Researcher

About Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long-term impact.
Mercy Corps has developed a Crisis Analysis function to support our programming in the most complex contexts, including Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Ukraine, and others. The Crisis Analysis supports Mercy Corps’ in-country programming as well as the wider humanitarian response in the region through the provision of quality, timely and relevant analytical products. This analysis is grounded in Mercy Corps’ position as an operational NGO, keeping our products constructive and relevant for humanitarian, early recovery, and development responders and donors within a given crisis.

Context
This study directly serves the Regional Development and Protection Program (RDPP) audience and aligns with the advocacy priority of driving progress in improving the socio-economic conditions of Syrian refugees and host communities through inclusion and self-reliance. By mapping viable sectors, identifying enabling conditions, and analyzing barriers to investment, it will generate evidence that helps advocacy and policy actors pinpoint where privatesector engagement can meaningfully contribute to shared prosperity. The findings will also hold operational relevance
for programs seeking to build partnerships or design interventions that link refugee livelihoods to sustainable market systems.

The product aims to inform advocacy that advances inclusive, market-driven approaches to refugee and hostcommunity self-reliance. By identifying strategic sectors, policy enablers, and partnership models, it will support RDPP stakeholders in promoting private-sector engagement that balances commercial interests with social outcomes. Its secondary value lies in guiding programme design and investment planning, ensuring that interventions are grounded in realistic economic conditions and aligned with broader efforts to foster inclusion and resilience

Project Description
Funded by RDPP, the ‘Strengthening Regional Policy Dialogue and Partnerships on Solutions’ project seeks to promote adaptive solutions for Syrian refugees through evidence-based policy dialogue, advocacy, and strategic alliance-building. Implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Mercy Corps, the project leverages Mercy Corps’ Crisis Analysis to support ongoing and emerging policy and advocacy efforts underpinned by a bespoke body of evidence and grounded in contextual realities. As a multi-donor platform managed by the Kingdom of Denmark, RDPP was first initiated in 2014 as a multi-donor response to address the humanitarian and development needs of refugees and displacement-affected communities in the countries neighbouring Syria. The study on “Exploring Market Opportunities: Cross-border Cooperation and MSME Potential in Lebanon” will map strategic economic sectors and trade opportunities between Lebanon and Syria, that support both refugees and host communities on either side of the border, examining how targeted private-sector engagement can strengthen inclusion and self-reliance. It will identify where what currently drives cross-border market systems, which constraints and opportunities exist for its further growth, which employment and micro/small business
opportunities such growth would create, which market incentives align with these social objectives, assess what policy and structural barriers constrain the required investments, including the exploration of how emerging crossborder economic cooperation with Syria could complement these efforts. The analysis will be descriptive, explanatory, qualitative and interpretive, with a descriptive focus on mapping key sectors and actors, an explanatory approach to unpack the mechanisms and incentives that enable or constrain private-sector participation, and an interpretive dimension to assess how these dynamics shape prospects for refugee and host community self-reliance in Lebanon’s evolving economic context.

The main research questions tackled in this report are:
• What formal and informal trade channels currently link Lebanon and Syria, and how do MSMEs participate in them? (E.g., Are there any going businesses associations? which sectors have been predominant? are there any regulations that would support smoother cross border transitions/ what are some regulatory hurdles? Trade agreements in place should also be considered)
• What are the predominant sectors contributing to cross border cooperation, and which sectors have the most cross-border growth potential? What are key opportunities and constraints for their growth?
• Which economic sectors in Lebanon offer the greatest potential for inclusive investment, job creation, and MSME-led cross-border trade or investment?
• What incentives need to be in place by govt and donors to support cross border trade? and to support its socioeconomic relevance and inclusion?
• What opportunities or constraints exist for Lebanon-based MSMEs to (directly or indirectly) engage in the value chains of cross-border commerce? (e.g. related to finance, logistics, customs, informal pathways, regulatory barriers, distribution and service ecosystems, skilled labour, etc.)
• Which economic sectors in Lebanon hold the greatest potential for refugee-inclusive investment and job creation?
• How do digital platforms, e-commerce channels, and digital financial services shape current or potential crossborder market linkages between Lebanon and Syria, and what barriers may limit MSMEs from leveraging these tools for trade, payments, and business growth?
• What incentives, partnerships, or policy mechanisms can strengthen private-sector engagement in advancing inclusion and self-reliance?

Consultant Activities:
The Consultant will be directly responsible for:
• Identifying and sharing with the lead consultant of relevant existing studies, articles and other documents related to the research questions
• Contextualizing and translating KII interview guides into Arabic
• Identifying and engaging with key informants and conducting KIIs with an agreed list of stakeholders.
• Producing KIIs transcripts and KII summaries (aligning to the KII guiding questions and the research questions) and ensuring they are anonymized and imported into a qualitative coding structure.
The consultant will participate in (and be indirectly responsible for):
• Reviewing and contributing to the lead consultant’s design of the qualitative research methodology
• Reviewing and contributing to the lead consultant’s desk research
• Validating, with the lead consultant, and the CA regional manager for external stakeholder engagement, analytical findings.
• Reviewing and contributing to the lead consultant’s drafts and final versions of the inception and final reports; and possibly required presentations of the same.
• Co-presenting initial findings internally to Mercy Corps and UNDP, and externally (in possibly required briefings, workshops, panels, roundtables, etc).
Consultant Deliverables:
The consultant will:
• Deliver a set of relevant studies, articles and other relevant documents regarding the research questions
• Deliver full KIIs transcripts and substantial KII analytical summaries (each of 1000 words) organized per KII guiding questions and/or research questions).
• Contributions, as requested, to the inception report.
• Contributions, as requested, to the desk review
• Contributions, as requested to, the final report.

Timeframe / Schedule:
The project is scheduled to kick off on 1 June 2026. A draft of the inception report is due on 15 June 2026. The first draft of the research report is expected to be delivered by 20 August 2026, with the final designed version of the report following a three-week review by UNDP and Mercy Corps to be submitted by end of September 2026.

Consultant Fees
The daily rate will depend on the experience of the selected consultant.
Level of effort
The consultant will dedicate an estimated 15 days to the assignment

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.