Term of Reference

1.     Background and Rationale

The Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), under its mandate of promoting sustainable livelihoods, MSME development, and economic graduation, is strengthening collaboration with PMAS–Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University (ARID) to enhance institutional capacity for enterprise development, value chain strengthening, and rural economic transformation.

In the current economic context of Pakistan, shrinking employment opportunities, rising unemployment particularly among youth and graduates and increasing economic uncertainty have significantly constrained the absorption capacity of the formal job market. Traditional employment pathways are no longer sufficient to meet the growing demand for livelihoods, especially in rural and semi-urban areas. This situation underscores the urgent need to promote entrepreneurship, self-employment, and MSME development as viable and sustainable alternatives. Universities, as centers of knowledge and innovation, have a critical role to play in preparing graduates not only as job seekers but as job creators. However, limited integration of enterprise development, startup incubation, and market-oriented skills within academic systems restricts this potential. Therefore, strengthening faculty capacity to embed entrepreneurship and enterprise development within teaching, research, and student engagement is essential to respond to the evolving economic realities and to support inclusive and resilient economic growth.

While ARID University possesses strong technical expertise, research infrastructure, and domain knowledge in agriculture and allied sectors, there remains a significant gap in translating academic knowledge into market-oriented enterprise development and commercialization pathways. Faculty members are primarily engaged in academic and research-oriented teaching; however, there is limited structured capacity to integrate enterprise development, startup readiness, and business-oriented concepts into classroom delivery, research supervision, and student engagement.

Furthermore, there is a growing need to equip faculty with practical tools and methodologies to prepare students for entrepreneurship, startup development, and self-employment, particularly in agri-based and rural enterprise sectors. Currently, gaps exist in delivering applied business concepts such as opportunity identification, business plan development, value chain development, marketing, and financial literacy and management within academic curricula. This limits the ability of students to transition from theoretical learning to enterprise creation, innovation, and commercialization of research outputs.

In addition, institutional mechanisms for startup incubation, enterprise mentoring, and research-to-market linkages require further strengthening to create a cohesive ecosystem that effectively connects academia with industry and markets. As highlighted in the project design, strengthening institutional capacity for enterprise development and commercialization is critical to enable sustainable economic transformation and value chain development.

To address these challenges, PPAF intends to engage a qualified Consultant to design and deliver a structured 7-day Enterprise Development Training (EDT) programme for ARID University faculty and staff. The training will adopt a practical, participatory, and action-oriented approach, enabling faculty to integrate enterprise and startup concepts into teaching, mentoring, and applied research, while also strengthening their capacity to support MSMEs, value chains, and student-led enterprises.

The intervention will contribute to strengthening ARID University’s incubation ecosystem and institutional capacity, promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, and commercialization, and enabling faculty and students to play an active role in enterprise development, thereby supporting youth employment, rural enterprise growth, and inclusive economic transformation.

The proposed intervention aims to address these gaps by strengthening faculty capacity to:

1)     Deliver enterprise and startup concepts within academic curricula

2)     Mentor students for business plan development and startup creation

3)     Support incubation of agri-based enterprises

4)     Facilitate linkages between research, markets, and MSMEs

This aligns with the broader project objective of strengthening institutional capacity for enterprise development and commercialization.

 2.     Objectives of the Assignment

The overall objective of this 7 days assignment is to strengthen the capacity of ARID University faculty and staff to effectively integrate and deliver enterprise development, entrepreneurship, and value chain concepts within academic, research, and practical learning environments.

Specifically, by the end of this training participants will be able to:

• Elaborate key concepts of enterprise development: business cycle, business planning, marketing, costing & pricing and bookkeeping.
• Recognize and demonstrate personal entrepreneurial competencies.
• Develop and confidently present a business plan based on an understanding of the business cycle, market assessment and marketing mix plan, costing & pricing and financial management.
• Conceptualize, operate and close a practical business creation exercise (BCE).
• Elaborate key elements value chain framework.

