Request for Expressions of Interest

For consultancy service to support the Knowledge Management, communications and reporting tasks

Organisation	SNV Netherlands Development Organisation
Project	“Transforming the Rice Value Chain for Climate Resilient and Sustainable Development in the Mekong Delta,” (TRVC project)
Assignment	Support the development of Project Reports
Number of consultants	01 international individual consultant
Location	Home based
Duration	September 2025 – March 2028
Starting date	September 2025

About SNV

Stichting SNV Nederlandse Ontwikkelings Organisatie, (hereinafter referred to as “SNV Netherlands Development Organisation” or “SNV”) is established as a Foundation (Stichting) in The Netherlands, and is a not-for-profit international development organisation, that applies practical know-how to make a lasting difference in the lives of people living in poverty. We use our extensive and long-term in-country presence to apply and adapt our expertise in agriculture, energy and water to local contexts.

SNV has been working in Vietnam since 1995 in partnership with government agencies, the private sector, and local authorities across the agri-food, energy, and water sectors. We’re particularly proud of the work we’ve done to support the country’s most remote and deprived areas to strengthen their capacity to reduce poverty.

About the TRVC project and the Assignment

Building on the 27-year-experience of implementing projects on sustainable agriculture development and market-based agrifood value chain development in Vietnam, and recently, the success of the “AgResults Vietnam Emissions Reduction Challenge Project” (AVERP) in Thai Binh province from 2016 – 2021 with Pay-for-Results mechanism. Funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), SNV Netherlands Development Organization continues working with government partners at central and provincial levels to design and implement the project “Transforming Rice Value Chains for Climate Resilient and Sustainable Development in the Mekong Delta (TRVC)” (“TRVC Project” or “Project”). The TRVC project is implementing in three (03) key rice-growing provinces in the Mekong Delta, including An Giang, Dong Thap, and Kien Giang, from 2023 to 2027. SNV, as the TRVC Project Manager (Project Manager), holds ultimate responsibility for the implementation and management of the Project’s activities and resources. SNV, coordinating with the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection (DCPPP) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) which is previously known as Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the Provincial People’s Committee, and the Department of Agriculture and Environment (DAE) which previously known as Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) of 3 provinces An Giang, Dong Thap and Kien Giang, co-implement and oversight the Project activities. The international verifier recruited by SNV (Verifier), along with the advisory council including international and Vietnamese scientists and policymakers (Advisory Council), will jointly monitor and supervise the verification process and results to ensure accuracy and transparency.

Using a Pay-for-Results mechanism, the TRVC project incentivizes private enterprises in the Rice Value Chain (RVC) to scale-up innovative technologies, with a view to achieving higher economic outcomes for smallholder farmers (SHFs) and all RVC actors, improving rice quality and promoting inclusive social values, while reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and mitigating environmental footprints as co-benefits. In this way, the project is intended to play a catalytic role in transforming rice production and trading towards sustainability and promoting inclusive values in the most rice-intensive production provinces, contributing to sustainable and climate-resilient development in the Mekong Delta.

The project expects to support a shift to low emissions rice production for 200,000 hectares by 2028. This will contribute to MAE’s ambitions to reach 1 million hectares nationally. The project provides cash incentives to those who participate and achieve GHG emissions reduction targets, with emissions verified by Independent Verifiers. Support is also provided to improve farming practices and promote the inclusion of men and women and those with disabilities, to ensure that benefits are shared amongst the community.

The results of TRVC Project are expected to be achieved as follows:

Formulating 10 – 20 inclusive Rice Value Chain
Outreaching 50 – 60 co-ops and 300,000 SHFs on the production scale of 200,000 hectares
Reducing equivalent to at least 200,000mt of CO₂ emissions
Achieving at least 30% profit for farmers from rice production

To date, the TRVC project successfully completed the implementation of the first two seasonal rice crops with the participation of ten rice value chain companies who are recognized as key competitors in the two project provinces of An Giang and Dong Thap.

