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PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT
The REAP Project is a 27-month humanitarian and development intervention funded by Save the Children Italy and Implemented by Save the Children International (SCI) in Partnership with Somali Lifeline Organisation (SOLO) and the Relief, Reconstruction and Development Organization (RRDO). The project runs from October 2024 to October 2026. Operating across the Dadaab Refugee Complex, one of the largest and most protracted refugee situations in the world, the project targets 25,000 direct and 40,000 indirect beneficiaries, with a dedicated livelihoods component under Output 4.1 that supports adolescent mothers, caregivers, and foster parents through enterprise training and start-up support.
Following the first cohort of training, SOLO commissioned a Tracer Study of the Livelihoods Component in April-May 2026 to assess post-training socioeconomic outcomes and identify barriers to livelihoods sustainability. The tracer study surveyed 419 beneficiaries across Ifo 1, Ifo 2, Dagahaley, and Hagadera settlements. While the study documented significant positive outcomes; including a doubling of mean monthly profit (from KES 1,270 to KES 3,400), near-universal business participation (99.8%), and strong empowerment gains; it also identified critical structural gaps that constrain the depth, sustainability, and resilience of livelihood outcomes.
Evidence Base for This Assignment
The tracer study findings that directly necessitate this refresher training are as follows:
Capital & Cash Flow Constraints
72.8% of respondents cited lack of capital as the primary barrier to business growth, and only a single lump-sum cash injection was provided at start-up, with no phased or performance-linked support. This is compounded by weak cash flow management and stock control practices.
Fragile Business Performance
While 82.5% reported increased profit, 71.8% of respondents could survive less than two weeks without external assistance in the event of an economic shock; indicating that income gains have not translated into financial resilience.
Weak Market Linkage & Diversification
82.6% of enterprises concentrated in retail trade and 13.6% in livestock, resulting in market saturation. Despite 88.5% of respondents being aware of alternative enterprise opportunities, most had not diversified; a gap attributed to capital barriers, risk aversion, and insufficient market linkage facilitation.
Gaps in Post-Training Support
*Refresher sessions on cash flow management, stock control, and business planning were explicitly identified as a top priority by both tracer study respondents and Key Informant Interviews. Mentorship and structured enterprise coaching were rated as critically insufficient.*The purpose of this assignment is to engage the services of a qualified trainer or a firm, to design and deliver a practical, context-appropriate refresher training programme for host and refugee business group members previously supported under the REAP livelihoods component. The training should directly address the skill deficits and structural gaps identified in the 2026 Tracer Study, with particular emphasis on enabling participants to maintain accurate business records, manage cash flow and savings effectively, diversify to new products and services, leverage market linkages to access new markets and grow their enterprises.
The training is not intended to replicate or replace the initial enterprise training already delivered under Output 4.1. Rather, it constitutes a targeted, evidence-informed refresher intervention designed to consolidate prior learning, fill specific skill gaps, and build the business management foundation necessary for sustainable enterprise growth beyond a survival stage.
OBJECTIVES
Overall Objective
To strengthen the business management, financial literacy, and market access capacities of host and refugee enterprise operators in the Dadaab Refugee Complex, contributing to more resilient, diversified, and profitable livelihoods for the most vulnerable households.
Specific Objectives
Equip participants with practical skills in business record keeping, including income and expenditure tracking, stock records, and simple profit and loss calculation.
Build capacity in day-to-day financial management, including cash flow planning, budgeting, savings discipline, and managing intra-household income pressures.
Strengthen participants’ understanding of working capital management and responsible approaches to accessing and repaying credit.
Connect participants to market information, value chain actors, aggregators, and financial service providers relevant to their enterprise sectors.
Support enterprise diversification by building participants’ confidence and practical capacity to explore viable alternative sectors identified in the tracer study, including food processing, tailoring, personal care, digital services, and dairy value addition.
Reinforce linkages between enterprises and savings and credit mechanisms, including VSLAs, cooperatives, and informal savings groups.
SCOPE OF WORK
The selected trainer or firm shall undertake the following tasks:
Inception and Needs Confirmation
Review the 2026 REAP Tracer Study report, prior training curricula, and relevant programme documents.
Conduct brief needs confirmation consultations with SOLO programme staff, RRDO, and a representative sample of target participants to ground-truth training priorities.
Submit an inception note outlining the confirmed training approach, schedule, participant groupings, and content outline.
