TOR for marketing research /
Advisory / Service Contract
Programme: Increasing Income Generation Opportunities in Selected IDP communities
Project number: 2001.3515.2
AV: Sonia Fontaine
Activity: Marketing strategy and business plan development for honey producing IDP
communities in Azerbaijan
Period: January 4, 2015 – February 10, 2016
Deliverables: Marketing Strategy; Business Plan
1. Brief information on the project:
During the Karabagh war, residents of the inflicted regions were displaced toward various
regions of Azerbaijan. The total number of internally displaced persons (IDP) exceeded
800,000 and Göygöl region1 is one of the regions heavily populated with IDP. They constitute
up to 70% of the current local population.
IDP in Göygöl originate from highland regions of Karabagh (Khojaly), Kalbajar and Lachin.
The population was mostly engaged in animal husbandry and beekeeping. Their settlement
in mountainous Göygöl region allows them to continue agricultural activities in accordance
with their expertise and experience.
IDP have limited market access and are lacking market power, mainly due to the households
seeking to individually sell their products through the network established on the basis of
personal links. The products lack certification and are falling short of established quality
standards. The lack of basic knowledge of corporate law and marketing skills results in the
information deficiency, leading to the failure of IDP to evaluate market opportunities to
enhance production.
Two of the communities are settled in the mountainous Goygol region and each community
is comprised of about ten families. They are engaged in beekeeping and are applying
traditional methods in the production of honey. Their yearly harvest of pure raw honey varies
between 200-500 kg. The harvest then is packed in a non-professional manner and sold
through the network of family and relatives in surrounding regions, also in Ganja and Baku.
Improved economic opportunities for IDP Communities are crucial to the Government of
Azerbaijan. Since October, 2014, GIZ is implementing a measure on the increase of income
opportunities for IDP communities. To improve the economic outlook of these IDP
communities, GIZ supports them with capacity development and to a small extend with
material support.
2. Project Objective and Indicators
Four indicators must be fulfilled in order to reach the objective – the improvement of income
generation opportunities of men and women in selected IDP communities of Barda, Gogol
and Imishli regions:
-
Indicator one: Marketing strategies for the honey product groups are prepared;
1
Göygöl region is bordering Ganja, and the regional center is 30 km. south-west of Ganja, the second
largest city in Azerbaijan.
15.07.2015
1
-
Indicator two: All 5 selected refugee communities meet the costs involved in registration
as a limited liability company reporting obligations to the tax authorities and social
security funds;
Indicator three: The criteria of one of the major food retail markets in Baku for the
inclusion of honey of refugee communities in Goygol in their shelves are met;
Indicator four: Concepts for strengthening the economic inclusion of women in the
selected refugee communities are developed.
In addition to the main indicators of the project, the project provides direct material and
equipment support for the communities and technical expertise in apiculture and disease
management.
3. Assignment Objectives
The expert support to the communities is directly related to the fulfilment of indicator one.
The expert must assess the market potential for the honey producing IDP communities,
identify options for increasing productivity, and develop strategies to increase sales of their
products.
To this end, a comprehensive market research must be undertaken, culminating in the
production of a business plan and a marketing strategy for the communities, in cooperation
with them.
4. Scope of Work
The contractor is asked to fulfil the following tasks:
1. Conducting market research with the purpose of:
- Identifying selling opportunities for bee products in retail markets and
agricultural fairs (bazars) in Baku and Ganja;
- Determining legal, quality, and product marketing requirements for the sales of
honey at retail centres in Baku;
- Legal: reporting of tax and legal management of the company;
- Quality: quality requirements of various retailers in the urban markets,
as well as potential food safety standards;
- Marketing: terms and requirements of labelling and packaging by
retailers in local urban markets.
2. Development of a business plan for the communities comprised of:
- Analysis of the strength and weaknesses of the communities considering their
capacity and market capacity for business improvement;
- Target group oriented comprehensive and critical assessment of
technical facilities of the communities utilized for honey production;
- Comprehensive and critical assessment of production cycle of the
communities
- Comprehensive and critical assessment of potential product
diversification toward other bee products (e.g. pollen, propolis, royal
jelly, wax-based products, etc.);
- Assessment of the capacity of the communities in sourcing honey of
different types of flora;
- Assessment the advantages of different honey sourcing as a selling
point.
