges, quality requirements, and operator viability.
• Analyze root causes behind these bottlenecks and assess their impact on different actors along the value chain.
• Translate identified gaps into a structured set of intervention options, distinguishing between public, market-based, and coordination-oriented actions.
• Highlight areas where facilitation, pilots, or improved coordination could help address constraints and improve system performance.

While waste generation, source separation, and producer responsibility mechanisms are critical to long-term system performance, this assignment focuses on the operational and market segments of the waste valorization value chain where value is currently lost despite available material flows.

Only factors that directly affect market functioning, prices, and operator viability across collection, processing, and industrial use will be considered, without extending the scope to behavior change, EPR, or regulatory design.

The findings of this analysis are intended to:

• Inform policy and stakeholder dialogue around waste valorization challenges and opportunities.
• Support the prioritization of targeted interventions and follow-up actions.
• Provide a shared analytical basis for engagement with ecosystem actors.
• Guide QEEMA’s internal planning and its role as a neutral platform supporting coordination and implementation.

Overall, the findings are intended to support informed dialogue and decision-making by public institutions and ecosystem actors on where efforts and resources can most effectively strengthen waste valorization outcomes in Lebanon.

3. Scope of Work

Waste streams in scope:

• Organic waste.
• Packaging cardboard.
• Plastic waste .
• Ferrous and non-ferrous metals (included as a benchmarking stream to compare market functioning and price formation).

Actor coverage (formal actors only):

• Collectors (commercial/industrial and formal municipal service providers where applicable).
• First aggregators and sorters (consolidation, baling, pre-processing).
• Recyclers and processors (secondary raw materials production).
• Equipment and technology suppliers (as enablers: sorting, baling, washing, shredding, compounding, etc.).

Market demand and sales conditions for valorized materials — including quality requirements, buyer expectations, price sensitivity, and competition with virgin materials — will be analyzed to understand their impact on value creation and operator viability, without extending the scope to producers, brand owners, or EPR or regulatory design.

Explicitly out of scope for this phase:

• Producers/brand owners – to be considered in a separate phase if required.
• Informal/unregistered actors.
• Hazardous waste streams.
• Full feasibility designs for infrastructure investments (this ToR focuses on gaps and intervention options, not engineering design).

Geographic coverage: National, with sampling across regions as necessary to capture meaningful differences in pricing and aggregation practices (to be defined in the Inception Phase).

4. Approach & Tasks (Phased Methodology)

The consultant shall propose a concise methodology, structured into the phases below.
 The approach must remain practical, market-grounded, and deliverable within 4–6 weeks.
 

Phase 1 – Inception & Design (Week 1)

• Kick-off meeting with QEEMA and relevant stakeholders to confirm objectives, boundaries, and governance.

• Refinement of the sampling strategy (e.g. regions, operator categories, interview targets), as proposed by the consultant.
• Confirmation of the analytical framework and working templates to be used for value chain mapping and gap analysis.
• Submission of an Inception Note including the proposed workplan, interview approach, and outline of deliverables.

Phase 2 – Desk Review & Market Scoping (Week 1–2)

• Review of relevant literature, datasets, regulations, and market references (local and regional).

• Compilation of baseline assumptions on volumes, prices, quality specifications, and market linkages, where available.
• Identification of standards or specifications currently applied in formal market practice.

Phase 3 – Field Mapping & Stakeholder Interviews (Week 2–4)

• Structured interviews with formal collectors, aggregators, recyclers/processors, and equipment suppliers.

• Documentation of price formation dynamics, payment terms, quality grading and rejections, aggregation constraints, and logistics bottlenecks.
• Capture of factors contributing to exits or closures among formal actors, where relevant and available.
• End-market conditions for valorized materials will be assessed based on observed transactions, processor and recycler experience, and existing standards or market references, rather than through direct engagement with producers or brand owners

Phase 4 – Gap Analysis & Prioritization (Week 3–5)

• Development of value chain maps for each stream, highlighting transaction points and quality control interfaces.

