Background

Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA) is the national representative body and voice for community and private wildlife conservancies in Kenya. As an umbrella body, KWCA’s role is to help catalyse the conservancy movement by connecting, informing, convening and representing private and community landowners and other key stakeholders in a shared effort to make wildlife conservancies thrive in Kenya. KWCA supports these conservancies through landscape conservancy associations as umbrella organisations at the landscape levels through which conservancies can have a voice, collaborate, share insights and best practices, integrate development planning and manage conservancies at a large scale.

The Wildlife Conservancy movement, as it interacts with community-based conservation approaches, aims to benefit local people and achieve conservation goals. However, some key stakeholders in these conservancies such as women and youth are excluded.

Unlike with Kenyan youth in general, we’ve seen less agency and optimism among young people in conservancies, and more reliance on external resources and forces to assist them in improving their livelihoods, including the government and development stakeholders. This partially has to do with the restrictive conditions of conservancies and their remote locations, because not all micro businesses operating outside conservancies can be created inside them; in addition, the lack of exposure makes it difficult for young people to find innovative perspectives on the work that can be done in any of the three value-chains in conservancy areas: tourism, livestock-keeping, and conservation.

This group of Kenyan youth need more consideration than any other youth segment in Kenya. It is important to realise that not all young people born in conservancy areas will be able to thrive in those areas, some of them will have to leave their home areas and settle in other areas, whilst remaining contributing, albeit distant, members of conservancy communities.

KWCA recognises the importance of youth engagement in the sustainability of conservancies hence seeks to support conservancy youth in development of skills, meaningful networks and a supportive environment. In this regard, KWCA seeks to recruit a consultant to develop a Youth Engagement Strategy to involve the youth in conservancy decision making and its programs.

Scope of work

Objective of the assignment

• To develop KWCA youth engagement strategy and action plan outlining strategic objectives, and key strategic interventions for engaging youth in conservancies.

The consultant will undertake the following specific activities;

• Hold an inception meeting with KWCA team to get a clear understanding of KWCA’s mission, vision and goals for youth engagement.
• Review existing literature on youth engagement in conservation and conservancies
• Carry key informant interviews with landscape conservancy associations, conservancies and relevant conservation partners and align to KWCA strategy objectives
• Document the youth engagement strategy to guide KWCA in engaging the youth
• Develop a one-year action plan to implement the youth engagement strategy.

Qualification and Experience

1. A university degree in social sciences, community development, environment conservation, governance or a related field
2. Proven experience working on youth projects and developing youth engagement strategies for non-governmental organisations.
3. At least five years’ experience in development and conservation sector
4. Excellent knowledge on youth development issues in Africa
5. Strong analytical, strategic thinking and planning skills and ability to work under tight deadlines.
6. Excellent communication skills

Deliverables

1. Inception report and work plan describing proposed activities and timelines for carrying out the assignment
2. Presentation of the draft youth engagement strategy to KWCA for review
3. Final youth engagement strategy and action plan

Submission of Expression of interest

The proposal should demonstrate sound knowledge, technical skills and capacity as required by the nature of work and understanding of the requisite tasks set forth in the scope of work.

Interested candidates should submit the following;

1. Technical and financial proposal
2. Workplan
3. Curriculum vitae of the consultant (s)
4. Proof of previous two related assignments

The proposals should be emailed to ceo@kwcakenya.com indicating clearly on the email header the title of the consultancy by Friday 19th August, 2022.