UNDP Jobs - 85040- International Consultant (Final Project Evaluation

International Consultant (Final Project Evaluation Expert)-UNDP-EGEMA Project

Location :

Kabul, AFGHANISTAN

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Jun-2019

Application Deadline :

20-May-19 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

One Month (With maximum 19 working days

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

UNDP Global Mission Statement:

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN’s global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP is on the ground in 166 countries, working with national counterparts on their own solutions to global and national development challenges.

Organizational context:

UNDP supports stabilization, state-building, governance and development priorities in Afghanistan. UNDP support, in partnership with the Government, the United Nations system, the donor community and other development stakeholders, has contributed to institutional development efforts leading to positive impact on the lives of Afghan citizens. Over the years UNDP support has spanned such milestone efforts as the adoption of the Constitution; Presidential, Parliamentary and Provincial Council elections; institutional development through capacity-building to the legislative, the judicial and executive arms of the state, and key ministries, Government agencies and commissions at the national and subnational levels;

UNDP has played a key role in the management of the Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan (LOTFA), which supports the Government in developing and maintaining the Afghan National Police (ANP) and the Central Prisons Department (CPD) in efforts to stabilize the internal security environment. Major demobilizations, disarmaments and rehabilitations and area-based livelihoods and reconstruction programmes have taken place nationwide. UNDP Programmes in Afghanistan have benefited from the very active support of donors. UNDP Afghanistan is committed to the highest standards of transparency and accountability and works in close coordination with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the UN system to maximize the impact of its development efforts on the ground.

Organizational context of the position:

Based on experiences and lessons learnt built from the GEP-II, the new phase of the Gender Equality Project was developed as Enhancing Gender Equality and Mainstreaming in Afghanistan (EGEMA) with four pillars:

Institutional Strengthening of the Ministry of Women Affairs (MOWA);
Creating a national pool of Gender Experts;
Women’s livelihoods strengthening and;
Gender Transformative approaches.

The goal of capacity building will be achieved through a strategy based on the principles of

Strengthening the Capacity of National and Sub-National Partners to deliver the goal and objectives of EGEMA;
Promote and contribute to the coordination of gender-related activities and program coherence within the UN system;
Enhancing the capacity of government institutions;
Facilitate partnerships and synergies;

Implementation of the two-year EGEMA project started in May 2016 and its completion was planned by end of April 2018. As some of activities of the project were not completed, therefore, the Project Board in its meeting of January 2018 approved no cost extension of the project until 31 December 2018. Furthermore, for the second time the project duration is extended from 1/1/2019 to 31/12/2019 to enable UNDP work on post-report production activities namely replication of same project output and activities in the period reported 2016 to 2018. The extension is based on the request from the government counterpart – Ministry of Women Affairs (MOWA) following on for accomplishment of the uncompleted activities from 2018 and based on the consent from Senior DCD Programme;

Against this background, UNDP is hiring individual consultants one international and one national (ICs) to carry out the Final Evaluation of the EGEMA project which will be conducted through a consultative process with UNDP, MOWA, MAIL, MOHRA, Kabul University, Administrative office of the President, project donors (Government of Korea, UNV) and beneficiaries.

Overall objective of the consultancy:

In accordance with the project document, UNDP intends to conduct this Final Evaluation of the EGEMA project to provide a comprehensive independent assessment of project performance and governance arrangements and provide recommendations for the future generations of gender equality projects of UNDP.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective of the Assignment:

Final Evaluation of the EGEMA project should cover all its four Outputs:

Institutional Strengthening of the Ministry of Women Affairs (MOWA) and the Gender Responsive Budgeting (implemented jointly with the UN Women);
Creating a national pool of Gender Experts (Masters Programme in the Kabul University);
Women’s livelihoods strengthening (business projects in Daikundi, Herat, Balkh, Kabul);
Gender Transformative approaches (with religious leaders and the “Youth Mullah Volunteers Caravans”);

The specific tasks shall be the following:

The international consultant will be assisted by the national consultant in conducting the final evaluation of the project with the following details:-

Evaluation Objectives

The Evaluation will assess progress towards the achievement of the project objectives and outcomes mentioned above and as specified in the Project Document and Extension Document and assess project success or failure. The Evaluation will also review the project’s approach and methodology, its risks to results impact and sustainability and make recommendations on the future generations of gender equality projects;?

