Diwan - Search for Common Ground

Terms of Reference for a Final Evaluation

October 2018

 

Search for Common Ground Lebanon (Search) seeks to recruit a consultant to conduct a Final Evaluation for its Canada Global Affairs funded project in Lebanon Diwan. The assessment should be completed by the February 15, 2019.

 

1. Background

 1.1. Organization Overview

 Search for Common Ground (Search) is a non-governmental organization working to transform the way the world deal with conflict - away from adversarial approaches and toward cooperative solutions. We have acquired over 35 years of experience in peacebuilding and are based in 53 local offices worldwide. We strive to build sustainable peace for generations to come by working with all sides of a conflict. We do this through a type of peacebuilding called “conflict transformation.” We shift the everyday interactions between hostile groups of people, so they can work together to build up their community, choosing joint problem-solving over violent means. Search first worked in Lebanon in 1996, opening a permanent office in 2008. Since then, our activities and capacities have grown significantly.

 

For more information, visit www.sfcg.org and https://www.facebook.com/sfcg.lebanon.

 

1.2. Project Overview

Search for Common Ground is implementing a 2-year project called Diwan Project and funded by Global Affairs Canada, Canada’s governmental development agency. The Ultimate Outcome of the project is to Ensure that governance in Wadi Khaled is inclusive. To achieve this, the project is working to ensure that local decision making processes are more inclusive in Wadi Khaled and that development is more sustainable, equitable, and accountable. Furthermore, to ensure  a  more  participatory  and  representative  governance  in  the  target  communities,  the  project  is engaging  with local governance actors, youth, women and other marginalized groups within the community at large, to promote the principles of good governance.

Below are the project’s intermediate outcomes:

1. Improve collaboration between local leaders and their constituents in addressing local needs
2. Increase representation of marginalized groups (e.g. youth and women) in addressing local needs

    The immediate outcomes of the project are:

    1. Local leaders and community members have increased knowledge of the benefits of inclusive governance
    2. Local leaders and community members gain skills in participatory governance
    3. Local leaders and community members recognize the value of improved collaboration
    4. Marginalized groups gain knowledge of how to participate in local governance
    5. Marginalized groups gain skills in community mobilization
    6. Marginalized groups are confident in playing an active role in community initiatives

      Project Activities:

      Activity 1: Participatory baseline assessment and project design phase

      Activity 2: Training workshops and ongoing coaching/mentoring for governance actors, youth and women

      Activity 3: Small-scale community round table discussions

      Activity 4: Restitution meetings

      Activity 5: Creation of an advisory board

      Activity 6: Small grant scheme 

      Activity 7: Youth Community Centers

      Activity 8: Cross-municipality collaboration

       

      The Final Evaluation

      Assessment Objectives: The intended evaluation should be based on the OECD-DAC peacebuilding evaluation criteria, investigating below set of questions, and utilizing and/or addressing the performance indicators described in the project document. The final evaluation will also consist of a comparative assessment towards the baseline findings. In particular, it will answer to the following questions:

       

      Relevance:

      · Are the stated goal and outcomes relevant to the context in Wadi Khaled?

      · Did the project work on the right issues at the right time?

      · Did the activities and strategies fit objectives?  

       

      Effectiveness:

      · To which extent did “Diwan Project” contributes towards the establishment of an inclusive local governance in Wadi Khaled?

      ·To which extent did the project achieve to change the targeted stakeholders understanding, perceptions and attitudes and achieve the intermediate outcomes?

      · What were the internal or external factors that facilitated or hindered the objectives’ achievements?

      · What are the major best practices and lessons learned stemming from the project’s implementation?

      · What are the main results from the project, intended and unintended, positive and negative?

      Impact

      · What are the intended and unintended results of the project on the project’s internal and external stakeholders, both positive and negative? To what extent are these changes desirable?

      · What real difference has the activity made to the project participants?

      · How the impact of the project can be further developed?

       Sustainability

      · Are the changes introduced by the project long term and sustainable?

      · To what extent will the benefits of the project continue after donor funding ceased?

      · Have new mechanisms been designed to continue any work initiated by this project?

      · What could have been done differently so that similar projects could become more sustainable in the future?

      In addition to the above lines of inquiry, the evaluation is expected to provide quantitative and qualitative information on the key indicators as listed below:

      * Percentage of project participants who identify changes in community development to be more inclusive
      * Percentage increase of local decision making compliance with the ‘participation pillar’ of good governance
      * Percentage increase in communication and collaboration among project participants
      * Percentage of women, youth, marginalized groups who report increased participation in processes of local governance
      * Percentage increase in communication and collaboration among project participants
      * Percentage of local leaders and community members who demonstrate an increase in knowledge about inclusive governance
      * Percentage of local leaders and community members who have demonstrated an increase in their skills to effectively play their roles and carry out their responsibilities in local governance
      * Percentage of stakeholders who demonstrate an increased positive attitude towards collaboration
      * Percentage increase of women, youth, and other marginalized groups who demonstrate knowledge in how to participate in local governance

        * Percentage of improvement of the skills of women and youth in managing and running micro-projects in their communities
        * Percentage of improvement in the skills of women, youth, and other marginalized groups in community mobilization
        * Percentage of women, youth, and other marginalized groups who feel confident participating in roundtable discussion and restitution meetings

        b.Audience: The primary audience of the Final Evaluation will be Search. Recommendations should emerge from the study to inform current and future programming in Lebanon and in the region.

