Terms of Reference

Economist, Luangwa: Economic Valuation, Opportunities, Poverty Reduction and Environmental Sustainability

Position Title: Consultant on Natural Resources Economics

Reports to: Freshwater Programme Team Leader

Date:  TBA

Duration of assignment: Six Months

Location of assignment: Luangwa River Catchment – Muchinga, Central, and Eastern province, with visits to the WWF Zambia Office, Lusaka.

I. Background

Rivers are the world’s lifeblood, enabling people to fish and farm and build whole cities and economies. In many places, connected, free-flowing rivers like the Luangwa River are crucial for carrying sediment downstream, balancing nutrients in soils, maintaining floodplains that protect against extreme weather events, and providing tourism opportunities. And as the climate changes, connectivity in rivers boosts people’s resiliency to flood and drought events, and creates corridors for biodiversity to find new, appropriate habitats. However, throughout history, societies have used and abused river systems – we build dams, levees, canals, channels, etc. that alter natural flows – to increase irrigation, produce energy, transport goods and people, control floods, bring drinking water, and ensure ample water supply for industrial production. While such infrastructure has fueled development, it has also fragmented rivers jeopardizing their ability to provide services to people and nature.

The Luangwa River, in particular, is the longest unregulated river within the Zambezi river system. It is a unique, fast flowing, sediment rich river system that supports one of the largest wildlife based economies in Zambia. Its high biodiversity value as well as river variability is critical to the entire catchment – from the wildlife thriving in some of our most important National Parks to the fish in the river for communities that depend directly on the river’s ecosystem services. However, the river’s pristine nature is under threat with a proposal to build a hydropower dam along its main stem.

The fact that the Luangwa is rich in biodiversity, with natural resources abundance, it is attracting a lot of private sector investments, some of which threaten the sustainability of this very important river system. As such, WWF Zambia and its partners are collaborating to protect the Luangwa River, with an aim of having it declared as a Water resource Protection Area (WRPA) under the Water Resources Management Act of 2011. To attain this, the consultant will focus on gathering and compiling necessary information on the economic value of goods and services, and how this could change in light of large scale developments and climate change in order to inform the argument of having the Luangwa declared as a WRPA. The study will also inform future decisions of relevant authorities to ensure development plans in the Luangwa basin are sustainable and do not adversely impact economies.

II. Terms of Reference

The argument of protecting the Luangwa River as a water resources protection area is crucial. As such, undertaking an valuation of ecosystem services and their trade-offs, in this case a dam, may show that having a dam is more valuable (In economic terms) than leaving this ecosystem in its pristine state. However, the long term impacts on the tourism sector and the dam itself, which may be very difficult or impossible to predict will prove very costly, not only to the livelihoods of communities but all stakeholders. For example, there isn’t enough data to predict the potential impacts of sediment loads on the proposed dam, and vice-versa. Furthermore, the impacts of sediment loads could prove more costly in light of Climate Change, as has been witnessed in many parts of the world where the life-span of dams has been shortened by sediment flows. Careful consideration have to be given in making decisions on a very important river system that is barely understood. There is need to undertake an integrated hydropower configuration plan, as well as have a sustainable mix of hydropower and other renewable sources of energy.

The task under this consultancy will include giving economic value to the natural resources in the Luangwa, increase the understanding about the poverty-environment links, and identify factors favoring or denying the access to natural resources by local people and analyses of scenarios. The study will seek to understand how people’s access to the benefits (monetized or not) provided by the current state of the landscape may change under the scenario of hydropower development and how this may interact with climate change and land use variations in the basin. This work will culminate into a report on the Economic Value of the Natural Resources in the Luangwa catchment, which may provide an argument on the economic/financial benefits in support of the Luangwa being protected as a Water Resources Protection Area (WRPA).

The consultant will work with the Freshwater team both in the field and in the office.

The main objective of the consultancy is:

• To study the “Economic value of the natural resources in the Luangwa catchment” and predict variations of ecosystem goods and services in light of climate change and other threats and how this impacts livelihoods and economies in the catchment area.

