The Western Economic Corridor and Regional Enhancement (WeCARE) Program, which is a 10-year program, will take an economic corridor approach. It will upgrade 260km of a major highway in the western region of the country, this highway is conceived as “spine” of the economic corridor. There is a strong focus on improving the livelihoods of local communities along the corridor, which extends across ten districts from the southwestern corner of Bangladesh to the Jamuna (Bangabandhu) Bridge. An important aspect of the WeCARE program is its focus on gender and its aim to promote women’s mobility and economic empowerment.

The primary objective of the consultancy assignment is three-fold. It encompasses conducting (a) assessments using quantitative and qualitative research methods, (b) developing actions plans based on the data, and (c) developing transport services pilots for inclusion in the Program.

• Assessments: The consultant is expected to assess and quantify the role that transport and logistics infrastructure plays in women’s mobility and economic empowerment (especially in agricultural value chains). It will also assess the risk that improved transportation poses on the safety of women and girls through enhanced risks of human trafficking. This will be accomplished through collection of qualitative and quantitative data (including using new data collection methods) and review of existing data from secondary sources.

• Roadmaps: The consultant is expected to identify tangible and actionable infrastructure (both transport and logistics) designs that can be included in the project to promote female usage of the transportation investments made by the project and lead to their economic empowerment.

• Pilots: The consultant is expected to develop transport/logistics pilots that could be made a part of the Program.