 3.     Scope of Work

3.1 Training Design and Customization

The Consultant will:

• Review existing EDT material and contextualize for ARID.
• Customize training module(s) as per the following:
• Agriculture (particularly peanut sector), livestock, agribusiness and any other sector
• University teaching and student engagement
• Teaching aids for classroom delivery
• Case studies
• Startup mentoring

3.2 Training Delivery

• Deliver a seven (7) day Enterprise Development and Startup Incubation Training for selected students, graduates, young professionals, and potential startup teams, with the participation of relevant faculty members for institutional learning and future mentoring.
• Ensure strong focus on:

a)     Practical application

b)     Innovation and entrepreneurship

c)     Startup ideation and validation

d)     Business planning and financial literacy

e)     Enterprise management skills

f)      Market and value chain orientation

g)     Team building and leadership development

3.3 Key Training Session

The following training sessions are proposed to guide the design and delivery of the 7 days Enterprise Development Training. However, the consultant may review, refine, combine, rearrange, or propose additional sessions and training methodologies, as appropriate, to enhance the quality, relevance, and effectiveness of the programme in line with the training objectives and the startup development needs of the participants. The final training curriculum and session plan shall be submitted to PPAF for review and approval.

The training shall include (but not limited to):

 4.     Target Group

The 7 day training will be delivered to a selected group of approximately 25 participants, comprising:

• 5 staff members from PPAF, including relevant programme, operations, and technical personnel involved in livelihoods, MSME development, and value chain interventions; and
• Approximately 20 faculty members from PMAS - Arid Agriculture University (ARID), representing key departments related to agriculture, agribusiness, and allied disciplines.

The selected participants will be those who are directly engaged in, or have the potential to contribute to, enterprise development, startup incubation, research commercialization, and value chain promotion, ensuring effective application and institutionalization of the training outcomes.

 5.     Proposed Methodology

The Consultant will adopt a participatory, action-oriented, and practicum-based training methodology, ensuring that learning is not limited to theoretical concepts but is translated into practical application, teaching integration, and institutional strengthening. The methodology will be grounded in the principle of “learning by doing”, with a strong focus on real-world simulation, problem-solving, and experiential learning.

The training will follow a model that enabling ARID faculty to replicate and integrate enterprise development concepts into their academic teaching, student mentoring, and incubation support systems. The approach will combine:

• Interactive lectures and facilitated discussions
• Case studies and real-life examples (preferably from agriculture and MSMEs)
• Group work and peer learning
• Hands-on exercises and simulations
• Field-based exposure (market survey)
• Continuous reflection and feedback
• Questions and Answers

Special emphasis will be placed on contextualization to agribusiness, rural enterprises, and value chains, ensuring relevance to PPAF and ARID mandate.

The training will adopt a practicum-based and action-oriented learning approach, ensuring that participants actively apply concepts rather than passively receive knowledge. Each session will be linked to practical outputs, enabling faculty to translate theoretical concepts into real-world applications and teaching methodologies. Central to this approach will be the Business Creation Exercise (BCE), which will serve as the core experiential learning tool. Through BCE, participants will be guided to develop context-specific business ideas, conduct opportunity identification and market assessments, prepare business plans, and simulate business operations, including analysis of performance and decision-making. This hands-on process will also demonstrate how BCE can be effectively integrated into academic programmes as a teaching methodology to enhance student learning, entrepreneurship, and startup readiness.

In parallel, the assignment will incorporate an institutional strengthening dimension to ensure sustainability and long-term impact. The Consultant will support the development of a faculty-led enterprise mentoring framework, enabling structured guidance for students and startups. It will also provide actionable recommendations for strengthening startup incubation models at ARID, promoting student enterprise, and integrating enterprise development session into academic curricula and teaching practices.

The Consultant will be responsible for developing or customizing and providing comprehensive training materials to support effective delivery of the programme. This will include a participant handbook, presentations (PPTs), and session delivery guidelines, ensuring consistency and quality of training. In addition, the Consultant will arrange all necessary training stationery and learning aids, including flipcharts, markers, handouts, and practical exercise materials, etc. Where required, the firm will also provide training props and simulation tools to facilitate participatory and experiential learning.

