SUMMARY
Heifer Nigeria LTD/GTE is calling for submissions from qualified, interested, firms with key technical staff who have substantial experience to provide consultancy services. All interested bidders are required to submit their proposals via the email address to [email protected] boldly labeled with Consultancy Services – VSLA Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship. and include the State(s) of interest (Benue, Nasarawa, Ogun and Kaduna States)
START & CLOSE DATES (14 business days)
Start Date : 10th March.
Close date: 27th March.
| Name of Signature Program: | Naija Unlock |
| Agresso Work order: | NG1001 |
| Country: | Nigeria |
| RFP No. | 20260309 |
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
Funded by: Heifer International
| RFP Release Date: | March 10th 2026 |
| Question/ Inquiry Submission Deadline: | March 23rd, 2026 |
| Proposal Submission Deadline: | March 27th, 2026 |
| Performance Period: | 1 month |
| Electronic submission to the attention of: | [email protected] |
| Contact information for inquiries about this RFP: | [email protected] |
Terms of Reference
- General Information
This document is being issued to solicit applications from Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) and Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness Development service providers with key technical staff who have substantial hands-on experience in conducting Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA), and agribusiness and entrepreneurship trainings to conduct Training-of-Trainers (ToT) to Heifer Community Facilitators (CFs), to cascade to organized Smallholder Farmer Group. The VSLA and the agribusiness and entrepreneurship training is designed to build Heifers’ Community Facilitators capacity to step down such trainings to the organized Smallholder Farmer Group and also coordinate organized Smallholder Farmer Group strengthening and support the setting up of the VSLA in their various communities, and establishment of VSLA Management Information System (MIS), and agribusiness and entrepreneurship incubation and marketing linkages to track implementation for evidence-based reporting.
The bidder is free to seek any clarification on the methodology or expected deliverables prior to preparation and submission of the proposal. While Heifer understands that completing this assignment will require the experience of a firm with all the requisite expertise, the successful firm can sub-contract components of the assignment to appropriate qualified firms. However, Heifer Nigeria should be duly informed of the plan from the onset, and this should be clearly stated in the bid as appropriate. It should also be noted that Heifer Nigeria will make payments to the contractor based on submission and Heifer’s approval of deliverables. The award agreement will include a payment schedule with specific deliverables; all payments require 15 business days for processing after approval of deliverables.
- Background
About Heifer International
Heifer International is a global non-profit organization on a mission to end hunger and poverty in a sustainable way. Since 1944, Heifer International through its work in 19 countries (in Africa, Asia, and the Americas) has supported more than 46 million people around the world to end hunger and poverty in a sustainable way, and 10 million more now on a pathway to sustainable living incomes. Working with rural communities across Africa for 50 years, Heifer International supports farmers and local food producers to strengthen local economies and build secure livelihoods that provide a living income. Heifer’s foundation was built on the belief that ending hunger begins with giving people the means to feed themselves, generate income and achieve sustainable livelihoods for their households. Heifer’s global vision for 2020 – 2030 is to close the living income gap for additional 10 million families. This vision is a focused approach for the African continent to support at least 6 million smallholder farmers in Africa reach sustainable living income. As a part of this commitment, Heifer has expanded its presence in Africa to include Nigeria, with a goal of supporting at least two million households to achieve sustainable living income, through (a) strategic private and public sector partnerships, (b) unlocking demand and market opportunities, (c) investing in priority value chains, and (d) leveraging innovation and emerging agricultural technologies to reach transformational scale. More information about Heifer is available at: www.heifer.org
Heifer Nigeria Country Program
Heifer International established its Nigeria Country Program in 2021, and its Signature Program for Nigeria, named “Naija Unlock”, was designed, and launched. Naija Unlock program’s aim is to support the unlocking of the potentials in Nigeria’s agricultural sector to achieve food self-sufficiency by working with smallholder farmers and local value chain actors to increase their productivity to meet local demand for food and raw material, while closing the living income gap for families in the rice, tomato, and poultry value chains, with plans to add cattle, and small ruminant value chains. Naija Unlock, is an evidence-based Signature Program designed to close the living income gap of smallholder farmers at scale with a permanence of impact. The goal is to assist more than one million households achieve sustainable living income by 2025, and scale to two million households by 2030, through strategic private and public sector partnerships to (a) build social capital of smallholder farmers, (b) unlock farmers access to innovative financing, (c) unlock demand and market opportunities, (d) increase farmers access to mechanization and emerging agricultural innovations, and (e) increase farmers knowledge and adoption of climate smart agricultural practices. Naija Unlock program activities are being implemented currently in five (5) states in Nigeria (Ogun, Edo, Nasarawa, Benue, and Lagos States) with plans to scale to other states with potentials to make impact at transformational scale.