        The secondary audience will be the donor, the Canada Global Affairs, Citizens of Wadi Khaled, as well the peacebuilding community at large, which will use the findings and recommendations to strengthen its current and future programming.

         c. Methodology:  Approach

        Search approach to evaluation is grounded in the guiding principles of our work: participatory, culturally sensitive, committed to building capacity, affirming and positive while honest and productively critical, and valuing knowledge and approaches from within the context. Search and the hired consultant(s) will agree upon a joint set of evaluation standards when negotiating the final contract of agreement.

        The below principles should be taken into account:

        · Inclusiveness—the methodology should include a wide range of viewpoints, specifically gender and age-sensitivity when applicable.

        · Mixed-method approaches—both qualitative and quantitative methods need to be present in the methodology.

        · Rigor of evidence—gathered information needs to be reliable and transparent

        · Ethics—the methodology needs to consider ethics in order to insure that the evaluation is fully objective.

        In addition, the consultant is expected to respect Search  evaluations standards, to be found in Search evaluation guidelines https://www.sfcg.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/SFCG-External-Evaluation-Guidelines-FINAL.pdf

         

        Methodology & Scope of Evaluation:

        The evaluation will investigate project stakeholders. The sample size should be adequate and representative of the target groups. In addition, the evaluation should employ both quantitative and qualitative methods.

        It will draw on the following sources and data collection methods:

         Desk study review: Project documents, monitoring framework and other relevant sources of data to complete the assessment.

         Reflection Sessions: two reflection sessions to be conducted separately

        Key Informant Interviews (KIIs): interviews to be conducted with key stakeholders involved in the project

         Survey: Surveys to be conducted with project stakeholders

        ● Focus group discussions (FGDs): FGDs with project direct and indirect stakeholders

         

        2. Implementation Information

                               

        a. Final Evaluation Team

        The consultant will work closely with Search Lebanon DM&E and Learning Manager who will be ensuring that all milestones are met. He/she will also act as focal point on all issues including logistics and will sign off on the final papers in consultation with the MENA Regional DME Specialist and with the final approval of the Lebanon Country Director.

         

        b. Deliverables

         Within seven days from signing the contract, the consultant should submit an Inception report, which clearly defines the study background and methodology, including clear outlines for the data collection tools and research timeline with specific deadlines for each deliverable. The Inception report and the data collection tools need formal approval from Search before starting the data collection in the field.

         draft final evaluation report to be submitted within 10 days of completion of the data collection for review and comments from Search country team and the Regional DMEL specialist. The review and feedback of the report could be more than one round depending on the quality of the report and the extent to which the comments and suggestions from first round have been incorporated.

         final evaluation report to be submitted after incorporating the comments of SearchThe report should be written in English, 30-35 pages excluding annexes, and using the Final Evaluation Template provided by Search, consisting of:

        -  Cover page, Search will provide sample cover sheet for reference

        -  Table of contents, list of acronyms, abbreviations and list of tables and charts.

        -  Executive summary of key findings and recommendations – 3-4 pages

        - Background information and context analysis presented per key criteria with a brief description

        Evaluation methodology with clear explanation of sampling and limitations, participants’ selection and data analysis approach.

        Research findings, analysis, with associated data presented, where appropriate in clear graphs or charts. The findings can include subsections for each research criteria.

        -  Conclusion and Recommendations for future project implementation.

        -  The recommendations should be framed according to each evaluation criteria.

        - Appendices should include the ToRs, collected data, detailed description of the methodology with research instruments, and list of participants.

        An info-graphical Digest Assessment of 2 pages to be shared with the wider target audience.

        ● Restitution meeting with Search staff to present the preliminary findings of the study.

         Once the draft is submitted and reviewed, Search may decide based on the quality of the draft whether the consultant may be required to revise the draft, working closely with Search DM&E Manager as necessary.

        ● The report should be submitted electronically in a MS – Word document. The consultant is responsible for English editing of the final report which should be well formatted. The report will be credited to the evaluator and potentially placed in the public domain at the decision of Search.

        All handwritten and electronic transcripts of data collection, hard copies of survey questionnaires, photographs taken during the assessment and any equipment received from Search for the purpose of the study should be submitted to Search. Furthermore, all information generated during the Final Evaluation study will be the sole property of Search and is subject to submission to Search along with the final report, prior to the end of the contract.

         

        3. Deadlines

         Consultant recruitment deadline: October 28, 2018

        ● Deadline for finalizing the Inception Report and data collection tools: November 14, 2018

        ● Deadline for finalizing data collection: January 24, 2018

        ● Deadline for the draft report: February 3, 2019

        ● Deadline for the final deliverables: February 15, 2019

         

        The Final Evaluation Consultant:

        Search Lebanon seeks an experienced consultant with the following qualifications: Proficiency in Arabic and English; Solid understanding of the Lebanese peacebuilding context; More than 5 years of experience in conducting project final evaluations in peacebuilding and governance sectors, including collecting and analyzing data from interviews, surveys; Experience in working with international organizations.; Strong communication and writing skills.; Research and evaluation methods and data collection skills; Ability to be flexible with time and work schedule.; Attention to detail and ability to meet tight deadlines; Conflict resolution/peacebuilding experience.

         

        How to apply

        Sound good?  To apply, interested consultants should:

        Send a letter of interest, resume, technical and budget proposal with projected start date by October 23, 2018 with the subject heading:  Diwan Final Evaluation Consultant to [email protected]

        Expired
        Deadline
        Tuesday, 23. Oct 2018
        Type of Call
        Call for Proposals
        Intervention Sector(s):
        Conflict Resolution
        randomness