Public Call for Tender 83483616 Analysis and Need Assessment on the Legal, Organizational and Procedural Structure of 4 Regional Education Offices in Lebanon- PN#21.2121.8-001.00 Governance in the Education Sector in Lebanon Project EDU GOV

Context

The GIZ project “Governance in the Education Sector in Lebanon”, commissioned by BMZ in 2024, addresses these challenges and supports the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) in the implementation of the Reform Road Map 2025, particularly focusing on Cluster B (Governance/ Operational Reforms). Amongst other things, Cluster B of the Reform Road Map 2025 focuses on data and financial management, decentralised management at REO and school level as well as strategic communication – thus aiming to strengthen the governance, efficiency and resilience at central, regional and school levels. The project closely cooperates with the office of the Director of General Education (DGE) and Head of Primary Department (HoPD) at MEHE, with four REOs and nine schools. The thematic focus of the project can be grouped into three areas:

• Cooperation and coordination with selected Regional Education Offices (REO) and strengthening their management and organisational structures (Output 1)
• Implementation of target-group specific training measures for selected staff of central MEHE, REOs and school principals in the fields of organisational/ education management, leadership and communication (Output 2)
• Strengthening the communication and reporting mechanisms between the individual institutions and entities within the education sector (MEHE-REOs-Schools) (Output 3)

The four selected Regional Education Offices (REOs) and the nine schools are located in:

• REO Beirut – 2 schools
• REO South (Saida) – 3 schools
• REO Mount Lebanon – 2 schools
• REO North (Tripoli) – 2 schools

Furthermore, the project supports and advises MEHE on Non-Formal Education (NFE) and it also foreseen to support MEHE in Lebanon’s application for Global Partnership for Education (GPE) – Lebanon is eligible for funding as of 2026.

The current consultancy is related to Outputs 1 and 3.

Tasks to be performed by the contractor

As mentioned in the previous chapter, the weak governance structures not only affect the MEHE-REO-Schools relation and cooperation (and vice versa) but also impact the provision of quality education due to slow approval processes (e.g. for repairs and equipment), staffing problems and weak data management, etc. As the level of autonomy of the REOs is rather low currently, it is important to address these issues so that work processes become more efficient and effective. Against this background, the contractor is required to provide the following services/tasks:

1. Overarching services/tasks: management, communication and reporting:

• 1.1 Regular Reporting and Consultation: Provide regular updates to GIZ project team and MEHE staff as well as REO personnel regarding work progress and respond to information requests promptly.
• 1.2 Deliverables and Documentation: Submit required reports and administrative deliverables (e.g., invoices). All documentation must be in both Arabic and English, using appropriate legal terminology.
• 1.3 Meeting Mechanism and methodology: Establish and implement a permanent and participatory meeting and exchange mechanism with relevant stakeholders (MEHE, REOs, schools and GIZ project team) to gather data on needs and to discuss these findings. This will involve using questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs), and key informant interviews (KIIs). For work packages 1 and 2, close coordination and cooperation with MEHE (DGE-HoPD-REOs) and GIZ project team is essential for discussing deliverables (recommendations, measures, etc.).

2. Work Package 1 (WP1):

• 2.1 Legal Framework Analysis: Conduct an analysis of the legal framework governing the four REOs, including their mandates, organizational structures, roles, and responsibilities as well as procedures.
• 2.2 (Digital) Communication Analysis: Analyze existing (digital) communication tools and reporting mechanisms among REOs and between educational entities (MEHE-REOs-Schools) as a contribution to the implementation of the Reform Road Map 2025 (here: Cluster B, T8.5: “Strategic Communication”).
• 2.3 Consultations with relevant stakeholders (MEHE-REOs-Schools and GIZ project team) on the results/findings of both analyses.

3. Work Package 2 (WP2):

• 3.1 Develop 10 recommendations for action based on the needs analyses and consultations with MEHE (DGE-HoPD-REOs): the recommendations should focus on improving and strengthening the mandate, roles/responsibilities, and decision-making powers of REOs, incorporating gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches.
• 3.2 Develop 5 concrete measures for Legal Framework adaptation based on the recommendations for action: develop five concrete measures to adapt the legal framework defining the structure, mandates, roles, and decision-making powers of REOs and their employees.           
• The 5 concrete measures should include but are not limited to:

- Improving and strengthening (strategic) communication/reporting: Advise relevant educational entities and stakeholders on how to efficiently improve communication and cooperation.

- Gender Awareness about gender stereotypes, gender-specific (online) violence, and (cyber) bullying in the education sector.

- Improving and strengthening existing complaints mechanisms.

• 3.3 Consultations with relevant stakeholders (MEHE-REOs-Schools and GIZ project team) on formulating recommendations and measures.

4. Resource Provision:

• 4.1 Equipment and Supplies: Provide necessary equipment and supplies (consumables) and cover associated operating and administrative costs.

5. Financial Management and Reporting:

• 5.1 Financial Management: Manage costs and expenditures, accounting processes, and invoicing according to GIZ requirements.
• 5.2 Reporting to GIZ: Report regularly to GIZ in compliance with the current AVB of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.