Purpose of consultancy:

Botswana’s population is relatively made up of young people with approximately 42 percent under 25 years and 18.7 percent in the 15 to 24 years age range. (Botswana demographics, 2019). Youth according to the revised youth policy 2010 is defined as a person of ages 15-35. Youth in Botswana is not a homogeneous group as they differ in terms of their opportunities and circumstances in society. Youth are arguably the most vibrant and dynamic population of Botswana – with unique power and untapped potential to significantly contribute to their communities and positively transform the country. They are also uniquely positioned as a major human resource for development and constructive agents of their personal development, socio-economic development, and sources of innovative solutions and approaches.

The youth in Botswana are today facing challenges of pervasive poverty and inequality, vulnerability to external shocks and high unemployment. The youth labour force (15 – 35 years) results show that a total of 427,089 were in the labour force. Out of this, 319,830 (74.9%) were employed while 107,259 (25.1%) were unemployed. The unemployment rate shows that the 18-19 and 20-24 age groups are the most affected at 48.1% and 37.3% respectively. Total unemployed by settlement type indicates that youths in Urban Villages constitutes the most unemployed at 51.4%, followed by youths in Rural Areas at 27.2%, whilst 21.4% are in Cities and Towns.

Government of Botswana like most countries is a signatory to several international and protocols like the World Programme of Action for Youth to the year 2000 and beyond strategy which aims at guiding the implementation and adoption of youth issues as a priority. This has guided the 2010 revised national Youth Policy aligning to the treats and international policies. The Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development (MYSC) was established and mandated to create an enabling environment for youth empowerment, sport development and preservation of culture and heritage in collaboration with relevant stakeholders. The Ministry delivers its mandate through six functions namely Youth Empowerment; Sport and Recreation; Arts and Culture; the Department National Service and Internship (DNSI); the Botswana National Library Services (BNLS); and the Botswana National Records and Archives Services (BNARS).

Botswana has a revised National Youth Policy,2010 that detail youth strategies that are a priority to Botswana. Some of the strategies stipulated in the policy are youth employment, Youth Poverty and hunger. To support the strategies various programmes have been developed with the aim of attaining youth economic empowerment but we still see an increase in social issues affecting youth as indicated from the statistics. Having been through 10 years of implementation the current policy needs to be reviewed to adapt to the current changes and youth issues. This exercise therefore includes a review of the progress achieved in the policy implementation, a review of the major institutional bottlenecks, and alignment with contemporary regional and international conventions and protocols on youth and development as well as Botswana’s strategic national development objectives as well as develop an action plan.

For any youth development strategy in Botswana to be effective, there must be a systematic reappraisal of all existing policies for their impact on the youth –whether economic, social political, environmental and technological. The Youth Policy will act as an enabling environment to the Botswana Government and all stakeholders in their efforts to develop and empower youth in all spheres of life and in the various sectors.

The Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport & Culture embarked on a comprehensive review of the 2010 NYP in 2021 which included among others; conduct a comprehensive review of the 2010 Youth policy, document the identified gaps, strengths and opportunities for young people and develop a revised youth policy based on the identified gaps and opportunities as well as develop an action plan for the policy. While the products have been submitted, there were substantive gaps identified that require closing. It is against this background that MYSC seeks to engage an international consultant to revise and finalize the National Youth Policy. The draft Youth policy in place will be a key document in this consultancy.

Scope of work:

The consultant will:

a) Undertake impact analysis of the 2010 National Youth Policy: Comprehensive review of youth development (YD) in Botswana identifying successes, challenges and opportunities (Status of YD from 2010 up to date); including literature review on youth development.

b) Conduct thematic survey on youth development: Undertake systematic consultations with relevant stakeholders on youth development to inform prioritization of thematic areas for the policy.

c) Draft outcome statements & Revise and finalize the Youth policy: Revise the draft Youth policy using the new findings & thematic areas including aligning with best practices at the regional and global levels.

d) Develop an action plan of the Youth Policy, validate the documents with stakeholders.

Duration and working schedule:

The consultancy will be completed within 5 months of contract signing. The consultancy is expected to start in August up to December 2023. Note consultancy days will be spread through out the 5 months to allow for review of drafts by technical working group and senior officials in the participating ministries as well as to facilitate payments within an active contract.

Place where services are to be delivered: Home – based & In - country

Deliverable(s): 

a) Inception report (not more than 10 pages)

b) Impact & Gap analysis report (not more than 30 pages)

c) Final National Youth Policy & Action plan

Required expertise, qualifications and competencies, including language requirements:

a) A minimum of Masters degree in Youth & Gender Studies, Public Policy, Social Sciences, International Development or a related field. PhD will be an added advantage

b) At least 10 years’ experience working in public policy, research and evaluation and systems thinking issues.

c) Demonstrate substantive experience in developing/ reviewing youth policies preferably in Sub- Saharan Africa

d) Practical knowledge and experience of youth and gender empowerment and development

e) Excellent demonstrated technical knowledge of public policy, research and evaluation

f) Experience in working with government officials, donors, youth and civil society and able to interact with a variety of stakeholders at different levels.

g) Excellent communication and presentation skills including the ability to present proposals and generate consensus;

h) Strong analytic and writing skills

See the attached Terms of Reference for more details.

How to apply: 

Interested applicants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

a. Technical Proposal: The technical proposal should include the following:

 Profile of consultant and an outline of recent experience on assignments of a similar nature.

 References from the consultant’s clients for similar assignments.

 The consultant’s interpretation and demonstrated understanding of the assignment as per the TORs

 A clear description of the methodology and work plan that the consultants propose to execute the assignment with illustrations - describing the objectives, tasks and deliverables including reasonable timelines

 A work plan with indicative timelines that the consultant proposes to employ in executing the assignment.

b. Financial proposal: 

 Lump-sum consultancy fee (The lump sum should be broken down to clearly indicate travel, per diems, and actual consultancy fees (daily fee)

 An indication of whether this rate is flexible

Applications should be sent to recruitment.bw@unfpa.org by 3 August 2023 with the subject clearly stated "Consultancy- Review & Finalization of the National Youth Policy