Village Savings and Loan (VSL) System and Agribusiness and entrepreneurship skill development and incubation system.
Heifer Nigeria is implementing the Values-Based Holistic Community Development (VBHCD) by working in collaboration with farmer groups across Benue, Nasarawa, Ogun and Kaduna States in the rice, and tomato value chains. One of the key components of the VBHCD is the development of savings and loans associations, financial literacy and social capital development of these groups. The basic principle of the Village Savings and Loan (VSL) system is that members of a self-selected group voluntarily form a VSLA and save money, through purchasing shares. The savings are invested in a loan fund from which members can borrow, repaying with a service charge added. VSLAs are a form of accumulating savings and credit association (ASCA), a generic term that describes this type of small-scale community-managed financial institution.
In addition, agribusiness and entrepreneurship skill development are key to changing the organized Smallholder Farmer Group’s capacity mindset to manage farming as a business, improve business planning and marketing, and support sustainable agribusiness. The basic principle of the agribusiness and entrepreneurship incubation system is that members of selected organized Smallholder Farmer Group’s invest in enterprises and agribusiness using funds from the VSLA. The organized Smallholder Farmer Groups are strengthened in agribusiness from which members can access agro inputs, and the other services.
- Description of Expected Professional Services
- Purpose
The purpose of this request is to support the setting of Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) and agribusiness and entrepreneurship trainings in addition to the VBHCD training, by supporting Community Facilitators (CFs) and some selected farmers’ cooperative group to learn and adopt the VSLA methodology across targeted community each in Benue, Nasarawa, Ogun and Kaduna States (Name of Communities to be provided), thereby enhancing capacity to manage agribusiness and access to formal financial services to the small holder farmer groups.
- Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA)
- Objectives:
The key objective is to provide Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) to Community Facilitators and smallholder farmers groups across target locations. The major objective of this consultancy-led training on the Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA), is to equip community facilitators, organized stallholder farmer groups, field officers, and partner staff with the knowledge, skills, and practical experience needed to effectively establish, train, and support self-managed savings and loan groups in line with the standard VSLA model and Agribusiness and entrepreneurship.
In practice, this means the training aims to:
- Build technical mastery of the VSLA methodology — from group formation, constitution drafting, and savings/loan procedures to record-keeping and share-out.
- Ensure quality and fidelity to the core principles of VSLA so that groups are transparent, inclusive, and sustainable.
- Strengthen facilitation skills so that trainers can confidently guide communities through all phases of the VSLA cycle (preparation, intensive, development, maturity, and graduation phase).
- Promote inclusion and empowerment, ensuring women, youth, and marginalized groups can participate fully and benefit equitably.
- Enable replication and scaling by creating a cadre of competent trainers who can roll out the methodology in multiple communities without external dependency.
In short, this consultancy training is not just about teaching the what of VSLA, but also the how — so that trained facilitators can transfer the model effectively, adapt it to local contexts, and help groups become financially resilient and self-reliant.
1.2 Scope of the assignment:
A. Purpose
- Build the capacity of Heifer Community Facilitators as field officers, and community-based trainers to establish, train, and support sustainable Village Savings and Loan Associations and
- Ensure originality and fidelity to the training modules and standard VSLA methodology while adapting to local contexts.
B. Target Audience
- Heifer field staff, partner organization staff, SHF cooperative groups, and local leaders.
1.3 Core Content Areas
VSLA:
- VSLA Principles & Methodology
- History, objectives, and benefits of VSLAs.
- The VSLA cycle: preparation, intensity, development, maturity, and share-out.
- Group Formation & Governance
- Member selection, constitution drafting, leadership roles.
- Financial Management
- Savings, loans, interest calculation, record-keeping (passbooks/ledgers).