• Construction of a structured gap analysis linking bottlenecks, root causes, affected actors, impacts, and potential intervention areas.
• Prioritization of gaps using clear and transparent criteria proposed by the consultant. Prioritization should reflect potential impact on market stability, operator viability, and feasibility of intervention within the Lebanese context.
• Drafting of an intervention framework distinguishing between public, market-based, and pilot-oriented actions.

Phase 5 – Validation & Finalization (Week 5–6)

• Validation of findings through a targeted review or working session with selected stakeholders.

• Finalization of deliverables (report, annexes, and presentation) and presentation of results to QEEMA.

5. Deliverables

All deliverables must be submitted in editable formats (Word/Excel/PowerPoint) and in English.

Deliverable

Description

D1. Inception Note (Week 1)

Workplan, refined scope, sampling approach, interview categories, templates, and risk considerations.

D2. Value Chain Maps (Draft – Week 4; Final – Week 6)

Stream-specific value chain maps for organics, packaging cardboard, plastics, and benchmark metals, illustrating key actors, material and financial flows, transaction points, and quality control/rejection points.

D3. Gap Matrix (Draft – Week 5; Final – Week 6)

A structured gap analysis capturing key bottlenecks, underlying causes, affected actors, relative severity, and indicative intervention areas.

D4. Intervention Framework (Week 6)

A structured set of intervention options linking priority gaps to potential public levers, market mechanisms, and pilot-oriented actions, including areas where facilitation or coordination could add value.

D5. Executive Brief / Slide Deck (Week 6)

Executive summary (recommended 15–25 slides) with prioritized gaps and a number of actionable intervention areas per stream.

6. Timeline & Milestones

Expected duration: 4–6 weeks from contract signature. The consultant shall propose a detailed week-by-week plan in the Inception Note.

7. Governance, Coordination & Quality Assurance

• QEEMA/Berytech will act as the contracting entity and coordination focal point.
• The consultant will report to QEEMA Cluster Management team and participate in agreed check-ins.
• The findings of the assignment are intended to inform dialogue with relevant public and ecosystem stakeholders. Validation touchpoints may include selected stakeholders, as agreed during implementation.

Required Expertise

• Demonstrated experience in waste valorization/circular economy market analysis.
• Strong capability in value chain mapping and bottleneck analysis; ability to translate findings into actionable intervention options.
• Understanding of recycling market dynamics (pricing, quality specifications, aggregation models, trade linkages).
• Ability to engage credibly with private sector operators and public institutions.
• Excellent analytical writing and presentation skills in English.

9. Proposal Submission Requirements

Interested consultants/firms shall submit a proposal including:

• Technical proposal describing understanding of the assignment, methodology, sampling/interview approach, and workplan.
• Team composition and CVs (highlighting relevant assignments).
• Examples of similar work (links or annexes).
• Financial proposal (budget breakdown and proposed payment schedule).

10. Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated using the criteria and indicative weights below.

Criterion

Description

Weight

Understanding & methodology

Clarity and practicality of the proposed approach; suitability to 4–6-week timeline.

20%

Relevant experience

Evidence of similar value chain / waste market work; Lebanon or comparable contexts an advantage.

30%

Team capacity

Appropriate seniority and skills of proposed team; ability to deliver outputs and engage stakeholders.

20%

Financial proposal

Cost-effectiveness and transparency of budget.

30%

Annex A – Definitions (for clarity)

For the purpose of this assignment:

• Collectors: formal actors collecting plastic/cardboard/organics from municipal, commercial, or industrial sources and selling onward.
• Aggregators / sorters: formal actors consolidating volumes, sorting, baling, and pre-processing prior to sale to recyclers/exporters – by casa
• Recyclers / processors: formal actors transforming sorted materials into secondary raw materials (flakes, pellets, compost, etc.).
• Equipment and technology suppliers: providers of sorting, baling, washing, shredding, compounding, and related equipment or systems.