Sectoral resilience assessment and implementation roadmaps for building climate resilient infrastructure and enhanced comprehensive DRM in Barbados

Description

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is seeking a consulting firm to assess and strengthen the climate resilience of two key sectors in Barbados—specifically Tourism and Agriculture. This project is heavily informed by the real-world impacts of Hurricane Beryl (2024), aiming to turn those lessons into actionable, costed investment roadmaps.

Key components of this consultancy include:

1. Diagnostic analysis of sectoral vulnerabilities
The firm will conduct a deep dive into the infrastructure and systemic weaknesses exposed by recent climate events. This includes:

Hurricane Beryl Review: Assessing specific damage to tourism and agricultural assets to identify recurring failure points.

Gap Identification: Pinpointing institutional, technical, and operational deficiencies that hinder recovery and long-term adaptation.

Field Assessments: Conducting site visits and interviews to map exposure to cascading risks (e.g., how a storm-damaged power grid impacts agricultural cold storage).

2. Mapping institutional roles and coordination
The study will evaluate how different agencies talk to each other during and after a disaster. The consultant will:

Analyze the roles of national and sub-national entities in Disaster Risk Management (DRM).

Identify constraints to cross-sectoral collaboration.

Propose improvements to governance structures to ensure "risk-informed" decision-making is consistent across the government.

3. Design of strategic sectoral roadmaps
The core deliverable is a set of comprehensive, costed implementation roadmaps for each sector. These roadmaps will include:

Priority Investments: Highlighting necessary public works and infrastructure upgrades.

Resource Requirements: Clear timelines, responsible entities, and estimated budgets.

Scalability & Gender: Ensuring that actions are inclusive and can be expanded as more resources become available.

4. Stakeholder engagement and capacity building
To ensure the roadmaps are practical and supported by those on the ground, the firm will:

Participatory Workshops: Facilitate at least two workshops per sector (Inception and Validation) to build consensus.

Targeted Training: Design and implement training sessions for frontline personnel and government staff on infrastructure investment and resilience practices.

Institutionalization: Create mechanisms to ensure that lessons learned are permanently integrated into future policy and investment cycles.

Note: Interested firms must carefully review the registration requirements in the BEO Bidders Portal.