Appel d’offres [MEDUSA] – WFF NA عودة إلى الفرص

1. INFORMATION ON SUBMISSION OF TENDERS

Subject of the contract:
The subject of this tender is:

• Provision of services, as indicated in the technical information in point 2 of this section.

Deadline for submission of the tenders:
The deadline for submission of tenders is 5^thMarch2021, until 17:00h GMT. Any tender received after this deadline will be automatically rejected.
Address and means of submission of the tenders:
The tenderers will submit their tenders using the standard submission form available in Part B of this tender dossier. The tender will be submitted in 1 (one) original. In case of e-mail submission, the tenderer may provide a scanned original. Any tenders not using the prescribed form shall be rejected by the contracting authority.
If delivery by post or courier, the tenders will be submitted in two separate envelopes:

• Envelope one for the tenderer’s information, the tenderer’s statement and the technical offer and
• Envelope two for the financial information.

An envelope including both envelopes will contain the following information at the external part:
Name and address of the contracting authority
Contact person
Title of the tender
Reference number
Name and address of the tenderer
If delivery by e-mail, the message will clearly indicate:
Title of the tender
Reference number
Name and address of the tenderer
The tender submission form and any supporting documentation will be provided as attachment to the e-mail.

2. TECHNICAL INFORMATION

The tenderers are required to provide services as indicated below. In the technical offer, the tenderers will indicate more details on the deliveries, referring back to the below terms of reference:
Background
The Mediterranean (MED) region is one of the world’s leading tourist destinations, which makes tourism a key driver for socio-economic progress & a key income source for many of its countries. Faced by growing competition & a deterioration of the political & security situation in the region, the destination has demonstrated symptoms of a slowdown, which makes the recovery of the sector an economic priority. This downturn may also present an opportunity to transform the tourism model into a sustainable & competitive one, addressing current sectorial challenges as the predominance of mass seaside tourism, dependence on the European market & territorial imbalances.
The MEDUSA project is led by a mix of public/private/non-governmental organizations across the region with proven track record in the tourism & business development field. MEDUSA will tackle these joint challenges via targeted & inter-related capacity building & cross-border interventions to develop & promote Adventure Tourism (AT) in the region. Between 2010 & 2014, this tourism niche grew by 195%. The MED has every opportunity to become part of this international trend, which properly managed can make tourism more sustainable, providing a strong incentive for conservation, while creating jobs & more income for local communities. These major expected changes will occur in the medium/long-term. In addition, the multiplier effect will be higher in comparison to other forms of tourism. The main results of the project are cross-border routes & itineraries, in the form of new and/or improved AT products, revealing lesser-known destinations & attracting tourists throughout the year. A long-term strategy is envisaged for the promotion & management of these destinations in a sustainable way with the participation of a wide array of stakeholders. The main beneficiaries are SMEs (Tourism Service Providers, Tour Operators, Travel Agencies, etc.), public authorities & the communities.
MEDUSA project is co-financed by the European Union under the European Neighbourhood Instrument cross-border cooperation program “Mediterranean Sea Basin” 2014-2020 (ENI CBC MED). It started on 1st September 2019 and has duration of 36 months (until 31st August 2022). It counts on an overall budget of 3,317,314 EUR, which are co-financed at a 90% rate by the ENI CBC Med program.
The MEDUSA includes the following project partners:

• Barcelona Chamber of Commerce (Spain) – Lead Beneficiary
• Rene Moawad Foundation (Lebanon)
• Association of the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Spain)
• Jordan Inbound Tour Operators Association – JITOA (Jordan)
• Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature – RSCN (Jordan)
• Puglia Region – Department of tourism, economy of culture and valorization of territory (Italy)
• WWF Mediterranean North Africa (Tunisia)

