About WCS 

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a private, non-profit organization in the United States founded in 1895. Its mission is to preserve wildlife by understanding critical issues, developing science-based solutions, and taking conservation actions that benefit nature and humanity. With more than a century of experience, long-term commitments in dozens of landscapes, a presence in more than 60 countries, and experience in establishing more than 150 protected areas around the world, WCS has accumulated the biological knowledge, cultural understanding, and partnerships to ensure that wild places and wildlife thrive alongside local communities. In collaboration with local communities and organizations, this knowledge is applied to address species, habitats, and ecosystem management issues that are critical to improving the quality of life of poor rural people whose livelihoods depend on the direct use of natural resources. 

About the Central Africa & Gulf of Guinea region  

The Central Africa and Gulf of Guinea program is one of WCS’s largest global regional programs, covering Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, and Gabon. It is a growing program with a diverse and expanding portfolio of donors, partners, and projects. The region presents a complex set of challenges in conserving biodiversity and their habitats and WCS field programmes address them through a number of initiatives, including protected area management, community engagement, sustainable livelihoods, policy reform and sustainable financing. The regional team operates from WCS’s Africa Regional Office in Kigali, Rwanda. 

General objectives of consultancy 

WCS has a fleet of vehicles and other motorized equipment and has established mechanical workshops at several sites throughout the region. WCS wishes to set up a coherent, efficient and secure system for the management of these workshops as well as the development of the capacity of the staff operating there. In addition, there is a need on some sites to diagnose several vehicles and decide on their future. 

We are therefore looking for a qualified, experienced and structured consultant to carry out this activity. 

Specific objectives and activities 

• Perform vehicle diagnostics at WCS sites and make recommendations as well as conduct or supervise necessary corrective actions. 

• Participate in the professionalization of WCS workshops by creating a manual of workshop management procedures including among other things physical layouts, equipment and tools, administrative management of the workshop and spare parts. 

• Implement recommended and validated procedures at one or more sites that WCS will select. 

• Train workshop staff and staff collaborating with the workshop in the procedures and administrative and material management of the workshop. 

• Other activities identified by WCS that fall within the scope of the consultant’s competencies and the objectives of the consultancy.  

 Deliverables 

• A WCS Validated Procedures Manual 

• Diagnostic and repair reports 

• Training Reports 

• A WCS Validated Activity Report 

 Minimum Qualifications and Skills Required 

• Hold at least a BAC+3 in mechanical engineering or any other equivalent degree.  

• Have 8 to 10 years of experience in workshop management and maintenance practice of rolling and motorized machinery.  

• Proficiency in MS Excel and MS Word 

• Be fluent in French and have a basic level of English or be fluent in English and have a basic level of French.  

 Evaluation criteria 

• The consultant’s technical capacity in relation to the objectives (25%);  

• The consultant’s experience on similar projects (25%); 

• Methodology (15%) 

• The availability of the consultant (15%)  

• The financial proposal (20%). 

 Logistics and cost sharing 

• Costs borne directly by WCS: 

• International and domestic transport of the consultant when deployed in a country and on sites 

• Hosting the consultant when deployed in a country and at the sites 

• The consultant’s food when deployed in a country and at the sites. This will be paid in accordance with the country’s policy or on the basis of a pre-negotiated lump sum. 

• Costs related to the consultant’s work (laboratory tests, printing of documents, etc.).  

• Costs reimbursed by WCS: 

• International transportation costs from the capital of the country of residence to Kigali, Rwanda 

• Associated visa fees, if applicable 

• Costs covered by the consultant: 

• Accommodation of the consultant when s/he is in Kigali 

• The consultant’s food when s/he is in Kigali 

• Transportation of the consultant from his/her place of residence in Kigali to the WCS office 

 Calendar 

WCS wants to start this service on February 1, 2025.  

 Submission Instructions 

Interested candidates, who meet the above qualifications, skills and experience, should send their offers to globalpurchasing@wcs.org with the subject line: « Workshop Maintenance and Management Consultant » by the 5th January 2025. 

Offers must contain: 

• Up-to-date CV supported by proof of experience, 

• The candidate’s methodology and approach to the implementation of the activities  

• The financial offer and the timetable for the implementation of the procedures manual