A structured assessment and reporting mechanism will be embedded within the methodology to evaluate training effectiveness and institutional readiness. This will include pre- and post-training test/evaluation to measure knowledge and skills enhancement, as well as evaluation of participants’ capacity to deliver enterprise content and mentor startups. The assignment will culminate in a comprehensive report documenting training outcomes, participant performance, key learnings, and practical recommendations for curriculum integration, incubation strengthening, and enterprise development programming. Overall, this integrated methodology will enable ARID faculty to effectively apply, teach, and institutionalize enterprise development approaches, contributing to sustainable entrepreneurship, startup development, and value chain strengthening.

 6.     Key Deliverables

The Consultant will be responsible for delivering the following key deliverables, reflecting the agreed implementation approach and ensuring effective achievement of the training objectives. Payments will be made upon submission and approval of the following deliverables by the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF):

1. 7.     Duration of the assignment: (3 months)

The total duration of the assignment is stretched over 3 months to achieve the overall scope of work and deliverables.

1. 8.     Supervision and Reporting:

The Consultant will work closely with and report to the designated PPAF focal person, under the overall supervision and guidance of the Head of Programme and Special Initiatives. The consultant will maintain regular coordination with PPAF and ARID University throughout the assignment to ensure effective planning, smooth implementation, and alignment with project objectives.

The consultant will be responsible for timely submission of key deliverables, including the inception report, training delivery updates (as required), and the final training report. Periodic progress updates may be shared with PPAF to inform on training preparation, implementation status, and any emerging issues requiring guidance or decision-making.

All reports and deliverables will be submitted to PPAF for review and feedback, and the consultant will incorporate comments and finalize outputs accordingly. The consultant will ensure close coordination with relevant stakeholders to facilitate effective implementation and reporting.

  11.  Selection Method:

The Consultant will be selected in accordance with PPAF procurement guidelines.

 12.  Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria for Individual Consultant:

PPAF will invite proposals from qualified individual consultants with strong expertise in enterprise development, entrepreneurship, and training delivery. The eligibility criteria are as follows:

1. The consultant should have a minimum of 15 years of relevant professional experience in enterprise development, entrepreneurship, MSME development, or business planning.
2. The consultant should hold a relevant academic qualification (preferably MBA, Master’s in Economics, Entrepreneurship Development, Finance, or related field).
3. The consultant should have a strong track record in designing and delivering enterprise development trainings and technical assistance, preferably with national and international organizations, including National and Provincial Government, Academia (advantage), UN agencies, World Bank, ADB, USAID, or similar institutions.
4. The consultant should have a strong track record of 10 years in conceptualizing, designing and development of enterprise training material/curriculum
5. The consultant should have successfully completed at least 5 similar assignments with sufficient documentary evidence (e.g., contracts, completion certificates, references).
6. The consultant should have a good understanding of the local and regional context, including livelihoods, market dynamics, MSMEs, agribusiness, and socio-economic conditions in Pakistan.
7. The consultant should not have been blacklisted or involved in any misconduct by any government, donor agency, or previous client.

NOTE: PPAF reserves the right to select the best-qualified applicant based on merit and overall suitability for the assignment.

 13.  Ethical Considerations:

The Consultant will make clear to all participants and communities that there is no obligation to participate in the survey. All participants will be assured that there will be no negative consequences if they choose not to participate. The Consultant will obtain informed opt-in consent from the participants. In case if the field staff do not understand participants’ first language, s/he will be taking interpreter/s along. S/he will have to receive prior permission for taking and use of visual still/moving images for specific purposes, i.e., for report and presentations. The Consultant will also assure the participants’ anonymity and confidentiality and will ensure the visual data is protected and used for agreed purposes only.

The Consultant will hand over all the database/list of households and key informants interviewed to PPAF along with the draft report. PPAF holds the ownership of all data collected under this assignment and the Consultant will have no right to use or quote data/information from the survey without prior written permission from senior management of PPAF.

 14.  Confidentiality and Ownership

All outputs and material including, manual, modules, power point presentations, handouts, templates, etc developed under this assignment will remain the property of PPAF.