RFP - Development and maintenance of 10 urban food gardens in municipal schools in Kolkata

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About the Organization

ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is a global network working with more than 2500 local and regional governments committed to sustainable urban development. Active in 125+ countries, we influence sustainability policy and drive local action for zero emission, nature-based, equitable, resilient and circular development.

About the Proposal

The project aims to develop functional green spaces in schools, supplement the mid-day meals with organic vegetables, improve biodiversity and connect young urban students with agriculture. The project will address the same through the development of food gardens in the schools.

Urban food gardens provide an array of benefits to students, teachers, and the community. Apart from providing fresh produce and educational opportunities, they also help to promote a healthy lifestyle and inculcate a greater appreciation for the environment. School gardens offer a unique opportunity for students to engage in hands-on learning of agriculture. This helps to increase their level of interest and thus the chances of replicating the same at their residences is higher. The produce from these gardens helps to supplement the nutrition in the mid-day meals. It has also been reported that spending time with nature and carrying out gardening has a positive impact on the mental health as well as adds to the physical activities in the daily routine of the children. In addition, food gardens contribute to improvement in the pollinator base and soil biodiversity, thereby contributing to enhancement in the overall biodiversity. Majority of the municipal schools in Kolkata do not have functional food gardens.

This TOR aims at development and and maintenance of 10 urban food gardens (multi-layered, with one layer covering a minimum of 100 sq ft) in municipal schools in Kolkata for a period of two years. In addition, the students will be provided with hands-on training in the gardens on various aspects of vegetable farming. The chosen agency will also have to maintain daily records and photographs of activities carried out in each school on daily basis and also the maintain the harvest details and photographs of the cooked products. Specific data sheets for all these will be provided by ICLEI South Asia, to the selected agency, for the same.

Scope of Work

The scope of work is divided in three parts:

• The winning bidder will develop a detailed design of the food garden, which will be used as a prototype in each school
• The winning bidder will develop all the 10 food gardens and maintain them for two years
• The winning bidder will collect and share all data, in the desired templates
• The winning bidder will develop training material for students on food gardens and regularly provide trainings in all the schools, over the entire project duration

Deliverables

• Detailed design of the proto-type food garden
• Identification and sourcing of seeds, planting material, soil, compost and other required material inputs
• Developing the food gardens in 10 municipal schools in Kolkata
• Maintaining all the 10 gardens for 2 years, post establishment, including daily watering and addressal of any issues on immediate basis
• Carry out Integrated Pest Management in all the food gardens
• Maintain harvest and other daily activity records and photographs and share the same on daily basis, in the templates that are provided
• Develop training manuals for students and provide regular trainings to students in all the schools, over the span of two years

Eligibility

• Should be well versed with the subject
• Should have led similar work for at least 5 years
• Should have experience in successfully developing and maintaining roof top food gardens throughout the year and should have undertaken the implementation of the same through atleast twenty projects in any place in India in the past three years as on date of release of the TOR.
• Should furnish self-attested copies of work orders for these works and a copy of certificates for successfully developing and maintaining roof top food gardens from the same client
• Should not be under declaration of ineligibility for corrupt or fraudulent practices or deficiencies of services or blacklisted with any Government/Non-Government agencies at the time of bidding
• In case of consortium, the lead partner should be defined and the same will be responsible for all the deliverables. Role of all other partners also needs to be clearly defined.

How to Apply

The Terms of Reference (ToR) shall be downloaded free of cost from the ICLEI South Asia website

The bid document shall be submitted by bidders through email to the below mentioned email ID on or before 29th April 2025: monalisa.sen@iclei.org

For more information please check the Link

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Tags Environment and Sustainability Food, Agriculture and Nutrition Others