CALL FOR MIDLINE EVALUATION FOR BRICE PROJECT IN ETHIOPIA AND SOMALIA

Plan International invites bids from consultants or firms with the experience and skills as described on BRiCE Midline Evaluation ToR.

Click here to download BRiCE Midline Evaluation ToR

The rationale for the Evaluation

Plan International is seeking to procure the services of an Evaluation Team to design, plan and conduct a midline evaluation for the BRICE project in Ethiopia and Somalia.

The findings from the evaluation will primarily be used:

By the project management team and project stakeholders:

• To assess the degree to which BRiCE is on track to achieve its intended impact and outcomes;
• To recommend adaptations to the project intervention strategies in response to current needs and priorities
• To demonstrate accountability for the funding received from the EC;

By partners, stakeholders and the Governments to learn lessons from the project for the purpose of replicating what works and/or taking up approaches and activities that have proven to work in order to scale up the project and sustain its activities and impact;
By other donors, academic institutions and education networks to inform the wider policy debate concerning education in crisis.

Evaluation objective

The methodology for the evaluation will be proposed and developed by the consultants, taking into account the large scope and complexity of the BRiCE programme. The evaluation should also explicitly explore the reasons why change has or has not occurred in relation to the current project stakeholders, and identify opportunities to adapt or sustain the programme design.

The midline will be reviewed as a desk study of key project data. Taking Covid-19 restrictions into account, it is expected that the desk study can be complemented with interviews of key stakeholders, which will be arranged by project staff in Somalia, Ethiopia and the UK. Key stakeholders include:

• Programme teams;
• Students (where appropriate and feasible);
• Teachers;
• School leaders in participating schools;
• Officials within education ministries;
• Parents in participating communities;
• Community leaders and education stakeholders.

The evaluation team are asked to propose a suitable method for gathering evaluation data in these countries. This could take the form of:

• Remote interviews with project participants (mainly using online digital platforms, such as Skype or similar);

The evaluation should ensure children are at the centre of the research, that principles of gender equality, inclusion (particularly around disabilities) and non-discrimination are considered and acted upon throughout, and that meaningful participation of children and other key stakeholders is promoted throughout the project. Furthermore, the assessment is required to be conducted in line with Plan International’s Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy and internal guidelines on child protection and safeguarding, and ethical standards in monitoring, evaluation and learning. Research efforts will need to align with Plan International’s Programme Accountability and Learning System, including additional research questions relating to gender and inclusion (to be discussed upon selection of the successful candidate(s). Only work that meets the standards expected by the donor, will be signed off.

How to apply

Please submit your application documents to [email protected] no later than 8:00 PM UK time on 10^th January 2020 referencing “Midline Evaluation for BRICE” in the subject line and including support documents as outlined above.

Interested applicants should provide a proposal covering the following aspects:

Full name and contacts (mobile and email) of the leading evaluator who will be also the contact person for further communications.

A detailed response to the TOR including:

• The proposed methodology, including an outline of evaluation design and sampling approach.
• Quality Assurance plan that sets out the systems and processes for quality assuring the evaluation and research process and deliverables of the project from start to finish
• Ethics and Child Safeguarding approaches: applicants are required to set out their approach to ensuring complete compliance with international good practice with regards to research ethics and protocols;
• Comprehensive Risk Management plan;
• Detailed work plan for the proposed timeframe.

CVs of each member of the Evaluation Team (no more than 3 pages), detailing relevant skills and experience;

Two examples of relevant previous work undertaken by the Evaluation Team (involving both quantitative and qualitative analysis);

Detailed budget, including:

• Sub-total of fees for the delivery of any task or deliverable, broken down by the number of days for each individual study team members against the tasks set out in the work plan;
• Total fees per team member;
• Day rates for each team member, against the total number of days per team member;
• Expenses and overheads breakdown by the project cost categories;
• Total costs before and after any taxes that are applicable;
• The Evaluation Team are required to provide a payment schedule on the basis of milestone payments for the successful delivery of each deliverable.

References: Please provide two references whom we may contact to discuss experiences of working with you as an evaluator(s).

Applications submitted after the deadline will not be accepted.