RFI-613-20-000001 Local Works Zimbabwe FINAL.pdf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

RFI Number: RFI-613-20-000001

Subject: Input into USAID/Zimbabwe’s Building Locally Owned, Self-Reliant, and

Effective Private Sector Associations

Issuance Date: December 12, 2019

Response Date: January 13, 2020; 5:00PM Harare, Zimbabwe, Local Time

The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to collect written information to identify the challenges, barriers and opportunities to address the diverse challenges facing Zimbabwean young people in meeting their social and economic needs and aspirations. USAID/Zimbabwe is seeking to facilitate a locally and youth-led platform to explore options for creating/facilitating/fostering a multi-sectoral support ecosystem that can assist, prepare, empower, and provide economic and social opportunities for young Zimbabweans. This RFI is published in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 10 and FAR 15.201(e). The information will be used to help make planning decisions and influence activity design to improve future development outcomes.

This is an RFI, not a Request for Proposals (RFP), and is not to be construed as a commitment by the U.S. Government to issue any solicitation or ultimately award an agreement on the basis of this RFI, nor to pay for any information submitted as a result of this request, nor does it commit the Government to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of any comments.

Any funding proposals submitted in response to this request will not be considered. Responses to this notice must be received no later than the due date and time stated above in this notice. All information provided will become the property of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), will not be returned, and will not be released publicly. USAID reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for USAID’s own purposes. Proprietary information must not be sent.

Background

USAID is committed to helping its partner countries achieve self-reliance and ensuring that U.S.

taxpayer investments produce sustainable, long-term development outcomes. The current context in Zimbabwe presents unique challenges and opportunities for USAID to assist the country on its journey to self-reliance. Given U.S. government restrictions around support to the Government of Zimbabwe (GoZ), the Mission must find ways to work together with Zimbabwean civil society, the private sector, and citizens. Through locally led youth empowerment, USAID/Zimbabwe seeks to recognize the country’s continued shift towards a more informal economy and work directly with local actors that promote greater support for social and youth-led economic growth.

Zimbabwe is a youthful country, with 61 percent of the population between the ages of 15 - 35.

These youth face enormous challenges to lead productive lives. USAID/Zimbabwe’s Youth

Situational Analysis (2019) revealed that 93 percent of youth in Zimbabwe are not engaged in formal employment. Young Zimbabweans with college degrees graduate to find an employment sector woefully underprepared to absorb their level of qualification. In addition to lack of employment opportunities, many youth face the stresses of the HIV epidemic, drug and alcohol abuse, mental health and gender based violence. This renders Zimbabwean youth vulnerable to political manipulation and eager to migrate.

A recent study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) showed that Zimbabwe (60%) has the second largest informal sector in the world. The IMF study also notes that the quality of public institutions and corruption play a huge role in the creation of a parallel market. Therefore, it is no surprise that many young men and women want to be self-reliant and end up – voluntarily or involuntarily – micro and informal entrepreneurs. As the Zimbabwean saying goes, they “make a plan.” Young people are venturing primarily into the informal retail, agriculture, services, and manufacturing sectors. Beyond the few who have attempted to start an enterprise, there are undoubtedly thousands of more untapped business ideas that could be the next generation of solutions for Zimbabwe’s development challenges across all sectors - health, citizen engagement, economic growth, and food security. But there are many hurdles in their way. Young people who want to jump into the entrepreneurial world lack critical basic skills such as financial literacy and business management. Young Zimbabweans lack the collateral security necessary to access capital and are perceived as high-risk clients by finance institutions. Banks also lack youth-focused products that can help young people overcome the issue of collateral security. These factors ultimately increase the cost of borrowing. In the end, young potential entrepreneurs have no support system of local actors to provide essential services and steer them on a path to success.

Under the 2016-2021 Country Development Cooperation Strategy, USAID/Zimbabwe engages youth, communities, local leaders, and local institutions to address challenges faced by youth across the democracy and governance, health, and economic growth, and humanitarian resilience sectors. USAID seeks to capitalize on outcomes and go further to integrate programming and specifically target youth. In the past fiscal year, with USAID assistance, youth in Zimbabwe have secured business loans, accessed family planning services, and united their voices to carve out a bargaining space for youth in community development. We seek to provide more resources to connect these youth with one another and develop economically viable solutions to the myriad development challenges in their communities. USAID is interested in offering youth an opportunity to experiment with new ideas, to share, and to build innovative initiatives across sectors. This would lead to self-sustaining market-based solutions that are locally owned and youth-led which will help individuals step out of poverty. USAID Zimbabwe would like to apply “Positive Youth Development” (PYD), an approach that engages youth along with their families, communities and/or governments so that youth are empowered to reach their full potential. PYD approaches build skills, assets, and competencies; foster healthy relationships; strengthen the environment; and transform systems.”

