Country: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Closing date: 21 Aug 2016
medica mondiale is a non-governmental organisation based in Germany which stands up for women and girls in war and crisis zones throughout the world. medica mondiale supports women and girls having experienced sexualised violence, regardless of political, ethnic or religious affiliation. Together with women from around the world, medica mondiale is committed to helping women to lead a dignified and self-determined life.
Consultancy
For the evaluation of the projects „Development of local psychosocial capacities as a contribution to the promotion of peace in the Great Lakes Region“ and “Local women’s organisations rise for women’s rights and against sexualized violence in South Kivu”
we are looking for a female
SHORT-TERM CONSULTANCY TEAM
to develop and conduct a joint mid-term evaluation of both projects. Institutions and/or consultant teams are invited to submit an application for this consultancy.
Professional qualifications
To ensure that the evaluation draws a balanced picture we would like to contract an evaluation team consisting of an international female expert and a national or regional female expert with the following expertise:
• A strong understanding and experience in evaluation methodology and practice with experience in team work
• Experience in qualitative (storytelling, MSC, etc.) but also in quantitative sociological research methods and practice
• Experience in and sound knowledge of psycho-social work in the field of violence against women mainly in conflict regions and especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Strong background and working experience in sexualized gender based violence and community based approaches as evaluator
• Strong background and working experience in the topics of capacity development and empowerment
• Excellent and proven report writing and verbal communication skills in English and French, German would be an asset.
• National/Regional evaluator with excellent communication skills in Kiswahili/ local languages.
• Experience with evaluating projects funded by the Fondation Smartpeace or the Medicor Foundation would be an asset
One consultant will be the main responsible person to medica mondiale and will take the lead responsibility for methodology, process and reporting. This consultant will also ensure that the evaluation team and also interpreters will act in a trauma sensitive way. Team applications are most welcome.
Personal skills
• Flexible, creative and innovative
• Excellent analytical skills
• A clear commitment to work with a women centred and empowering approach
• High cultural sensitivity; high degree of cross-cultural competence and diversity perspective
• Feminist background
Background and Project Description
The UN estimated that about 200,000 women and girls were victims of sexualised violence in Eastern DR Congo since 1998. Due to the successive normalisation of violence and patriarchal structures these cases also include a growing number of violence inflicted by civil authorities or family members next to war-related crimes. Sexualised violence continues to hinder the well-being of women and girls and hampers peaceful and sustainable development in the DR Congo (DRC).
The psychosocial and health consequences for the women and girls are manifold, including reproductive health problems, post-traumatic symptoms like anxiety, nightmares or flashbacks and psychosomatic problems. In the communities, rape is highly stigmatised, frequently resulting in spousal expulsion, limited opportunities to marriage, rejection by the community and poverty. Given their traumatising experiences they require long-term support based on stable and trustful relations.
In South Kivu, a province of the DR Congo bordering Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania, more than 2.600 incidents of sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) were registered according to a report by the Ministry of Gender, Family and Children (MINIGEFAE) and UNFPA. Many cases, however, remain unreported. While national laws concerning sexual violence, a national strategy and the National Action Plan on combating sexual and gender-based violence do exist, the specific needs and situation of women in the local communities are not sufficiently taken into consideration. Even declarations by (inter-)national political forums such as the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) have little effect given the insufficient political will and resources invested by national governments. Although national strategies and legislation are in place, state action against SGBV is weak in DRC.
Small local initiatives and women's organisations, among them partner of medica mondiale, assist survivors of sexualised violence in local communities and continue their support even in times of intense violence or when an immediate crisis has ceased. An everyday challenge for these organisations is the overwhelming number of survivors, the volatile security situation and poor infrastructure. In the absence of professional exchange, they often have to identify appropriate approaches by themselves to assist survivors and reintegrate them into their families and communities. A joint assessment by medica mondiale and the EED from 2009 highlighted that many of these organisations need organisational capacity development, further qualification and to improve their cooperation.
Psychological knowledge is primarily centralised in urban areas and within specific programs. Exchanges of expertise between professionals as well as between urban and rural areas are rare. Women’s organisations supporting SGBV survivors often face high stress levels and conflicts in teams, frequent staff turnover or work absences due to burnout or illness. It is not adequately taken into consideration that staff members are themselves affected by traumatic experiences of war and (sexualised) violence and that, therefore, all staff members need to know methods of self-care and basic trauma- and stress-sensibility.
