Haiti Resilient Environment South Activity - Request For Information (RFI).pdf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Mission in Haiti is in the process of designing the new Haiti Resilient Environment South Activity with the goal of increasing community resilience by protecting and restoring ecosystem services. Given the critical nature of this activity, USAID/Haiti is reaching out to all local stakeholders and interested parties, to obtain comments/suggestions in order to incorporate new, innovative, proven, and/or promising solutions on how to conserve watersheds and increase the resilience of communities in targeted regions in

Haiti. Please see Attachment 1 - Questions for Response.

By issuing this Request for Information (RFI), USAID/Haiti aims to consult with the broad community of private sector actors, public institutions, development partners, non-governmental organizations, industry associations, civil society, think tanks, and academia, concerned with advancing sustainable landscape management, climate change adaptation, reforestation, watershed protection, and/or resilience in Haiti. Your comments will be used to develop a design document that is clear, maximizes long-term development impact, facilitates coordination with existing and planned USAID and other development partner programs, as well as aligns with the Government of Haiti’s priorities.

The information contained within the RFI is intended solely as a thought-piece; ideas may change significantly during the activity’s design and approval process. In addition, this RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes. It does not constitute a Notice of Funding Opportunity

(NOFO)/Request for Applications (RFA), an Annual Program Statement, a Request for Proposal, a Request for Quotation, an Invitation for Bids, a Solicitation, or an indication that USAID/Haiti will make an award from this RFI.

Responses to this RFI shall not be portrayed as applications and will not be accepted by the U.S.

Government (USG) to form a binding agreement. This RFI is not to be construed as a commitment by the USG to issue any NOFO or ultimately award an agreement on the basis of this RFI, or to pay for any information submitted as a result of this request. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. Responding to this RFI will not give any advantage to any firm or organization in any subsequent procurement and will not lead to an organizational conflict of interest. Responses will strictly be held confidential.

Responses (i.e., comments, suggestions, and enhancements) to this RFI are due on June 3rd, 2022, 1:00 p.m. (Haiti time). To expedite our review and be considerate of your time, please keep responses to no more than 3 pages in length, 12-point font. Responses may be submitted in English, Haitian Creole, or French. Please number each page consecutively. While the limit on the length of submissions is three (3) pages, we value concise, issue-specific comments. Please send responses to this RFI via email to usaidhaitioaa@usaid.gov with the subject title “Request for mailto:usaidhaitioaa@usaid.gov

Request for Information (RFI)

USAID/Haiti Resilient Environment South Activity

Information (RFI): USAID/Haiti Resilient Environment South Activity”, no later than the date/time stated above. You will only receive an electronic confirmation acknowledging receipt of your response. No feedback or debrief will be provided on comments received. Phone calls or hard copy responses will not be accepted. Thank you for your assistance and interest in USAID/Haiti programming.

Sincerely, Edel Perez-Campos

Contracting/Agreement Officer

USAID/Haiti

ATTACHMENT 1 – QUESTIONS FOR RESPONSE

I. Background

Water availability is one of the most pressing environmental challenges currently facing Haiti.

Land degradation driven by deforestation and poor land management practices, and exacerbated by climate change, threatens the country’s water resources. Haiti’s denuded mountain landscapes are at extreme risk of erosion and landslides, which result in sedimentation of rivers and dangerous conditions for communities. Because forested watersheds are essential for protecting and sustaining freshwater supply, there is a great need to restore critically threatened landscapes near water sources in order to protect vital ecosystem services, such as water purification, surface flow regulation, and erosion control. The Haitian Ministry of Environment’s Ten-Year Strategy (2021-

2030) states that restoring Haiti’s watersheds should be treated as a “national emergency.”

Despite the threats to Haiti’s landscape and watersheds, there are opportunities to increase water availability and community resilience by alleviating pressures on existing forested landscapes and incentivizing improved management and conservation. USAID is interested in building on and applying the lessons learned from past and current donor, public, and private initiatives, taking into consideration the distinct ecological and institutional context in the South Department and exploring new, innovative methods to increase tree cover, prevent deforestation, and restore and conserve landscapes in critical watersheds.

USAID/Haiti’s new Environment South Activity seeks to use approaches, both technical interventions and in its implementation, to protect and restore ecosystem services, including water availability, in a critical watershed over a 5-year period. The new activity seeks to hone in on the area or areas of most critical need for restoration or conservation in Southern Haiti in terms of landscape degradation, deforestation, vulnerability of communities, and the potential for long-term results.

II. Questions for Response

USAID seeks responses and feedback to any or all of the following questions:

Geographic selection:

1. Where within the USAID Southern Resilience Zone(s), are the most critical areas for protecting water sources through landscape management? And why?

2. What size or configuration is feasible and/or ideal for activity implementation to yield concrete results? For example, is there an ecological or administrative advantage to target a specific (or subset of) sub-watershed(s) or water source(s) rather than the entirety of the full watershed? Are there specific sites within Parc Macaya that should be targeted for specific activities?

Environmental context and technical approach:

3. What actions are most needed in this area to improve watershed management?

Livelihoods:

4. Given the relatively weak governance and complex land tenure issues in Haiti, what might a community-led forest management approach look like, particularly areas surrounding

Parc Macaya?

5. What is the best way to link participation in forest conservation to economic incentives specific to the Southern RFZ?

6. Which “alternative livelihoods” have the potential for positive environmental impacts (i.e., reduce deforestation and increase incomes) in the southern RFZ and are most likely to be successful and sustainable?

Coordination and Collaboration: Local government engagement is key to community buy-in and sustainability. However, lack of resources and capacity hinder implementation of plans and long-term results. In addition, given the density of donor projects and projects associated with earthquake relief and recovery in the southern RFZ, coordination and collaboration offer an opportunity for projects to be more effective and efficient.

7. What is the best way to engage local governments?

8. Where and how are other donors and entities working on reforestation, park management, climate change adaptation, and watershed protection in the southern RFZ and what are their lessons learned?

9. Are there opportunities to fill gaps and/or work in coordination with donor funded activities, including earthquake relief and recovery and/or humanitarian assistance?

10. Which local organizations and entities, including private sector and civil society organizations are working in these technical areas and do they have the capacity to expand their scope and operations?

[END OF REQUEST FOR INFORMATION]