- Facilitation Skills
- Participatory training methods, adult learning principles.
- Inclusion & Safeguarding
- Gender equity, youth engagement, disability inclusion, protection measures.
- Monitoring & Sustainability
- Tracking group performance, graduation, and replication.
D. Duration
- Typically, 3–5 days for Training of Trainers (ToT), followed by field practice.
E. Expected Outputs
- Trained facilitators capable of independently rolling out the VSLA model.
- Action plans for establishing and supporting groups.
VSLA Training Evaluation Matrix
| Learning Objective | Indicators of Achievement | Assessment Method | Success Criteria |
| Explain VSLA principles and cycle | Participants can accurately describe all phases of the VSLA cycle | Written quiz, oral Q&A | ≥80% correct answers |
| Formulate a group constitution | Draft constitution includes savings rules, loan terms, fines, meeting procedures | Group exercise review | Constitution meets all standard criteria |
| Demonstrate record-keeping | Correctly record savings, loans, and repayments in sample passbooks | Practical exercise | 100% accuracy in entries |
| Facilitate a VSLA meeting | Lead a mock meeting following standard agenda | Observation checklist | All agenda items covered in correct order |
| Apply inclusion strategies | Identify at least 3 ways to ensure participation of women, youth, and marginalized groups | Group discussion, role play | Strategies are practical and context-appropriate |
| Develop a monitoring plan | Produce a simple plan with indicators, tools, and timelines | Review of submitted plan | Plan is complete and feasible |
Measurable Learning Outcomes
By the end of the training, it is anticipated that this consultancy should be able to enhance participants’ capacity:
1.To Understanding the VSLA Model
- Describe the core principles, objectives, and benefits of the VSLA methodology.
- Identify the phases of the VSLA cycle (preparation, intensive, development, maturity, share-out) and their key activities.
2. For Group Formation and Governance
- Demonstrate the process of forming a VSLA group, including member selection and constitution drafting.
- Develop a sample group constitution that includes rules on savings, loans, fines, and meeting procedures.
3. For Financial Procedures
- Accurately record savings, loans, and repayments using the VSLA passbook or ledger system.
- Calculate interest, loan repayment schedules, and share-out amounts for members.
4. For Facilitation and Capacity Building
- Facilitate at least one mock VSLA meeting following the standard agenda and procedures.
- Apply participatory training techniques to engage members with varying literacy and numeracy levels.
- For Inclusion and Safeguarding
- Integrate strategies to ensure the participation of women, youth, and marginalized groups in VSLA activities.
- Implement safeguarding measures to protect members from exploitation or abuse.
6. For Monitoring and Sustainability
- Design a simple monitoring plan to track group performance and identify risks.
- Outline steps for transitioning a group to self-management without external support
VSLA Consultancy – Deliverables & Milestones Table
| Deliverable | Description | No of Days | Responsible Party | Verification Method |
| Inception Report | Inception meeting held, and report outlines work plan, methodology, training schedule, and tools to be used | 4 | Consultant | Approved by client/project manager |
| Milestone 1 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 1 report- | 0 | Consultant | Inception report outlines work plan, methodology, training schedule, and tools to be used |
| Training Curriculum & Materials | Context-adapted VSLA training manual, facilitator guide, and participant handouts | 4 | Consultant | Materials reviewed and approved |
| Training of Trainers (ToT) Session | 3–5day capacity-building workshop for field staff and community facilitators | 5 | Consultant & Client | Attendance list, photos, pre/post-test results |
| Field Practicum / Supervised Rollout | Trainees conduct practice VSLA sessions in target communities under supervision | 7 | Consultant & Trainees | Observation checklists, feedback forms |
| Milestone 2 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 2 report – | 0 | Consultant | Copies of training manuals, attendance lists, pictures, ore/post test results, Observation, check lists and feedback form |
| Monitoring & Support Plan | Framework for ongoing group monitoring, mentoring, and quality assurance | 4 | Consultant | Plan document approved |
| Final Consultancy Report | Summary of activities, participant performance, challenges, lessons learned, and recommendations | 7 | Consultant | Report submitted and accepted |
| Milestone 3 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 3 and Final Report – | 0 | Consultant | Plan for ongoing monitoring, mentoring, and quality assurance of group and Final Report |
| Total | 31 days |
Note: for each of the assignments number of days will be agreed upon
Milestone Timeline Overview
- Week 1: Inception report approved
- Week 2: Training materials finalized
- Week 3: ToT completed
- Week 4–5: Field practicum conducted
- Week 5: Monitoring plan delivered
- Week 6: Final report submitted
IV. Documents for Assessment
| Registration documents: certificate of registration, memorandum and articles of association, | Accounting Books and Records-general ledger, income and expenditure ledger, cashbook, petty cash book, payment voucher, receipt booklets etc |
| Minutes of management meetings | Annual budgets and plans |
| Minutes of weekly, monthly or annual general meetings | Strategic Plan/Business Plans |
| Other documents requested by the VSLA consultants | Standard Operating Policies and ProceduresConstitutions and bye-laws |
| Fixed asset register | |
| Production/Marketing and Sales Plan | |
| Loan and/or grant agreements | |
- Deliverables:
The expected deliverables of this task are as follows:
- An Inception Report with clear proposed methodology, detailed activity work plan, time scale, and validation plan for the delivery of VSL System to Heifers’ Community Facilitators, evidence of Capacity building trainings and submission of invoices and milestones reports.
