External Evaluation Consultant AFDAL

PSEA & Child Safeguarding Policy:

CARE International in Lebanon is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability status.

CARE International in Lebanon and its employees and stakeholders abide by the CARE International Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) and Child Safeguarding Policies.

Overview:

CARE is implementing a capacity building and livelihood community-based agriculture project that seeks to address critical capacity gaps along targeted value chains at both the individual, communal and institutional levels.

Within the framework of the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (Germany), and with funding from the World Food Programme (WFP), CARE International is leading AFDAL II project in partnership with Fair Trade Lebanon (FTL), Association for Development for Rural capacities (ADR), Rene Mouawad Foundation (RMF) and Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture Tripoli (CCIAT). This project’s purpose is to improve sustainable livelihood opportunities for vulnerable community members in targeted refugee and Lebanese communities for small ruminants (Goat and Sheep) value chain, while addressing immediate food consumption needs of targeted households

Objectives of this project

The overall objective of the AFDAL II project is to improve sustainable livelihood opportunities for 1,121 vulnerable community members in targeted refugee and Lebanese communities in North Lebanon and South Lebanon by strengthening competitiveness, quality and productivity of small ruminants (Goat and Sheep) value chain, while addressing immediate food consumption needs of targeted households. During Phase II:

- the project aims at strengthening production and business capacities of 430 vulnerable small holder farmers (food producers) in North and South of Lebanon through a range of tailored and adapted services.

- the project seeks primarily at improving the skills and capacity of 575 vulnerable individuals in food processing to increase their household incomes and food security, while strengthening the food systems in the targeted value chain.

- the intervention will identify at least 12 food processing units (cooperatives will be prioritized) among or in addition to the 40 businesses to provide with technical and BDS skills and in-kind grants and support them through improved market linkages, marketing strategies and research, and building linkages between MSMEs/cooperatives and Agriculture Market Support functions (Chamber of Commerce, Laboratory, producers’ events) through capacity building and linkages with quality control institutions.

Purpose of consultancy

CARE International in Lebanon (CIL) is seeking a consultant to, in collaboration with CARE MEAL Department, Project Manager, and Programs/Support Departments, conduct the External Evaluation of the AFDAL II Project.

The consultant is expected to conduct a desk review of CARE international impact goals and relevant project documents, data collection and analysis, meet with CARE MEAL focal point, CARE Program Department and relevant stakeholders, and participate in consultation and debriefing meetings. Then he/she is expected to develop a detailed evaluation methodology, appropriate data collection tools, a detailed data analysis plan, and a final report at the end of the project, and to conduct the relevant data collection.

The consultant will be expected to develop a mix of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods such as surveys, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and field observation visits.

For the end evaluation of the project, the consultant shall provide an impact evaluation report (which should not exceed 30 pages, including the narrative of the project) summarizing the methodology followed for the evaluation and the results achieved. The consultant will also be responsible for the logistical planning for the meetings, interviews and field visits with the support of CARE Program and MEAL departments.

The purpose of this external end evaluation of the project is to assess the effectiveness, relevance, efficiency, sustainability, and impact of the project which will allow CARE and its partners working in this sector to learn from the project and present results, conclusions, and lessons learnt that will feed into the design of other projects. The external evaluator will help in assessing the level of achievements in the activities of the project and to verify to which extent the project’s activities contributed to improving the selected value chain in the project’s catchment areas.

This external evaluation shall be used as part of the organizational learning process, aiming to replicate best practices and increase programs’ effectiveness. The findings deducted from this external evaluation will be shared to all stakeholders to ensure visibility of project results and sharing of lessons among partners, beneficiaries, and at local and national government/non-governmental levels.

Baseline and midline assessments were previously conducted at the beginning of the project and throughout the project’s implementation respectively. Therefore, the consultant will also be required to measure project’s indicators and provide end-line values to allow for comparisons of results prior and after the implementation of project’s activities.

