HARVESTING THE FUTURE OF ROSE IN TÜRKİYE
Request for Proposal (RFP)
Independent Third-Party Audit for CSRD/CS3D Compliance and Assessment in the Rose Supply Chain
March 202
- INTRODUCTION
The Harvesting the Future of Rose (HTF Rose) in Türkiye project aims to address and improve human and labor rights conditions in the rose sector in Türkiye. Since its inception in early 2023, the HTF Rose project has been conducted with a multi-stakeholder framework. By bringing together more than 30 stakeholders, including brands, fragrance and flavor houses, processors, farmers, and civil society organizations, the project fosters a collaborative environment to develop sustainable solutions.
The Project is set up as a sister project under the umbrella of the Fair Labor Association’s[1] (FLA) Harvesting the Future. FLA is the Project Management Organization.
HTF Rose project has three main components.
Component 1: establish strong governance, involving stakeholders, and advocating for the rose sector in Türkiye.
Component 2: build or enhance Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) processes within the rose sector.
Component 3: protect children involved in rose harvesting, raise awareness of the stakeholders, and improve living and working conditions.
The project stakeholders have collectively endorsed the governance framework for the Coalition, which comprises a Project Steering Committee (PSC), a Project Management Organization (PMO) function, a National Advisory Committee (NAC) in Türkiye consisting of local stakeholders, and National Implementing Partners (IP) responsible for spearheading field-level interventions. Gül Yağı ve Aromatik Yağlar Sanayicileri Derneği (GULYAD) is one of the IP to coordinate field-level activities for the project in 2025.
Coalition invites proposals from qualified independent auditors to assess and verify the progress and impact of coalition efforts in mitigating, preventing, and remediating human rights risks in the rose supply chain. This assessment is required to meet the legal requirements of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) while ensuring transparency and accountability in reporting.
- TIMELINE
Request for RFP: March 20, 2025
Deadline to Submit Proposal: April 3 , 2025
Selection of the Expert(s): April 10, 2025
Contract Award / Notification to Others: April 10, 2025
Project implementation: April 15, 2025– October 15, 2025
- PURPOSE AND SCOPE
Purpose
The primary objective of this audit is to verify that coalition reporting accurately reflects the realities on the ground and complies with CSRD/CS3D requirements[2]. The selected auditor will assess the effectiveness of collective actions taken within the project. It should be noted that the project is focused on labor rights; therefore, only the social aspects should be assessed, while environmental factors are not within the scope of this audit.
Goal
The audit will provide an independent evaluation of the coalition’s progress and impact, ensuring that reporting is both accurate and credible through an accreditation-style review.
Scope
The audit will cover the entire project scope, including both FLA and GULYAD activities. This will involve reviewing project management documentation, budget allocations, and performance data.
- BUDGET
The audit will be conducted with an allocated budget of 50.000 USD
- METHODOLOGY AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The selected auditor will carry out a combination of desktop assessments and short on-site visits, structured as follows:
- Desktop Review (Pre-Harvest): Examination of project management reports and data prior to the harvest season.
- On-Site Visit (During Harvest): Field assessment to validate reported progress and conditions on the ground.
- Desktop Review (Annual Report): Evaluation of the coalition’s annual report to verify its accuracy and compliance with CSRD/CS3D standards.
Responsibilities
- FLA: Coordinate with GULYAD for reporting and collection of necessary data.
- Auditor: Conduct independent assessments, report findings, and provide assurance on data validation methodologies.
- DELIVERABLES AND TIMELINE
- Inception Report (Week 1-2)
- A detailed work plan outlining the audit methodology, timeline, and key stakeholders to be consulted. The inception report should also include data collection strategy, including an overview of required documents and sources.
- Pre-Harvest Desktop Review Report (Week 3-6)
- Analysis of existing project documentation, including project management reports, budget allocations, and performance data.
- Pre- harvest report which includes preliminary findings on data accuracy, completeness, and compliance gaps with CSRD/CS3D requirements and key issues to be further examined during the on-site visit.
- Field Assessment Report (During Harvest Season) (Week 7 – 9)
- Harvest report should include summary of observations of project implementation, verification of reported progress against actual conditions, discrepancies.
- Post-Harvest Compliance Report (Week 10-12)
- Post- Harvest report, which should evaluate the effectiveness of collective actions undertaken by FLA and GULYAD. The report should also include comparison of field findings with reported data to assess credibility, and verification of project results.
- Final Audit Report (Week 14-16)
- Consolidated findings from pre-post and field assessments, on accuracy and reliability, data integrity and recommendations should be provided in the final report.
- Audit Validation Workshop & Presentation (Week 16-18)
- A structured presentation summarizing key findings, challenges, and best practices.
- Final validation of the report with necessary revisions based on stakeholder feedback.
The Auditor is also obliged to submit financial report to the FLA.
- REQUIRED AUDITOR PROFILE
The selected auditor must meet the following criteria:
- Independence: Must be independent from FLA and coalition members. Any existing bilateral contracts with members must be disclosed to prevent conflicts of interest. Auditors with related contracts in the project area will be excluded.
- Expertise: Proven experience in impact auditing and compliance with CSRD/CS3D requirements.
- Assurance Capability: Ability to provide external guarantees and data validation methodologies.
- Contextual Knowledge: Understanding of social issues and the Turkish labor landscape, with prior experience in Turkey preferred.
- Reporting Skills: Strong ability to synthesize findings and present them in an executive-oriented, concise format.
- PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Interested auditors should submit a detailed proposal including:
- Company background and relevant experience.
- Proposed methodology and work plan.
- References from similar audits.
- Team composition and key personnel.
- Financial proposal with cost breakdown.
- SUBMISSION DEADLINE
Proposals must be submitted by 3rd of April to [email protected] Shortlisted candidates will be notified for further discussions.
- EVALUATION CRITERIA
The following evaluation criteria will be applied:
- Technical Expertise & Experience
- Methodological Approach
- Work Plan & Feasibility
- Reporting & Communication Skill
- Ethical & Compliance Standards
[1] Fair Labor Association combines the efforts of business, civil society organizations, and colleges and universities to promote and protect workers’ rights and improve working conditions globally through adherence to international standards. Find more about FLA at www.fairlabor.org
[2] CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive): A European Union directive that mandates companies to disclose sustainability-related risks, impacts, and performance in their corporate reports.
CS3D (Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive): Focuses on mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence for companies operating in the EU, requiring them to assess, prevent, and mitigate risks in their supply chains.
