Afghanistan: Terms of Reference - End of Project Evaluation of EC-funded project

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Terms of Reference
End of Project Evaluation of EC-funded project “Capacity building and community sensitization to reduce violence against children in Herat Province in Afghanistan focusing on children in detention and in conflict with the law”

1. Background:
   War Child UK (WCUK) is a child rights organization founded in the UK in 1993 with a vision of a world in which children’s lives are not torn apart by war. WCUK exists to support and rehabilitate child victims of war and deal with the lasting consequences of conflict by working with local communities, civil society organizations and local authorities in both conflict and post-conflict countries; ensuring sustainable security for the children; promoting livelihood opportunities and addressing the development needs of the most vulnerable and marginalized children. Currently, we work in six conflict and post-conflict countries: DRC, Uganda, Afghanistan, Jordan (Syria response), Iraq, Yemen and Central African Republic (CAR).
   In December 2014, War Child started a three-year project funded by the European Commission, “Capacity building and community sensitization to reduce violence against children in Herat Province, focusing on children in detention and in conflict with the law.” The target number of beneficiaries included: 450 children in conflict with the law (CICL); 150 children below 6 years old children living with their mothers in women’s prison; 180 children’s shura to be established from 18 districts in Herat City; 90 children to be trained on making their views hear in theatre and radio; 10 to 12 family support groups will be established with around 200 members and training and close coordination with staff of Juvenile Rehabilitation Center in Herat, Women Prison and Department of Justice.
   Project
   Overall Objective: To contribute to the reduction of violence against children in the Western Region of Afghanistan with a particular focus on girls and those in conflict with the law (CICL).
   Specific Objective 1: To support the reintegration of newly-released children previously in conflict with the law (with a particular focus on girls).
   Specific Objective 2: To empower all children to report violence committed against them and/or in their surroundings.
2. Overall Purpose of the Evaluation
   The end of project evaluation shall document:
    The extent to which the project outputs and outcomes have contributed to the reduction in violence against children in the programme areas in Afghanistan.
    The relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability of the approaches and testing of assumptions to reducing the violence against children in the selected areas with a particular focus on girls and those in conflict with the law.
    Lessons learnt and proposed feasible recommendations to inform future programme design in particular with children in contact and in conflict with the law in post conflict settings or fragile states.
   1 The evaluator may want to consider the contribution analysis approach
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   The evidence generated through this evaluation exercise is expected to:
    Better inform future programme design and development with children in conflict with law in conflict-affected and fragile states.
    Report against the project Overall and Specific Objective Indicators as set out in the project log-frame
3. Scope and Focus of the Evaluation
   The aim of the consultancy is to conduct a robust evaluation of the extent to which the project has achieved its expected and unexpected outcomes, and identify evidence that these outcomes have contributed to the reduction in violence against children in the project areas in Afghanistan.
   The Consultant(s) is expected to evaluate the project following the OECD DAC criteria2: (i) relevance; (ii) effectiveness (added value, learning and partnership approach), (iii) sustainability (iv) efficiency and value for money (v) impact. For Value for Money, and consider 4E’s as the questions: Is there evidence that the following were considered –
    Economy - Are we (or our agents) buying inputs of the appropriate quality at the right price?
    Efficiency - How well are we (or our agents) converting inputs into outputs? (‘Spending well’)
    Effectiveness - How well are the outputs produced by an intervention having the intended effect? (‘Spending wisely’);
    Equity – How well are the results of the intervention are equitably distributed?
   More specifically, the consultant is expected to develop and implement a methodology that will answer the following questions besides the OECD DAC criteria (to be finalised and agreed between War Child UK, and the consultant(s) after contract award):
    Did the project reach the most vulnerable boys and girls through its interventions?
    Is there evidence that the approaches used in the project contributed to reduction in violence against children in the Herat province?
    Is there evidence that the approaches used in the project contributed to a change in the perceived level of safety and wellbeing amongst children?
    Has the project increased the knowledge, attitude and practices of children and community members in target communities on child rights and referral pathways, this includes the awareness-raising work done with the Child Shuras in Afghanistan, Community Child Protection Committees and PTAs. What worked well and what are the lessons learnt?
    Has the project contributed to improving the capacity of War Child’s local partners to deliver quality programmes and meaningfully impacted the lives of children in the target communities?
    Determine the projects’ contribution to reintegrating children in their communities, and the effectiveness of the methodologies used in the two country programmes. What has worked and what has not?
    To what extent the project has contributed to changes in regional/national policies and whether these have contributed to changes in practice and attitudes of decision and policy makers that directly benefit the project’s target group.