The questions regarding aspects of relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact and sustainability of the project will cover the design, start-up, project management, and project implementation phases from May 2016 to December 2018.

The specific tasks shall be the following:

The international consultant will be assisted by the national consultant in conducting the final evaluation of the project with the following details:

Evaluation Objectives

Evaluation Approach and methodology

The Evaluation must provide evidence-based information that is credible, reliable and useful. The evaluation expert should review and if required translate in local languages all relevant sources of information including documents (reference the 'Documents to be consulted' section below). The Consultant will work together with the international consultant to interview all relevant stakeholders including all parties who have been contracted by the project or participate in meetings and discussions with the project. Collaborative and participatory approach ensuring close engagement of all stakeholders (See section below: ‘Evaluation Target Groups and sources of information’) should be ensured.

Based on a review of all relevant documents and initial consultations Evaluation Inception Report should be produced by the consultant and it needs to be presented to the UNDP Governance Unit (owner of the evaluation) for comments and then the Governance Unit will share it internally.

In addition to the Evaluation inception report, following should be produced:

An Initial findings presentation on the final day of the in-country mission to Afghanistan;
A Draft evaluation report, and;
A Final evaluation report based on below evaluation criteria and feedback received.

Evaluation questions:

Relevance

To which extent did the project design address the substantive problem that the project was intended to address? How useful are the project outputs to the needs of the target beneficiaries;
To which extend did the “Theory of Change” corresponded to the changing environment;
How did the project react to the changing environment;
Is there enough government/stakeholder commitment to enforce and implement the mechanisms, strategies, agreements, monitoring systems etc. prepared and agreed upon under the project;
What is the value of intervention in relation to the national and international partners’ policies and priorities (including SDG, UNDAF and UNDP Corporate Strategic Plan; NAPWA, ANPDF/NPPs, etc).

Efficiency

Are the project objectives consistent with substantive needs, and realistic in consideration of technical capacity, resources and time available;
To what extent is the project logic, concept and approach appropriate and relevant to achieving the objectives;
To what extent were adequate resources secured prior to project implementation;
Did the project use the resources in the most economical manner to achieve its objectives;
To what extent were project start-up activities completed on schedule;
How well is the project managed, and how could it be managed better;
Is there an appropriate mechanism for monitoring the progress of the project;
What is the project status with respect to target outputs in terms of quality and timeliness;
What is the potential that the project will successfully achieve the desired outcomes;
What are the potential challenges/risks that may prevent the project from producing the intended results.

Effectiveness

Are the project’s objectives and outcomes clearly articulated, feasible, realistic;
Are the underlying assumptions on which the project intervention has been based valid;
To what extent did the project start-up activities adhere to the agreed approach and methodology;
If there were delays in project start-up, what were the causes of delay, and what was the effectiveness of corrective measures undertaken- Do start-up problems persist;
To what extent has the project implemented activities as envisaged ? To what extent have those activities contributed to achieving the project objectives?
What factors have contributed to achieving/not achieving the intended results?
To what extent have the project implementation modalities been appropriate to achieve the overall objectives?
To what extent has the project managed to implement activities across the target project locations?
To what extent do external factors, such as logistical or security constraints, have impact on project implementation?

Impact

What is the wider perception of the project, its image, applicability and performance? Are project communications effective in positively promoting the project to a wider audience?
What are the results (or preliminary results) of the intervention in terms changes in the lives of beneficiaries against set indicators?

Sustainability

What are the Implementing Partner’s resources, motivation and ability to continue project activities in the future?
Was there adequate all-party commitment to the project objectives and chosen approach?
To what extent was there constructive cooperation among the project partners What are the levels of satisfaction of government counterparts, donors and beneficiaries?
What has been the quality of execution of the implementing partner, and if applicable where are there specific areas for improvement?
What is the likelihood that the project results will be sustainable in terms of systems, institutions, financing and anticipated impact?
What is needed for the project intervention to be adapted/replicated further?