More information is available at:http://www.enicbcmed.eu/projects/medusa

Context
The countries of implementation of MEDUSA project (Tunisia, Jordan, Lebanon, Italy, and Spain) share several common challenges in the field of sustainable tourism, such as tourism models focused on summer period, high unemployment rates, etc. However, the development of sustainable tourism in general and adventure tourism differs from country to country. While in some of the MEDUSA countries, has been noticed that the monitoring of tourism indicators is being carried out by some local/regional public stakeholders, in others this is still a work pending to be done.
Considering the fact that the evaluation of tourism interventions needs a considerable period of time in order to obtain valid conclusions (between 10 to 15 years), the partnership of MEDUSA project believes that facilitating the implementation of a methodology to evaluate and monitor sustainable tourism in our selected destinations (with the objective that this methodology is maintained by local stakeholders) is crucial. In fact, the partnership considers the establishment of this methodology even more important than the conclusions that will be obtained during the evaluation carried put during the period of implementation of MEDUSA project (2019-2022).
For this reason, the MEDUSA project intends not only to evaluate the state of sustainable adventure tourism in the selected destinations during the period of implementation of MEDUSA project, but also, to leave a methodology to be used in the years to come.
Objective, purpose and expected results
The overall objective is to prepare a brief guideline for the project based on the ETIS Toolkit[1], and to evaluate the state of adventure tourism, in the beginning and end of the project, in the MEDUSA selected destinations.
In concrete, the purposes of the tender are as follows:

• To prepare a brief Guidelines for the project based on the ETIS Toolkit[2], which will be implemented both by the partnership of the MEDUSA project and by the stakeholders in the selected destinations. The purpose is to start implementing a methodology in collaboration with key stakeholders, that will remain in time even when the project concludes. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, in addition to other unexpected situations, the ETIS implementation, including ETIS surveys distribution, may need to be adapted when necessary. Project partners will collect the necessary data in each destination and it will be presented to the consultant selected in order to be analysed by him / her (this analysis will be the object of the reports mentioned below).
• To provide two Evaluation Reports: one baseline report and one final report:

1. Baseline report (ex-ante evaluation): the objective of this report is to show the initial state of adventure tourism in the selected destinations before the implementation of the MEDUSA project.

With regard of the data collection for this baseline report, ETIS surveys to be distributed may encounter major challenges (especially for visitors’ data). Therefore, possible solutions (if any) will be discussed among all parties involved.
In addition, it is worth noting that some data has already been collected by partners in all pilot areas established in the five countries of implementation of MEDUSA project. The data corresponds to the period in which the project started (mid-2019). Due to COVID-19, just a few ETIS surveys were distributed before in the pilot areas. Therefore, the data collected[3] consists mostly in a variety of documents (studies, surveys, informs, etc.) previously collected by relevant third actors. It also includes DMO surveys (ETIS destination profile) carried out in each project country. The already collected data will be analysed using the methodology established in the M&E Plan, and used to elaborate the baseline report. Therefore, the baseline report will reflect the state of AT in the selected destinations (also named in the project as pilot areas) in the beginning of the project.

2. Final report (ex-post evaluation): the final report will include two different blocks: a) One corresponding to the evaluation carried out at the end of the project; b) and another corresponding the comparative analysis between baseline and final report (which will show what has been the impact in the AT sector in the destinations selected, during the period between the beginning and the end of the project).

For the collection of data for the final report, partners will distribute and collect ETIS surveys, before the end of the project (mid-2022, the project may be extended after August 2022), in the pilot areas selected in each country of the project (the same pilot areas in which the data for the baseline report has been collected). Partners will send to the consultant the results of the surveys. Then, the results obtained will be analysed by the consultant as established in the M&E Plan, and used to elaborate the final report. This final report will reflect the impact caused by the MEDUSA project in the selected pilot areas in each country. To do so, a comparative analyse should be provided with measurable indicators of achievement and real changes caused by the project implementation.
NOTE: Project partners will translate all data and survey results collected into English, when necessary.

Therefore, the results to be achieved by the consultant are the following:

• RESULT Nº1: MEDUSA guidelines on ETIS implementation.
• RESULT Nº2: Baseline evaluation report.
• RESULT Nº3: Final evaluation report.