    Determine the extent to which the broader context (political, security, environmental, social, and financial) has impacted upon the project’s progress?
   The consultant is responsible to:
   2 http://www.oecd.org/dac/evaluation/daccriteriaforevaluatingdevelopmentassistance.htm
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    Provide actionable, specific and practical strategic recommendations on how War Child UK and its partners can use the learning to strengthen future work.
    The evaluator(s) should organise a lessons sharing/dissemination workshop with stakeholders in Afghanistan at the end of his/her/their field visit to share the initial findings with them.
4. Process and Methodology
   This evaluation will take a course of around four weeks between 1st of December 2016 and January 15th, 2017. The assignment is for approximately 30 days during which the consultant(s) must spend at least 10 days in the field in Afghanistan. War Child will help in organizing accommodation, arranging meetings and transportation when in the country. War Child has its own secure guest houses in both Kabul and Herat and we can accommodate one person without any charges if the evaluator is willing to stay at the guest houses.
   Please note that teams of evaluators are highly encouraged to apply, ideally including a lead evaluator and a local M&E specialist in Afghanistan.
   To fulfil the objectives of this exercise both quantitative and qualitative assessment methods should be employed. We require a participatory methodology whereby the work engages all key stakeholders including beneficiaries, community members and War Child staff to collect data on all the outcome indicators and answer all the evaluation questions stated above.
   Qualitative Comparative Analysis: Both the projects have baseline and end-line data available on children’s perceived level of safety in selected areas in Afghanistan and some survey results with children in conflict with the law. If possible we would request the consultant(s) to conduct thorough comparative analysis of the currently available data preferably using the Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) approach.
   The consultant will:
    Develop inception report, tools for the evaluation (including tools for all the outcome indicators), methodology and a schedule of field activities. It will be approved by War Child and act as an agreement between parties for how the evaluation is to be conducted. The Inception Report should include:
   a) Overview of the Programme/Project
   b) Methodology for the project evaluation
   c) Evaluation Matrix with questions
   d) Information Collection, Analysis and Reporting
   e) Work plan
    Use participatory/consultative methods (including but not limited to – picture/video diaries, case studies) and should provide details of the approach/methods to be used. The assessment should follow War Child UK’s Ethical Research Policy.
   The key participants of the exercise will include the children and youth who are direct beneficiaries; implementing partners: Afghanistan Educational Children Circus (AECC), Afghanistan Human Rights Organization (AHRO) and Sanayee Development Organization (SDO); local authorities; and families of the direct beneficiaries and War Child UK staff.
5. Deliverables
   Expected Outputs:
6. Inception Report including a detailed work plan for evaluation, toolkit and guidelines for the evaluation.
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7. Report, the report(s) should be in English. It should be not more than 25 pages and free of jargon, excluding annexes. The report must include a two page before and after analysis of the Child Safety Report Cards Survey datasets in Afghanistan clearly highlighting the change in children’s perceived level of safety within their communities, schools and households.
8. Evaluation Report(s) should be consisting of:
    Title Page
    Table of Contents / Figures and Tables
    Abbreviations / acronyms page
    Executive summary (2 pages maximum)
    Background and a short introduction to the project
    The evaluation methodology (including evaluation/research questions and tools)
    Findings
    Innovation and lessons learned
    Case studies/stories should be used to highlight/illustrate the findings
    Recommandations
    Conclusion
   Lessons sharing/dissemination document capturing key impact and learning and presented in a reader friendly and marketable format should be produced in English and Dari. It should not be more than two sides of an A4 page.
9. Timeframe
   The Evaluation is expected to be initiated ideally by the 1st week of December 2016. The final report is due on or before the 15th of January 2017. The consultant(s) will be however required to update War Child throughout the consultancy through regular meetings. The final timeline can be confirmed with the evaluation team at the proposal/Inception Report stage depending on the methodology proposed while below is an indicative timeline for initial discussion:
   S/N
   Activity
   # of Days
10. Document Review, development of Inception Report and the data collection tools (quantitative and qualitative). The Inception Report and tools have to be produced in English and should be approved by War Child.
    6 days
11. Field data collection including the training of enumerators3.
    Note: The number of days depends on the number of enumerators hired and the data collection plan agreed in the Inception Report.
    12 days
12. Presentation of key findings of the evaluation to WCUK and its partners and obtaining feedback at the end of the field visit.
