TERMS OF REFERENCE Consolidation of the Geed Debleh Forest Reserve within the Sustainable Land Management Program

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TERMS OF REFERENCE
Consolidation of the Geed Debleh Forest Reserve
within the Sustainable Land Management Program
Introduction
Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in Somaliland is a program which started in September 2015 to continue until end of 2020. It is mainly designed to support Somaliland filling gaps and supporting projects that are aligned to the National Development Plan. The long term goal of the program is to promote food security and sustainable land use practices while restoring the socio-ecological integrity of mainly the Biji watershed catchment. Specifically, the intervention’s objective is to provide land users and managers with enabling policy and institutional capacity for effective adoption of sustainable land management.
The ultimate purpose of the SLM program is therefore to improve the livelihoods of community of the upper part of the Biji water catchment by restoring and raising land productivity. This will be achieved among others through
Participatory community land management Supporting sustainable agricultural practice Policy advice and capacity-building
Support to improve the water supply through the Hargeisa Water Agency
Under the first and third output: The capacities of key government stakeholders with regard to integrating the themes of sustainable management of natural resources and biodiversity into the strategies are improved.
Introduction
The Geed Debleh Forest Reserve is one of the oldest protected areas in Somaliland. Boundaries of the forest reserve were established by the protectorate authorities in a descriptive manner not easy to map. During recent years new ‘boundaries‘ have emerged with maps of the Somaliland Development Fund (SDF). There seems to be no clear legal background for the new ‘boundaries’ and they would also create major challenges for effective conservation of a protected area with its amoebal form. At the same time the absence of regulation for specific conservation goals and land use / management is an obstacle for effective conservation.
Conservation is crucial due the critical situation of biodiversity in the Geed Debleh forests and rangelands. Considering this as well as policy orientation resulting from National Development Plan II towards the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15 and the proposal of the Sustainable Land Management program appraisal mission to strengthening sustainable rangeland management and protecting biodiversity as well as the guidance provided by the land use plan for the Upper Biji Water Catchment Area, coordinated action towards the regularisation of the Geed Debleh protected area is recommended.
Goal
Consolidating the Geed Debleh protected area within the institutional framework for environment protection in Somaliland.
Scope of the Work
Defining the survey area: The survey area includes the old descriptive boundaries as well as the boundaries outlined on the SDF maps, the well field which supplies Hargeisa with water and other important sites like for example the area with the well known old and huge fique trees (Daray). For the survey also a buffer zone of about 2 km around the defined protected area should also be surveyed in order to better consider border issues that might affect the protected area.
Biodiversity and natural resource survey: Reviewing any existing ecological and socioeconomic assessment of the area and completing the assessment with additional information gained through review of existing bibliography / literature and specific field work in the whole survey area defined in point ‘defining the survey area’. This survey should have a focus on biodiversity (and water resources) issues but also consider the socio-economic context of local population as well as the institutional context for biodiversity and water resources conservation. A proposal of initial conservation goals for the protected area should be developed.
Validating the proposed conservation goals: The MoERD, after consultations with relevant stakeholders, should validate or reformulate and officially adopt the conservation goals for the protected area. The conservation goals should include the definition of what kind of protected area the Geed Debleh forests and rangelands should be.
Formulating a proposal on the demarcation of the protected area: Considering the adopted conservation goals as well as the results of any biodiversity and water resources evaluation in the survey area and opportunity aspects concerning socio-economic and institutional issues a proposal for demarcation of the protected area should be developed.
Validating the demarcation of the protected area: The MoERD, after consultations with relevant stakeholders, should validate or reformulate and officially adopt the boundaries of the protected area. The demarcation and conservation goals for the protected area have to be institutionalised through decree, law or other appropriate processes.
Reporting to the SLM program has to be done in English.
The SLM program has to be provided with copies (soft copy or hard copy) of all documentation used for this work.
Proposal
The proposal to carry out the work should include a time table, a detailed description of how the work will be carried out. The proposal will also propose the duration of the assignment. The proposal will be in English and has to be submitted latest on until end of July 2018 to the GIZ-SLM office at Hargeisa’s Masala Area. A financial proposal has to be submitted separately.




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