Name: Landell Mills
Price range: $

Project Afghanistan

04/04/18 - 29/09/21

Strengthening International Food Safety Standards in Agricultural Value Chains in the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Member Countries

The project was an ADB flagship technical assistance program that aimed to improve public health and agri-food trade facilitation potential. The project had four major outputs including:

Output 1. Regulations for meeting international food safety standards are developed.

Under Output I, the TA focused on assisting legislation re-drafting, strategy development and updating regulations and inspection checklists. This included assistance in the (i). drafting of new or amended legislation, (ii) development of foundational generic hygiene regulations across the food industry (that helps encourage shifting away from individual food product certification), (iii) updating critical microbiological and chemical testing requirements for specific good groups based on Codex guidance, and (iv) assistance with risk categorization and inspection checklists and guidelines to assist improvements in inspection. As a result new draft Laws on Food Safety were prepared for the Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan and revisions to the current Law on Food Safety were prepared for Tajikistan range of new regulations and/or inspection check lists and risk categorization frameworks have been prepared for Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan (as specified later in this report) and a new food safety road map committing to implementation of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) has been approved by the Kazakhstan Government

Output 2. Laboratory rationalization and infrastructure requirements for international food safety standards identified.

Under Output 2, the TA focused on providing technical assistance to ensure key food safety laboratories in target countries had quality control procedures in place and understood the issues they needed to address in order to secure international accreditation. Training and procedures were also provided for specific tests where requested.

As a result, key food safety laboratories in Azerbaijan, Kyrgyz Republic and Turkmenistan were able to secure national accreditation and four were able to secure international accreditation in the areas they sought.

Output 3. Capacity of value chain actors to implement food safety to international standards strengthened.

Under Output 3, the TA focused on providing in-depth in-country training on Good Hygiene Practices (GHP), Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and HACCP systems to key managers and staff in food safety agencies in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan - with staff from Georgia able to attend the training in Azerbaijan. With the onset of COVID 19, online GHP, GMP and HACCP training modules were then provided to Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia and Turkmenistan.

This training was well attended - with 131 public and private sector representatives attending the online training in Mongolia alone - and demonstrates the interest in adopting more modern food system control approaches in the region. As a result of the training Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have commenced using the materials in their own training programs and there is increased interest from the private sector in pursuing HACCP voluntarily.

Output 4. Holistic national and regional approach to international food safety standards developed.

Under Output 4, the TA attempted to support the establishment of national food safety networks in target CMCs and the establishment of a Regional CAREC Food Safety Network but unfortunately COVID 19 caused such efforts to stall. The TA subsequently provided training to interested State agencies on how to engage with Codex and apply Codex standards - under Output 1 - for which there was significantly more interest.

Full details are available: https://www.adb.org/projects/50217-001/main

And here: https://www.bsigroup.com/globalassets/localfiles/en-gb/our-services/international-project/casestudy-carec.pdf

Project

12/03/18 - 30/11/18

The Evaluation of transport and logistics in the European Commission's civil protection and humanitarian aid operations, 2013-2017

Link to final report available at: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/2c0ab9b4-358a-11e9-8d04-01aa75ed71a1

The overall objective of this contract was to provide an external, independent and thematic evaluation of the transport and logistics activities funded by the European Commission's Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations Directorate-General, for the period of 2013-2017. The results were used to further raise awareness about the subject to DG ECHO and its partners, identify points for action and support the future management of activities in the area, in accordance with DG ECHO's mandate.

The evaluation covered the period from 2013–17 and reviewed DG ECHO’s investments in humanitarian air services, its past investments in strengthening international systems for humanitarian logistics and also its funding to logistics within its partner projects.

ECHO-supported activities relevant to the area under analysis included:

Support to participating states in delivering transport and logistics under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM)Humanitarian air servicesSupport to Humanitarian Partners in delivering transport and logisticsLogistics capacity buildingDisaster preparedness and response facilitiesInternational cooperation to improve global transport and logistics coordination and provision

Through an analysis of activities within the agreed scope, the evaluation team developed responses to evaluation questions that provided assessment against the European Commission’s standard evaluation criteria of relevance, coherence, connectedness, effectiveness, efficiency and EU added value.

The evaluation provided strategic recommendations for action by DG ECHO within its own projects and in cooperation with the EC and Member States, and recommendations for DG ECHO's contribution to the wider humanitarian logistics sector. The recommendations served to identify clear actions that can be taken forward by DG ECHO's operational and strategic units to improve their ways of working, enhance the design of interventions and enhance the fulfilment of its mandate, while also providing learning opportunities for the larger audience of organisations intervening in the humanitarian sector.