Criteria and Questions of the Evaluation

1. Relevance: whether the project design and choice of the interventions (listed above) and approaches have properly addressed the needs of the beneficiaries, taking into account CARE’s mandates; whether the planned and actual activities and outputs were consistent with the intended outcomes; what is the project innovation and comparative advantage in this area of work vis a vis other similar interventions.
2. Effectiveness: whether the project components/ interventions and methodologies used have achieved planned objectives and yielded intended results; what factors have influenced the outcomes of this project, either negatively or positively.
3. Efficiency: have resources and funds been used efficiently, leveraging in-house expertise, previous interventions, and other resources to optimize the project outcomes; have the project interventions been delivered in a timely manner; what factors have affected the swift, efficient and timely implementation of the project interventions.
4. Sustainability: what ensures the project interventions’ sustainability; what mechanisms and structures were out in place to make sure that the project legacy is maintained once the intervention ceased, what lessons learned can be drawn to ensure so.
5. Impact: to what extent does the project achieved its outcomes? What opportunities or potentials are there to capitalize on? How did designed and utilized methodologies negatively or positively impact individuals’ and communities’ food security and livelihoods conditions? What unexpected impacts did this intervention have on individuals, communities, private sector, and institutions? How did the used method of partnership impact the delivery of activities?

Deliverables

1. Inception report, within seven days from signing the contract.

The inception report is expected to clearly define the evaluation methodologies (qualitative and quantitative) with details of sampling (method and sample size), target groups, and evaluation timeline with specific deadlines for each deliverable.

1. Data collection tools

The consultant will be responsible for developing, coding, and digitalizing the quantitative and qualitative data collection tools.

1. Data collection, cleaning, and analysis

Data is expected to be cleaned; qualitative raw data and its analysis will be presented in excel spreadsheets, and FGD and KII transcripts and analysis will be reported in English.

1. Draft of the evaluation report

Draft Evaluation report to be submitted within 10 days of the completion of the data collection. The evaluator is expected to amend the report after the review and feedback from CIL’s team. Many rounds of review could be requested based on the quality of the final report and the extent to which the comments and suggestions from first round have been incorporated.

1. Validation workshop

The validation workshop will take place at the last stage where the evaluator is requested to present the results of the evaluation, agree on recommendations, and present the key findings and lessons learned.

1. Final evaluation report

Three days after the validation workshop, the final report is expected to be submitted, incorporating the comments of the workshop held. The report should be written in English and should include evidence, lessons learned and recommendations.

Deliverables & Timeline:

Conduct the desk review  

Submit the inception report - 20/10/2021

Draft and validate the qualitative and quantitative data collection tools in both English and Arabic - 27/10/2021

Collect the data, clean it, and analyze it. Present the raw and analyzed data - 12/11/2021

Develop a draft report - 22/11/2021

Conduct the validation workshop - 07/12/2021

Draft the final report after reviews by CARE teams - 12/12/2021

 The total budget available for this consultancy is $5,500. The payment will be issued on deliverables after receiving the good received note from the Line Manager regardless the number of days worked. Noting that the consultant is required to respond to any request for modification or additional information for a period of 2 months after the finalization of the deliverables (sending the first draft).

Consultant profile:

• At least   5-10  years of relevant experience of management position, especially with NGOs, academic organizations, standard-setting bodies, public agencies focused on Monitoring and Evaluation procedures.
• Great understanding of MEAL tools, External Evaluations, and Accountability to Affected Populations frameworks.
• Master’s degree in one or several of the following areas: Agriculture, Business, MEAL, Management, or any related Major.

Competencies:

• Experience in quantitative research methods and analysis, including relevant sampling techniques;
• Experience in qualitative methods and analysis and participatory, gender-responsive research;
• Experience in project monitoring and evaluation systems, including those using participatory approaches and ‘hard to measure’ indicators (i.e. empowerment, resilience, well-being, etc.);
• Experience in evaluation of Value Chain and agricultural development projects;
• Ability to lead workshops.
• Fluent in Arabic and English (written, spoken, listening).
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to build strong internal relationships and networks;
• Motivated self-starter who enjoys working in a collaborative and international environment.