I- Forewords
Created in 2018, ORIBI Village is a non profit organisation registered in Cape Town, South Africa. We are social entrepreneurship incubator belonging to the PULSE incubator network of the SOS Group, the first social enterprise in the CAC 40. ORIBI Village aims to develop and promote social innovation in South Africa with the goal of activating a generation of systems entrepreneurs and enabling the creation of inclusive and alternative ecosystems with relevant stakeholders.
We work with social entrepreneurs within specific themes along the SDG goals, by deploying skills and enterprise development programs with a special focus on developing resilient solutions to engender social, economic and environmental justice.
II- Description of the « Afrique PULSE » project
The objective of the “Pan-African project to strengthen Social Solidarity Economy structures – Afrique Pulse” (AFD agreement n°: CZZ 2834 01E) is to contribute to the sustainable development of Social Solidarity Economy (SSE) actors in order to respond effectively to the socio-economic and environmental challenges of African countries, particularly Morocco, Tunisia and South Africa.
The project first aim is to support the development of social entrepreneurship in the three countries, by strengthening support structures (consolidation of educational resources, team training, adoption of a collective management system) and by developing programmes for project leaders (business skills workshops, funding support, networking development etc…). The project also intends to position the support structures as social innovation laboratories, acting in new territories and opening access to support programmes for a wider public. The incubators are contributing to the empowerment and broadcast of the ecosystem through advocacy and communication strategies that promotes our entrepreneurs and partners’ success stories. Finally, the project contributes to the strengthening of the incubation structures through the consolidation of a sustainable economic model for each of them, adapted to their local socioeconomic contexts.
III- Mission objectives
This mission is part of the Specific Objective 3 – Result 3 of the “Africa PULSE” project. The objective of this mission is to strengthen the financial autonomy of local structures through impact measurement. Thus, the main result indicator targeted for this consulting mission is the following: the economic model of ORIBI is strengthened and more diversified at the end of the project “Africa PULSE” (December 2022).
Mission genesis
In the final evaluation of the LAB’ESS Africa project (2016-2019), it was highlighted that ORIBI Village is one of the few social impact incubation initiative for entrepreneurial projects in South Africa. ORIBI is also the first PULSE incubator having developed thematic incubation programmes to address specific issues of South Africa. “Africa PULSE”, is a continuation of the activities undertaken since 2011 by PULSE in Tunisia and since 2017 in Morocco and in South Africa.
Despite these distinguishing features, ORIBI Village has found it more challenging to become financially sustainable than other incubators, due to its youth and due to the specificities of the local context, where the concept of social entrepreneurship is still undervalued and underrepresented.
South African public donors are difficult to reach as a young initiative belonging to a French group, and European public donors are less active in South Africa than in the Mediterranean. Hence, the incubator now seeks to develop a funding strategy oriented towards European, international, as well as private donors (foundations), alongside the development of lucrative activities.
Mission objectives
The objective of this mission is to test several development hypotheses for ORIBI, with a view to diversifying and consolidating its economic model.
This iteration process has a focus on taking concepts to market as a means of testing the most feasible impact investing solutions and models.
Sub-objectives are the following: Evaluate ORIBI’s value proposition and positioning on the South African market
- The expert will draft an analysis of the positioning of ORIBI in South Africa, including internal and external factors. A SWOT analysis will be produced to highlight the strengths, weaknesses, risks and opportunities of the organisation. Particular attention will be paid to the specificities of ORIBI, namely its 100% shift to thematic formats (food systems, women empowerment…), its 100% digital offer and its focus on informal markets and economies. The consultant should also provide inputs on how to value this positioning and strengths locally and internationally.
- An up-to-date analysis of the current economic model and preliminary study on ORIBI’s capacity to develop an impact investing activity will also be carried out, with the objective of seeing how current ORIBI activities translate into funding and/or influence locally. The economic model should be appreciated from a qualitative and a quantitative point of view.
- Challenging ORIBI’s positioning and economic model will inform the next steps of the consultancy around the creation and implementation of an impact funding activity that will lay down a pathway for income generation for the organisation while strengthening support to entrepreneurs.
Draft recommendations and challenge existing hypothesis to strengthen ORIBI’s positioning and diversify its economic model around the creation of an impact fund activity
- Following the initial assessment, the expert will come up with a proposal to develop revenue generating activities and implement a long-term business model for ORIBI around the implementation and development of an impact fund activity.
