Our services
In addition to the areas of focus presented below, Afai Consulting is keen to provide the bespoke services you require.
Our proven track record in undertaking ground-breaking research is complemented by our expertise in how to approach, understand and address different supply chain scenarios and their local specificities across the globe.
Supply chain and sector evaluations
We support our clients to understand their supply chains or the sectors they source from, as well as the risks associated to this sourcing.
To do so, we either develop customized frameworks for evaluation aligned with the relevant existing standards such as the OECD Guidance, IFC Performance Standard, Social-LCA methodologies, etc…, or adapt existing standards to the specifics of the supply chain or sector under consideration via a process of onshoring.
Note that field data collection can be conducted with the participation of our clients, thus generating direct insights.
Based on our evaluation we develop engagement recommendations for our clients’ risk management. Doing so usually encompass the following elements:
- Identification of priorities in line with our clients’ internal policies and requirements.
- Identification of relevant local stakeholders for engagement. Both generally and for the proposed recommendations.
- Presentation of result to the clients’ teams and/or management.
Integration of ASM in global supply chains
The integration or strengthening of ASM stakeholders into supply chains is a process that requires specific tailoring but will generally requires:
- Mapping the supply chain actors and processes, as well as requirements;
- Assessing ASM actors’ readiness to participate in the supply chain and developing multi-stakeholder continuous improvement plans;
- Identifying local partners to monitor and support implementation;
- Third-party verification of continuous improvement plans;
- Training of clients’ procurement personnel on the reality and potential of working with ASM, as well as on the associated risks and mitigation strategies;
- Supporting clients’ team in the design of strategies, policies and procedures to integrate or strengthen ASM actors within their supply chains.
Supplier evaluation
Our evaluations of operators (audits and verifications) against specific standards enable our clients to assess the performance of participants in their supply chains, request corrective actions, and monitor their implementation.
To do this, we develop customized evaluation frameworks that are aligned with existing standards such as the OECD Guidance, IFC Performance Standard, Social-LCAs, etc…, or adapt existing standards to the specifics of the operator under consideration via a process of onshoring.
Said evaluations can also include the:
- Development of corrective action plans (CAPs).
- Follow-up and monitoring of CAPs via local experts or remotely, as required.
In addition to offering full evaluation services, we also support our clients in conducting their own supplier evaluations by adapting their assessment tools to the national context of their suppliers as well as creating methodologies and formats to interpret the data collected. This enables clients to not only ask the right questions and request relevant evidence but also assess responses within their appropriate context.
These efforts can also be further supported by our capacity building offering
Capacity building
Capacity building services are specific to each situation but usually focus on the following types of support:
- Preparing a team for an on-the-ground experience in a specific country and providing support throughout the process.
- Consolidating existing knowledge within a company and integrating it to its decision-making systems.
- Facilitating and coordinating thematic working groups on responsible mining and supply chains. This includes:
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- Supporting information sharing between various brands or Maisons within a company, as well as between different companies.
- Dialogue-based network learning, generating knowledge, identifying best-practices and, when needed enabling collective action.
- Providing training on established best-practices, standards and methodologies.