- Provision and deployment of recommended VSLA kits (Boxes, membership cards, ledgers, and calculators), one set of kit per community.
- Slide Deck version of findings and final report.
- Presentation of findings to Heifer team.
Notable: All deliverables shall be submitted in softcopy in editable format.
V. Expected Roles of Heifer Nigeria
- Finalize and sign the contract with the consultant.
- Participate in project inception meeting with consultant.
- Review and validate all the deliverables and tools that will be proposed by the consultant,
- Ensure that all payments are made as stated in the contract.
2. Agribusiness and entrepreneurship training:
The agribusiness and entrepreneurship component aims to transform smallholder farmers from subsistence producers into market-oriented agripreneurs capable of managing profitable and sustainable agricultural enterprises.
2.1 Objectives: The key objective is to provide Agribusiness and entrepreneurship Training to Community Facilitators and smallholder farmers groups across target locations. The major objective of this consultancy-led training on Agribusiness and entrepreneurship is to equip community facilitators, organized smallholder farmers groups, field officers, and partner staff with the knowledge, skills, and practical experience needed to effectively establish, train, and support self-managed savings and loan groups in line with the standard agribusiness and entrepreneurship model.
In practice, this means the training aims to:
- Build technical mastery of the agribusiness and entrepreneurship planning — from product identification, business development, and marketing to record-keeping and share-out.
- Improve understanding of agribusiness value chains and market opportunities, marketing linkages, off takers, premium markets, insurance and inputs financing.
- Support collective marketing, product aggregation and development of bankable agribusiness plans
- Support Business Development Services for Agribusinesses and Smallholders including financial literacy for Smallholders and business development services for MSMEs
- Promote inclusion climate smart business practices and empowerment, ensuring women, youth, and marginalized groups can own and operate business equitably.
- Enable replication and scaling by creating a cadre of competent trainers who can roll out the methodology in multiple communities without external dependency.
2.2 Scope of the assignment:
A. Purpose
- Strengthen Organized Smallholder farmer groups capacity in Agribusiness and entrepreneurship in Rural Areas
- Ensure originality and fidelity to the training modules and standard VSLA methodology while adapting to local contexts.
B. Target Audience
- Heifer field staff, partner organization staff, SHF cooperative groups, and local leaders. The training will build the capacity of Community Facilitators and farmer groups to identify agribusiness opportunities, develop viable enterprises, and connect to markets and financial services. The program will also strengthen the link between VSLA savings groups and agribusiness investment, enabling farmers to use savings and loans to establish or expand income-generating agricultural enterprises.
- Core Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Training Areas
- Agribusiness Mindset and Entrepreneurship Development:
- Farmers understand farming as a business enterprise and develop an entrepreneurial mindset, transitioning from subsistence farming to market-oriented farming, identifying business opportunities in agriculture and understanding risks and rewards in agribusiness and entrepreneurial mindset, innovation, and leadership.