Description of the assignment
The Consultants’ service is expected to provide an adequate system for monitoring and evaluation performance to ensure that tourism interventions, in the destinations selected, are developed in an ecological, economic and socially sustainable manner, based on the European Tourism Indicators System (ETIS). This methodology is expected to be implemented not only during MEDUSA project implementation but to be continued in time by local stakeholders.
Based on the ETIS methodology, surveys (available in annexe 2)[4]will be distributed in the selected destinations to stakeholders (visitors, residents, enterprises and DMOs). Concrete surveys’ questions may be amended when necessary (to be discussed among MEDUSA partnership and the consultant selected). According to the ETIS guidelines, there are compulsory and complementary indicators – of the compulsory, it is important to try to address as maximum as possible.
As indicated above, for the elaboration of baseline report, already existing data has been already collected by the partners of the project. This data will be shared with the consultant selected, and he/she will determine whether it is useful or not for the baseline evaluation (in order to complement the ETIS surveys if necessary). If it is necessary to collect other additional data, partners will do it following the consultants’ indications. The communication between the consultant and the partnership will be canalised through WWF NA.
For the elaboration of both baseline and final report, all partners of the partnership will distribute and collect surveys. The surveys will be considered by the consultant to elaborate the reports. The number of surveys to be distributed and collected will be determined in the Guidelines (adequate number of surveys to be established). Based on the indicator of the ETIS toolkit and the indicator of achievement of the project, the consultant will compile and analyse the real impact of the project intervention in each destination selected and on different level and for the final beneficiaries.
The data collection carried out by the partnership, will be coordinated by WWF NA and the consultant.
The consultant should read and follow the ETIS toolkit and all other supporting documents provided by the European commission. All supporting references are available in https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/tourism/offer/sustainable/indicators_en

Working group establishment:
The ETIS demands the creation of working groups. The stakeholders of these workings groups have been identified and the project partnership is already collaborating with them. The consultant will include in the M&E Plan the roles, calendar and participation of the working groups, while the partnership will be in contact with them and carry out what it is established in the M&E Plan.
Therefore, partners will be in charge of creating the working group (according to ETIS tool), the working group is formed by the local stakeholders including DMOs, local authorities, enterprises, visitors, residents, local organizations and all other potential groups that could be involved in the tourism sector.
The working groups will be involved in the data base collection by participating in meetings and events organized by the PPs where they will be able to answer to the surveys and contribute to the distribution.

Geographical area to be covered

The destinations selected for the implementation (and the evaluation) of the MEDUSA project are the following:

• Tunisia: Ben Arous, Gabes and Madenine.
• Jordan: Irbid, Balqa, Madaba, Kerak, Tafileh and Aqaba.
• Lebanon: Akkar, Baalbek-Hermel, Beirut, Beqaa, Mount Lebanon, Nabatieh, North and South.
• Italy (Puglia): Foresta Umbra, Riserva Lago di Lesina, Riserva di Varano e Isole Tremiti; Parco Nazionaledell’AltaMurgia – Zona ZPS; Parco delle GravineIoniche di Taranto; Parco Regionale Costa Otranto-Leuca; Oasi WWF Torre Guaceto.
• Spain (Catalonia): BaixEbre, Alt Empordà, Berguedà and Alt Penedès.

Specific work

The Consultant’s services will include but not necessarily be limited to the following:

1. Elaborate the content of the Guidelines, which will include the methodology to be used for the whole period of implementation of the project and after the finalization of the project. The Guidelines will include the actions, calendar and roles to be followed by all parties involved in the evaluation and monitoring of the project. It will also provide a methodology to be used in the selected destinations once the project concludes.
2. Elaborate baseline and final reports.
3. Analysis of ETIS surveys results and guidance for the elaboration of results to partners if necessary.
4. Coordinate all actions with the partnership of the project.

To be considered to achieve RESULT Nº1:

• The Guidelines will be the reference document, in where it will be indicated how to carry out the evaluation of the MEDUSA project.
• The content of the Guidelines (methodology, calendar and roles played by all parties involved in the evaluation of the project) will be proposed by the consultant and discussed and agreed by the partnership and the consultant himself/herself.
• The Guidelines will always be both an internal and external document. This means it will be shared among the partnership and send to the Managing Authority of the ENI CBC MED Program, in addition to be disseminated to third actors when necessary.[5]

To be considered to achieve RESULTS Nº2 and Nº3:

• The consultant will propose additional sources of information for the elaboration of the baseline and final report, in case the ETIS surveys (and the already collected data for the baseline report) it is not sufficient or good enough for reflecting the initial and final state of the situation of AT in the selected destinations.
• The consultant will identify all compulsory and complementary indicators, based on ETIS methodology and toolkit. A matrix should be available in the M&E Plan as a tool to compare indicators achievement pre& post project implementation. The matrix should include a maximum number of compulsory indicators where applicable (according to each destination).
• The consultant will provide clear and detailed analysis reports (baseline and final) with measurable indicators of achievement to be the basic element of the final evaluation assessment.
• The consultant will provide a comparative analysis based on the baseline data report with special focus on the real changes and impacts make by the project activities. The reports must have a special focus on the integration of the socio-economic, environmental and culture aspects involvement.

