Terms of Reference- Consultant Save the Children Myanmar Background & Overview:

Terms of Reference- Consultant
Save the Children Myanmar
Background & Overview:
This project is a pilot one year project implemented in two townships in Kayah (Karenni) State targeting
conflict affected areas. The Kayah population in south east Myanmar has experienced decades of economic
marginalization, political exclusion, violence and armed conflict. The conflict between the Karenni Army
(KA), armed wing of the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), and Government forces in Kayah
state has led to large-scale internal displacement and movements of refugees into Thailand. It is widely
recognized that communities have been isolated for decades and are extremely resilient and that
organizations should take a cautious approach to programming that seriously considers and supports
existing coping strategies and community approaches to development, rather than imposing standard
approaches and large scale development.
Strategically Save the Children in Myanmar is taking proactive efforts to adopt and implement a more
systematic approach that ensures all programmes are conflict sensitive in order to achieve better and more
sustainable results for children affected by conflict and to improve the quality and impact of programmes.
Save the Children in Myanmar understands this as a first step approach to a much longer term goal of
contributing to Peace-building across conflict affected areas. Save the Children would like to use its
programming as a base and entry point as a way of finding meaningful ways in which children and families
can contribute to and participate in the peace process. As part of this process Save the Children sees the
strategic importance of local partners as they know and understand the communities that they work in.
This programme looks at two distinct programming areas that include 7 villages of refugee returnees from
Thailand (Shadaw) and 7 villages that are hosting IDP returnees (Bawlakhe). In order to protect children in
Kayah and promote their development and well-being, the programme proactively addressed conflict
drivers and strengthens conflict mitigators. During its first year, the Kayah project focused on trustbuilding and operated via a “soft”, technical approach. Save the Children used its expertise to put
programmatic emphasis on the provision of basic literacy and numeracy as an entry point where
government schooling was not available and could be used as a platform to start raising awareness on child
protection, child rights and the importance of children’s voice. Due to the complexity of the context, the
need to build acceptance for Save the Children in a new operational area, and the sensitive nature of the
project’s long-term peacebuilding and youth governance objectives, ensuring comprehensive conflict
sensitivity and Do No Harm approach to ensure that these programmatic themes were relevant and
desired and further more dictated the way in which they should be delivered. Taken into account of
quality and effectiveness, Save the Children implemented this project through two local based Kayah
organizations which familiar with local context and geographic areas by strengthening their organizational
and technical capacity.
Objectives of the consultancy
The consultant will be requested to undertake an end project evaluation. The evaluation will focus on
assessing the overall impact of the programme as well as outcomes under each of the project objectives
during the intervention. Particular attention will be paid to the impact of the project on conflict sensitive
programming, the capacity of the two local partners’ staff and other key stakeholders, provision of Non
Formal Education (NFE) for children, children’s capacity and participation in local level peace initiative, and
effectiveness of child rights monitoring and advocacy in the two townships of Kayah State.
In addition to assessing project impact, the evaluation will assess the effectiveness and efficiency of project
delivery including: project management and project monitoring review. The objectives of the evaluation
are as follows:
•
•
Assess the output and outcomes of the project focusing on the objectives
Assess overall impact of the programme and identify and explain what changed for whom and why
(causal analysis: enablers and constraints and how these affect the project implementation).
• Assess the degree to which the project achieved the objectives and results described in the project
design documents (proposal and logframe)
• Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of project management and delivery
The evaluation will also explore the sustainability of the project results and outcomes with a focus on
institutional sustainability.
Methodology:
Both quantitative and qualitative methods will be required to collect data from different project
stakeholders, including community beneficiaries, children, two local based partners’ staff, TCRC members,
children groups, and other stakeholders. The consultants will be expected to use a variety of data
collection techniques including: structured questionnaires, key informant interviews and FGDs. The
consultants will also ensure that children participate in the evaluation process and that their views and
opinions are given equal weight during data analysis and the preparation of the evaluation report. Save the
Children teams will support field work including logistics and data collection as required.