- Market-Oriented Production and Value Chain Development: Farmers understand agri-value chains, identify profitable crops and enterprise, market demand analysis and product differentiation, quality standards and grading for agricultural products, post-harvest handling and value addition, linking production decisions to market demand
- Agribusiness Planning and Enterprise Management: Farmers gain practical skills to plan, manage, and expand agribusiness enterprises.
- Financial Literacy and Access to Finance: Farmers can manage finances and access financial services needed to grow their businesses.
- Collective Action and Farmer Organization. This module promotes the role of farmer groups in accessing better market opportunities. This will cover topics such as Collective marketing strategies, Product aggregation, Negotiation with buyers, Strengthening farmer cooperatives and Governance of farmer organizations
- Market Linkages and Agribusiness Partnerships: Participants will learn how to build relationships with buyers and agribusiness actors. This will cover topics such as Off-taker engagement, Contract farming arrangements, Market information systems, and Building partnerships with processors and traders
- Business Development Services (BDS), this will cover topics such as business planning and business incubation support
- Value Addition and Agro-Processing: this will cover topics such Primary processing, Product packaging and branding, Storage and quality control, Agro-processing opportunities
- Digital Agriculture and Innovation: this will cover topics such as Digital marketing platforms, Mobile-based financial services, Market information systems and Digital farm management tools
Duration
- Typically, 3–5 days for Training of Trainers (ToT), followed by field practice.
E. Expected Outputs
- Trained facilitators capable of independently rolling out the agribusiness training.
- Action plans for establishing and supporting groups.
Agribusiness Training Evaluation Matrix
| Learning Objective | Indicators of Achievement | Assessment Method | Success Criteria |
| Understand agribusiness and entrepreneurial mindset | Participants can explain the concept of farming as a business and identify at least three agribusiness opportunities in their communities | Written quiz, group discussion | ≥80% of participants correctly explain agribusiness concepts and identify viable opportunities |
| Conduct basic market analysis | Participants identify market demand, potential buyers, and value chain actors for selected commodities | Group exercise, market mapping activity | Market analysis includes demand, buyers, and value chain actors |
| Develop a simple agribusiness plan | Participants prepare a basic agribusiness plan including enterprise description, costs, expected revenue, and market strategy | Review of group business plans | Business plan includes all required components |
| Perform cost–benefit analysis | Participants correctly calculate production costs, expected revenue, and profit margins for a selected enterprise | Practical exercise with sample farm budgets | ≥80% accuracy in calculations |
| Apply farm record-keeping and financial management | Participants correctly maintain records for production costs, sales, and profits | Practical record-keeping exercise | 100% accurate completion of sample farm records |
| Identify value addition opportunities | Participants identify at least three value addition or post-harvest improvement options for selected crops | Group discussion and case study | Options are practical and relevant to local markets |
| Strengthen collective marketing strategies | Participants demonstrate how farmer groups can aggregate products and negotiate better market prices | Role play, group presentation | Strategies clearly show aggregation and negotiation approaches |
| Link agribusiness with financial services | Participants explain how savings, credit, and VSLA funds can be used to support agribusiness investment | Case study discussion | Participants identify at least two financing options |
| Integrate climate-smart agribusiness practices | Participants identify at least three climate-smart practices that improve productivity and resilience | Group exercise, scenario analysis | Practices are technically sound and locally applicable |
| Develop a simple enterprise growth plan | Participants outline steps for expanding or improving their agribusiness over the next production cycle | Review of submitted plans | Plan includes clear activities, timeline, and expected outcomes |
Measurable Learning Outcomes
By the end of the training, it is anticipated that this consultancy should be able to enhance participants’ capacity:
Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Training – Measurable Learning Outcomes
By the end of the training, the consultancy is expected to enhance participants’ capacity in the following areas:
1. Understanding Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship
- Describe the concept of agribusiness and explain the transition from subsistence farming to market-oriented production.
- Identify viable agribusiness opportunities within local agricultural value chains.
2. Market Analysis and Value Chain Development
- Identify key actors in agricultural value chains including input suppliers, producers, traders, processors, and buyers.
- Conduct a simple market assessment to determine demand, pricing trends, and potential buyers for selected commodities.
3. Agribusiness Planning and Enterprise Development
- Develop a basic agribusiness plan including enterprise description, production targets, input requirements, and market strategy.
