o   Location: Ghana / Remote, with regular field missions

o   Type of contract: Service Contract – Individual Consultant

o   Contract duration: 12 months (intermittent – “expertise perlée”)

o   Sector: Solid Waste Management, Public Services

As part of the Sustainable Cities Phase 1 project, and more specifically under Component 4 “Build green and sustainable Solid Waste Management Systems”, Expertise France seeks to recruit a Legal-Procurement Expert with strong experience in urban service delivery to support the development of a compliant, transparent and enforceable contractual framework for Solid Waste Management (SWM) services and business models in the target cities of Northern Ghana (Tamale, Yendi, Nalerigu, Damongo, Wa and Bolgatanga).

The purpose of the assignment is to ensure that SWM-related procurement processes and contracts (including PPP/PSP arrangements and performance-based service agreements) are legally robust, aligned with national legislation and donor requirements, and appropriately tailored to the service-management system of MMAs, while also strengthening their institutional and technical capacities, so as to promote accountable, efficient and financially sustainable SWM service provision.

The Expert is expected to conduct regular field missions to the 6 cities for technical supervision, coordination meetings and capacity-building activities MMAS and other relevant key stakeholders.

The assignment aims to support the Sustainable Cities Phase 1 project in reviewing, refining and operationalizing the contractual and procurement framework for Solid Waste Management services and business models developed under Component 4 of the project in the six target cities of Northern Ghana. It seeks to ensure that SWM-related procurement processes and contracts (including PPP/PSP arrangements, franchise-based models and performance-based service agreements) are legally robust, aligned with national legislation and donor requirements, and appropriately tailored to the service-management systems of MMAs.

A key objective is also to strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of MMAs to apply this framework in practice—designing, procuring, monitoring and enforcing SWM service contracts in an accountable, efficient and financially sustainable manner.

1.          Review, consolidation and refinement of the SWM contractual framework

The Consultant will support Expertise France (EF) in strengthening the contractual framework for SWM services and business models already prepared by the project. This includes:

o   Legal and institutional review

-      Review the contractual and procurement framework for SWM services proposed by the Project.

-      Assess its consistency with Ghanaian legislation (local government law, environmental law, public procurement law, PPP/PSP regulations) and with donor requirements.

-      Identify gaps, ambiguities, risks and areas where the framework needs clarification, simplification or strengthening to be fully enforceable and workable for MMAs.

o   Refinement and adaptation to MMA service-management systems

-      Refine and adjust contract templates so that they are aligned with the actual service-management systems, procedures and staffing capacities of MMAs.

-      Propose improvements in structure, wording and clauses (e.g. performance obligations, reporting, payment mechanisms, sanctions, termination) to ensure clarity, legal robustness and operational feasibility.

-      Ensure that roles and responsibilities of all actors (MMAs, private operators, CSOs, regulators, communities) are clearly defined and compatible with MMA mandates and decision-making processes.

Local regulatory and enforcement instruments

The Consultant will help ensure that the contractual framework is anchored in appropriate local regulatory tools and enforceable at MMA level. This includes:

-      Prepare draft local by-laws, decisions and other regulatory instruments required under the project and advise on necessary adjustments to ensure their legal soundness and enforceability.

-      Where needed, propose refinements or complementary texts (e.g. application decrees, local enforcement instruments) that support the effective implementation of the contractual framework at MMA level.

-      Support MMAs in presenting these draft instruments to their relevant governance bodies (General Assemblies), facilitate their review, amendment, formal approval and publication in the official gazette so that the revised framework is officially adopted and can be effectively enforced.

-      Support transmission of adopted by-laws and relevant instruments to the Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC), and follow up on the approval process in line with national requirements.

-      Advise on the articulation between local by-laws and national legislation/regulations to ensure legal security and enforceability for both MMAs and operators.

-      Suggest innovative yet realistic legal instruments and enforcement mechanisms that MMAs can effectively apply, taking into account their institutional capacity and resource constraints.