Specific Tasks and Responsibilities:
a) Review project documentation (proposals and training report, narrative reports, M&E data and
financial reports)
b) Meet with key Save the Children Staff and partners to gain an understanding of the project
c) With support from the CRG team, develop an evaluation plan including primary data collection
(qualitative and quantitative)
d) Conduct field research/primary data collection
e) Analysis of data and drafting evaluation report
f) Presentation of findings to Save the Children teams (PDQ & PI, CRG team)
g) Finalization of evaluation report
Team structure:
The evaluation team will include a lead and a support consultant. The lead consultant will have
demonstrated international experience of conducting project evaluations for complex, multi sectoral
projects including civil society strengthening, Child Rights, Governance, and conflict sensitive programming
preferably in SE Asia. The lead consultant will also have a sound understanding of Save the Children
expectations and requirements as well as nature of Child Rights Governance. The lead consultant will be
responsible for ensuring that the evaluation deliverables are met.
The support consultant will be a fluent speaker of Burmese and English with previous experience of
conducting evaluations for community based programmes in Myanmar. Ideally, the support consultant will
have education, civil society or child focused programming experience, including work with Child Rights
and Child Protection Programmes.
Timetable:
The evaluation will be conducted in December 2014.
Activity
Review project documentation, start to develop
evaluation plan
Travel to Yangon (depends on the consultant’s based
country)
Location
Days
Evaluation
Week #
Yangon
2
1
?? -Yangon
1
1
Meet with key Save the Children staff to gain an
understanding of project
Yangon
1
1
With support from CRG team, develop a detailed
evaluation plan including data collection instruments and
list of informants, and arrange logistics for field visits
Yangon
1
1
Conduct field research/primary data collection (visit to
the project areas depends on the approval of the State
authorities
Yangon – Loikaw
(Bawlakhe/Shadaw)
5
1&2
Analysis of data and drafting report
Yangon
3
2
Presentation and discussion of findings and preliminary
conclusions
Yangon
1
2
Yangon- ??
1
3
Home
3
3
Travel to home base (depends on the consultant’s based
country)
Finalization of evaluation report
Total
18
Total number of days = 18
Written Deliverables:
a) Inception report:
• Preliminary findings of the desk study of existing material and literature related to the
project.
• Issues on the evaluations questions including preliminary hypothesis.
• Data collection instruments and proposed methodology.
• Sampling strategy
• Limitations of the evaluation
b) Draft evaluation report including:
• Executive summary
• Description of the methodology adopted during the evaluation
• Presentation of key project data and a detailed analysis of the evaluation findings
• Presentation of key project management data and a detailed analysis of the evaluation
findings
• Summary of Strengths and weaknesses of the programme design and management
/implementation modalities
• Conclusions and recommendations including: specific actions that might be taken into
consideration in designing future projects on demonstrating a sustainability community
based model that can be taken to greater scale
• Two detailed case studies
c) Final Evaluation report (maximum 40 pages excluding Annex)
• Based on comments and inputs from SCI Myannmar present a revised evaluation report.
• Powerpoint presentation with key findings, conclusions and recommendations.
d) 2 page evaluation overview, highlighting key successes, challenges and impacts of the project
Terms of Payment:
The consultant will be paid 450 USD (including meal cost) per day for working in Yangon Region as well as
field trip to Kayah State (?? Total working days). Payment will be made in three installments upon delivery
of the deliverables and submission of invoice respectively. The first delivery will be the inception report
and 20% payment will be made upon completion and submission of the 1st deliverable. The second
deliverable will be the draft evaluation report and 30% of payment will be made. And the third deliverables
will be the final evaluation plus the 2 pages summary. Upon completion and sign off of the final evaluation
report, 50% of payment will be made as final payment.
The consultant’s international and local travel cost related to project evaluation, and accommodation in
Yangon and project areas will be provided by Save the Children International Myanmar Country Office.
Interested and qualified candidates are requested to send an Application Letter, Curriculum Vitae to:
Human Resources Department| Save the Children| Wizaya Plaza-First Floor|
226 U Wisara Road| Bahan Township| Yangon| Myanmar
Email address: [email protected]
not later than 5 P.M., 24 November 2014 (Monday).
Note: The job vacancy can also be viewed in SCI web site http://myanmar.savethechildren.net/jobs.
Candidates are also requested to mention in the applications if there is, blood/marriage
relationships with the existing Save the Children employees. No requirement of photo or
copy of certificates and only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
Remark: For those who failed to mention or incorrectly mention the apply position title,
Programme/Sector name and location in their applications, we will consider those as disqualify and we will
not consider for short list.