- Estimate expected production costs, revenues, and profitability of selected agricultural enterprises.
4. Financial Management and Record Keeping
- Maintain simple farm records including production costs, sales, and profits.
- Demonstrate the ability to prepare simple enterprise budgets and financial projections.
5. Collective Marketing and Business Organization
- Demonstrate the process of organizing farmers for collective marketing and product aggregation.
- Apply negotiation techniques when engaging with buyers, traders, and agribusiness partners.
6. Value Addition and Post-Harvest Management
- Identify opportunities for value addition, improved storage, and processing of agricultural commodities.
- Apply basic quality control and product handling practices to improve market value.
7. Climate-Smart and Sustainable Agribusiness
- Identify climate-smart agricultural practices that enhance productivity and resilience.
- Integrate environmental sustainability into agribusiness planning and resource management.
8. Business Growth and Market Linkages
- Develop strategies for expanding agribusiness enterprises through improved market access and partnerships.
- Identify financing opportunities including savings groups, credit facilities, and agricultural investment schemes.
Agribusiness and entrepreneurship Consultancy – Deliverables & Milestones Table
| Deliverable | Description | No. of Days | Responsible Party | Verification Method |
| Inception Report | Inception meeting conducted and report outlining work plan, training approach, agribusiness modules, and training tools | 4 | Consultant | Approved by client/project manager |
| Milestone 1 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 1 report | 0 | Consultant | Inception report outlining methodology and work plan |
| Training Curriculum & Materials | Development of context-adapted agribusiness and entrepreneurship training manual, facilitator guide, and participant handouts | 4 | Consultant | Materials reviewed and approved |
| Training of Trainers (ToT) Session | 3–5 day training workshop for project staff and community facilitators on agribusiness and entrepreneurship | 5 | Consultant & Client | Attendance lists, photos, pre/post-test results |
| Field Practicum / Supervised Rollout | Trainees conduct practical agribusiness training sessions and enterprise planning exercises with farmer groups | 7 | Consultant & Trainees | Observation checklists, feedback forms |
| Milestone 2 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 2 report | 0 | Consultant | Training materials, attendance lists, photos, pre/post test results, observation checklists |
| Monitoring & Business Support Plan | Development of framework for monitoring farmer enterprises, market linkages, and business performance | 4 | Consultant | Monitoring plan reviewed and approved |
| Final Consultancy Report | Comprehensive report summarizing training outcomes, participant performance, lessons learned, and recommendations | 7 | Consultant | Final report submitted and approved |
| Milestone 3 Deliverable | Submission of Milestone 3 and Final Report | 0 | Consultant | Monitoring framework and final consultancy report |
Note: for each of the assignment number of days will be agreed upon
Milestone Timeline Overview
Week 1: Inception report approved
Week 2: Agribusiness training materials finalized
Week 3: Training of Trainers completed
Week 4–5: Field practicum conducted with farmer groups
Week 5: Monitoring and business support plan delivered
Week 6: Final consultancy report submitted
IV. Documents for Assessment
| Registration documents: certificate of registration, memorandum and articles of association, | Accounting Books and Records-general ledger, income and expenditure ledger, cashbook, petty cash book, payment voucher, receipt booklets etc |
| Minutes of management meetings | Annual budgets and plans |
| Minutes of weekly, monthly or annual general meetings | Strategic Plan/Business Plans |
| Other documents requested by the consultants | Standard Operating Policies and ProceduresConstitutions and bye-laws |
| Fixed asset register | |
| Production/Marketing and Sales Plan | |
| Loan and/or grant agreements | |
(Note, all information received will be treated as proprietary and will always remain confidential.)
d. Deliverables (Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Component)
The expected deliverables of this task are as follows:
• An Inception Report with a clear proposed methodology, detailed activity work plan, timeline, and validation plan for the delivery of Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship training to Heifer’s Community Facilitators and farmer groups. The report will include evidence of capacity-building activities, training schedules, and submission of invoices and milestone reports.
• Provision and deployment of recommended agribusiness training materials and tools, including training manuals, facilitator guides, enterprise planning templates, farm record-keeping tools, and business planning worksheets to support the delivery of agribusiness and entrepreneurship training at community level.