Alongside the technical work on the implementation of rice cropping seasons, Knowledge Management (KM) and communications play an important role in the programme. TRVC incorporates various innovative approaches: using a prize competition approach to scale low-carbon rice production; developing a UNFCCC-compliant remote sensing-based MRV for GHG emissions from SHF rice production; supporting the development of a regulatory framework for low-carbon rice and carbon finance; and supporting the development of a low-carbon rice brand. Knowledge and learning will play an important role in these interventions, while documentation and communication of the results, challenges and lessons will contribute to broader regional and global sector thinking, and support replication and extension of the results. In addition, there will be a need to communicate activities, events, and achievements or highlights of TRVC to a broad spectrum of stakeholders. The following table outlines key elements of the strategy.

Table 1. Developing and disseminating knowledge and information (Knowledge Management Framework)

Agenda	Knowledge Products	Key stakeholders	Dissemination
Thematic issue 1: Implementing a prize competition pull mechanism at scale
To provide information and lessons on design and implementation of prize competitions to incentivise private sector scaling of sustainable production practices	Technical guide Lessons learned papers (success stories, case studies)	DCPPP/MAE, DAEs, DFAT and other development actors	National/ international thematic conferences; Rice Congress; PSAV Rice Taskforce; Learning event; Online publication
Thematic issue 2: Developing a cost-effective UNFCCC-compliant MRV system for rice cultivation
To provide lessons from the design and implementation of the first large scale remote sensing-based MRV system for emissions in SHF paddy farming	Documentation of the MRV system design, challenges, and lessons	DCPPP/MAE, DAEs, DFAT and other development actors	National/ international thematic seminar/ workshop/ conference; COP; Cross-learning event; On-line publication
Thematic issue 3: Developing the regulatory framework for low-carbon rice and carbon financing
To provide guidance on how carbon credits can be accredited to NDC, company quotas, and other climate finance including monetizable carbon credit	Carbon project registration; Recommendations on key areas (i.e. carbon rights and benefit distribution)	DCPPP/MAE, DAEs, RVC Companies, DFAT and other	VCCI – SME promotion events; National and regional exchanges/ meetings/ workshops; Asia Rice: Carbon Market Accelerator Platform
Thematic issue 4: Developing low-carbon rice brands by rice exporters and traders
To provide information on international and domestic market demand and requirements for low carbon/ sustainable rice	3^rd party certification of CO2e reduction to support the calculation of carbon footprint to publicize in the brand package	DCPPP/MAE, DAEs, DFAT, private sector stakeholders, development actors for synergies	VCCI–SME events; Vietnam Food Assoc., Vietnam Rice Assoc., MAE special Rice Task Force and Business/ Export Promotion Taskforce; Meetings/ seminars/ workshops
Key stakeholder communications: Keeping key stakeholders updated on progress and results
To disseminate crop results, prize awards, key learning messages, policy dialogues	Factsheets, newsletter, reports, pictures, stories, case studies, and videos	DCPPP/MAE, DAEs, DFAT, private sector stakeholders and local communities in the target areas	Formal/ informal multi-stakeholder policy dialogues (central and provincial); Gov Talk-show, Ag/ Rice Bulletins, Farmer Field Day
Visibility: Providing wider public information about programme progress, results, and highlights
To ensure visibility of the programme and its results	Factsheets, newsletter, reports, pictures, stories, case studies and videos	DFAT, development practitioners, members of public including in Australia and Vietnam	Programme website of SNV, DCPPP, DAEs, Extension Centres; social media (Facebook/ Youtube); Online, print and television media

Besides, as part of its on-going program management and donor engagement, the TRVC project is required to produce bi-annual and annual reports which will be submitted to DFAT under the required timeframe.

In responding to the mentioned assignment, SNV is seeking to engage a qualified international consultant to support the TRVC project’s Knowledge Management, communications and reporting tasks. The consultant will work closely with the TRVC team to gather relevant data, develop content of the required reports and knowledge products that aligns with donor requirements and internal standards, and ensure the reports and products are clear, evidence-based, and outcome-oriented.

Reporting and coordination structure:

The Consultant will work under overall supervision of the Agrifood Sector Lead and the direct supervision of the TRVC Team Leader and in close coordination with the Project Coordinator and team.