To achieve this objective the following tasks are requested:

2. Review the existing biophysical and socio-economic studies as well as the project area,
3. Literature/data review of information available on economic value of ecosystem goods and services in the Luangwa system (Tourism industry, species, habitats, freshwater, protected areas relevant to the Luangwa system) and related variables i.e. sedimentation, climate change and a comprehensive assessment of the benefits, including non-monetary and undertake relevant analysis combining spatial and scenario assessments (including climate change)
4. Identify all ecosystem goods and services derived by communities from the Luangwa river system and agree with WWF team and partners on key indicators to be observed e.g. Area and yields of food and feed crops, livestock and wildlife populations, soil erosion risk or erosion protection etc.
5. Provide analysis of how variations in ecosystem services in the Luangwa catchment area could affect the Seventh National Development Plan (7NDP) targets in the Luangwa basin (positively or negatively).
6. Estimate monetary values of natural capital and ecosystem services for Luangwa basin, including South Luangwa national park for fisheries, tourism, and other key services, to be advised with WWF and stakeholders.
7. Identify models/approaches that include an ideal mix of monetary and non-monetary valuation to be used for the economic valuation of natural resources and present them to the project team for approval.
8. Identify and gather all necessary instruments and means for the economic valuation of natural resources.
9. Valuation of strategically selected areas (3-5) through collection of primary data including workshops and focus groups (may be proposed or existing but should include some main ESS in landscape).
10. Identify socio-economic activities of communities living in the catchment, and how this may be affected in a dam development scenario
11. Collect and process all relevant information for the economic valuation of natural resources using the approved methods,
12. Prepare and make presentations to WWF staff and relevant authorities on the ecosystem valuation report.
13. Prepare and compile a data-base of the economic scientific data produced and available for the project area
14. Assist the project team in aspects related to the implementation and use of the compiled information.

III. Expected Output

The consultancy should produce the following specific deliverables, including quality technical reports and presentations of the study on the Economic Value of the Natural Resources in the Luangwa River catchment:

• Travel to WWF Zambia to on a date to be agreed in 2019 to work with WWF staff and government partners to collect essential data to support river catchment level analysis, discuss priority mapping exercises and present methodology to government partners, including but not limited to the Water Resources Management Authority and the Department of Water Development.
• Complete preliminary basin-level analysis of service sheds and ecosystem services to prioritize ecosystem service conservation areas within the landscape, summarized in a draft report by August 30^th 2019;
• Finalize basin-level analysis of key ecosystem services, communicated via final written report by March 1^st , 2020
• Collaborate remotely with WWF staff and GIS specialist as needed to develop an interactive story map to communicate key results to stakeholders in Zambia, to be completed by April 31^st

Working Relationships:

1. Internal: Interacts regularly with staff within the Lusaka Office, and other WWF network partners.
2. External: Interacts with all institutions in the country and abroad who will be involved in the project, namely Government institutions NGOs, private sector and local communities.

 Minimum Qualifications:

1. Knowledge: The ideal candidate should have relevant qualifications in Natural Resources Economics. He/she should hold at least a MSC (honours) degree on Natural Resources Economics OR alternatively hold a MSc in Natural Sciences (Forestry, Ecology, Wildlife Management) with specialization in resource economics or relevant extensive practical experience in valuation of natural resources.
2. Experience: The above notwithstanding, the candidate should have at least 3 years experience in Economic Valuation of Natural Resources in one or more of the following areas: freshwater/forests/wildlife management, protected area management and implementation of management programmes and CBNRM programmes and project implementation. Ideally, he/she should have an understanding of the institutional and legal framework of protected areas, forest and wildlife management, marine conservation and fisheries. Experience in working with communities and capacity to transmit basic scientific knowledge would be an advantage. He/she should have a good on project design and monitoring.
3. Skills and Abilities: English speaking, writing and reading skills are extremely essential. He/she should relate easily with people and should be an excellent team player. He/she should also be willing to work under difficult field conditions and have the ability to work successfully with little assistance. Knowledge and experience of lobbing and advocacy is also key.

 Document to be submitted:

• Maximum 5 page CV highlighting related assignments done with client name, contract person and mobile number.
• Copies of Academic and Professional Qualifications held.
• Detailed proposal with an emphasis on suggested methodologies, implementation plan and financial proposal

WWF role and reporting line:

• It is the responsibility of the Firm/ Consultant to plan and carry out the assignment. WWF will where possible, link the consultant with relevant stakeholders when need be. The consultant will be responsible for maintaining correspondence and outputs in a timely and efficient manner keeping the Freshwater Programme Coordinator informed via written email correspondence.

Application:

• Interested candidates are requested to submit a technical proposal outlining understanding of the assignment; required documents including CVs, and financial proposal by 14^th June, 2019. These should be emailed to wwfzambia@wwfzam.org with the email Subject marked “Economic value of the natural resources in the Luangwa catchment”.
• Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

WWF is an equal opportunity Employer and is committed to having a diverse workforce