In addition, the Consultant will:

• Present the Guidelines to the partnership (via online meeting), according to the calendar proposed.
• Present the baseline report (RESULT Nº2) to the partnership (via online meeting), according to the calendar proposed.
• Final report (RESULT Nº3) will be presented to both the partnership and key stakeholders by the consultant, during a local closure workshop organised by WWF Mediterranean NA (the event may be hold physically in Tunis or via online).
• Prepare all the reports as specified under the section on ‘’Reporting requirements’’.

In undertaking the tasks described under this section, the Consultants must comply with the latest Communication and Visibility Manual for EU External Actions concerning acknowledgement of EU financing of the project. See https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/communication-and-visibility-manual-eu-external-actions_en.
Start date and period of implementation of the tasks
The intended start date is 1^st April, 2021, and the period of implementation of the contract will be until the end of MEDUSA project (September 2022).
In concrete, the expected deadlines for each result are the following:

• RESULT Nº1: to be sent by 1^stMay 2021
• RESULT Nº2: to be sent by 1^st June 2021
• RESULT Nº3: to be sent by 1^st August 2022 (with the possibility of extension)

Reporting requirements
The contractor will submit the following reports in English in Electronic format:

• Guidelines: a document with guidance on how to run the evaluation based on the ETIS Toolkit will be produced in the preparation phase, which will be implemented during the course of the project as needed. This report should include the timeline of evaluation and the methodology and approach of evaluation implementation (15 working days).
• Baseline report: this report should be provided and validated once receiving and analysing surveys and relevant information as statistics, received from partners. The report includes the indicators identified and the baseline of each indicator (for each category of stakeholders) (5 working days).
• Final Report in the format following the baseline report and based on the supporting toolkit provided by the European Commission (Annex 3). The report shall contain a sufficiently detailed description and analyse the impacts of the MEDUSA project based both on ETIS methodology and the data baseline report. The report should compile and give an objective analysis of the impact of the project implementation with special focus on socio-economic, environmental and cultural involvement in the selected destinations. The assessment of the real impact of the project should focus also on strengthening stakeholders as well as the results of the capacity building program / stewardship model.  The report should include a matrix of assessment where the impacts are measurable. The detailed analyses underpinning the recommendations will be presented in annexes to the main report. The final report must be provided along with the corresponding invoice (10 working days).

Special requirements
The EU emblem must appear on the front cover. Where multiple donors are involved, the EU emblem must be at least as prominently displayed as those of the other financial partners, and its positioning on the front cover determined in agreement with them. The emblem(s) of the implementing partner(s) or contractor(s) may also be included on the front cover.

3. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

The maximum available value of the contract is 18,000 EUR as a gross amount (all taxes included). The consultant can subcontract additional services (experts) when needed (this will be agreed with the MEDUSA consortium, in order to make sure all legal requirements are being respected).
The payment will be made based on the reporting requirements section:

4. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The selection criteria are:
Economic and financial standing:

• The operating profit of the candidate must not have been negative over the past year;
• The candidate must have at least one year of existence;
• Experts from state function should present the legal authorization.

Technical Capacity:

• At least 1 contract of similar nature undertaken in the past 3years;
• At least 3 years of professional experience related to the evaluation of projects (experience with ENI CBC projects will be highly preferred).
• At least 3 years of professional experience in sustainable tourism development;
• Excellent knowledge about ETIS methodology and Toolkit.
• Knowledge about other EU tourism assessment mechanisms will be positively considered.
• Graduated Studies in Tourism and Hospitality, Economics, Social or similar studies.
• Excellent reporting skills in English (equivalent to C1 level CEFR).[6]

The award criterion is:

• Best value for money, weighting 80% technical quality and 20% price (select in case of services)

The successful and unsuccessful tenderers will be informed of the results of the evaluation procedure in written.
The estimated time of response to the tenderers is 5 working days from the deadline for submission of the tenders.

6. COPYRIGHT

All rights of copyright concerning the material produced by consultant will remain the property of WWF and can only be used by the expert with appropriate attribution by WWF.