Project

01/03/18 - 30/09/18

Strategic Mid Term Evaluation of EUTF Madad

Commissioned by DG NEAR, the mid-term strategic evaluation of the Madad Trust Fund aimed to assess the adequacy of the Fund towards the achievement of the intended goals, and the appropriateness of its management and governance structure, in line with the Constitutive Agreement and directions given by the Fund Board (legal scope).

The overall objectives of the evaluation were:

To 'provide an overall independent assessment of the strategic positioning, based on underlying assumptions of its creation, and functioning of the EUTF in Response to the Syrian Crisis';To 'identify key lessons and to produce recommendations to improve current and inform future choices of the EUTF Madad'.

The evaluation embodied a forward looking approach as its arising recommendations aimed to improve implementation and effectiveness, while being rooted in a backword looking assessment of the enabling or hindering factors that characterised the adequacy of the fund, as well as the level of accountability and efficiency endorsed.

The temporal scope of the evaluation spanned from the EUTF establishment in December 2014 until present. In addition to Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Egypt and any other country in the region negatively affected by the Syrian crisis, the geographic scope of the EUTF also covered Iraq, and to a lesser extent the Western Balkans (particularly Serbia and FYROM). The thematic scope of the EUTF was demonstrated in the current Madad Fund Results Framework which considered long-term socio-economic support in addition to immediate humanitarian need. Political dialogue aimed at capacity building, the creation of institutions and governance were also critical components of the EUTF, and were therefore considered within this evaluation.

The evaluation team followed the OECD-DAC standard evaluation criteria for this evaluation as well as additional management and governance-related channels of analysis, which were central to the objectives of this assignment.

Project Afghanistan

01/02/18 - 30/09/19

TA-9366 AFG: Preparing the Horticulture Value Chain Development Sector Project - 01 Preparing the Project Investment Feasibility Study

In agriculture, horticulture has always been an important asset of the Afghan economy, due to its diverse climates, relatively good soils and reasonable availability of water. These allow for a large spectrum of crops which have outstanding varieties, long and staged harvest periods, and strong comparative advantage for export. Traditionally, a major contributor to Afghanistan's economy and exports, the horticulture sector has fully recovered after 16 years of reconstruction and redevelopment since 2000. However, the horticulture sector growth is currently narrow-based and is characterized by relatively low overall productivity. The potential gains from horticulture are significant. Government strategy aims to develop a strong national horticulture sector, increase high-quality commercial fruit and vegetable production, enhance fruit and vegetable exports, and increase the share of horticulture products in national GDP.

The proposed Horticulture Value Chain Development Sector Project will help enhance the horticulture value chain in key high-value production zones in Afghanistan. Using the sector modality, items eligible for financing under the Project will include, but not limited to, (i) establishment and/or rehabilitation of horticulture processing and packing facilities, (ii) on-farm and community storages for potatoes and onions, (iii) greenhouses with drip fertigation systems, and (iv) intensive orchard development. The Project will also assist MAIL in preparing and implementing (i) the national marketing and branding strategies, and (ii) strategic crop diversification strategies considering both export promotion and import substitution to increase export of horticulture products to more export destination other than India and Pakistan, and to reduce imports of processed horticulture products.

The proposed project will help increase production of high value horticulture crops and reduce post-harvest losses, hence increasing volume of horticulture products to be marketed both domestically and abroad, particularly during the off-season period. Thus, profitability of farmers and agribusiness enterprises will be improved.

The proposed project will have two outputs:

horticulture value chain infrastructures improved; national horticulture marketing and branding strategies established.

These outputs will result in the following outcome: production and marketing of horticultural products increased. The Project will be aligned with the following impact: balanced economic growth, stability, and economic empowerment of women and men.

Project Nepal

01/02/18 - 31/07/19

Mid-Term Review DFID Nepal’s Accelerating Investment and Infrastructure in Nepal (AiiN) programme

Project Azerbaijan

14/12/17 - 14/09/20

Technical Assistance Project for the Implementation of the Support to Rural and Regional Development (SRRD) Program in the Republic of Azerbaijan - EuropeAid /137956/DH/SER/AZ

Project Cameroon

04/12/17 - 04/10/23

Technical Assistance for the monitoring, knowledge sharing and visibility of the regional programme ECOFAC 6

The ECOFAC 6 programme (‘Preserving Biodiversity and Fragile Ecosystems in Central Africa’) aims to support 12 protected areas spread across seven different states including eight priority conservation landscapes. From North to South, the diversity of these sites includes every natural habitat typical of the Central African Region, from the savannahs of the Sahel to the tropical forests of the Congo Basin. From West to East, the island landscapes of São-Tomé and Principe and the marine protected area of Mayumba in Gabon contrast with the landscapes of the isolated territories along the border between Sudan and South Sudan. Many of these areas are transboundary and are characterised by their own specific conservation challenges.

