CONSULTANTS COCOA/NFTP TRIDOM

CALL FOR CONSULTANTS FOR A COMPREHENSIVE LIVING INCOME BASELINE STUDY OF COCOA/NFTP COOPERATIVES’MEMBERS AND NON- MEMBERS IN YOKADOUMA TRIDOM-CAMEROON LANDSCAPE AND IPS CHALLENGES RELATED TO COCOA SECTORTERMS OF REFERENCE (TOR) Contracting Authority: WWF CamerounProject: RESPONSEContract duration: 45 days (ideally between February 15th and April 15th) Contract type: Service provisionLocation: Yokadouma municipality (around Ngatto village)Scope: 3 cooperatives (2 cocoa cooperatives and 1 NTFP cooperative) Confidentiality: The full information contained in the terms of reference described herein is strictly confidential and must not be disclosed outside your organization.1. CONTEXT AND JUSTIFICATIONGrowing demand for cocoa products, favourable agro-climatic conditions in the region, and decliningproductivity in West Africa are driving the expansion of cocoa farming in the Congo Basin. While this expansion may create new income streams for LP & Ips. it can also lead to accelerated biodiversity loss. The search for new income sources is driving producers to convert forests to expand their farms. This conversion of forest ecosystems is exacerbated by climate change, which affects the capacity of forests to provide ecosystem products and services, ultimately impacting the livelihoods and well-being of local communities and threatening the survival of forest wildlife. Furthermore, volatile cocoa market prices, a lack of infrastructure, technical knowledge, and management capacity can keep producers in poverty despite the expansion of their farms, which comes at the expense of forests.The Yokadouma area presents a combination of socio-economic vulnerability and increasing land-use pressure that makes a living income assessment both urgent and strategic. Households rely on highly variable cocoa prices, unstable markets, and limited access to financial services, while Indigenous Peoples (especially Baka) face barriers to equitable participation in value chains. Understanding current income levels, expenditure patterns, and cost-of-living pressures is therefore essential to design interventions that are both inclusive and effective. A baseline is required to allow WWF and partners to measure future progress, identify gaps, and ensure that support to cooperatives and communities leads to measurable improvements in household well-being.To prevent the expansion of this deforestation front and strengthen the region's resilience to climate change, it is crucial to rehabilitate cocoa farms into more diversified and higher-quality farming systems; to access economically responsible markets that comply with global regulations such as EUDR and CSDDD; and to strengthen the voice and rights of local and community-based producers (LBPs) to ensure equitable market access.It is in this context that the RESPONSE project was developed by WWF Cameroon and funded by private donor linked to the cocoa supply chain of this region.This project, implemented for a 5-year period, aims to address the interrelated environmental and socio- economic challenges in the Yokadouma Municipality in the TRIDOM Landscape (WWF Strategic Priority), with the objective of protecting and conserving forests, improving the livelihoods of local communities’ conditions, and strengthening the rights of indigenous peoples, and women. In doing so, the project will contribute positively to the region's biodiversity and climate change mitigation and will be a beacon project to strengthen WWF’s advocacy for the protection of the Congo Basin.Collecting household income, livelihood activities and living-standard information is essential for establishing a realistic socio-economic baseline for c