Job advertisement: Consultancy for a demand assessment of ‘early adopter’ travellers to Timor-Leste for The Asia Foundation

 

 

JOB ADVERTISEMENT

 

A demand assessment of ‘early adopter’ travellers to Timor-Leste

 

Background on The Asia Foundation’s Tourism Program:

For nearly 30 year The Asia Foundation (the Foundation) has worked in Timor-Leste - alongside government, civil society and community partners. The Foundation is currently focused on strengthening governance and policy, ending violence against women, developing sustainable tourism, and promoting peace and justice.

Developing Timor-Leste’s tourism sector is a key focus for diversifying the nation’s oil-dependent economy. While Timor-Leste has much to offer visitors, building a tourism sector in Asia’s newest nation is not without its challenges, with barriers being overcome through concerted action and partnerships between government, private sector and civil society stakeholders.

Since launching the country’s first survey of visitors to Timor-Leste in 2014, the Foundation’s office in Timor-Leste (TAF-TL) has supported informed tourism development in Timor-Leste through its Tourism Development Project, with support from the New Zealand Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade. The project builds on extensive research, strategies, policies, structures and relationships developed with the Government of Timor-Leste, donors and the private sector in previous years. Its purpose is to improve the economic well-being of Timorese by increasing equitable livelihood opportunities through job creation and increased income, particularly at the community level, through engagement in the growing tourism sector.

This will be done by focusing program activities on:

1. Developing the Maubisse-Aileu Region of Timor-Leste into a dynamic regional hub and destination tourism that increases economic benefits for communities;

2. Improving the quality and promotion of food and coffee tourism products and experiences in Timor-Leste, particularly in Maubisse and Aileu;

3. Strengthening tourism industry bodies; and

4. Working collaboratively with MTCI and the government of Timor-Leste more broadly to prioritize and promote tourism development in Timor-Leste.

Statement of Work

The 2020 outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) , presents the world’s tourism sector with a major and evolving challenge. Tourism is a function of the movement and interaction between people and is currently one of the hardest-hit sectors by the outbreak of COVID-19.

As such in the short term (2020-2022), it is unlikely that Timor-Leste will receive international arrivals at a level that was entertained prior to COVID. In 2019 Timor-Leste received 80,758 Class I (tourist visa) international arrivals, of which 11,255 were leisure travelers who had visited Timor-Leste as holiday-makers1. In the first half of 2020, Timor-Leste received approximately 24,872 Class I international arrivals, and in the period following the country’s state of emergency, restrictive measures have since been placed on international arrivals as well as limits to commercial air travel.

Given this, The Asia Foundation will conduct a demand assessment of early adopters in that focus on Timorese Travelers, Resident Expats and Business Travelers

Definitions of this subgroup follows:

Timorese Travelers, Resident Expats and Business Travelers. The 2018 Survey of Travelers2 show a higher percentage of visitors entering the country for long-term work or volunteering, making them a key group to target given their higher entry numbers and extended periods of time in-country for repeated exposure to and potential uptake of the marketing of Timor-Leste’s tourism offerings, particularly outside of Dili such as in Maubisse and Aileu. The 2018 Survey of Travelers confirms that of the current pool of “leisure” travelers (measured by entry based on a tourist visa regardless of actual purpose of stay), 53% visited Timor-Leste for the primary reason of work. Of those, 37% were working for over six months and an additional 31% were working as volunteers. Those in the former group come from both public and private sector fields, including diplomatic and development workers as well as international business travelers with long-term interests in Timor-Leste. While only 14% (of the 53% visiting Timor-Leste for work) were working for less than six months and/or had travelled to Timor-Leste to attend a conference or meeting, the research will also target these short-term business travelers given their potential interest in tourist activities during their business trips. This sample group should also include Timorese travelers who would normally travel overseas, but due to limitations on commercial air-travel due to COVID are engaging in domestic travel.

Objective of the consultancy

The assessment will look to answer the following questions:

- What is the demand for travel to Dili, Maubisse and Aileu regions of Timor-Leste (including previous visits/frequency of travel, specific sites visited within these regions etc.);

- What is the demand for travel to other popular tourism regions in Timor-Leste;

- Whether there exist variations in demand for specific types of tourism or visits to specific tourism locations, depending on time of year;

- What niche tourism products and experiences might early adopters be interested in engaging in, within these regions;

- Are there any specific focus on sub-group interest in food and coffee tourism products and experiences;

- What barriers to travel (e.g. access to information, ability to make booking) currently exist for the early adopter market;

- What is the perception of quality of existing products and experiences; and

- How much are people willing to spend on these products and experiences?

Deliverables

1. Develop a survey methodology and questionnaire that targets the pre-defined category of early adopters.

2. Implement research and collect data from respondents using a mix of qualitative and quantitative research methods

3. Draw on analyses to write a short (8-10 page) report that provides an evidence-based assessment of early adopters and their potential as a target market for tourism in Timor-Leste. The report should include market segmentation analyses by type of travelers and type of niche tourism activity they engage in.

1. Survey Questionnaire & Methodology

The survey questionnaire(s) should be guided by the key research questions outlined in Objectives of the Consultancy.

Research may be mixed methods, comprising of key informant interviews, qualitative analyses and quantitative closed-end multiple choice questions where necessary.

Final survey questionnaire and methodology should be provided in the form of a word document to The Asia Foundation, for approval prior to commencement of data collection.

2. Implement surveys and collect data

The consultant will be responsible for ensuring that the full sample size proposed in the methodology is reached. This may require outreach to possible respondents, as well as to specific groups, businesses and organizations.

The consultant will be required to analyze and interpret data towards informing deliverable (3) below. Raw data collected as part of this study will be submitted to The Asia Foundation together with a log-sheet detailing evidence of surveys conducted.

3. Survey Report

The survey report should provide recommendations on the types of tourism offerings that should be made at certain times of the year to early adopter travelers. For example, this may include coffee harvest festivals, and local cultural celebrations, as well as specific types of niche travel among others.

The report should include an assessment of current demand for food and coffee tourism.

The study should also include a demand assessment of the Maubisse-Aileu geographic region.

General recommendations should also be made on the potential for cultural tourism/community-based tourism, hiking, cycling, historic tourism and other niche tourism activities, towards understanding market segmentation as well as the travel behavior of the sub-groups (e.g. divers vs non-divers, travelers with/without children etc.) that comprise early adopter travelers.

Timeline. All deliverables should be completed no later than 7 September 2020. It is recommended that the consultant use the following schedule:

Deliverable Completion Date:

1. Develop survey questionnaires and sampling methodology 18 August

2. Complete data collection and analysis 1 September

3. Submit Survey Report 7 September

Required qualifications:

For this position, the Foundation seeks a candidate with a background in:

· Tourism development;

· Survey design; and

· Both quantitative and qualitative research.

Applications:

Applications inclusive of CV, proposal (no more than 3 pages) addressing the objectives of the consultancy and a detailed budget should be sent to Ms. Dian Saputri – Human Resource Manager via email tl.recruitment@asiafoundation.org no later than 5:00pm on Sunday 9 August 2