TERMS OF REFERENCE
FORMULATE LESSONS LEARNED OFDESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING
PARTICIPATORY MONITORING IN VIETNAM AND THE SOUTH EAST ASIAN
REGION
1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
WWF is implementing a comprehensive program of conservation projects in the
Greater Annamites priority eco-region, which contains significant populations of
globally threatened and endangered species. WWF aims to protect and restore these
species and their habitats and a large part of this work involves strengthening the
management of key protected areas.
The project Avoidance of deforestation and forest degradation in the border area of
southern Laos and central Vietnam for the long-term preservation of carbon sinks and
biodiversity or CarBi project, running from January 2011 to March 2017, is a
cornerstone of the landscape program and is implemented in the Central VietnamSouthern Lao landscape of the Greater Annamites eco-region.
CarBi has four components
 Improving protected area management in Xe Sap National Protected Area (Laos),
as well as Saola Nature Reserves in Hue and Quang Nam and the Bach Ma National
Park extension.
 Forest restoration of priority biodiversity corridors in Vietnam, including
community forestry.
 Reducing cross-border illegal timber trade between Laos and Vietnam.
 Preparing the project area for REDD funding, by developing a Project Design
Document, as well as providing landscape level forest carbon lessons learnt into
national REDD processes; and develop and support Payment for Forest Ecosystem
Services (PFES) arrangements in the project area.
In especially the protected area management, community forestry, and PFES
components are opportunities to improve management and increase the chances to
achieve the goal of effective management of natural resources to maximize the
chances to preserve ecosystem values and endangered species through establishing
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Formulate lessons learned of designing and implementing participatory monitoring
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participatory monitoring. With introducing and deploying participatory monitoring
CarBi aims to engage communities more meaningfullyin natural resources
management, including protected area management, and to create an environment in
which communities and government partners support each other in management and
development goals and objectives in forest and protected area management that will
achieve conservation goals.
CarBi will base its participatory monitoring on the following principles:
 It will bring stakeholders together in an agreed system of data collection, data
analysis, and decision-making; decision-making will involve those stakeholders who
have a direct management responsibility of the natural resources being monitored,
while a wider group of stakeholders can be involved throughout the whole process.
 It will be designed with the active involvement of all stakeholders who
participatein the system.
 The protocols for data collection or generation and subsequent data analysis, will
be able to withstand scientific scrutiny. The level of detail and analysis will depend
on the information needs of the management objective, hence different
management questions and objectives will have different levels of (scientific)
complexity of data collection and analysis. (Examples: the management objective
of establishing an NTFP optimum harvesting schedule, is less complex (but of equal
scientific validity) as establishing the density levels of Argus pheasant in a
community forestry area.)
While the principles are clear, it is not clear how best to establish such systems, nor is
it clear how best to establish mechanisms of data collection, discussions of results, and
decision-making processes that will satisfy and motivate all stakeholders who are part
of the process. Elements that affect the establishment and operation of such systems
include familiarity with the principles of participatory monitoring, prevailing social and
administrative contexts, and available support mechanisms (budget, required technical
expertise) and to what extent these are needed.
CarBi wishes to engage a consultant to help start the process of formulating a strategy
that CarBi can follow to start developing participatory monitoring. This process consist
of a number of steps. This ToR represents the first step.
2 DESCRIPTION OF THE ASSIGNMENT
2.1
Purpose and objectives
The purpose of the assignment is to help start the process of formulating a strategy
that CarBi can follow to start developing participatory monitoring systems in selected
intervention areas of CarBi.
The objectives are:
 Toinventory the experience in Vietnam with participatory monitoring (preferably of
natural resources) and elsewhere in SE Asia, and extract relevant lessons learned.
 Advise on the next steps.
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Formulate lessons learned of designing and implementing participatory monitoring
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The expected output includes relevant lessons learned from experiences in Vietnam
with participatory monitoring (preferably in natural resource management) and
elsewhere in SE Asia.
It also includes one or more next steps of the process to help CarBi formulate a
strategy that CarBi can follow to start developing participatory monitoring systems in
selected intervention areas of CarBi. Added to this ToR are two annexes that can serve
as reference ToRs for next steps. These are suggestions only, and the consultant is
expected to look at them critically. The consultant's advice may closely follow these
ToRs, but can also deviate widely from them (more or less steps, different set of tasks,
different topics for pilot participatory monitoring), based on his/her expert opinion
and findings.
2.2
Tasks and duties
Scheduling the assignment

Produce a day-to-day work plan, including if relevant a travel plan and travel
budget, at the end of the first week for discussion and subsequent approval.
Inventorying participatory monitoring experience
●
Identifytwoprojects or initiatives that have developedparticipatory monitoring
systems. One such project or initiative should be in Vietnam. The second one can
be in Vietnam or in South or South East Asia. The participatory monitoring systems
can be successful (i.e. they are still operational after establishment) or failed ones
(i.e. the system does no longer function).Both successful and failed ones can
generate useful lessons learned.Study the development process, including through
interviews with key stakeholders, and analyze where such developments were
successful or not and why. The examples are preferably in natural resource
management.
 Extract lessons learned, specifically along the principles that CarBi embraces for its
participatory monitoring.
Advise on next steps
●
Study the goal and objectives of CarBi as well as processes and activities pertaining
to protected area management, forest restoration and PFES.
 Based on the aforementioned inventory and study results, formulate one or more
next steps. The number of steps is part of the advice. These steps are thought to be
a follow up consultancy, but may also be a distinct strategic activity (e.g. regional
workshop). Each step should therefore contain an appropriate outline that makes
the step ready for implementation. In case of a consultancy, the ToR outline should
contain (i) goal and objectives, (ii) targeted output, (iii) description of tasks, and (iv)
preferred profile of the consultant to undertake the assignment. In case of a
workshop or similar, the outline should contain (i) goal and objectives, (ii) targeted
participants, and (iii) targeted output.
 Produce a mission report that contains:
 An overview of the lessons learned. (Specific lessons learned that need a longe
description or discussion, can also be in appendices.)
 A discussion on the preferred next steps, including the rationale for the step.
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
2.3
A brief description of objectives and outputs of the steps. The full outline will
be added as appendices.
Duration
The consultancy is for one month.
2.4


Deliverables
One work schedule.
One English language Mission Report, containing:
 Description of the assignment.
 Description of adopted approach and methods.
 Results (lessons learned, next steps).
 Appendices, including:
 List of key informants.
 Documents or descriptions pertaining to the lessons learned.
 Outlines of next steps.
The precise structure of the Mission report will be determined in discussion between
the consultant and the project.
2.5
Logistics
The principal place of work is the WWF office in Hue.
Associated travel if relevant will be reimbursed based on the approved travel plan and
based on WWF cost norms.
3 CONSULTANT REQUIREMENTS
The consultant must meet the following requirements:
Essential
 Tertiairy education in natural resources management, or in a related field,
including of life sciences or socioeconomy.
 Five years experience or more in natural resources management development
projects in a technical capacity.
 Three years experience or more in managing projects and/or monitoring and
evaluation of projects.
 Fully conversant with project cycle management.
 Proficient in both Vietnamese and English.
Preferred
 Experience in conducting case studies.
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Formulate lessons learned of designing and implementing participatory monitoring
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