Introduction
The Republic of Kenya is a lower middle-income country in Sub-Saharan Africa with 47 semi-autonomous counties governed by elected governors. As per the Kenya Population and Housing Census, 2019 the population is at 47.6 million people, making Kenya the 27th most populous country. The Human Development Index (HDI) was at 0.579 in 2018 ranking the country 147 out of 196 (UNDP, 2018). Economic growth (GDP) has averaged 5.8% between 2010 and 2017 annually and 6.3 per cent in 2018, in tandem with rising per capita incomes; primarily attributable to Kenya’s service sector, particularly in mobile telecom and banking (World Bank, 2018). Despite this positive economic growth and sectoral achievements, poverty persists in Kenya with the Kenya Integrated and Household Survey (KIHBS) 2015/6 indicating that 36% of Kenyan citizens live under the national poverty line with 8.6% being extremely poor. According to KIHBS, 2015/16 poverty rates remain considerably higher in rural areas (40%) compared to peri-urban or core-urban areas (28-29%). In addition, there are differential regional variations, with areas of the northeast in Turkana for example reaching poverty rates close to 80% (NHBS, 2016).
Although, certain factors continue to constrain economic growth and subsequently poverty reduction, such as high population growth, persistent inequality, the stagnation of agriculture, and risks and shocks especially for rural people, Kenya’s Vision 2030 development blueprint seeks to eradicate poverty and to create cohesive and equitable social development in a clean and secure environment. However, 12% of Kenyans are still food-insecure and have poor food-consumption levels and low dietary diversity. The most hunger-prone areas being in the arid and semi-arid regions which tend to be rural. Food-insecurity levels escalate significantly during periods of shocks and crises such as drought, heavy rains, floods and in the current COVID-19 pandemic.
As per the Economic Survey, 2024, 19.1 million persons in Kenya were employed outside small-scale agriculture and pastoralist activities, in 2022 out of which 83.7 percent, roughly 16 million persons, are active in the informal economy. The informal and rural economy in Kenya is heterogeneous, comprising, amongst others, domes-tic workers, small traders (hawkers), artisans, construction, workers in the gig economy, refugees, agriculture workers, farmers, fishers and pastoralists. Agriculture is the country’s largest employer, with more than 40 per cent of the total population and over 70 per cent of Kenya’s rural people working in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors, mostly with informal working conditions.
The majority of rural and informal economy workers are not enrolled with the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and have limited
coverage by social assistance pro-grammes thereby increasing their level of vulnerability and poverty. It is in this regard that the Strategy for Extending Social Protection to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy was developed and launched in October 2023 and a Roadmap for its implementation developed. Kisumu County has been identified as a model for implementation of the strategy and a social protection extension action plan needs to be developed in consultation with key stakeholders under the leadership of the County Government of Kisumu in partnership with relevant national level counterparts. In this regard the National Social Protection Secretariat from 4th to 6th September, 2024 organized partnership building meetings with the Kisumu County Government and key stakeholders and held a workshop to disseminate the extension strategy and initiate the process of developing an action plan to support the modelling of the roll out of the Strategy for Extension of Social Protection Coverage to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy. The consultancy will therefore support Kisumu County to develop the Action Plan to guide in the implementation of the Strategy.
Objective
To develop the Kisumu County action plan to support the modelling of the roll out of the Strategy for Extension of Social Protection Coverage to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy in Kenya.
Scope of Work
- Desk review on policy and legislative frameworks guiding social protection programmes, status of existing social protection programmes and the informal and rural economy landscape in Kisumu County
- Mapping of existing informal and rural economy platforms in Kisumu County
- Conduct key informant interviews with key stakeholders to understand existing structures, programmes and systems for social protection programmes, rural and informal economy in the county
- Draft the Action Plan for Extending Social Protection to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy in alignment with the ‘Strategy for Extension of Social Protection to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy’. The Action Plan should include a brief overview of the status of social protection, rural and informal economy landscape and entry points with clear deliverables for extension of social protection to workers in the informal and rural economy in Kisumu County. The Action Plan should be drafted in consultation with the Social Protection Extension Technical Working Group members in Kisumu County.
Expected Product
The Individual Consultant will be expected to deliver the following:
Kisumu County Action Plan for Extending Social Protection to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy in alignment with the ‘Strategy for Extension of Social Protection to Workers in the Informal and Rural Economy’. This should include a brief overview of the status of social protection, rural and informal economy landscape and entry points with clear deliverables for extension of social protection to workers in the informal and rural economy in Kisumu County.
A clear matric with trackable deliverables capturing the strategic objective, activities, output/result, indicator of success, means of verification, timelines and partners to be engaged.
Timeline
October to November 2024
Logistics
The Individual Consultant will plan and organize own logistics including travel, accommodation and Key Informant Interviews
Required qualifications, desired competencies, technical background and experience
Technical expertise
- Relevant advanced academic degree (Social sciences, development studies, economics or related fields); previous experience leading teams; knowledge of social protection programs; health policies; labour markets; social security benefits.
- Demonstrated international/local experience in undertaking complex social and public policy analysis;
- Demonstrated ability for managing stakeholders and high-level government, employers and workers’ representatives.
- Ability to facilitate consultative/validation workshop towards consensus building.
- Excellent writing and communication skills in English.
- Proven ability to: (i) handle multiple tasks under pressure with short deadlines; (ii) ability to work independently, seeking guidance on complex issues; and (iii) excellent interpersonal skills, proven team orientation and the ability to work across unit boundaries.
How to apply
Applicants are instructed to submit a capability statement and financial proposal
The financial proposal should be all-inclusive and include a breakdown (professional fees, travel related expenses, communications, utilities, consumables, insurance, etc.)
Application process.
Interested and qualified candidates should submit their applications including the following:
1. Capability Statement and Curriculum Vitae
2. Financial proposal for implementing the assignment
Applications clearly marked as “Consultancy to Develop an Action Plan on Extending Social Protection to Workers in the Informal Economy’ should be sent to NBOPROCUREMENT@ilo.org by 3rd October 2024.
