Location :
home based and Bonn Germany, GERMANY
Application Deadline :
30-Oct-13
Additional Category
Millennium Development Goals
Type of Contract :
Individual Contract
Post Level :
International Consultant
Languages Required :
English
Starting Date : (date when the selected candidate is expected to start)
15-Nov-2013
Duration of Initial Contract :
4 month
Expected Duration of Assignment :
4 month
Background
The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is the UN organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. Volunteerism is a powerful means of engaging people in tackling development challenges, and it can transform the pace and nature of development. Volunteerism benefits both society at large and the individual volunteer by strengthening trust, solidarity and reciprocity among citizens, and by purposefully creating opportunities for participation. UNV contributes to peace and development by advocating for recognition of volunteers, working with partners to integrate volunteerism into development programming, and mobilizing an increasing number and diversity of volunteers, including experienced UN Volunteers, throughout the world. UNV embraces volunteerism as universal and inclusive, and recognizes volunteerism in its diversity as well as the values that sustain it: free will, commitment, engagement and solidarity. Background to the Evaluation The following Terms of Reference (TOR) have been developed for the Evaluation of Programme for Human Resource Development in Asia for Peace building (HRD). This evaluation was recommended by the UNV PAC in 2011 and then endorsed by Japan MOFA in 2012. The purpose of this evaluation process is to assess the extent to which the HRD Programme can be evaluated in a reliable and credible manner and to make recommendations and propose action plans for the way forward (e.g. improvements, lessons learned and possible replication). The results of the evaluation will be shared with partners for continuous improvement of their collaboration. The evaluation is expected to be completed by February 2014. The main expected result from this evaluation is a detailed report covering the approach, results and sustainability of the Programme for Human Resource Development in Asia for Peace building (HRD). This report would satisfy accountability and learning requirements and provide relevant and actionable recommendations to inform future implementation phases and possible replication with other donors. In 2007, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (MOFA) launched a Pilot Programme for Human Resource Development in Asia for Peace Building (called thereafter HRD Programme) with the objective to equip professionals from Japan and other Asian countries with the practical knowledge and skills to contribute effectively to peace building activities through volunteerism. As one of the implementing partners, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme facilitated the overseas assignment of more than 110 HRD Programme Associates to 14 cooperating UN Agencies as UN Volunteers from 2007 to 2012. The HRD Programme has now completed 6 consecutive phases of implementation since 2007 with a yearly budget of more than USD 1 million. The Government of Japan has renewed its commitment with a similar level of funding support for the year 2014. The objective of the Programme is to demonstrate the role of volunteering in peace building/keeping activities through the fielding of skilled, trained and committed citizens from Japan and other Asian countries. Volunteers deployed under the Programme bring new skills that expand the reach of peace building efforts. Working alongside national counterparts, they contribute to empower women, youth and marginalized groups, they help build trust among ordinary people involved in some of the world's most fragile peace processes. They also work at regional and national levels to improve UN coordination, as well as programmes in the areas of nutrition and health. The HRD Programme is an initiative that showcases Japan's commitment to volunteerism, peace building, South-South cooperation, and enables participating UN entities to further strengthen their partnerships with both UNV and the Japanese Government. A total of 113 HRD Associates fielded as UN Volunteers under the past 6 phases of implementation were hosted by a wide range of UN partners such as UNDP, UNHCR, WFP, UNICEF, IOM, UNESCO, FAO, UNODC and WHO. Countries of assignments were mostly in Asia and Africa, with a few in the Caribbean and CIS countries. In close collaboration with MOFA and the Hiroshima Peace builders Centre (HPC), an institute that provides a 6 week training course to the HRD Associates prior to their overseas assignments, the UNV Programme is responsible for the coordination of the matching process with host UN partner entities, the deployment of HRD Associates, the project's monitoring and reporting. UNV supports the Programme by facilitating effective mobilization of UN Volunteers in order to respond to the needs of the countries where they will serve through the application of the principle of volunteerism for peace and development, in crisis prevention and recovery, humanitarian assistance, peace building and peacekeeping which are some of the main programmatic priority areas of the UNV Programme. By promoting the mobilization of Japanese and other Asian citizens through volunteer assignments in the field of peace building, by facilitating dissemination, outreach, and generation of awareness about the HRD Programme, this partnership is in line with the overall UNVs mandate and strategic objectives. It has enabled capacity building for Japanese citizens in multilateral cooperation, which is one of the objectives pursued by MOFA. Also, it has led to the presence of more Japanese citizens in international organizations. It has engendered community mobilization through voluntary action. This collaboration is of strategic nature with general corporate objectives both for MOFA and for UNV. For the past 6 years, the key stakeholders of this programme have maintained a renewed and continued interest in this partnership. Over time, systems and processes have been put in place by all parties in order to improve the delivery and quality of the HRD Programme outcomes. This was achieved through monitoring questionnaires, surveys, lessons learned, good practices and corrective measures that have been captured over the various phases. Justification It is against this background and based on the recommendations of the UNV HQ Project Approval Committee (PAC) in October 2011 that the proposal for a detailed evaluation strategy including a results framework was endorsed by the Japan MOFA in order to:
- Document the overall impact of the HRD Programme to better inform and guide future implementation phases;
- Improve results based on documented good practices and lessons learned;
- Increase the visibility of the programme within the Japanese public.
Duties and Responsibilities
General objective The purpose of this evaluation process is to assess the extent to which the HRD Programme can be evaluated in a reliable and credible manner and to make recommendations and propose action plans for the way forward (e.g. improvements, lessons learned and possible replication). In this context, the consultancy will:
- Review the expected project outcomes and related indicators and confirm their validity and/or provide M&E options;
- Develop a results framework for the Project including a log frame, a stakeholder mapping and an evaluation options appraisal;
- Develop and conduct a comprehensive evaluation approach/strategy and options, timeframe, resources and priority actions from now on, as required;
- Based on the above process, produce a final evaluation report with recommendations and lessons learned.