Training Design and Curriculum Development
Develop a training curriculum tailored to low-literacy participants, using participatory, hands-on, and visual learning methodologies appropriate to the Dadaab context.
Structure training modules across three core thematic pillars:
Module 1- Business Record Keeping: simple bookkeeping tools, daily sales and expenditure records, stock tracking, and basic profit/loss statements adapted for low-literacy users.
Module 2 – Financial Management: cash flow planning and projection, separating household and business finances, savings discipline and goal-setting, understanding credit and responsible borrowing, and linkages to VSLAs and savings groups.
Module 3 – Market Linkage and Enterprise Diversification: reading and using market price information, understanding value chains relevant to Dadaab, introduction to alternative viable enterprise sectors, connecting to buyers, aggregators, and input suppliers, and navigating financial service providers.
Develop participant workbooks or job aids suitable for continued reference after training.
Ensure all materials are gender-responsive, accounting for caregiving responsibilities and time constraints faced by the predominantly female participant group.
Translate key materials into Somali where required.
Training Delivery
Deliver the training across all four settlements: Ifo 1, Ifo 2, Dagahaley, and Hagadera.
Facilitate separate sessions for host community and refugee business group members, or combined sessions where operationally appropriate, as agreed with SOLO.
Employ participatory adult learning methodologies including case studies, role plays, practical exercises, peer-to-peer sharing, and group problem-solving.
Facilitate market exposure visits or market vendor interaction sessions where feasible to reinforce market linkage content.
Administer pre- and post-training knowledge assessments to each participant group.
Reporting and Follow-Up Support
Compile a training report covering delivery, attendance, pre/post assessment results, key learning outcomes, participant feedback, and recommendations for further follow-up.
Provide SOLO with a follow-up coaching guide or toolkit that programme staff and community volunteers can use to support participants in applying skills over the six months following training.
5. TARGET PARTICIPANTS
The refresher training targets two primary participant groups:
Previously trained REAP beneficiaries; comprising adolescent mothers, caregivers, and foster parents who completed the initial enterprise training under Output 4.1 of the REAP Project. These participants have an existing business management knowledge baseline and are the primary subjects of the 2026 Tracer Study.
Host community business group members; selected to ensure shared learning, social cohesion, and complementary market dynamics between refugee and host community enterprise operators.
The total number of participants to be trained across all four settlements will be confirmed in the inception phase in consultation with SOLO and RRDO. Participant lists will be drawn from SOLO and RRDO training registers.
Given the tracer study finding that 85.7% of REAP livelihoods beneficiaries are female, the training must be designed to be fully gender-responsive, including flexible scheduling, provision for caregiving responsibilities, and facilitation approaches that promote equal participation by women.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
The trainer, firm, or consultancy should demonstrate the following:
Essential Requirements
Demonstrated experience designing and delivering financial literacy, business record keeping, and enterprise development training in humanitarian or refugee settings.
Proven track record working with low-literacy, women-headed, and highly vulnerable beneficiary groups in East Africa or comparable contexts.
Experience using participatory, adult learning, and visual methodologies suited to participants with limited formal education.
Understanding of the Dadaab context, refugee livelihoods, and the regulatory environment governing enterprise activities in the camp settings.
Fluency in Somali (or access to qualified interpreters/co-facilitators) and ability to adapt training materials into Somali.
Availability to deliver training across all four Dadaab settlements within the agreed timeframe.
SUPERVISION AND REPORTING
The trainer or firm will report directly to the SOLO Livelihoods Programme Officer, with technical oversight from the REAP Project Manager at SOLO. Close coordination will be maintained with SCI field staff for logistics, participant mobilization, and settlement access.
How to apply
Interested trainers, firms, or consultancies should submit the following to SOLO through [email protected] with the subject line: ‘REAP Refresher Training – Record Keeping, Financial Management & Market Linkage’ by 23rd June, 2026.
Any questions in regards to this can be done by 19th June 2026.
Technical proposal (max. 5 pages) outlining understanding of the assignment, proposed training approach and methodology, and how gaps from the tracer study will be addressed.
Sample training curriculum or module outline demonstrating experience with financial literacy or business skills training for low-literacy adult beneficiaries.
Portfolio / samples of similar previous work, including at least one example of materials developed for participants with limited formal education.
CVs of lead trainer(s) and any proposed co-facilitators.
Proposed work plan / timeline.
Financial proposal detailing all costs including facilitation fees, material development, travel, per diem, and any other relevant expenses.
Company / individual registration documents (where applicable).