Gender Specialist

Terms of Reference

-Gender and Food Security Specialist-

Improving Gender Sensitive and local NGO engagement in IPC

 

Background:

 

Oxfam is a global movement of people, working together to end the injustice of poverty through campaigning and responding to the needs of the poor. Oxfam has been working in Lebanon since 1993. We provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable people affected by conflict, and we promote economic justice and good governance, and women’s rights. Oxfam also works with local partners to contribute to the protection and empowerment of marginalized women and men. 

 

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is an innovative multi-partner initiative for improving food security and nutrition analysis and decision-making. By using the IPC classification and analytical approach, Governments, UN Agencies, NGOs, civil society and other relevant actors, work together to determine the severity and magnitude of acute and chronic food insecurity, and acute malnutrition situations in a country, according to internationally-recognized scientific standards. The main goal of the IPC is to provide decision-makers with a rigorous, evidence- and consensus-based analysis of food insecurity and acute malnutrition situations, to inform emergency responses as well as medium- and long-term policy and programming.

 

The IPC was originally developed in 2004 to be used in Somalia by FAO’s Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU). Since then, a global partnership of 15 organizations is leading the development and implementation of the IPC at global, regional and country level. In Lebanon, the first IPC report came out in October 2022. Since then, two extra reports have been published, with another round scheduled for October 2024.

 

Despite its impact, IPC analyses lack disaggregated analysis beyond geography and often overlook gender considerations. Gender and other inter-sectional factors significantly affect who is most severely impacted by food insecurity and how and why they are impacted. Without gender specific insights, humanitarian interventions are based on limited understanding of realities and their solutions, resulting in inequitable impact, disempowerment, and missed opportunities for gender transformative actions.

 

Objective of the consultancy

 

With funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Oxfam in Lebanon (OiL) is taking part in the multi-country project titled “Improving Gender Sensitive and local NGO engagement in IPC processes and other food security analyses”. The project aims to contribute to improved gender-sensitive food security analyses, particularly IPC analysis, to support humanitarian actors and the humanitarian system in improving the quality of humanitarian food security response and delivering better outcomes for people affected by the crisis. This is expected to lead to better outcomes for people affected by food security crises by offering food security decision-makers and practitioners high-quality gender-disaggregated data and analysis. This will contribute to an improved understanding of gendered realities and needs and support gender transformative actions in food security responses.

 

To this end, OiL is seeking to recruit a Gender Specialist to lead on a pilot on increasing the gender-sensitivity and analysis in the IPC in Lebanon. The pilot involves developing gender-sensitive food security data collection tools, at the individual as well as household level, and the integration of the data analysis into the next IPC report. The data collection and analysis will be piloted in 5-6 of the 26 districts and will take place in coordination with Oxfam, local and international food security actors, and local and global IPC working groups.

 

The pilot will be validated with the IPC actors following the release of the IPC report, and based on the findings, local NGOs working on gender and food security will be trained on gender-disaggregated data collection and its application in the IPC and food security in general. The full tasks expected to be carried out by the specialist are outlined in the next section.

 

Expected Tasks

 

The consultant is expected to:

Perform a gender audit of the previous three IPC reports in Lebanon and previous IPC gender pilots in Somalia, Honduras and CAR and map existing best practices on gender-disaggregated data and analysis in coordination with WFP, FAO, MoA, and Food Security Sector, including gender and data focal points.

• Adapt and develop gender-sensitive food security data collection tools in collaboration with local IPC actors and IPC global technical advisory group and global IPC disaggregated analysis Working group.
• Train Oxfam enumerators on data collection tools.
• Coordinate and validate the data collection with the major IPC actors and collect recommendations on data analysis.
• Lead on the analysis of the collected data and produce a report with a gender-centered analysis of the findings and recommendations on food security policy changes.
• Draft a summary of the analysis findings with support from OiL and coordination with IPC actors to be included into the next report.
• Co-lead, with Oxfam, a validation workshop of the pilot with the IPC actors as well as interested women rights organizations (WROs) and other relevant national and local CSOs.
• Present the summarized findings of the gender-centered analysis to the food security and basic assistance actors in Lebanon.
• Design and execute a two-day training workshop on gender-sensitive data collection and analysis and its applications in food security for IPC actors and interested local organizations including WROs.
• Develop two briefs documenting the learning workshops.
• Develop a consolidated report on the pilot study’s findings and lessons learned, including recommendations for updated guidance and the development of protocols for disaggregated gender analysis.

