VCA4D call for social experts

27th November 2024
by secretary

Agrinatura News

VCA4D launches a new call for experts for the set-up of a core group of social experts and the creation of social analysis training material.
The profiles are detailed below. Each expert will have 8 working days.

The activities will happen in Brussels, online and home-based. The activities will be implemented from December 2024 until March 2025.
A one-week face-to-face workshop in Brussels will be organised (tentatively during January 2025).
Please send the CVs of candidates to laura.felisatti@agrinatura-eu.eu, by Tuesday 3 December 2024 at the latest.

Context

In the Value Chain Analysis for Development (VCA4D) methodology, the analysis of social sustainability focuses on assessing established and potential consequences of the value chain (VC) operations in an array of six domains of importance for decision-makers because they convey key concerns of development: Working Conditions, Land and Water Rights, Gender Equality, Food and Nutrition Security, Social Capital, and Living Conditions. The entry point of VCA4D to appraise the contribution of the VC to social sustainability is to understand how the societal context sets the conditions of the VC operations through the cultural and regulatory organisation and existing physical means (infrastructures, facilities…).
In order to appraise the actual impact of the VC activities, the interactions between the actors of the VC and the general environment must be understood. It is often a tricky, and sometimes sensitive, issue to discern the main factors at work and whether the outcomes arise from VC operations or from the context.

To assist the experts in reflecting on important issues to elaborate his/her understanding of the situation, DG INTPA developed a tool, on a spreadsheet, called Social Profile. In fact, there was no method for analysis of value chains from a social perspective that would fit the purpose of the VCA4D approach.
The Social Profile includes a series of questions for each of the 6 domains to help the data collection and the analysis of the situation. It is meant to help the analytical process, not to limit the investigation to one-off answers. It aims at supporting the expert in collecting relevant information and pointing out critical points to clarify and take into account in the overall social analysis.
The Social Profile is based on a process of simple scoring that facilitates the expert’s judgment. It produces a graphic representation in the form of a “Radar chart” which sums up the diversity of information and scores in order to enhance the communication towards decision-makers. Moreover, it showcases clearly the evolution when a new study of the same VC is done.
After a few years of use, the social profile and the VCA4D approach to the analysis of value chains from a social perspective have been well-received across social experts. Nevertheless, there are a few challenges identified: i) a strong requirement of VCA4D is that social experts involved in the analysis shall have professional experience in the country. This may be difficult to match in some countries, demanding for enlarging the pool of experts also to local expertise; ii) there is no real system of quality check or support to less experienced experts in VCA4D on the social analysis (while on the economic analysis, there is economic expertise in the PMU; and for the environmental analysis there is a system of backstopping of the LCA analysis). Moreover, VCA4D is planning to focus on capacity-strengthening activities and thus to train experts on social analysis in partner countries outside their direct implication in a VCA4D study.

EXPERTISE REQUIRED

The core team of social experts will be composed of selected social experts (around 3/4) who will be supported in their tasks by the VCA4D PMU.
The selected experts will be engaged not only to perform the activities foreseen in the present Terms of Reference but will also be available for participating and performing follow-up activities, notably trainings within the VCA4D capacity strengthening activities, coaching sessions, etc.

Common Requirements and Skills:

Master’s degree in social sciences, with a specialization in the agricultural sector.
Specific working experience on social issues in developing/transition countries.
S/he is a social expert with deep knowledge and experience in value chain analysis.
Knowledge of VCA4D studies, having participated in at least one VCA4D study.
Excellent knowledge of VCA4D methodology and interest in interdisciplinarity.
Experience in stakeholders’ management (including relations with high-level officials and the private sector) and analysis of public policies is a plus.
Experience in training and teaching activities in social analysis is an asset.
Ability to work in English.

VCA4D call for social experts

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