3. Explaining the results of the findings and the business plan to the communities and
suggesting strategic and practical solutions considering the capacity of the
communities
5. Desired method of research
2
A variety of research methods should be applied to reach high quality results of the
marketing research, including interviews conducted with the community members,
interviews/meetings conducted with retailers in Baku; statistic research and surveys to
collect data on market demand and consumption through retailers, consumers and official
sources (i.e. Ministry of Agriculture). The research should also consider the legal status of
the communities being IDP and the condition of the existing market infrastructure, when
making assessments and suggestions for business development.
Applicants are expected to provide a detailed methodological outline in their proposal.
Research methods should be clearly matched to the expected deliverables (see section 6).
All produced documents must be written in Azerbaijani and a summary to be provided in
English language.
6. Expected Deliverables
-
-
-
Comprehensive marketing research report containing:
- Assessment of market opportunities for sales of honey;
- Information on the available retailers including supermarkets and firms
specialised in sales of agricultural and beekeeping products in Baku and Ganja;
- Legal and market requirements for reaching to formal markets.
Business plan containing:
- Comprehensive analysis on the productive capacity of the communities;
- Analysis of the quality of honey products produced by the communities;
- SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) of the
community businesses’;
- Strategy report on the steps for the communities to develop their businesses for
higher income generation.
Deliver and explain the findings and suggestions for business and marketing strategy
development to the community representatives in a manner that is understandable and
comprehendible for the communities at a round-table event to be organized by GIZ.
The deliverables are expected to be delivered within the framework structure outlined in
section 7.
7. Location, Duration and Timing, and reporting obligations toward GIZ
-
-
-
Deliver a detailed methodological note for all deliverables within one week into the
contract;
Interim report, including assessment of market potential and based on that
outlines for a business plan and a marketing strategy within 30 days from the start
of the contract;
Draft final report, including the fully developed business plan and marketing
strategy. This should include prepared materials for the workshop (in Azerbaijani)
and transcripts of the interviews.
Final report, including results from the round table discussion and
recommendations for next steps within five working days after the round-table
discussion with the community representatives.
Face-to-face meetings with GIZ:
Research is to be conducted in Goygol region, Ganja and Baku cities. The applicant is
expected to cooperate closely with GIZ. This will require multiple meetings on a needs basis,
especially during the research phases of methodology and questionnaire development. Joint
visits to the IDP communities at the beginning on of the research are also considered.
-
At least one joint meeting with the responsible project officer to the IDP communities;
3
-
Meeting minimum once a month, at least three in total before the submission of the
final documents;
A meeting to discuss the results of the research and proposed strategies for
improvement as a draft document.
8. Required documents for application
Research proposal:
The applicant is expected to submit a proposal containing at least the following aspects:
- Outline a proposed methodology for the research;
- An implementation plan including timeline for deliverables;
- Information on the company (Website or company profile in hardcopy) or an individual
(CV);
- Written sample of related past researches conducted;
Financial Proposal:
The financial proposal should include:
- Man-day assignments for each task and each proposed expert;
Note: Contractors may apply as a consortium in order to perform the tasks of this contract
the number of participants in a consortium is not limited. Contracts will be made with the
identified lead partner of the consortium.
9. Assignment requirements
The applicant can be a company or a freelancer individual. In both cases there must be a tax
registration number for the name of the juridical or physical person.
The following qualifications should be available in the proposal documentation:
- Academic research experience;
- Project management experience;
- Fluency in English and Azerbaijani;
- Knowledge of qualitative and basic quantitative analysis, in coherence with the
methods proposed;
- Experience in conducting interviews, as well as survey development;
- Report writing skills.
Methodological guidance to the research will be conducted by Nijat Garayev and David
Mosler, both in writing and during face-to-face meetings. Reporting should be sent to Nijat
Garayev.
If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Nijat Garayev, GIZ project officer.
David Mosler, Programme Advisor david.mosler@giz.de
Nijat Garayev, Programme Expert nidjat.garayev@giz.de
4