Iraq: Consultant for Market Scan ‘Private Sector Landscape (ecosystem) of IT/Digital Sectors in Erbil and Baghdad, Iraq’

Terms of Reference – Market Scan ‘Private Sector Landscape (ecosystem) of IT/Digital Sectors in Erbil and Baghdad, Iraq’

Cordaid, Catholic Organization for Relief and Development Aid, is a Netherlands NGO with over 100 years of experience. Cordaid works in and on fragility, which means that our work focus is on fragile and post-conflict affected settings addressing five thematic focus areas, with one of these areas being Private Sector Development (PSD).

Through Cordaid’s Private Sector Development programmes, Cordaid fosters inclusive economic growth by acting as agents of change – designing and facilitating private sector ecosystems to catalyse sustainable growth. Cordaid’s work includes M4P, value chain development, business incubation and accelerator programmes, youth employment programmes and financial inclusion.

Cordaid recognizes that youth employment presents a major challenge in Iraq, as youth make up around 60 percent of Iraq's nearly 40 million people and among these youth, 17% of men and 27 % of women are unemployed. While it is generally agreed that young people are natives of the digital realm, relatively few possess the skills needed in the digital economy and employers around the world are struggling to find skilled professionals equipped with the technical and soft skills they desire. In light of the youth employment crisis and the job opportunities available for people equipped with digital skills, the question of skills training therefore becomes central.

For this, it is important to do a market scan of the IT/Digital sectors in Erbil and Bagdad in order to identify the human capital needs of businesses in the IT/Digital Sector with economic growth potential, the skills and sectors present, and the major opportunities for increased youth employment/growth of the private sector, along with potential partner organisations/companies.

Objective and scope of the market scan

The main objective of this market scan is to give an overview of the Private Sector Landscape and opportunities for youth employment and job creation in the IT/Digital sectors in Erbil and Baghdad, Iraq.

It must identify:

1. The major employers in Erbil and Baghdad, incl. their suppliers, business development needs, customer base and number of employees

2. SMEs active in the sector, incl. their business development needs, customer base and number of employees

3. Key skills of employees required by employers identified

4. The major constraints to the development of the sector by location

5. The major obstacles to increased youth employment in the sector by location

6. Current levels of youth unemployment and how this differs by location

7. Current levels of education amongst youth and how this differs by location

8. Current skills of youth how this differs by location

9. The major obstacles to the inclusion of women within economic activities in the sector, and major opportunities for increased economic inclusion of women

10. Providers of TVET/ATVET/Skills training in the region, sources of their funding, and details of their programmes and services delivered

11. Incubators, accelerators and other innovation hubs, sources of their funding, and details of their programmes and services delivered

12. Business development services providers in the region, sources of their funding and details of their services delivered

13. Sources of finance/financial providers in the region, with details of their locations and products/services delivered

14. NGOs (local and international) operating in the sector and in the region, sources of their funding, and details of their programmes and services delivered

15. Economic overview of the sector, its growth and future trajectory

16. Context of government policy and plans on IT/Digital sector in the region

The market scan should include a blend of primary research (for example: interviewing business owners) and secondary research (e.g. analysis of data regarding employment generation in specific sectors).

Deliverables

You are responsible for conducting the market scan, and producing a report which provides both qualitative and quantitative response to the elements listed above.

Time

The study should be conducted in 30 days, and results should be presented on or before 6^th October 2019 23:59 GMT+3. It is foreseen that this scoping study/market scan is conducted by a team of international and local experts.

Qualifications and profile

• University degree with at least 10 years of professional experience in private sector/business development;

• Experience with scoping studies, assessments and surveys data collection and data analysis preferably in relation to private sector;

• Working experience in the field of Private Sector development, employment services, and/or business development services;

• Experience with business development in fragile areas would be an advantage

• Fluency in English, communication skills in Arabic and Kurdish (Sorani) is highly preferred;

• Profound analytic and report writing skills (systematic);

• Excellent interpersonal communication skills;

• Knowledge of Iraq’s culture and local languages is an asset;

We are looking for a candidate who can start as soon as possible.

To apply:

Send your technical and financial proposal to dvd@cordaid.org (mrs Daphne van Dam) before 23^th August 201923:59 GMT+3.