HORSE Sport Ireland (HSI) is seeking consultants to support the development of a new strategic plan for the next five years from 2019-2024.

The governing body are estimating that the successful tenderer will deliver the strategic plan within a five-month period from September 2018 to January 2019, and it will include “vision, mission, goals, objectives”, among other requirements.

The document, published on the Horse Sport Ireland website this week, states than the last strategic plan expired in 2012 and since then HSI has been an industry partner in devising and developing Reaching New Heights, which was published in 2015.

The document also explains that following the publication of the Indecon Report, commissioned by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed TD, in June 2017, the HSI board have set up the ‘Indecon Implementation Taskforce’, comprising key representatives from the DOA, Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, and HSI.

The document reads: “Within a nine-month timeframe, the taskforce together with the Board of Horse Sport Ireland have successfully implemented all the key recommendations, including a significant restructure to the Board of Horse Sport Ireland, reducing the number of members from 19 to 9, of which the Chairperson and three ordinary members are appointed directly by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in consultation with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport.

“Further, one ordinary member will be nominated by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and Sport NI and appointed by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in consultation with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport. The revised Horse Sport Ireland Board is effective from 31 July 2018. In order to solidify the roadmap for the future, it is now imperative that organisation specific strategic plan is formulated and published.”

However, the appointment of a chairperson and the ordinary members of the board have not yet been announced.

There was no reply from the DOA in response to a query from The Irish Field at the time of going to press on Friday.

Closing date for tenders is Monday, September 3rd, 2018.