Consultant for Community-Based River and Stream Health Monitoring at Wildlife Conservation Society

Background

• Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to saving wildlife and wild lands through science, international conservation, education, and the management of the world’s largest system of urban wildlife parks.
• WCS Nigeria Country Program is a multi-donor funded program working across Cross River, Abuja and Bauchi states.
• The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) intends to support Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) in implementing a community-driven initiative to monitor the health of local rivers and streams. This project aims to build the capacity of communities to collect and analyze data on water quality and physical changes in river ecosystems, promoting environmental stewardship and sustainable water resource management.
• To achieve these objectives, WCS seeks qualified Consultants to work closely with CBOs in Cross River and Bauchi States under the guidance of WCS experts to deliver training, provide technical support, and facilitate community engagement in river and stream health monitoring.

Scope of Work
WCS requires 2 consultants for this assignment, that is one for each state. The Consultants will be responsible for the following:

Training and Capacity Building:

• Design and deliver workshops to train CBOs on water quality monitoring techniques, including measuring pH, conductivity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, phosphorus, nitrogen, and sediment levels.
• The training will also include identifying physical changes in rivers, such as erosion, vegetation loss, sedimentation, avulsions (change in river course).
• Support CBOs to cascade the training within their communities.

Technical Support:

• Guide CBOs in selecting monitoring sites and establishing standardized protocols for data collection.
• Support data collection and analysis, ensuring quality control and consistency in methodology.
• Train and support CBOs to interpret stream health monitoring data to inform community-led conservation actions.

Community Engagement:

• Facilitate Community Dialogues: Organize regular forums to share water quality monitoring results and raise community awareness about pressing water quality and watershed health issues. These dialogues should serve as a platform for feedback, knowledge sharing, and joint problem-solving.
• Encourage community led actions and regulations on rivers and stream health promotion.
• Promote Behavioral Change: Work with Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Committees (WASHCOMs), and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Education Unit to encourage behavioral changes to address harmful practices such as:
  • Fishing with Poison: Educate communities on the ecological and health risks associated with this practice and promote sustainable fishing methods.
  • Improper Pesticide Use: Raise awareness about the impact of chemical runoff on water quality and offer training on safe pesticide application practices.

Coordination and Reporting:

• Work collaboratively with WCS experts to align activities with project goals.
• Document training sessions and monitoring activities,
• Prepare regular progress reports and a final consultancy report summarizing achievements, challenges, and recommendations.

Geographical Scope
Target communities include:

• Cross River State: Okwa, Okwangwo, Boje, Bamba, Kejiku, Anape, Nsofang, Neghe, Owai, and Ntabachot.
• Bauchi State: Kwala, Mai Ari, Rimi, and Bogwas.

Deliverables

• Training materials and workshop reports.
• Established monitoring protocols and site selection criteria.
• Baseline data reports on river and stream health.
• Final consultancy report, including recommendations for sustaining monitoring activities.

Required Qualifications

• Advanced Degree in Environmental Science, Water Resources Management, Ecology, or a related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in community-based natural resource management or water quality monitoring.
• Proven track record of delivering training and capacity-building programs.
• Strong analytical skills, particularly in water quality analysis and data interpretation.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills, with experience engaging diverse stakeholders.
• Familiarity with the socio-cultural and environmental context of Cross River and Bauchi States is an advantage.

Evaluation Criteria

• WCS will review and evaluate all proposals to determine each proposer's rating. This evaluation may include a request by WCS to interview
• The proposal offering the most advantageous terms based on the criteria below will be selected for the award. WCS may reject any and all proposals if, in its sole opinion, no proposal satisfies its criteria.

The evaluation criteria and weight will be as follows:

• Demonstrated experience with similar consultancies for International Organizations (70%)
• Proposed fee (30%)