Key assignments include:

Document project outcomes/results/impacts, challenges, case studies and learnings systematically.
From flow of documented data and information from the Activity (1), propose and produce the knowledge management products as listed in Table 1.
Produce bi-annual and annual reports following the standard and requirements of SNV and donor agency.

The selected Consultants will enter a Framework for Professional Service (the “Agreement”) with SNV with expected timeframe from September 2025 – March 2028 covering the listed technical support areas. Based on the signed Agreement, the detailed tasks with allocated working days and timeline will be discussed and agreed under Tasks Orders for each mobilization period signed by the consultant and SNV authorized representative.

Expected experiences and qualifications

Educational background:

Master’s or above degrees in Agriculture, Rural Development, Project Management, Environmental or Social Science, Communications, or a related field

Language:

Native proficiency in English (both written and spoken) is required

Professional experiences:

	Demonstrated knowledge and experience in producing knowledge management tools/products and reporting writing in in the development sector
	Familiarity with and experience working in the agriculture sector in Southeast Asia is a must. Having contemporary knowledge of the low-emission rice production, MRV system and carbon standards is highly desirable
	Extensive experience in drafting, editing, and finalizing donor reports, including milestone, annual, and technical reports, with a strong understanding of donor requirements and reporting templates (e.g. DFAT,)
	Proven experience in gathering and analysing project data, focusing on project progress, results, challenges, and relevant metrics to synthesize these data into high-quality narrative reports
	Hands-on experience in preparing, documenting, and reviewing knowledge products such as factsheets, newsletters, technical guides, reports, stories, and multimedia content (pictures, videos) related to project implementation
	Familiarity with Knowledge Management Frameworks and applying them to project implementation and reporting.

Regional experiences:

	Experience in projects in the Southeast Asian countries
	Experience in projects in Viet Nam

Others:

	Strong analytical skills with ability to analyze data and draw meaningful conclusions.
	Knowledge of reporting best practices with demonstrated understanding of different reporting methodologies and formats.
	Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to produce high-quality reports and presentations for donors and stakeholders
	High attention to detail, and ability to work independently with limited supervision
	Working with cross-sectoral teams and managing timelines under pressure.

Submission requirements

Interested individual consultants should submit the Letter of Interest via the instructions in the link https://smrtr.io/sRJGR with the following information:

Signed Letter of Interest includes the followings:

Attachment 1: CVs of individual consultants and proposed gross day rate

Attachment 2: Degrees and certificates

Attachment 3: Scanned copies of the identity cards/ passports of individual consultants.

Attachment 4: Due Diligence document, click LINK

Attachment 5: Samples of their authored knowledge management products and/or report to donor

EOIs are accepted 17.00 hrs September 02, 2025.

All questions regarding this call should be sent to [email protected]

Selection process

SNV will review all EOIs received in accordance with the guidelines and criteria in this solicitation. SNV reserves the right to exclude any EOIs that do not meet the guidelines. Please note that SNV is unable to provide detailed feedback to those EOIs that are not selected.

Step 1: SNV will shortlist selected EOIs. Successful applicants will be contacted by SNV for Framework Agreements for Consultancy Services or informed to keep on our consultant roster for two years.

Step 2: SNV will release Task Orders for the specific activities with the selected consultants based on the Framework Agreements signed accordingly.

Data protection

The review and scoring are closed processes and are not open to the public. The data received shall be validated by SNV through remote and/or physical checks and processed following SNV’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) framework (which complies with the European Union’s GDPR 2018). The electronic data you provide will be kept secure and will only be processed by SNV for procurement and project execution purposes. The data will be kept for 7 years, after which they will be destroyed by SNV. By submitting your proposal and participating in the SNV process, you agree with this data use, storage, and processing of the data provided.

Issuance of this EOI does not constitute a commitment, award, or engagement on the part of SNV nor does it commit SNV to any future commitment or engagement.

Note: SNV reserves the right to change or cancel this requirement in the EOI/or solicitation process at any time.