Consultant - Somalia Emergency and Recovery Assistance Project Tender, USA - 34417082

Procurement Summary

Country : USA

Summary : Consultant - Somalia Emergency and Recovery Assistance Project

Deadline : 15 Jul 2019

Other Information

Notice Type : Tender

TOT Ref.No.: 34417082

Document Ref. No. :

Competition : ICB

Financier : United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Purchaser Ownership : -

Tender Value : Refer Document

Purchaser's Detail

Purchaser : MERCY CORPS
Dept. W National Processing Center P.O. Box 80020 Prescott, AZ 86304-9801 Tel: (888) 842-0842
USA
URL :www.mercycorps.org

Tender Details

Tenders are invited for Somalia: Consultant - Somalia Emergency and Recovery Assistance Project (SEARAP) - Somalia.

Project Location: Benadir, Lower Juba, Gedo Shebelle, Galgaduud and Mudug regions in South Central Somalia.
**
Background:**

Mercy Corps has been working in Somalia since 2005 to respond to the humanitarian and development needs of the Somali people. We assist communities to transition from crisis to recovery to sustainable development by working with them to diminish the drivers of instability, empower community voices and enhance service delivery through local governance structures.

Purpose / Project Description:

In partnership with two local partners, Mercy Corps is implementing a one-year (August 2018 to July 2019) program entitled ‘***Somalia Emergency and Recovery Assistance Project (SEARAP***)- funded by the United States Agency for International Development Office of the United States Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID OFDA). The overall goal of the program is to enhance communities- abilities to cope with and recover from natural shocks and to build their capacity for long-term recovery. To achieve this goal, the program adopted the following three objectives:

Strategic Objective 1: Vulnerable households in disaster-affected communities benefit from improved and expanded livelihoods through market systems rehabilitation and creation of temporary employment and new livelihood opportunities.

Strategic Objective 2: Populations in targeted disaster-affected communities have improved safe and equitable secured access to water and sanitation facilities and show improved hygiene practices.

Strategic Objective 3: Conflict and natural disaster-affected communities experience enhanced food security through agricultural support and livestock veterinary services.

The project target participants are drought and conflict affected communities and IDPs living in Benadir, Lower Juba, Gedo, Shebelle, Galgaduud and Mudug regions in the South Central Somalia. The program is implemented under three main sectors to address the multi-faceted needs of the targeted population with an emphasis on drought response, livelihood interventions and enhanced resilience.

Consultant Objectives:

The main objective of this consultancy is to undertake an in-depth appraisal of the project and systematically generate knowledge about the extent and determinants of program performance from evidence-based information taking the program design and implementation framework into consideration. The findings of the evaluation will inform senior management in decision-making with regards to the design and improvement of future, similar projects, and most importantly, to ensure accountability to the affected population.

The consultancy is envisaged to provide comprehensive feedback to the following questions

To what extent were the program objectives achieved at the results level?
Did the benefits reach the target group as intended?
Were benefits distributed fairly between gender and across social and cultural barriers?
To what extent are the costs of program intervention justified by its results, taking alternatives into account? -Analyze the quality of management (adequacy of project budget, management of personnel, program properties, communication, relation management with elders, community leaders, other development partners, etc).
To what extent did the program intervention conform to the needs and priorities of target groups and the policies of Mercy Corps?
How well did the activities respond to the changing demands of the situation considering the requirements for adaptation, ownership, accountability, and cost-effectiveness?
How and to what extent did the activities take into account longer-term needs and the interconnectedness of the existing humanitarian problems?
To what extent were the stakeholders consulted and involved in selection processes for activities and participants and implementation? Assess the degree of commitment of stakeholders and the extent to which the capacity of beneficiaries and partners were built and strengthened and suggest improvements for the future interventions.
To what extent are community members aware of risks identification and management in sectoral areas such as droughts, flooding, and human and livestock epidemics?
Consultant Activities:

The Consultant is expected to undertake the following activities:

Develop an Inception Report detailing the process and methodologies to be employed to achieve the objective of this consultancy as stated above. It should include the interview schedules and important time schedules for this exercise and be presented to Mercy Corps for review and further inputs before proceeding to the field for data collection
Undertake desk review of key and relevant program documents that include the Proposal, Reports, Mercy Corps program management guidelines and strategy documents, and any other relevant documents. The review should take USAID/OFDA evaluation guidelines and standards into consideration
Design data collection methodology guided by international evaluation standards and relevant framework(s)
Design, develop, pilot, critique (with Mercy Corps team) and refine data collection tools including translation to the local Somali language where appropriate
Conduct a comprehensive field-based program evaluation [using both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods] as a means of providing insights on support received to date from Mercy Corps and collect data on targets based on indicators as documented in the program proposal
Carry out data collection, entry, and analysis and write up the Evaluation Report
Present the draft report to Mercy Corps team, after data collection, for review before producing a second draft
Submit a Final Evaluation Report to Mercy Corps as shall be stated in the Consultancy Contract
Consultant Deliverables:

The Consultant will provide the following deliverables:

Develop and provide an inception report - The inception report will be a scoping exercise for the evaluation and will include the proposed methodologies and data collection and reporting plans with draft data collection tools such as interview guides, the allocation of roles and responsibilities within the team, a timeframe with firm dates for deliverables, and the travel and logistical arrangements for the team. This is expected a maximum of four days after signing of the contract.
Debriefings / feedback to Mogadishu program team - The consultant will report his/her preliminary findings to the Mercy Corps- Program Manager and Monitoring and Evaluations Manager before leaving the field.
Draft report - The consultant will produce a draft report identifying key findings, conclusions, recommendations and lessons for current and future operations, and taking in consideration the outputs of the debriefing session. This will be reviewed by Mercy Corps for initial feedback.
Final report - The final report will contain a short executive summary (max three pages) and a main body of the report covering the background of the interventions, a description of the evaluation methods and limitations, findings, conclusions, lessons learned, clear recommendations (which includes evaluation of risks/humanitarian access). Recommendations should be specific, feasible, and in line with the organization-s strategic mandate. The report should also contain appropriate appendices, including a copy of the ToR, cited resources or bibliography, a list of those interviewed and any other relevant materials. The final evaluation report will be submitted one week after receipt of the consolidated feedback from Mercy Corps. The report should be given as five hard cover-bound copies and soft copy in two CD-ROMs in pdf and MS Word versions.
Timeframe / Schedule:

It is anticipated that the Evaluation will take 25 days from the beginning of the contract. The consultant/consultancy firm should develop a feasible costed work plan/activity schedule covering an approximately 25 days and submit as integral part of the proposal for this consultant. The proposed time frame is as follows:

2nd week of July -- Develop necessary data collection tools (i.e. survey and interview questionnaires; focus group, observation and/or informal interview protocols, etc.). Plan logistics: domestic travel, translators, translation of evaluation tools
3rd-4th Week of July -- Finalized data collection tools and implement data gathering activity

4th week of July -- Encode, analyze data and prepare draft evaluation report outlining evaluation process, program achievements, constraints, lessons learned, recommendations, next steps/ action plan

29th July -- Conduct meeting with organization leadership, key project/program team and implementing partner key staff.

31st July -- Finalize and submit the Report

The Consultant will report to:

The consultant will report to the Country Director and Director of Programs and shall closely work with MEAL and operations team.

Required Experience & Skills:

5-10 years of experience in relevant field.
Have at least an Advanced degree in Development Studies, Social Sciences or other relevant field.
Demonstrable experience in leading evaluations of humanitarian programs responding to major disasters, with specific emphasis WASH, DRR, Livelihood and Food Security and Social Protection;
Knowledge of strategic and operational management of humanitarian operations and proven ability to provide strategic recommendations to key stakeholders; Experience with USAID/OFDA-funded projects an advantage.
Strong analytical skills and ability to clearly synthesize and present findings, draw practical conclusions, make recommendations and to prepare well-written reports in a timely manner;
Experience in qualitative data collection and data analysis techniques, especially in emergency operations;
Experience, knowledge and clear understanding of Somalia-s humanitarian context;
Good interpersonal skills and understanding cultural sensitivities;
Readiness to travel to Somalia and conduct direct standard evaluation activities
To apply:

To apply, please submit CV/resume and financial quote for works to be performed.

How to apply:
Apply here: http://app.jobvite.com/m?3CVgskw4

Documents

 Tender Notice