Consultancy for Monitoring and Implementation Support for Institutional Strengthening of Community Rangeland Governance Structures Under the TWENDE

**Terms of reference for IUCN Consultancy** **Title: Consultancy for Monitoring and Implementation Support for Institutional Strengthening of Community Rangeland Governance Structures Under the TWENDE** **Objective of the Consultancy** This consultancy has the following objective(s): **Specific Objectives** The consultancy shall pursue the following specific objectives: 1. Assess the functionality and effectiveness of community rangeland governance institutions established under TWENDE and their contribution to improved resource management, sustainable grazing management, reduced livestock pressure on rangelands, restoration of degraded landscapes and reduced natural resource conflicts. 2. Identify opportunities for integrating existing community rangeland governance structures into relevant county governance structures and systems, with a view to strengthening their institutional recognition, continuity and sustainability beyond the project period. 3. Identify opportunities for ensuring that priorities emerging from community rangeland and restoration plans are reflected in county planning and budgeting processes, including relevant Annual Development Plans (ADPs), pre-County Integrated Development Plans (pre-CIDPs) and other appropriate county planning instruments and processes. 4. Assess the key barriers to pastoralists' access to and use of climate information and identify innovative opportunities for improving accessibility and uptake, including through digital delivery mechanisms. 5. Identify strategic opportunities for policy influencing within the next 12 months, with particular emphasis on integrating TWENDE-generated community plans, evidence and lessons into relevant county and national policies, strategies and planning processes related to rangeland governance, restoration and drought resilience. 6. Document the actual and/or expected impact of governance interventions on resource management and conflict reduction, capturing evidence of change as well as plausible expected impacts where measurable outcomes are not yet fully realised. 7. Provide prioritised recommendations and strategic actions that can be pursued during the remaining project period to strengthen the impact, institutionalisation and sustainability of TWENDE investments. **Background and about the project** Project Reference: **P02886** Donor Reference:N/A **About IUCN** IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together. Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,400 Member organisations and around 15,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards. IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples’ organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development. Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being. [www.iucn.org](http://www.iucn.org) [https://twitter.com/IUCN/](https://twitter.com/IUCN/) **About the Project** The IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) implements the Towards Ending Drought Emergencies (TWENDE): Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Kenya's Arid and Semi-Arid Rangelands Project, a five-year initiative supported by the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The project contributes to Kenya's Vision 2030 and the Ending Drought Emergencies (EDE) strategy by strengthening the resilience of ecosystems, livelihoods and communities to climate change across Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs). The project is implemented across the Sabarwawa, Mid Tana and Chyulu Hills landscapes, covering eleven (11) counties. These landscapes face increasing climate variability, recurrent drought, land degradation, weak natural resource governance, resource-use conflicts and limited investment in sustainable rangeland management. To address these challenges, TWENDE is implemented through three complementary components: - Component 1: Climate Change Adapted Planning for Drought Resilience. - Component 2: Restoration of Rangeland Landscapes for Ecosystem-based Adaptation. - Component 3: Climate-resilient Ecosystem Management Investments. IUCN serves as the GCF Accredited Entity, working in partnership with the Government of Kenya and Conservation International (CI). The National Drought Management Authority (NDMA), the State Department for Livestock Development (SDLD) and Conservation International are the Executing Entities for Components 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Through TWENDE project, significant investments have been made in community-based rangeland governance, participatory rangeland and restoration planning, ecosystem restoration and climate-resilient natural resource management across the target landscapes. These investments have included strengthening community governance structures, supporting rangeland and restoration planning, and strengthening linkages between community institutions and relevant government structures. **Description of the Assignment** The purpose of this consultancy is to provide strategic technical and analytical support to NDMA to strengthen the effectiveness, institutional sustainability and policy uptake of TWENDE investments in community rangeland governance and drought resilience. **Rationale** TWENDE has made significant investments in strengthening community-based rangeland governance through the establishment and strengthening of grazing committees, peace committees and other community governance mechanisms, alongside the development of community rangeland and restoration plans. As the project progresses towards completion, there is a need to assess the extent to which these investments are contributing to improved rangeland governance, sustainable resource management, restoration, drought resilience and conflict reduction. The assignment will generate evidence on the functionality, effectiveness and outcomes of community rangeland governance structures and examine the institutional conditions influencing their continuity, integration and sustainability within relevant county governance systems. It will also assess opportunities to strengthen the integration of community rangeland and restoration priorities into county planning and budgeting processes. In addition, the assignment will assess access to and utilisation of climate information among pastoral communities and identify opportunities to strengthen its relevance, accessibility and uptake for rangeland management and drought resilience. It will further examine strategic policy windows and institutional entry points for strengthening the uptake of TWENDE-generated evidence, community plans, lessons and governance approaches within relevant county and national policy, planning and institutional processes. **Scope of the assignment** The key areas of focus will include: **6.1 Community rangeland governance: functionality, effectiveness and impact** Assessment of the functionality and effectiveness of community rangeland governance structures established or strengthened under TWENDE, including their institutional arrangements, roles, decision-making processes and linkages with relevant actors. The assessment will examine their contribution to