Myanmar: Consulting Opportunity “Identify Best Approaches for Water Supply and Storage for Agriculture for Small Farmers in Hpa-An and Hlaingbwe Townships”

Consulting Opportunity at World Vision International – Myanmar

World Vision International - Myanmar is looking for National and International Consultant to:

“Identify Best Approaches for Water Supply and Storage for Agriculture for Small Farmers in Hpa-An and Hlaingbwe Townships”

Period of Consultancy: August - Dec 2017

Objectives

The purpose of the service is to identify best approaches for water supply and storage systems for agriculture production of small farmers in Hpa An and Hlaingbwe Townships in Kayin State. 20 villages in total should be visited for this assessment, 10 in each area. The total population in all 20 villages is about 3200 households. These water supply and storage systems should be for individual/small group farmers and able to irrigate from 2 to 4 acres per farmer after the rainy season. Water catchment areas should also be close to the production plots of individual/group farmers. The identified approaches should be replicable in other villages in the same townships.

The main objectives of this service are:

· Determine strategies for improved dry season water supplies sufficient for agriculture production of 2 – 4 acres per farmer in 20 villages in Hpa An and Hlaingbwe Townships.

· Complement the revision of secondary information with field visits to 20 villages total in both townships to ensure best approaches for water supply and storage

· Provide design details of appropriate water harvesting and storage systems in accordance to objectives 1 and 2, including high and low level technologies/structures (e.g: dam/drill VS pond).

Background

Myanmar is primarily a rural country which relies heavily on its agricultural sector as a source of national income. Agriculture, hunting and forestry are the largest employers in the country accounting for half of total employment. Manufacturing employs only about 6% of economically active population. The remainder of the population is employed in the low-end service sector which is mainly divided between trade/repairs (10.5%), miscellaneous productive activities (7.9%) and renting and business activities (7.1%). Average farm size in Myanmar is 6.7 acres which is moderate by regional standards.

Poor households have smaller land holdings than less-poor households with 4.4 and 7.3 acres respectively. Because of the importance of the agricultural sector in Myanmar, small farm size is correlated to poverty. Landlessness is found in 30% of the population which consider their primary occupation as agriculture. They are mostly employed as casual workers and tend to be poorer than land owning households.

The Kayin State of Myanmar is characterized as densely populated and more rural compared to the national average. The current population of Hpa An and Hlaingbwe townships is 687,408 (total population of the Kayin State is 1,574,079 (2014 census data). Of these, the great majority are rural residents (83%). Population density is approximately 1.7 times the national average, and households consist of five to seven persons on average.

Food insecurity is a primary constraint for the target communities. The situation is characterized by a reliance on market purchase for food access in a context of low, undiversified, agriculture-based incomes, high debts, and reliance on credit. Households generally report adequate food utilization, dietary diversity, and consumption. However, nearly 40% of households have difficulty meeting their food needs on an annual basis. The primary reported coping strategy is a reduction in portion size (27%).

The primary crops grown in the area are rice, oil crops (sesame, groundnut, sunflowers), and pulses (pigeon pea and chickpea).

World Vision Myanmar is implementing a project titled “Value Chain Development and Financial Inclusion for Inclusive Growth Project” in 40 villages in Hpa An and Hlaingbwe Townships, Kayin State supported by the Australian Government which aims to improve the economic status of small farmers. Part of this project is to improve access to water during the winter season. Water retention could be ponds or gully damns that could hold rain water and store it for production after monsoon season. These water retention options should be for small farmers and near their production plots. It can also be for small groups of farmers that provide some of their land to build such ponds/gully damns.

This type of approaches need experience in topography, civil engineering, agriculture, to design specific solutions based on the context which World Vision Myanmar lacks. This is why a firm with such experience is needed.

The project started in July 2016 and a project team is already present in Hpa-An and HlaingBwe.

Methodology

The proposed methodology should include:

1. Desk review of secondary information sources:

Ø Analysis of Rainfall Data

Ø Surface Water Resources

Ø Groundwater Resources

1. Field Visits

2. Assessing local, national and international experiences on water harvesting and storage

Proponents should provide a detailed description on how they will implement the service incorporating the topics mentioned above.

The topics are for guidance only and should not be limited to them. It is highly appreciated if proponents could submit improved proposals to this ToR.

Proponents should include in their proposal CVs of key staff who will participate of this service.

There is currently ongoing restriction of movement for foreigners in HlaingBwe, no field visit can be done by foreigners. Also, international consultant who are not within a company registered in Myanmar will need to submit their travel plan 25 open days before traveling to the field. These two aspects should be reflected in the methodology.

Deliverables

1. Best approaches are identified for each zone to enable extended agriculture production in the dry season for individual/group farmers up to 4 acres per farmer

2. Provision of detailed blue prints and budgets for water harvesting and storage systems for individual or small groups of farmer per zone. This should include one high tech and one low tech solutions.

3. Recommendations are provided for water and soil conservation per zone

4. A final report of the consultancy service is submitted incorporating lessons learned and recommendations

5. PowerPoint presentation of main results

BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE OF CONSULTING FIRM AND ASSIGNED STAFF

1. At least 5 years of experience in assessing and identifying water collection and storage systems for small farmers in similar agro ecological zones, including rain harvesting

2. Knowledge of water availability and patterns in Kayin State

3. Experience in carrying out similar services in Kayin State/other states/region with same agro-ecological zone type.

4. Technical expert speaking Myanmar language

5. Registration as a private company in Myanmar will be considered as an asset.

Closing Date :5pm of 21^st July, 2017 - Myanmar Standard Time

Interested applicants should submit a detailed proposal including consulting service cost with a resume/CVs of proposed staff attached to Htee_Khu_Shi@wvi.org with subject line, “Identify Best Approaches for Water Supply and Storage for Agriculture for Small Farmers in Hpa-An and Hlaingbwe Townships”

Submission deadline via email is due on July 21^st, 2017 before 5 pm. No late submission will be considered.