RFAs: Data-Focused Agri-Tech Acceleration Programme (Tanzania)

Digital agriculture solutions have the potential to address farming challenges, enhance agricultural outcomes, and uplift rural communities by providing access to critical information, products and services. These digital solutions can in turn, enhance smallholder farmer livelihoods, increase productivity, and promote sustainable broad-based economic development in rural areas.

To solve these issues, the proposed programme will support the government to build interoperability between the existing public digital agriculture platforms and to facilitate data integration between public and private digital agriculture platforms. To achieve this, the programme will create a data architecture for an enterprise service bus that will map out how the different platforms under the Ministry of Agriculture could interface in a seamless manner without having to duplicate the different functionalities.

Objective

• The objective of the Agri-Tech Data Accelerator Program is to build a sustainable ecosystem that supports early-stage, post-revenue agri-tech companies by enhancing their data management capabilities to drive product development and scaling. The program will also foster partnerships between the public and private sectors. Its key goals include building a pipeline of commercially viable agri-tech startups, attracting investment, and cultivating a community of practice for knowledge exchange on data-driven agricultural transformation. Additionally, the program aims to develop a self-sustaining accelerator model that helps agri-tech companies optimize data use for informed business decisions while connecting them to patient capital. It will collaborate with public and private sector partners to create a secure data exchange sandbox, enabling integration and innovation testing across digital agriculture platforms.

Scope

• The scope of the assignment involves designing and implementing a comprehensive, data-focused acceleration program tailored for early-growth, post-revenue agri-tech startups, with the goal of fostering a sustainable agri-tech ecosystem. The selected firm will create an acceleration model aimed at enhancing the data management and analytics capabilities of these startups, enabling them to scale, attract investment, and facilitate partnerships with both the public and private sectors. Additionally, the firm will develop a data sandbox that integrates various data types and enables secure data exchange between different digital agriculture platforms, allowing for the testing of use cases related to data cooperation and collaboration.
• It is important to emphasize that while the sandbox environment will enable agri-techs to test and refine use cases, its primary goal is to lay the groundwork for future co-development of commercial products and services. However, the co-development of such products is outside the scope of this assignment.

Eligibility Criteria

• Consulting Firm:
  • Proven expertise in designing and managing acceleration programs, particularly in the agri-tech sector, with a focus on early-growth, post-revenue startups.
  • Successfully conducted similar assignments in Tanzania (preferred) or a similar context.
  • Ability to develop a sandbox environment that enables agri-tech companies to securely share data, collaborate on use cases, and test solutions.
  • Demonstrable understanding of government and sectoral approval processes related to data exchange.
  • Expertise in writing and publishing blog posts or reports focused on program outcomes, objectives, and achievements, particularly in the context of the sandbox and the broader acceleration program.
  • Evidence of past successful engagements in similar agri-tech, data-driven projects, or accelerator program.
• Team Leader:
  • A university degree (Bachelor’s or Equivalent) in data science, computer science, information technology, statistics, mathematics, economics, business administration, or a related field.
  • Minimum 8 years’ experience leading or managing startup acceleration or innovation programs.
  • Minimum of 3-4 years of experience leading or managing startup acceleration or innovation programs focused on agri-tech, technology, or data-driven sectors.
  • Experience in engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, including investors, government bodies, tech service providers, and financial institutions, to create networks of support for accelerator participants.
  • Deep understanding of the agricultural sector, with proven experience working in or managing agri-tech projects or startups, especially those focused on digital solutions, data integration, and innovation.
  • Ability to think strategically and develop long-term plans that align with the program’s objectives, including future scalability and sustainability.
  • Fluent in English
  • Fluency in Swahili would be considered an advantage.
• Team Members:
  • A university degree (Bachelor’s or Equivalent) in relevant fields such as Agriculture, Agri-Tech, Business Administration, Data Science, Technology Management, or related disciplines.
  • Minimum 2-3 years of experience working in the agri-tech sector, startup ecosystems, or related fields.
  • Experience in supporting the management, or execution of startup programs, including, coordination, and participant engagement.
  • Knowledge of the agri-tech landscape, including emerging trends, key players, and challenges facing startups in the agriculture space.
  • Ability to support data collection, analysis, and reporting activities, particularly in relation to assessing startup performance, diagnosing gaps, and measuring program outcomes.
  • Fluent in English.
  • Fluency in Swahili would be considered an advantage.

For more information, visit UNDP.