• Development and delivery of agribusiness enterprise planning tools to support farmer groups in identifying viable enterprises, conducting cost–benefit analysis, and developing simple agribusiness plans.
• Slide deck presentation summarizing training outcomes, lessons learned, and recommendations, as well as a final consultancy report documenting the implementation process, training results, and key findings.
• Presentation of findings and training outcomes to the Heifer Nigeria team, including recommendations for strengthening farmer entrepreneurship and agribusiness development within the project communities.
Note: All deliverables shall be submitted in soft copy in editable format.
V. Expected Roles of Heifer Nigeria
• Finalize and sign the contract with the consultant.
• Participate in the project inception meeting with the consultant to align expectations, methodology, and implementation schedule.
• Review, validate, and approve all training materials, tools, and deliverables developed by the consultant.
• Facilitate coordination with Community Facilitators and target farmer groups to ensure smooth implementation of the agribusiness and entrepreneurship training.
• Ensure that all payments are made according to the contract terms and milestone schedule.
- Expertise
Heifer Nigeria is looking for either an individual consultant or a consulting firm with key technical staff who have substantial experience in conducting Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) Training for Heifers’ Community Facilitators (CFs) and implementation to farmers’ cooperative groups. More specifically, the consultant or lead consultant should have a proven track record in conducting similar services in Nigeria. The consultant should have expertise in analytical skills and report writing skills in English.
(a) Academic Qualifications of key consultant(s)
At least a master’s degree in a relevant field in, Cooperative studies, Entrepreneurship studies, Economics, Business Administration, Management studies or any other equivalent qualifications from a recognized University.
- Experience
- Have a proven professional experience of at least Fifteen (15) years (with at least ten years professional experience in working with cooperative associations). Experience in implementing VSLA, and agribusiness and entrepreneurship to smallholder farmers’ cooperative will be an advantage.
- Have a good knowledge of the institutional environment in Nigeria, as well as a good understanding of the challenges of farmer cooperatives/groups in Nigeria.
- Application/use of innovative and effective tools for organizational capacity assessment.
- Strong presentation skills
- Knowledge and experience on conducting trainings and impacting knowledge.
- Good communication and facilitation.
- Excellent analytical and writing skills.
- Have excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.
- Excellent analytical, facilitation and communication skills for effective stakeholder engagements/workshops.
- Evidence of having undertaken similar assignments.
- Ability to work efficiently and deliver committed outputs under the assignment within agreed timelines and deadlines.
- Eligible to work in Nigeria.
VII. Application Process
Individual or Consulting Firm Submission Requirements: All interested individuals or firms will submit their organization’s profile with the following information:
Technical Proposal (not to exceed 10 pages)
- General information (not to exceed 2 pages)
- Organization or highly experienced individuals overview highlighting related assignments.
completed with client name, contact person and mobile number.
- Capacity statement
- Legal registration to work within Nigeria.
- Technical Approach (not exceeding 8 pages)
- A detailed methodology on how the assignment will be conducted, training and coaching methodologies, data assessment tools and collection methods and systems/technology to use, field procedures, quality control practices, risk analysis, and data analysis.
- List and briefly describe the team and its proposed personnel, indicating what role each proposed individual will have; CVs of team members to be provided in an attachment. Lead Consultant’s (who will lead the assignment) Maximum 3-page CV highlighting related assignment completed, role in the completed assignment. Other Team members’ (who will be involved in the assignment) 2 paragraph short CV highlighting related assignment completed and role.
- A clear and comprehensive work plan (draft), outlining the major activities, people responsible and time schedule.
o Organizational or individual capacity statement, including past experiences and activities related to the theme of the study. Reference information must include the location, award numbers, and a brief description of work performed.
- At least three references from other clients for which similar assignments were undertaken with contact information for each.
- Financial Proposal (in Naira)
- Itemized budget
- Narrative explanations of line items
- Annexes
- Documents in favour of the previous relevant studies.
- Organization’s/Firm’s Certificate, PIN and VAT registration
- A summary of similar previous assignments undertaken within the last 3 years.