- Formal agreements signed between both parties since the beginning of the partnership (letters of exchange, conventions, amendments, etc.);
- Records of financial information (Atlas reports, expenditure reports, annual financial statements, etc.);
- Project files including project documents, PAC minutes, mission reports, project reviews /evaluations, Annual Project Progress Reports, Volunteers; reports, records of decisions, description of assignments, etc.;
- Records on volunteer management (recruitment and assignments) stored in various platforms and databases at UNV (VRS, SIAM, e-Reta, archive data, Atlas, UNV Portal, etc.);
- Any relevant internet-based information or secondary data produced by UNV, HPC or stakeholders.
Two countries out of this three countries:
- Kyrgyzstan (Bishkek and Osh);
- 3 UN Volunteers assigned to UNICEF, UN Women and OHCHR - South Sudan (Juba);
- 2 UN Volunteers assigned to UNOPS + HRD Volunteers from the previous phase still serving under host agencies' funding.
- Context/Background, Objectives;
- Stakeholder mapping;
- How the program is delivered;
- Expected Results or Outcomes;
- Resources/Funding;
- Data sources or data gaps identified and assessed.
- Relevance and Coherence;
- Effectiveness - Efficiency;
- Impacts/Effects;
- Gender and Social Inclusion;
- Sustainability.
- Desk review (including a review of literature and a stakeholder mapping);
- In-depth interviews with key project informants, including the UNV Portfolio Team at UNV HQ and field level, Tokyo Liaison Office, Japan MOFA, HPC, key partner/stakeholder representatives such as UN Agencies, representatives of recipient communities;
- Online surveys with stakeholders and beneficiaries of the initiatives, with common questions and specific questions to each stakeholder group;
- Focus groups meetings or workshops at country level with key stakeholders using participatory approaches;
- Site visits to selected countries (2) where HRD Volunteers serve, all flights will be booked by UNV travel unit. Evaluation final report specifications.
Evaluation final report specifications
The final evaluation report will be a 40-page document (excluding the annexes) in English, containing a comprehensive analysis compliant to the UNDP Evaluation Policy requirements and international evaluation standards (UNEG Norms and Standards, OECD-DAC Quality Standards for Development Evaluation). The final report will include a stand-alone 5-6 page Executive Summary, the main findings, conclusions and recommendations including the way forward, a set of lessons learned and best practices. The report would provide a thorough appraisal of impact and sustainability as well as key learning to inform future implementation phases of the HRD Programme and similar initiatives. The main report will include the references/data sources, the list of key informants, and the TOR. All other documents will be included in the Annexes. In summary, the expected tasks/milestones and deliverables are:- Expected start-up of the evaluation, 15 November 2013Desk review (review of documentation & literature);
- 29 November 2013 Payment Terms 10% of contract lump sum;
- Collection of primary data (interviews, surveys, field visits);
- 30 December 2013 Payment Terms 20% of contract lump sum
- Develop preliminary report with project profile (Project Description;
- Context/background, objectives, stakeholder mapping, how the program is delivered, expected results or outcomes, Resources/Funding);
- Identify and assess data sources or data gaps;
- 15 January 2013 Payment Terms 15% of contract lump sum
- Define/validate preliminary evaluation report, including project outcomes and related indicators;
- Develop results framework, including a logframe;
- 15 February 2014 Payment Terms 25% of contract lump sum;
- Develop final evaluation report; 28 February 2014 Payment Terms 30% of contract lump sum
Competencies
Functional Competencies:
- Good analytical, communication and consolidation skills;
- Knowledge and experience of volunteerism with its diverse manifestations and cultural settings;
- Experience working with civil society organizations/voluntary sector;
- Competence in sample survey techniques and computerized data processing;
- Knowledge, understanding of UNV mission, mandate and activities or working experience with the UN system;
- Knowledge of the UNDP Evaluation Policy and guidelines and of international evaluation standards (UNEG, OECD-DAC, IEG);
- Experience in outcome evaluation or impact evaluation will be an asset. Evaluation Criteria:
- Experience working with civil society organizations/voluntary sector.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Recognized University degree at the post-graduate level (Masters or higher) in social sciences, management or other relevant fields.
- 5-7 years work experience in providing results-based management (RBM), monitoring and evaluation consultancy services.
- Fluent in English;
- Knowledge of other UN languages would be an asset.
- Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
- Have received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
- Expertise in Monitoring & Evaluation and Result-Based Management (RBM) (10 points);
- Knowledge and experience of volunteerism with its diverse manifestations and cultural settings (10 points);
- Knowledge of the UN system including experience with UNV and /or other similar International Organizations (5 points);
- Relevant field experience in developing countries; including experience with the selected countries (case studies, geographic coverage) (5 points).
- Methodology, understanding of the work, appropriateness to the condition and timeliness of the implementation or work plan, based on the written proposal and schedule submitted (25 points);
- Relevant university qualifications, expertise, based on the written documentation and the CVs (10 points);
- Language competencies of for the target countries may be determined by an interview during the evaluation stage for shortlisted candidates (5 points);
- Total Part 1 30% Total Part 2 40%;
- Technical total 70%;
- Financial 30%;
- Total 100%;
- Technical Criteria weight: 70%;
- Financial Criteria weight: 30%.
- p y (µ/z).
- p points for the financial proposal being evaluated;
- y maximum number of points for the financial proposal;
- µ price of the lowest priced proposal;
- z price of the proposal being evaluated.
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.
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