2.          Operationalisation through procurement and contract-management support

o   Adaptation and use of procurement documents

-      Review and refine the procurement documentation already prepared under the project (Expressions of Interest, calls for proposals, bidding documents, evaluation grids, draft contracts) to ensure coherence with the refined framework and with Ghanaian procurement rules.

-      Translate the framework into operational templates and checklists that MMA procurement units and Waste Management Departments can use in future tenders (e.g. standard ToR, evaluation grids, model notices, award templates).

3.          Management of EOI and Call for Proposal processes for private-sector mobilization

-      Lead the overall procurement process for EOIs and Call for Proposals aimed at mobilizing private-sector and CSO operators in the SWM value chain, from initiation of process to contract award.

-      Prepare and finalise all tender documents (procurement notices, instructions to applicants, application forms, evaluation grids, draft contracts, guidance notes for applicants), in coordination with EF and MMAs.

-      Coordinate the publication and dissemination of the EOI and Call for Proposals through appropriate channels (MMA communication channels and any local other relevant media).

-      Establish and support joint evaluation/selection committees with MMAs (including definition of roles, meeting agendas, code of conduct and conflict-of-interest procedures).

-      Organise and facilitate evaluation sessions, ensuring proper application of the agreed evaluation criteria, transparent scoring and thorough documentation of deliberations (minutes, evaluation reports, recommendation notes).

-      Ensure full traceability and proper archiving of all procurement documents and decisions in line with donor and national requirements.

-      Coordinate communication with applicants throughout the process, including clarifications, notification of results and, where relevant, consolidated feedback to unsuccessful applicants.

4.          Contracting and post-award support

-      Support EF and MMAs in negotiating and finalising contracts between the Assemblies and the selected SWM operators, ensuring full consistency with the refined contractual framework and applicable legislation.

-      Assist in structuring the contractual package (service contracts, annexes, performance indicators, reporting formats, payment schedules, sanctions) so that it is clearly understood and manageable by MMA teams.

-      Develop simple tools and procedures for contract management by MMAs (e.g. dashboard, or contract-management sheets, performance-monitoring checklists, templates for minutes of review meetings, notices of non-compliance, etc.).

-      Provide quality assurance and advisory support during the initial phase of contract implementation, helping MMAs interpret contractual provisions, address early issues and apply enforcement mechanisms where needed.

5.          Environmental compliance, enforcement and dispute-prevention within the framework

-      Review and strengthen environmental, social, health and safety obligations in the existing model contracts and by-laws, ensuring alignment with Ghana EPA regulations and donor standards.

-      Advise on practical monitoring and enforcement mechanisms that MMAs can realistically implement (e.g. progressive sanctions, corrective action plans, performance reviews).

-      Provide guidance on legal tools and procedures for addressing non-compliance and, where necessary, prosecution of serious violations.

-      Refine or propose dispute-prevention and dispute-resolution mechanisms within the existing framework (e.g. escalation steps, mediation, expert determination, arbitration clauses), ensuring they are adapted to the MMA context.

6.          Capacity building and institutional strengthening of MMAs

-      Identify priority capacity-building needs of MMA staff (legal, procurement, finance, Waste Management Departments) for SWM contracting, procurement and enforcement.

-      Design and deliver targeted training sessions and workshops on:

§  the refined SWM contractual and procurement framework and how to use it;

§  key legal and procurement concepts relevant to SWM service delegation;

§  preparation, evaluation and management of SWM service contracts;

§  conducting EOIs and Calls for Proposals;

§  chairing and participating in evaluation committees, documenting deliberations and award decisions;

§  environmental compliance, enforcement responsibilities and dispute-handling.

-      Develop user-friendly guidance materials that explain how to apply the framework step-by-step within MMA procedures.

-      Provide capacity building to designated MMA focal points (legal officers, procurement staff, Waste Management Department, MEHOs) throughout the EOI / Call for Proposals cycle and during the first phase of contract implementation, to consolidate skills and ensure effective transfer of know-how.

-      Advise EF on measures to institutionalize the use of the framework within MMAs (e.g. internal manuals, standard operating procedures, integration into planning and budgeting cycles), so that strengthened capacities and systems are sustained beyond the project’s duration.