In the Great Lakes Region medica mondiale has built trustful partnerships with women’s organisations since 2004. In project cooperations, medica mondiale contributed to their professionalization and the quality of their services by providing technical and financial support. The purely financial support by medica mondiale’s Small Grants Program proved to be successful to get to know a variety of local women’s organisations. However, in particular in South Kivu the lack of appropriate qualification of many of these small organisations remained a serious challenge.
As a response, medica mondiale developed the South Kivu Support Programme which consists of 5 main elements: organisational capacity development (1); qualification in trauma-sensitive psychosocial work (2); knowledge exchange and networking amongst the organisations (3); joint advocacy (4) and increased awareness on self-care/ security (5). By strengthening local capacities, it contributes to the empowerment of women and girls, in particular survivors of sexualised and other forms of violence, in South Kivu, DRC. In order to pursue its regional objectives more efficiently medica mondiale opened a regional office in Bujumbura/Burundi in 2015.
The South Kivu Support Programme currently consists of mainly two projects, one focuses on the support of the partner organisations’ micro projects, capacity development and organisational development, and the other on psychosocial qualification:
The project “Local women’s organisations rise for women’s rights and against sexualized violence in South Kivu, DRC” (01/2015 – 12/2017), co-funded by the Medicor Foundation, is supporting 6 local women’s organisations through grants, capacity development, and networking. The organisations receive annual grants for their own micro-projects between 15,000 and 30,000 Euros. The specific objectives are to strengthen women and girls affected by SGBV in their self-help capacities and to improve the assistance to and protection of women and girls affected by SGBV by a more informed and responsive social environment.
The second project „Development of local psychosocial capacities as a contribution to the promotion of peace in the Great Lakes Region“ (04/2015 – 12/2017), co-funded by the Fondation Smartpeace, aims at contributing to the promotion of a positive peace in the Great Lakes Region by breaking cycles of violence and increasing the target group’s participation in social processes. Civil society actors are strengthened through qualification measures, professional exchange and knowledge transfer in regard to psychosocial approaches and enabled to provide effective stress- and trauma-sensitive counselling. One objective is the establishment and support of a pool of psychosocial experts (women from Burundi and DR Congo). The project is implemented in South Kivu in DRC, Burundi and Rwanda. However, the focus of the evaluation is on South Kivu.
The two projects work with the same 6 partner organisations. The following table provides a short description of the 6 local women’s organization:
Association des femmes pour la promotion et le développement endogène (AFPDE).Founded in Kibila in 1999.AFPDE’s mission is to help people help themselves, to promote the protection of human rights and to improve the social, health, economic and political status of women. AFPDE also provides assistance for children in difficult circumstances.AFPDE has 22 staff members.
Ensemble pour la Promotion de la Femme et Famille (EPF).Founded in Fizi in 2002.EPF’s mission is to reduce poverty and to improve health and economic development for women and children.EPF has 13 staff members. Haki , Amani na Maendeleo ya Akina Mama (HAM),Founded in Uvira in 2004.HAM’s mission is to improve the socio-economic conditions of vulnerable women and girls by promoting their rights and supporting their socio-economic empowerment. HAM has 8 staff members.
La Floraison,Founded in Baraka in 2008.The organisation is dedicated to the defence of women's and children's rights in rural areas and the socio-economic empowerment of women. The mission is to increase the knowledge and skills of young people in Fizi Territory.La Floraison has 6 staff members.
Réseau associatif pour la psychologie intégrale (RAPI),Founded in Bukavu in 2011.
RAPI’s mission is to improve the mental health of SGBV survivors, to support their socio-economic reintegration and to provide legal support for the SGBV survivors. RAPI is a network of grass-roots organizations. The implementing network member is FOPADEKI, a women’s group in Fizi Territory which is technically supported by the network.RAPI has 5 staff members. FOPADEKI is employing 3 women in its psychosocial centre.
Réseau des Femmes pour les Droits et la Paix (RFDP).Founded in Bukavu in 1999
RFPD’s mission is peace building, the promotion of human rights and equal opportunities for women and men in the community.RFDP has 16 staff members.
