Tender Name: Ecosystem Service Valuation for Mercy Corps ASAL

Brief Summary Description of Project:

The ASAL Adapts program aims to strengthen ecosystem health in Wajir and Garissa counties by enhancing the uptake and use of digital information services and tools among county governments and other key stakeholders in the rangeland management decision-making chain. The program builds upon concepts within the participatory rangeland management approach to bring county government and pastoralist stakeholders together to make informed decisions with the support of geospatial analyses.   Leveraging existing tools and knowledge, the program will design a digital information ecosystem that takes into account the voices and needs of those traditionally marginalized (women, youth, small-scale agricultural and livestock producers) and those online as well as offline, to ensure information availability and flow. Therefore, decisions and power can cross the digital divide.

As part of the ASAL Adapts program, Mercy Corps is looking to understand how we can best strengthen ecosystem services of dryland areas in Northeastern Kenya to support pastoralist livelihoods and sustainable communities. Specifically, this is for two counties – Wajir and Garissa. As part of this, we'd like to conduct an ecosystem service valuation of these areas – and use this information to co-develop rangeland management plans with the county government by presenting various rangeland restoration options. This consultancy will include collaborating with the Mercy Corps and ESRI EA geospatial teams to produce detailed maps and analyses of landscape-based risks and opportunities.