Interested individuals or firms legally eligible to implement this assignment in the Nigeria are requested to submit a proposal. Please include the name of the person in your organization who will be involved in negotiating the contract as well as your telephone and email contact information. Submissions must be in English and typed single-spaced using Times New Roman font size 12, with a complete set of appendices/attachments as applicable. All pages must be numbered and include the SOW reference number on the cover page, and the name of the organization at the bottom of each page.
The successful consulting firm will be required to produce the following documents before executing an
Independent Contractor Agreement (ICA) with Heifer:
- Certificate of Incorporation or Business Registration Certificate.
- A Partnership Deed if you are running a partnership business.
- Audited financial statements for the last 3 years.
- Tax Compliance Certificate.
- Physical location including town, building, room number and postal address.
- Directors’ / Partners’ personal guarantee.
- Trade reference and clientele list including their respective contacts.
The technical and financial proposals must be submitted by email to [email protected]. with clear subject line: “Village Savings and Loan System (VSL) and Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Training-of-Trainers to Heifer Community Facilitators (CFs)” and Organized Smallholder Farmer Group in and include the State(s) of interest (Benue, Nasarawa, Ogun and Kaduna States). and submitted by Friday March 27th 2026, at 5:00pm WAT.
Heifer retains the right to terminate this RFP or modify the requirements upon notification to the Offerors.
VIII. Selection Criteria
Submitted proposals must clearly demonstrate alignment with the SoW outlined above and with the appropriate level of details. Heifer’s goal is to ultimately sign on with the Offeror whose proposal best follows the instructions in this RFP, includes the strong evaluation team, and is most cost effective. Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
| Proposal evaluation focus | Percentage |
| Accuracy and relevance of the proposed technical approach and methodology | 20% |
| Completeness of proposal according to the RFP (general information, activity plan, risk assessment and mitigation plan, | 20% |
| budget, team expertise, etc.) | |
| Proposed team: expertise and competencies to address project components | 20% |
| Relevance and capability/skill to implement/manage the assignment | 20% |
| Budget justification and costs realism | 20% |
The selection committee will evaluate the technical proposal based upon the criteria listed above and they will evaluate the financial proposal based on cost reasonableness and cost-effectiveness in the budget.
IX. Validity of Proposals
Proposals submitted shall remain open for acceptance for 30 days business from the last date specified for receipt of the proposal. This includes, but is not limited to, pricing, terms and conditions, service levels, and all other information. If your organization is selected, all information in this document and the negotiation process are contractually binding.
X. Award Process and Contract Mechanism
| No. | Activity | Due date |
| 1. | Proposal reception | March 27th2026 |
| 2. | Processing and selection | April 3rd 2026 |
| 3. | Notification of award | April 6th 2026 |
| 4. | Award agreement negotiation | April 6th 2026 |
| 5. | Signing award | April 21st 2026 |
Heifer will issue a fixed award agreement based on the submission and Heifer’s acceptance of deliverables.
Once an award is issued, it will include the payment schedule with the deliveries specified above.
- Limitations
This Request for Proposal does not represent a commitment to award a contract, to pay any costs incurred in the preparation of a response to this RFP, or to procure or contract for services or supplies. Heifer reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted and reserves the right to accept or reject in its entirety and absolute discretion any proposal received in response to the RFP.
- Ownership Generally.
Any intellectual property (including but not limited to copyrights, trademarks, service marks, and patents), intellectual property rights, deliverables, manuals, works, ideas, discoveries, inventions, products, writings, photographs, videos, drawings, lists, data, strategies, materials, processes, procedures, systems, programs, devices, operations, or information developed in whole or in part by or on behalf of Contractor or its employees or agents in connection with the Services and/or Goods (collectively, the “Work Product”) shall be the exclusive property of Heifer International. Upon request, the Contractor shall sign all documents and take all actions necessary to confirm or perfect Heifer’s exclusive ownership of the Work Product.
- Prior-Owned Intellectual Property.
Any intellectual property owned by a Party prior to the Effective Date (“Prior-Owned IP”) shall remain that Party’s sole and exclusive property. Regarding any of Contractor’s Prior-Owned IP included in the Work Product, the Contractor shall retain ownership, and hereby grants Heifer a permanent, nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, irrevocable right and license to use, copy, reproduce, publicly display, edit, revise, perform, and distribute said intellectual property, in any format or any medium, as part of the Work Product.