Coverage

To what extent the project could covered the area targeted by the project?
To which extent the project covered and reached its planned beneficiaries?
Did the project implemented its planned activities and achieved its indicators?

Coordination:

How strengthen the coordination was between the stakeholders and the project (between the project and MOWA, between the project and MOHRA and the project and the project and MOIC)?
What problems were experienced in relation to coordination for implementation of project activities?
Did coordination exist between the project and its beneficiaries?

Coherence

To what extent beneficiaries were involved in planning, Monitoring and implementation of project activities.

In addition to assessing the evaluation questions above, the team should analyze any other pertinent issues that need addressing or which may or should influence future project direction and UNDP engagement in the country.

Conclusions and Recommendations:

The Evaluation will include a section of the report setting out the evaluation’s evidence-based conclusions, considering the findings;
What corrective actions are recommended for the design, start-up phase, managerial arrangements and project implementation, including sustainability, of the project? A recommendation table should be put in the report’s executive summary;
What actions are recommended to follow up or reinforce initial benefits from the project;
What are the main lessons that can be drawn from the project experience that may have generic application.

Evaluation Target Groups and sources of information:

The evaluation team should strive to reach as many people as possible, ensuring diversity of various stakeholder groups, as well as to review existing reports and data for an enriched evaluation.

A provisional list of stakeholder groups that should be consulted during the evaluation is given below and will be updated once the consultant is on board:

Government of Afghanistan: Ministry of Women’s Affairs (MOWA), and its various departments including relevant Directorates at the central level;
Admin Office of the President;
12 sector ministries for the GRB 1(2-3 can be spot-checked).
Faculty of Social Science of Kabul University managing the GSI programme

Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) at central level and its Departments in Herat, Daikundi provinces;
Beneficiaries: direct beneficiaries in Kabul, Herat and Daikundi, MOWA, MAIL, AoP;
International Organizations: UN Volunteers, UN Women (GRB);
Donor- Government of the Republic of Korea, UN Volunteers;
UNDP Country Office;
EGEMA Project Staff in Kabul.

[1] Ministries under GRB pilot:

Ministry of Economy;
Ministry of Finance;
Ministry of Education;
Ministry of Higher Education;
National Environmental Protection Agency;
Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation;
Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock;
Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Disabled and Martyrs;
Ministry of Information and Culture;
Ministry of Public Health;
Independent Directorate of Local Governance;
Ministry of Women’s Affairs (as advisory, oversight and monitoring body only);

Expected Outputs and Deliverable; Estimated duration to complete and Payment percentage:

The following key deliverables are expected from this assignment:

Deliverable 1, Inception Report due (3 working days in Kabul) after signature of contract-Evaluation inception report 20%:

An inception report should be prepared by the evaluators before going into the fully-fledged data collection exercise. It should detail the evaluators’ understanding of what is being evaluated and why, showing how each evaluation question will be answered by way of: proposed methods, proposed sources of data and data collection procedures. The inception report should include a proposed schedule of tasks, activities and deliverables for each task or product. The inception report provides UNDP and the evaluator with an opportunity to verify that they share the same understanding about the evaluation and clarify any misunderstanding at the outset. The Evaluation inception report should outline a clear overview of the mid-term review approach, including:

The purpose, objective, and scope of the review;
The approach should include a summary of the data collection method, and the criteria on which the methodologies were adopted;
A proposed work plan including a schedule of tasks, activities, and deliverables;
A final evaluation matrix, specifying the main review criteria and the indicators or benchmarks against which the criteria will be assessed;
Any limitations for the mid-term review.

Deliverable 2: Initial Findings Presentation and report (10 working days in Kabul, Herat and Daikundi); 30%

Initial findings presentation: An initial findings presentation and report, presented on the last day of the MTE mission.

Deliverable 3, (3 working days) after submission of Initial findings presentation and report; 20%

Draft evaluation report: Full draft report and annexes should be submitted, UNDP and key stakeholders in the evaluation will review the draft evaluation report to ensure that the evaluation meets the required quality criteria. See section below ‘Suggested Template for Final Evaluation Report;

Deliverable 4, (3 working days) after the submission of the Draft Final Report; 30%

Final evaluation report:? Revised report with audit trail detailing how all received comments have (and have not) been addressed in the final Evaluation report.

