Integrated Nature-Based Solutions Approaches to Protect Sierra Leone's Western Area National Park

SELECTION OF CONSULTING FIRMS BY THE WORLD BANK GROUP REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI) Electronic Submissions through WBGeProcure RFx Now ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW Assignment Title: Integrated Nature-Based Solutions Approaches to Protect Sierra Leone's Western Area National Park Assignment Countries: Sierra Leone ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION The World Bank funded Water Security and WASH Access Development Multiphase Programmatic Approach (MPA) and its phase 1 Project promote water resources management through the preparation of a National Water Resources Masterplan and the implementation of innovative and Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) to help protect the Western Area Peninsula National Park (WAPNP), which is the only source of freshwater supply to Freetown and more broadly the Western Area of Sierra Leone. The WAPNP is increasingly threatened by urban pressure to deforest and build and by neighboring populations using the forest as a source of wood and charcoal to cook. The proposed consultancy aims at introducing and promoting NbS to create alternatives to using wood from the protected forest to cook, to inform and train communities on practices that help protect the park’s natural resources and to promote erosion control measures combined with reforestation to restore the watershed and protect it against erosion. The Consultancy will also provide critical analytical work to understand the most adapted NbS and community-based approaches, pilot them document them and create a feedback loop to inform how best to replicate successful approaches in other parts of the country, along with the phases 2 and 3 of the MPA. These will also contribute to the analytical and institutional foundations for the country’s first National Water Resources Master Plan, which will be developed under a separate assignment with World Bank funding under the MPA phase 1 operation. FUNDING SOURCE The World Bank Group intends to finance the assignment / services described below under the following: BB: Bank Budget TF0D1436: LDCIA ELIGIBILITY Eligibility restrictions apply: [Please type list of restrictions] SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS The World Bank Group invites eligible firms to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested firms must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc. for firms; CV and cover letter for individuals). Please note that the total size of all attachments should be less than 5MB. Firms may associate to enhance their qualifications unless otherwise stated in the solicitation documents. Where a group of firms associate to submit an EOI, they must indicate which is the lead firm. If shortlisted, the firm identified in the EOI as the lead firm will be invited to the request for proposal (RFP) phase. Expressions of Interest should be submitted, in English, electronically through WBGeProcure RFx Now NOTES Following this invitation for EOI, a shortlist of qualified firms will be formally invited to submit proposals. Shortlisting and selection will be subject to the availability of funding. Only those firms which have been shortlisted will be invited to participate in the RFP phase. No notification or debrief will be provided to firms which have not been shortlisted. If you encounter technical difficulties while uploading documents, please send an e-mail to the Help Desk at corporateprocurement@worldbank.org prior to the submission deadline.