In designing USAID/Zimbabwe's next generation of support for youth economic empowerment, USAID is seeking information from a broad range of youth stakeholders in Zimbabwe including local, regional, and international organizations working to solve the challenges and promote opportunities for young people today. The following is an illustrative list of what USAID/Zimbabwe is seeking to achieve:

Attachment 1: Request for Information (RFI) Response Template USAID/Zimbabwe

Name:

Title:

Organization:

Email:

USAID/Zimbabwe is interested in responses to the following specific questions. Respondents are encouraged to review the questions and include responses to the most relevant questions in their submissions. Respondents do not need to respond to all the questions listed below.

1. How can we better engage the diaspora for the economic development of the country, specifically as it relates to youth economic empowerment? How do we best engage the diaspora’s wealth of skills, capital (remittances) and network? What enabling role can they best play?

2. How can we best devise a holistic approach to youth development in Zimbabwe? What basket of skills, knowledge, tools, etc. do youth need in the current economic and social context? What does an optimal holistic approach look like in locally led economic programming targeting youth?

3. How can we best facilitate access to capital to youth in this challenging economic environment? What are the main challenges and opportunities?

4. Zimbabwe is routinely - and rightfully - praised for its highly educated population, but with limited formal sector opportunities in the current context, does the education system adequately prepare youth for the current and future economic context? Is there a disconnect between the current ‘classical’ education system in Zimbabwe and the current opportunities in the formal and/or informal economy? What is the specific skills gap for youth today?

5. What opportunities exist to promote or facilitate regional cross-border trade for youth in either the formal or informal economy?

6. What are some best practices regarding youth-led project design or implementation? Could you provide examples on how USAID could better incorporate youth-led approaches in a way which provides meaningful engagement with youth? How can USAID best use Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) to improve our development effectiveness?

7. What sectors or value chains provide the most opportunities for youth entrepreneurs in

Zimbabwe in the formal sector? What about in the informal economy?

8. How do we best engage and partner with the private sector to enable youth to generate income, provide access to finance, and better access markets in Zimbabwe?

9. With the spiraling political and economic challenges in the country, what is the current mental health state of youth in Zimbabwe? How can USAID best integrate strategies in youth-led development approaches which also support the emotional, psychological, and social well-being of youth?

10. What local organizations in Zimbabwe can USAID consult/collaborate with on youth programming?

11. Working with vulnerable and disadvantaged groups such as youth with disabilities could require a nuanced approach to programming. What are the challenges and best opportunities in providing economic opportunities for people with special needs through USAID’s DREAM program, USAID works with young women and girls affected by HIV?

How can USAID best advance approaches which supports these beneficiaries when they graduate from DREAMS?

12. Access to land is an issue in many regions in Zimbabwe, especially for youth. What innovative approaches exist to address this challenge in an activity focused on improving and increasing agricultural production for youth beneficiaries?

13. What are the geographic areas USAID should be working in terms of locally-led youth programming? Should we only consider urban areas or rural areas? What about activities which link urban and rural areas? Please provide examples of challenges and opportunities.

14. What donor or private sector co-investment opportunities exist in Zimbabwe on youth economic empowerment programming?

15. USAID makes a distinction between entrepreneurship activities and livelihoods activities.

Entrepreneurship traditionally refers to starting or expanding a growth-oriented business that creates value. Livelihoods are a means of making a living required to secure the necessities of life. What path makes the most sense in terms of youth programming in Zimbabwe? How can we better focus our activities on entrepreneurship (value creation) versus just duplicating other USAID livelihood efforts?

16. What are ideas or strategies to empower and mobilize youth who are living in communities bordering protected areas and conservancies to bring about transformational change regarding promoting conservation and sustainable natural resource management models in Zimbabwe?

17. Are there are any other topics or main themes not listed above that USAID should address or consider in developing its locally led youth economic empowerment programs?

18. What set of indicators would best measure the results and impact of a locally led, youth led activity?