Payment Modality

Payments under the contract shall be delivery based and be made on receipt of the specific milestone reports indicated above. These shall be made upon approval by EGEMA and Governance Unit. The draft report of the evaluation and recommendations will be reviewed by EGEMA and Governance Unit. Upon receipt of final comments, the consultant shall finalize the evaluation for formal acceptance by UNDP at which point the final payment shall be released;

UNDP reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if work/outputs is incomplete, not delivered or for failure to meet deadlines.

End products:

Final Evaluation Report, which should include:
Executive summary;
Methodology: description of sampling and evaluation methodology used, assessment of methodology and its limitation, data collection instruments, and data processing (analysis methodology, and quality assurance);
Findings;
Conclusions;
Recommendations;
Lessons learned;
Annexes: List of indictors, questionnaires, and if survey, table of sample size and sample site as appropriate.
The report should be provided in both hard copy and electronic version in English in the required format;
Completed data sets (filled out questionnaires, records of individual interviews and focus group discussion, etc.);

The evaluation report will be required to follow and will be rated in accordance with “UNEG Evaluation Report Standards” and UNEG Evaluation Technical Notes.

Institutional Arrangements

The International Consultant will work under the overall supervision of the EGEMA Project Manager and and in close consultation with the Deputy Minister for Policy and Planning.

The Governance Unit and the EGEMA Project will provide office space, internet, logistical and other support services including transport and security for UNDP international personnel. However, the consultant is expected to bring his/her own laptop and mobile phone and meet local communications costs (Governance Unit will provide a local pre-paid SIM card). Costs to arrange meetings, workshops, travel costs and?Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) during field visits (if any), etc. shall be covered by the EGEMA Project.

Duration of the Work

Duration of the consultancy is one month with maximum 19 working days.

Duty Station

The Work will be carried out in-country. The duty station for the consultant shall be Kabul With field visits to Balkh, Herat and Diakundi Provinces of Afghanistan. All the activities will be implemented in Kabul. The EGEMA Project will cover expenses of all official field missions within the country, upon receiving the prior approval from the EGEMA Project Manager and Governance Unit. When in Kabul, the consultant will be based at UNOCA/EGEMA Project and report regularly to EGEMA Project Manager and Governance Unit at the United Nations Office Complex in Afghanistan (UNOCA) during working hours, security conditions permitting;

The Consultant will follow the working hours and weekends applicable to UNDP Country Office (CO) staff. The Consultant’s movement for meetings and consultations shall be coordinated by the Governance Unit and EGEMA Project;

The Consultant is at all times required to observe UNDP security rules and regulations.

Existing information sources:

Identify relevant information sources that exist and are available, such as:

Monitoring systems and/or evaluations, surveys and studies (provide an appraisal of quality and reliability);
Project documents and reports for the period May 2016-November 2018;
Trip reports of relevant programme/project staff;
Surveys, studies, evaluations for the period of May 2016-November 2018;
Data from government offices;
Meetings with MOWA, MAIL, Administrative Office of the President, UN Women, UN Volunteers.

Process and recommended methodology

The Evaluation and evaluation report will follow UNDP and UN Evaluation Group (UNEG) Norms and Standards for Evaluations.

During field visits observations, interviews (structured/unstructured) survey or focus group discussions are relevant to be applied. Sampling should be done given the number of direct beneficiaries for women’s economic empowerment component (140 women in Herat, 200 women in Daikundi, 100 women in Kabul), direct beneficiaries of the Gender Masters Programme (60 students), indirect beneficiaries include Government Officials, 11 pilot ministries for Gender Responsive Budgeting initiatives.

