81272189-Capacity Building of Intermediaries in the Ethiopian Innovation Ecosystem (Output 3)

The project ‘Private Sector Development in Ethiopia (PSDE)’ aims to improve the growth opportunities for the Ethiopian private sector, especially for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), start-ups and small and growing companies (SGBs). It does so in particular by strengthening institutional and other key actors in the field of private sector development and innovation. The project consists of four outputs: 1) Public institutions act in a way that promotes business; 2) Chambers and associations are strengthened; 3) Intermediaries in the innovation ecosystem are strengthened; 4) The range of services offered by business development services (BDS) providers is improved. This tender covers an essential part of Output 1. Output 3 aims to sustainably strengthen and further develop selected intermediaries in the innovation ecosystem that support MSMEs, start-ups and SGBs in order to improve growth opportunities for these target groups. This concerns services provided to their client businesses as well as their own organizational and operational models. The range of services offered by these intermediaries helps businesses to overcome major obstacles to growth in the early stages and innovation phase and to develop their potential. The establishment and expansion of national and international networks promotes the exchange of experience and knowledge between different actors (including universities and investors), who"s coming together is crucial for the effective promotion of the innovation ecosystem. For the purposes of this assignment, intermediaries in the innovation ecosystem refer to actors like incubators, accelerators, innovation hubs, venture-builders and seed and venture capital firms, etc. which are institutions that aim to support start-ups attain success by providing business development support, guidance in navigating the start-up ecosystem and financing. Scope of the Assignment: The overall objective of this assignment is to implement an essential part of output 3 (‘Intermediaries in the innovation ecosystem are strengthened’). The contractor is responsible for achieving Output indicators 3.1 ‘8 intermediaries each launched (at least) 1 new demand-driven service to support start-ups and small and growing businesses (SGBs)’ and Output indicator 3.2 ‘15 intermediaries have improved the sustainability of their organizational models’ as well as partially module objective indicator 3 ‘75% of 1,000 MSMEs, Start-ups, and SGBs, 45 % of which are women-owned, confirm that the services they use from their providers are beneficial to their business growth’. (contractor's responsibility: 250 businesses within the innovation ecosystem). The contractor indirectly contributes to the achievement of further indicators. The implementation is not limited to intermediaries in Addis Ababa but is supposed to cover innovation ecosystems in selected Ethiopian regions. Duplication of efforts by development agencies must be avoided. For instance, the ‘Innovation for Development’ programme by UNDP provides support to MInT and other stakeholders aimed at improving the Ethiopian innovation ecosystem. Overlaps with the UNDP programme need to be closely observed and potential synergies leveraged by the contractor. As the overall reform process may not develop in a linear way and cannot be planned in full detail, the assignment requires a flexible, iterative and adaptive approach on the part of the contractor.