    2 Days
    Data analysis and drafting of report for WCUK review
    7 Days
13.  Lesson dissemination workshop planning with WCUK and its partners
     Lesson Sharing Document preparation and printing including child friendly versions
    1 Day
14. Submission of the Final Evaluation Report(s) and Lessons Dissemination Document
    2 days
    Total number of days
    30 Days
    3 The participatory research activities will need to be done by experienced participatory researchers
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15. Document review
    The consultant is expected to read and reference all possible sources of existing information which include:
     War Child UK ethical research policy and Child Safeguarding Policy
     War Child UK Global Programming Framework (GPF)
     Project proposal, log frame and the budget
     Baseline and end-line Reports
     Child Safety Report Card Reports datasets from Afghanistan
     Sources of existing information e.g. government records, government policies, strategy papers, studies etc.).
     Monthly, quarterly and interim reports of the project.
     Project M&E tools and guidelines
     Child Protection Minimum Standards (especially Standard 14, Justice For Children), as a reference point for the minimum standards and key activities expected to be met and delivered for a project of this nature.
     The EC ROM Report in Afghanistan
     All publications, research reports (Baseline and Midline Reports, Child Safety Report Card reports and data sets, Policy Recommendations on Alternatives to Detention, Study on Violence against Girls etc.)
     Monitoring reports of all activities under the project
     Any other
16. Conditions of the Consultancy
    The consultant(s) will use her/his/their own office/resources/materials/technology and insurance in the execution of this assignment. War Child will provide local travel/transport to the field sites and office space in Afghanistan. A room can be made available at the War Child Guest House in Herat and Kabul in Afghanistan. War Child UK will also provide local travel/transport to the field sites.
    The consultant will be however responsible for her/his/their own subsistence, flights (if required) and all other related costs4. Advice could be provided by our staff in Afghanistan.
    Supervision and Reporting
    The consultant shall be responsible to keep War Child UK regularly informed of progress made. The consultant will be jointly supervised by the Country Director in Afghanistan and WCUK’s MEAL Adviser.
    Funding and Payment: The consultant will be paid by War Child UK as follows (negotiable):
17. 25% after successful submission and our approval of the inception report and tools to War Child UK
18. 75% on successful submission and our approval of the final evaluation report
    Qualifications of Consultant(s), research agency or academic institution(s):
     Masters’ Degree in Development Studies, Social Work, Psychology, Sociology or related discipline coupled with advanced skills and knowledge in Research and Evaluation Methodologies
     At least 5 years’ experience in evaluation of development/humanitarian work specifically in Child Protection and/or Juvenile Justice programmes.
     Knowledge of and experience in working with children in conflict with the law, including a fair understanding of the advocacy and policy environment in Afghanistan.
    4 These costs should be included in the consultant’s budget
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     Excellent research, monitoring and evaluation skills including participatory methodologies and Qualitative Comparative Analysis.
     Excellent verbal and written skills in English are essential
    Willingness and ability to travel to Herat in Afghanistan. The consultant will be provided with a full security pre-departure and post-arrival briefing
    Note: All Consultants will be required to abide by War Child UK’s organizational policies, namely Child Safeguarding Policy with Code of Conduct, Evaluation Policy and Ethics Policy and will be required to sign a statement of commitment to these and other organisational policies. The consultant(s) will also be required to complete or provide evidence of references and DBS/police checks in advance of appointment.

Recruitment and appointment
Interested applicants are requested to submit the following information as part of the initial bid:
 CV of the consultant(s) including current geographical location. (If it’s an agency or business, then a Certificate of Incorporation or documentary proof of registration is required)
 A short two-page application outlining the evaluation methodology (including calendar, key deliverables and tools, research questions).
 Detailed budget with breakdown of daily rate plus number of days and other costs. The budget should not exceed Euros 12,000 (inclusive of VAT, travel and incidental costs). The budget will be evaluated alongside the technical proposal and we reserve the right to make alternative suggestions on costing. The consultant is responsible for meeting their own insurance, subsistence, accommodation and international travel costs whilst the local transportation to field sites in Herat will be provided by WCUK.
 Two references from previous clients
 At least 2 examples of recent/relevant evaluation report preferably regarding child protection programmes. Please share web link if it is published online
The selected candidate(s) will be contracted for the evaluation and will commence work shortly after successful recruitment, references and police checks. A consultancy contract will be signed between consultant and WCUK.
The budget should not exceed the amount of Euros 12,000 in total (inclusive of VAT and travel costs).
Applications should be sent to: recruitment@warchild.org.uk using reference “Final Evaluation of War Child’s EC funded Projects in Afghanistan” in the subject line not later than Wednesday 23rd of November 2016. Any queries to the ToR can be referred to Hur Hassnain at hur@warchild.org.uk.
Please note that submissions which do not meet all the above requirements will not be reviewed. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.