Public Call for Tender nb. 83478826 Referral system PN 21.4061.4-001.00 C4WL

I. General information

1. Brief information on the project

In view of the negative impact of the multiple crises affecting Lebanon, the project “Support for disadvantaged, peripheral neighborhoods in Lebanon through Cash for Work” aims at increasing the socio-economic resilience capacities of vulnerable people in North Lebanon and Akkar through short-term employment using Cash for Work.

The project targets 50% Lebanese residents and 50% Syrian refugees, of which 60% female and 10% people with disabilities.

The Cash for Work measures are designed and implemented following a community-based, participatory approach. This ensures their positive impact on the neighborhoods in which they are implemented. Community kitchens created alongside the Cash for Work activities, additionally reduce the food insecurity of the vulnerable communities. The cash for work methodology is to complete 40 working days in activities such as cooking in community kitchen, handicrafts activities and others as well as light infrastructure projects that are selected by local steering committees in the cluster of villages/neighborhoods.

The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in partnership with the Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA).

GIZ is seeking for a consultant to do a mapping of services, create a concept and provide recommendations for a gender-sensitive referral system of beneficiaries to (1) social services and (2) livelihood interventions within the context of strengthening the impact on social security for participants in the Cash-for-Work project’s measures. Two analysis documents (one for social services, other livelihoods) shall be created. This will be followed up by training for employees of implementing partners for the roll-out of the gender-sensitive referral system.

2. Context

The objective of this assignment is to conduct comprehensive research/mapping on social security services and livelihood activities, develop a concept for a gender-sensitive referral system to be implemented by the project’s implementing partners and guidance documents, and deliver trainings for employees of the implementing partners. This initiative aims to enhance the support provided to vulnerable populations by ensuring they have access to necessary social services and livelihood measures, both from state actors but also from non-state actors. Due to a lack of resources and/or availability of services and their vulnerability and marginalization, many persons of the target group are ineligible for governmental social security measures (e.g. NSFF), thus the project would wish to bridge this gap by systematizing referral also to other services available to the entire target group. A focus should be on taking into account gender-sensitiveness and do no harm approaches due to the vulnerabilities of the target group in all stages of the assignment and services to be delivered.

This assignment corresponds to and feeds into Output 3 of the Cash for Work Lebanon project:

Output 3: The technical competences of providers of cash-for-work measures on gender-sensitive referral counselling of beneficiaries to social services and measures to support livelihood security are expanded.

Referral counselling means that implementation partners identify the needs of beneficiaries in discussions with them and refer them to social service providers and livelihood support measures for further specific support. Social services include services provided by state and non-state actors that offer social support services (e.g. on domestic violence (gender-based violence (GBV), mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS)) and social protection (e.g. health centres, social development centres). Livelihood support measures are offers of state and non-state actors for cash assistance, as well as measures for income generation, vocational training and employment opportunities for a more sustainable strengthening of the socio-economic situation of beneficiaries.

Output 3.1: 2 analysis documents, one with a focus on social services, one for livelihood support measures are implemented by employees of implementing partners for the Cash-for-Work measures.

The analysis documents shall be drafted, and after feedback, finalized by the consultant. The analysis documents are gender-sensitive if they contain guidance on how providers, advisors and implementers of social services and livelihood support measures can (a) recognize gender inequalities and (b) address the resulting gender-specific needs in them

These documents should include a detailed concept and process of the referral mechanism, guidance on how to conduct referrals while considering do no harm approaches, the (link to) the mappings and other important information such as roles and responsibilities, how to monitor referrals, etc.

Ouput 3.2: 90% of the employees of the providers of Cash-for-Work measures have confirmed with an example, how their gender-sensitive competencies in the referral counseling has been improved as a result of trainings.

The trainings conducted by the consultant for the employees of the implementing partners needs to strengthen their competencies in referral counselling and explicitly address gender-sensitiveness and do no harm approaches in counselling.

3. GIZ shall hire the contractor for the anticipated contract term, from 15.01.2025 to 15.08.2025

4. The contractor shall provide the following work/service

• Mapping of existing services: mapping of available social services and measures for livelihoods support for different target groups. Focus should be on Northern Lebanon. A mapping by the UN of different services already exists, this mapping should be integrated and built upon (in discussion with other stakeholders).
• Exchange with stakeholders (implementing partners, UN agencies responsible for mapping of services, service ‘providers’) to identify further stakeholders and service providers, if applicable, but also lessons learned and systems in place in other organizations
• Assessment of possible integration into or creating synergies with existing systems in Lebanon (e.g. UN inter-agency referral system)
• Development of two gender-sensitive analysis documents (one with focus on social services, one with focus on livelihood support measures) for a gender-sensitive referral system for implementing partners:

1. detailed concept for a gender-sensitive referral system for implementing partners.
2. Integration of the mapping (or linking to it) and difference of services available as well as guidance for specific referrals depending on service
3. How to conduct referral counselling session
4. Guidance on how providers, advisors and implementers of social services and livelihood support measures can (a) recognise gender inequalities and (b) address the resulting gender-specific needs in their implementation (including do no harm)
5. Recommendations for operationalization of the referral system, including necessary resources, processes, and tools.
6. Roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders (e.g. implementing partners, GIZ, etc)
7. Data sensitivity: how to protect beneficiaries’ info, confidentiality, storage of data
8. Incorporate feedback by stakeholders and GIZ project

• Training of employees of implementing partners and other relevant actors on referral system in a workshop:

1. Develop training materials and modules for employees of the implementing partners.
2. Conduct training sessions to introduce the referral mechanism and ensure employees are well-equipped to implement it.
3. Provide follow-up support and additional training as needed to ensure the effective implementation of the referral system.
4. Post-training anonymized survey about content and competences, additional anonymized survey during follow-up session (tbc).

Period of assignment: from 15.01.2025 to 15.08.2025.

(See the deadline for each milestone in the terms of reference)

II. Tender requirements

1. Qualifications of proposed staff

Eligibility requirements:

The expert must fulfil the following criteria:

• At least 1 reference project in the technical field of “implementation of referral systems in the context of social protection, social services, livelihoods”
• At least 2 reference projects in Lebanon

These 2 criteria should be clearly mentioned in the technical offer. Candidates that don’t have these criteria will be disqualified automatically.

In addition, “Experience with referral system and mechanisms” as well as “experience in the topics of social protection, social services or livelihoods” will be considered as requirement for the ranking. Only the first three candidates in the ranking will be qualified for the technical assessment.

The below specified qualifications represent the requirements to reach the maximum number of points in the technical assessment.

1.1 Expert 1:

1.1.1 General qualifications

Education:

• Master’s degree in relevant political studies, social sciences, humanities, health

Professional experience:

• 5 years professional experience working in or with international organisations, local NGOs and/or the UN.
• Proven experience in working 2 years in the field of social protection and/or livelihood measures.
• Proven experience in designing and/or implementing referral counselling systems and mechanisms.
• Proven experience of conducting workshops and trainings  

1.1.2  Experience in the region/knowledge of the country

7 years of experience working in Lebanon, with 2 years of experience in Northern Lebanon.

1.1.3 Language skills:

C2 in Arabic and English

2. Quantitative requirements (see the table in the terms of reference)

Calculate your financial bid exactly in line with the quantitative requirements of the specification of inputs above. There is no contractual right to use up the full days/travel or workshops or budgets. The number of days/travel/workshops and the budgets will be contractually agreed as maximum amounts. The regulations on pricing are contained in the price schedule.

3. Conceptual

The tender should indicate how the services outlined in Section I.4 (Tasks) are to be provided. Reference should be made to the following criteria:

• 3.1- Strategy: the tenderer presents and justifies the explicit strategy with which it intends to provide the services for which it is responsible with reference to the context of the assignment.
• 3.2- Key processes and operational plan or schedule: The tenderer is required to describe the key processes for the services for which it is responsible and create an operational plan or schedule.
• 3.3- Do no harm and gender-sensitiveness have to be taken into account when conducting this assignment and its application should be explicitly referred to within the concept.

III. Requirements on the format of the tender

Technical offer:

• The CV submitted for the expert can have a maximum of four pages.
• The concept should not exceed five pages.

N.B: If one of the maximum page lengths is exceeded, the content appearing after the cut-off point will not be included in the assessment. External content (e.g. links to websites) will also not be considered.

Financial offer:

• Financial offer in USD to be filled, signed and submitted (Financial offer template).
• The financial offer shall be inclusive of all the costs.
• GIZ will not reimburse any cost separately.
• If the contractor was not registered in the ministry of finance and does not hold an income tax number, GIZ will deduct 8.5 % of the amount presented in the invoices of the contractor (invoice should clearly include the MOF number if available).

The Evaluation of the offers will be done based on 70% for technical assessment and 30% for financial. 

IV. Outsourced processing of personal data

The provisions on data protection and information security of the current version of GIZ’s General Terms and Conditions of Contract (section 1.10 Data protection) apply.

DATA PROTECTION 

The performance of the contract may be associated with the processing of personal data by the contractor, such as (but not limited to) names and contact information and who would alone define the nature of such data and how such processing would be carried out. In such cases, the contractor shall act as an independent DATA CONTROLLER and must alone comply with ALL applicable data protection obligations, including those stemming from regional and local laws. The contractor shall process personal data only when a given goal cannot be reasonably attained without such data. The data protection principles such as lawfulness, data minimization, accuracy, purpose limitation, storage limitation, transparency, integrity and confidentiality, and accountability, as well as the numerous rights of the data subject must be paid due attention. The GIZ is NOT in any way responsible for such processing.

Whenever the contractor executes the instructions of a partner to the GIZ with regard to such processing, the partner shall be the data controller, and the data processing shall be carried out in accordance with the partner’s instructions as well as laws and standards to which it is subject.

If the contractor is not subject to the GDPR and the applicable laws do not contain any explanation on the data protection principles and rights mentioned here, the definitions and meanings provided by the GDPR (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) should be considered.