China nationals: Senior Research Consultant (Promoting Youth-Led Entrepreneurship and Watershed Management)

1.	The proposed Jilin Songhua Lake Integrated Ecological and Environmental Improvement Project (under 
preparation) will continue the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) long-term partnership with the Jilin 
Provincial Government (JPG) in Songhua River Basin water pollution control, taking a holistic approach 
and contributing to the integrated ecological and environmental improvement, sustainable growth, and 
climate resilient agricultural practices in Songhua Lake catchment area.
2.	The JPG and Jilin City People’s Government(JCPG) welcomed  inputs from the ADB Youth for Asia 
initiative and emphasized the need whilst improving watershed management in the Songhua Lake Area, to 
increase youth employment opportunities across Jilin Province which historically saw youth leave from 
the region. It was discussed that the pilot is to support the TRTA and the proposed loan and that:
3.	ADB through Youth for Asia can do a pilot for promoting youth-led entrepreneurship and watershed 
management in three ways: (i) identify and support the local young entrepreneurs in business plan 
preparation and business skill development to be engaged under Output 3; (ii) design and carry out youth-
led public awareness raising and behavior change campaign in sustainable farming and smart solid waste 
management to facilitate capacity development during the project implementation; (iii) collaborate with 
CityDNA to engage young people to facilitate online public consultation. The pilot will contribute to 
the project by (i) tapping into the strengths of the youth to expand the impact of the project, and (ii) 
improving youth livelihood in the Songhua Lake Area. The proposed pilot was well received by the EA. A 
budget of $50,000 proposed to support these activities, is pending approval by ADB. Once approved, the 
pilot needs to be implemented within 12 months.  
4.	The proposed demonstration aims to add value to the ongoing project preparation by incorporating 
youth-led participatory processes that will deepen stakeholder engagement and incorporate innovative 
design thinking approaches and pilot scalable youth-led activities to create entrepreneurial spaces jobs 
for young people and lead towards a more sustainable watershed management. The activities tie into 
several specific outputs of the project, including Output 3: Eco-friendly and inclusive rural livelihood 
improvement piloted and Output 4: Environmental and project management capacity strengthened. The PDA 
will support the operation and preparation of these outputs by testing and implementing innovative 
methods in strengthening data gathering, increasing public awareness of issues, and improving 
sustainable youth-led entrepreneurship. The entrepreneurship aspect of the project aims to provide young 
groups with skills training, mentorship, and access to capital. This pilot program will be closely 
integrated with JCPG and JPG to ensure longevity of the program and will eventually be completely 
locally-run as well as be upscaled after the project loan is implemented.

1.	The national consultant will be coordinating research and with the local government unit to establish 
a study to determine optimal business models for entrepreneurship. The national expert will work under 
the supervision of ADB staff and in close collaboration with the TA coordinator and other experts from 
the Jilin provincial government.   
2.	With particular reference to COVID-19, any need for international and national travel shall be 
assessed by ADB and consultant using ADB’s advice at the time of travel. Subject to ADB’s approval, the 
Consultant may use remote video technology meetings to replace face to face meetings as considered 
necessary. The consultant will report to the Principal Social Development Specialist (NGO and Civil 
Society Center), NGOC, Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department of ADB. 

1.	Specifically, the national consultant will work in collaboration with the National Youth Program 
Coordinator, the TRTA Team, Youth for Asia, and the local governments on the following tasks: 
a.	Virtual Research Supported
•	Consultant will determine the capacity of entrepreneurship in Jilin City and understand the labor 
market especially in watershed management and eco-agriculture;
•	Consultant will design reliable research on entrepreneurial models and conducted in support of local 
government initiatives that utilizes best-practice methods such as usability studies, ethnographic 
research, user interviews, and needs and satisfaction surveys;
•	Consultant will determine the type of research method most appropriate to gather desired information;
•	Consultant will translate goals into research questions and develop research goals; and
•	Consultant will design and conduct remote surveys and focus group discussions designed to gather 
information from stakeholders.

b.	Develop Monitoring and Evaluation Framework
•	Consultant will coordinate with local government, TRTA Team, Youth for Asia, and other relevant 
stakeholders on needs for entrepreneurial pilot monitoring;
•	Consultant will design an M&E architecture suitable for monitoring the outputs and outcomes of the 
youth activities in the pilot activities; and
•	Consultant will develop an Actionable list of recommendations developed on how to implement the M&E 
architecture.
c.	Model outline created for workshop for youth entrepreneurship
•	Consultant will coordinate their research with local government, academic institutions, and ADB and 
bring data into the larger labor market datasets; 
•	Consultant will review previous literature and regional incubators for best practices and shortcomings 
of different approaches; 
•	Consultant will create a comparison of effective incubator and seed programs localized to the Jilin 
context; and
•	Consultant will develop selection criteria and business models for entrepreneurship in watershed 
management and eco-agriculture activities; and
•	Consultant will highlight and explain the proposed workshop best model.