 

The consultant is expected to respond to two rounds of feedback by Oxfam on each of the data collection tools and each of the reports and briefs.

 

Timeline and expected number of days

 

The consultant is expected to provide the deliverables within a period of 8 months spanning July 2024 and February 2025 with the expected number of days expected per task as follows:

 

Task

Expected Number of Days

Expected Start Date

Perform a gender audit of the previous three IPC reports in Lebanon  

5 Days

July 8th, 2024

Map existing best practices on gender-disaggregated data and analysis in coordination with WFP, FAO, MoA, and Food Security Sector, including gender and data focal points

5 Days

July 8th, 2024

 

Adapt and develop gender-sensitive food security data collection tools based on the IPC gender pilots, gender audit and best practices in collaboration with local IPC actors and IPC global technical advisory group

10 Days

July 22^nd, 2024

Training Oxfam enumerators on data collection tools

2 Days

Aug 5^th, 2024

Lead on the analysis of the collected data

10 Days

Aug 26^th, 2024

Produce a report with a gender-centered analysis of the findings and recommendations on food security policy changes

10 Days

Sep 9^th, 2024

Draft a summary of the analysis findings with support from OiL and coordination with IPC actors to be included into the next report.

 

3 Days

Sep 30^th, 2024

Co-lead, with Oxfam, on a validation workshop of the pilot with the IPC actors as well as interested women rights organizations (WROs) 

5 Days

Dec 2^nd, 2024

Design and execute a two-day training workshop on gender-sensitive data collection and analysis and its applications in food security for IPC actors and interested local organizations including WROs

8 Days

Jan 27^th, 2025

Develop two briefs documenting the learning workshops

7 Days

Feb 10^th, 2025

Develop a consolidated report on the pilot study’s findings and lessons learned, including recommendations for updated guidance and the development of protocols for disaggregated gender analysis

5 Days

Feb 10^th, 2025

Total

70 Days

 

 

Consultant qualifications:

 

This consultancy should be led by a person (or persons/company) with:

• Prior experience working on gender analysis assignments and on gender-related issues in Lebanon
• Experience in delivering trainings and workshops
• Excellent communications skills in English and Arabic
• A familiarity or direct experience in food security and IPC is preferred
• Flexibility and ability to take initiative
• Availability to start immediately

 

Payment and instructions for interested consultants:

 

Payment will be done in three instalments. Details and schedule to be discussed at contract stage.

 

Note that payment will be made based on the budget in the offer (not based on actual expenses incurred by the consultant). No receipts will be requested from the consultant towards the end of the contract.

 

CODES OF BEHAVIOUR:

 

The process will be directed by Oxfam’s guidelines for the ethical conduct of evaluations and research, guiding the team of consultants through careful consideration of the key ethical implications at every stage of the harvest. These guidelines are available at this link: http://policy-practice.oxfam.org.uk/publications/undertaking-research-with-ethics-253032

 

SHARING AND USING FINDINGS:

 

The final report will be shared internally with Oxfam staff and affiliates. The findings will also be shared externally with relevant actors and organizations. Generated data will be used to inform Lebanon’s public IPC report.

 

DISCLOSURE:

 

Although free to discuss with the authorities on anything relevant to the assignment, under the terms of reference, the consultant is not authorized to make any commitments on behalf of Oxfam. All data collected as part of this consultancy belongs to Oxfam and public dissemination of the data and findings and recommendations can only be done with the written consent of the Oxfam.

 

SCORING CRITERIA:

 

Bids from interested consultants will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

1. Technical:

a.   Meeting Required Specifications

b.   Value for money

c.   Reliability of supply

d.   Availability and delivery

e.   Supplier Performance

2. Financial offer

 

EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (EOI):

 

Oxfam invites EOI from individuals, groups and companies with the experience and skills described above. The EOI must include:

1. A CV for the consultant/company
2. A maximum 2-page document outlining previous gender and food insecurity work (along with an explanation of the purpose of the work, who the contracting authority was)
3. A short document outlining the proposed methodology and workplan
4. A sample report
5. A one-page budget of the offer, covering all major anticipated costs (see section above on what costs should be included in the offer)

 

Please submit the EOI and other documents by June 23^th, 2024 at the latest, to [email protected] with “Gender and Food Security Specialist” in the subject line.

 

All questions or clarifications of a technical nature are to be sent to  [email protected]

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