Accountabilities:

UNDP project staff will be accountable for coordination of stakeholders involved, organizing field-visits, focus groups, and other logistical issues. UNDP CO/programme staff will be accountable for reviewing/approving of the final evaluation results. The evaluator shall be independent in evaluation exercise, however considering sensitive issues which may arise while assessment. There are no specific concerns related to conflict of interest;

The EGEMA team will serve as the primary contact with the consultant. Technical guidance will be provided both from the Governance Unit, Programme Strategy & Results Team (PSRT) as well as the Regional M&E Advisor (or equivalent). The Programme Unit together with EGEMA team will coordinate the e.g. key informant interviews, consultative meetings and field visits with duty-bearers and rights-holders. The Office M&E team will also serve as a consultative body, which will review the preliminary findings and draft report. The Head of the Governance Unit will give approval for the final Evaluation report.

PRICE PROPOSAL AND SCHEDULE OF PAYMENTS

The Consultant shall submit a price proposal as below:

Daily Fee– The consultant shall propose a daily fee, which should be inclusive of her/his professional fee, local communication costs and insurance (inclusive of medical health insurance and evacuation). The professional daily fee, all inclusive of the above elements, shall be paid upon submission of timesheet. The number of working days for which the daily fee shall be payable under the contract is one Month wiht maximum 19 working days.
UNDP will provide accommodation free of charge to the Consultant.The Consultant is NOT allowed to stay in a place of his choice other than the UNDSS approved locations. UN will provide MORSS compliant accommodation in UNOCA to the Consultant.
Travel & Visa– All airfare and travel within Afghanistan will be covered by the project. Costs for one Trip to and from the duty station, including visa on arrival charges, should be included in the consultant’s financial proposal and daily rate.
Payment schedule- Payments shall be done upon verification of completion of specific deliverables, upon approval by the EGEMA Project Manager.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Functional Competencies:

Ability to lead Policy review process through consultation with stakeholders;
Good knowledge of policy analysis and revision;
Experience in formulating and reviewing policies and strategies for gender mainstreaming
Ability to manage time and meet tight deadlines;
Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
Builds strong relationships with clients and external actors;
Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities.

Management and Leadership:

Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities;
Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
Proven networking, team-building, organizational and communication skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Master’s Degree in political science, sociology, international relations, international economics, law, public administration, social science, evaluation, or other closely related field from an accredited university.

Years of experience:

At least 10 years of working experience in evaluation and social research is, with at
least 5 years of working with developing countries and a demonstrated understanding of
the challenges and opportunities faced by post conflict countries;
Proven experience in evaluating projects/programmes of UN or development agencies
(preferably UNDP and with gender equality focus, policymaking, gender responsive
budgeting, women’s economic empowerment);
Strong analytical and research skills with sufficient understanding of quantitative/qualitative methods and data analysis;?
Familiarity with UNEG evaluation norms and guidelines and processes required;
Work experience related to women’s rights, local employment focused on women, academic programmes on gender and gender equality, is an advantage;
Experience working in Afghanistan an advantage.

Language:

Excellent command of written and spoken in English language.

EVALUATION METHOD AND CRITERIA

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and;
Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

* Technical Criteria weight 70%

* Financial Criteria weight 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria 70 points

Technical Proposal (30 marks)

Technical Approach & Methodology (20 marks) – This explain the understanding of the objectives of the assignment, approach to the services, methodology for carrying out the activities and obtaining the expected output, and the degree of detail of such output. The Applicant should also explain the methodologies proposed to adopt and highlight the compatibility of those methodologies with the proposed approach;
Work Plan (10 marks) – The Applicant should propose the main activities of the assignment, their content and duration, phasing and interrelations, milestones (including interim approvals by the Client), and delivery dates. The proposed work plan should be consistent with the technical approach and methodology, showing understanding of the TOR and ability to translate them into a feasible working plan;

Qualification and Experience (40 marks) [evaluation of CV shortlisting]

Relevant education (10 marks);
Experience relevant to the assignment (20 marks);
Experience of working for projects/programmes funded by UNDP (10 marks).

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications in one single PDF document:

Duly accomplished confirmation of Interest and Submission of Financial Proposal Template using the template provided by UNDP (Annex II);
Personal CV, indicating all experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references.

Technical Proposal:

Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment;
A technical approach and methodology, on how they will approach and complete the assignment and work plan as indicated above;
Workplan.

Note: Incomplete application will not be considered, it will be disqualified automatically.