The overall objective of the project, of which this contract is a part, is to promote a green economy characterised by sustainable, inclusive and locally established economic development in support of climate change mitigation and adaptation. The specific objective is to more effectively protect the divers and fragile ecosystems of Central Africa taking into account sustainable management of ecosystem services.

Two results are to be delivered under the contract:

Promote the activities of ECOFAC 6 and make them visible and accessible to the general public, the media, political decision-makers, technical experts and researchers.Develop environmental diplomacy at the regional level through technical support and knowledge sharing.

The regional support implemented by Landell Mills focuses on bringing together and exchanging knowledge and experience at the local, national and regional level. This will be achieved through strengthening the learning and knowledge sharing systems shared by governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, as well as capitalising on and replicating innovative approaches. More specifically the TA supports the following areas:

Monitoring the activities under the regional programme component;Creating synergies between the different programme components so that the wide range of stakeholders participate in and benefit from crosscutting activities at the regional level; The regional steering committee and other high-level meetings are kept informed by lessons learned under the national and regional components;Communications products are produced and made available to political decision-makers, the general public, the media, technical experts and researchers. A programme visibility plan and communications strategy will be developed, targeting stakeholders from the seven beneficiary countries. Awareness-raising workshops and technical seminars will be organised to encourage stakeholder engagement.

Project Sudan

24/11/17 - 24/11/22

Provision of technical assistance to enhance local capacities regarding environmental management and environmental governance

The assignment will implement Result 2 "Environmental management and environmental governance of local authorities and other local stakeholders are enhanced" of the Project "Strengthening Local Communities Resilience to Climate Change in Sudan". The overall objective of the project of which this contract will be a part is to contribute to the strengthening of local communities' resilience and sustainable livelihoods' to better respond to and cope with climate change.

Objective

The purpose of this contract is to strengthen the capacity of local authorities, relevant institutions and other local stakeholders to adopt sustainable long-term approaches to natural resource management and climate change and to reduce the need of short-term emergency responses.

Results

The specific results to be achieved are:

Awareness and understanding among local authorities/ relevant institutions /other local stakeholders about the advantages of improved environmental management at local level and its linkages to overarching policies is increased;Development of a strategy for using social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) to build positive individual, community and institutional behaviour and responses to addressing and mitigating the negative consequences of climate change in Sudan“Creating a Climate of Change” Youth Panel Discussion held at the University of KhartoumClimathon Event, a 24-hour hackathon, linked to the global Climathon initiative, involving in excess of 110 countries. The event generated significant enthusiasm and produced a number of innovative solutions to specific climate change issues in SudanA Social Enterprise Forum focused on the opportunities to respond to the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation through social enterpriseYouth and Climate Change Forum: Implications on Health and Education, organised as part of the EU’s Climate Diplomacy weekTechnical capacities of all stakeholders in adoption of government policies addressing climate change related impacts and the mainstreaming of environment sustainability in all relevant policies and development plans is enhanced. As part of establishing a training of trainers (TOT) framework, the following activities were undertaken:
Four Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and Gender Action Planning (GAP) trainings in: River Nile, Kassala, Northern State and North Darfur. The trainings amplified awareness of the Government of Sudan’s ESIA policies and created a body of trainers and practitioners capable of undertaking ESIAs.Training of technical staff of federal environmental institutions in Khartoum on Geo-Information Systems and Remote Sensing Techniques for ESIAs.Plant taxonomy botanical identification and plant collection techniques training in River Nile State and North Darfur State. This established a cadre of government and non-government staff capable of collecting data.Nagoya Protocol Training in Khartoum and North Darfur. The training outlined the Convention on Biodiversity and how the Nagoya Protocol fits under it, with medicinal plants available in Darfur used as practical examples.
Specific and in depth research/ studies are conducted.
Identification, collection and mapping of two vegetation indicator species (Senna alexandrina and Solenostema argel) in two states (North Darfur and River Nile). Indicator species serve as measures of environmental conditions in specific locations and are generally recognised as useful proxies for quantitative status and health of specific environments.

The experts work in collaboration with the federal environmental institutions.

Project El salvador

15/11/17 - 15/05/19

Strategic Evaluation of EU Budget Support to El Salvador (2009-2017)