- Avenues for development already drafted by ORIBI will also be assessed and challenged by the expert. These include:
- The creation and management of an impact fund (pre seed and seed) with equity participation alongside an orientation towards more and more integrated programs (i.e. from ideation to investment readiness) covering the entire entrepreneurship value chain.
- The creation of an endowment fund for external funders to chip in, and ORIBI to be paid for managing the screening, selection and training process of the entrepreneurs
- For each hypothesis, a short implementation methodology will be drafted, including:
- The modalities for activating the recommendations (legal provisions, material and human resources)
- The levers and obstacles for the structure, which can include a benchmark of already existing solutions and competitors.
- The partners to reach out to, in order to get support for these activities in the short and medium term. Depending on the type of activity, these can include operational partners, potential donors (international, European, local) or potential clients.
The research around the deployment of an impact fund should present to the minimum:
- Develop a return-on-investment pitch deck for each major South African economic sector that the impact fund will invest in
- Market studies on impact sectors including competitor analysis, covering emerging markets – sector examples: education, agriculture and clean energy
- Map core economic sectors and outline Oribi’s return on investments (triple bottom line indicators)
- Develop an asset register for Oribi entrepreneurs reviewing their resources as the basis of scaling the impact fund
- Suggest monitoring and evaluations tools/processes for the impact investing model
- Test the impact fund model with 10 social entrepreneurs in 3 provinces within South Africa
- Ensure a diverse selection process (informal sector – rural and township based; formal – city based)
IV – Mission organization
This consultancy mission aims at improving ORIBI’s strategic positioning and solidifying its economic model. It will be led by ORIBI’s Director, in collaboration with the PULSE team in Paris. PULSE is responsible for the supervision and coordination of the Africa Pulse project.
Location: The mission will take place mainly on site at ORIBI Village, located at 32 Kloof Street, Workshop 17 Gardens – Cape Town 8001 (South Africa). Given the current sanitary context, some activities may be carried out remotely. Interviews with PULSE staff in Paris will be done remotely.
Organization phases
Phase 1 – September 2021 : Scoping meeting with the selected firm/consultant to set the frame and objectives.
Phase 2 – October to January 2021 : Mission deployment
This phase will be punctuated by:
- A mid-term meeting 2 months after the beginning of the mission, to assess the first elements collected and to readjust the provisional schedule, if necessary.
- A final restitution to present the final report to ORIBI and PULSE’s teams, at the end of the mission.
(Please, see a more detailed version of the phases here)
Summary of expected deliverables
- A framing note including the planning of the mission (to be carried out after the document review);
- Reports of the interviews conducted
- A final report including :
- A diagnosis of ORIBI’s value proposition and positioning on the South African market
- A diagnosis of ORIBI’s current economic model
- Hypotheses for the strategic development of revenue generating activities and for the implementation of a long-term business model. These hypotheses will be classified in relation to their degree of complexity (internal setting up, external partners on boarding) and their capacity to generate revenue and create a sustainable business model.
- For the 2 preferred options, a prioritized action plan and implementation methodology.
V – Technical and financial proposal
Available budget: 10 000 Euros or 170 000 Rands
Duration: approximately 30 consultancy days, from September. The duration is subject to proposal from the consultant, based on the proposed methodology.
Applications need to include:
- A technical proposal:
- Proposed methodology for this assignment;
- Consultant’s references and experience (minimum 3 pages);
- CV of the consultants and the distribution of responsibilities;
- Provisional timetable for the intervention as well as an estimate of the workload in man/days.
- A financial proposal:
- Total costs of the mission in EUR including VAT or ZAR including VAT;
- Payment terms and schedule.
The profile of the consultant:
- Experience in the SSE sector, innovation and/or social entrepreneurship in Africa of at least 10 years;
- Impact Investment Knowledge and experiences
- Knowledge of South Africa and of the particularities of the SSE/innovation ecosystems in Europe, the Mediterranean and Africa;
- Similar missions of diagnosis and strengthening of economic models of SSE structures and/or entrepreneurship support.
The Consultant will be selected by a selection method based on quality and cost. See an evaluation grid, on a more detailed document here.
Once the proposals have been received and analysed, ORIBI reserves the right to negotiate the proposals with the shortlisted candidates. The applicant also reserves the right not to select any candidate if no offer is deemed satisfactory.
Any information concerning the “Pan-African Project for Strengthening Social Solidarity Economy Structures – Africa Pulse” and included in the documents of this call for tenders or provided separately must be treated as strictly confidential by the contractor. Applicants agree not to disclose or publish any information relating to this call for tenders. Similarly, any documents provided by the contractor will be treated as confidential.