The overall approach of both projects combined includes diverse actors: several small women’s organisations, one regional psychosocial consultant, one regional consultant for organisational development, the pool of experts, and the medica mondiale regional office staff in Burundi. Both projects are interwoven and contribute to each other, medica mondiale therefore decided to tender an evaluation handling both projects as one programme.
Objectives of the evaluation
The objective of this evaluation is to provide decision makers of medica mondiale e.V. and the co-funding institutions with sufficient information to make an informed judgment about the performance of the projects, to document lessons learned and to provide practical recommendations for follow-up actions. The evaluation will be used to gain more knowledge on effects and impacts in order to inform future programming. The evaluation is also intended to create possibilities and room for reflection and learning for the stakeholders involved, partner organisations in particular. The focus of the evaluation will be on the overall approach and the capacity development programs, which have been implemented with co-funding of the Fondation Smartpeace and the Medicor Foundation for the last 1.5 years. A basic organisational analysis of each partner organisation will already be conducted in 2016 and information will be available to evaluators.
The evaluation will cover the projects’ implementation period from the beginning of 2015 until now and should also include a performance assessment based on the DAC criteria addressing the project’s relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, sustainability and impact.
Key questions DAC criteria
Relevance: Do we follow the right approach? How relevant is the intervention for local and national needs and local priorities? To what extent are the objectives of the projects still valid? Are the activities and outputs consistent with the overall goal and the achievement of its objectives? Are the activities and outputs consistent with the intended effects and impact?
Effectiveness: Do we implement the approach in an effective way? To what extent were the objectives achieved / are likely to be achieved? What were the major factors influencing the achievement or non-achievement of the objectives? What can be stated about the effectiveness in relation to the planned objectives (comparison: results – planned results)
Efficiency: Were activities cost-efficient? Were objectives achieved in an efficient way and on time? Were the projects implemented in the most efficient way compared to possible alternatives? What can be stated about the efficient use of resources (comparison: resources – results)
Impact: What was the impact of the projects? What can be stated about the impact on the overall situation of beneficiaries? What real difference have the projects made to the beneficiaries and how many people have been reached overall?
Sustainability: What can already be stated about the sustainability of the interventions’ positive impact after donor funding will cease? What are the major factors influencing the achievement or non-achievement of sustainability? What needs to be changed to ensure sustainability?
General Key Questions / Tasks
Mapping of all actors involved in the two projects
Is the overall approach, as outlined in the project description, including diverse and relatively small actors and a support structure facilitated by the regional office in Burundi reasonable? Is the approach effective and does it make an impact? What are recommendations in regard to the approach and its implementation? Is there a more reasonable alternative? To what extent is the current intervention logic reasonable and how could it be improved?
What can be stated about the efficiency of the current approach? How could it be improved?
What can be stated about the effectiveness of psychosocial qualification measures, partially supported by the pool of experts? What can be stated about changes experienced by women of the partners’ target groups through psychosocial counselling?
Have partner organisations been strengthened?
What can be stated about the exchange and the collaboration of and between individual organisations and the respective impact?
In what way and to what extent have the results from the baseline study been used?
What can be stated about the achievements of the individual micro-projects implemented by partner organisations?
Methodology
The evaluation team should conduct the evaluation in a trauma-sensitive way and use a multi mixed design including participatory methods and using quantitative as well as qualitative data. medica mondiale appreciates the use of methods such as storytelling techniques, the most significant change method, capturing change photo techniques etc., also to encourage shared learning. medica mondiale is generally open for different evaluation approaches and welcomes suggestions. The final methodology and approach will be developed in close cooperation with medica mondiale and depends on the proposal of the external evaluation team. The methodology will be defined during the preparation of the evaluation and will be described in the inception report. Partner organisations, regional experts and other stakeholders have to be included in the evaluation process.
Process
- Preparation
• Desk review of available project documentation (proposals, reports, etc.)
• The international and the regional consultant will familiarize themselves with the details of the projects. All necessary documentation will be provided by medica mondiale. A briefing meeting is foreseen with the evaluation manager and the program officer African Great Lakes region of medica mondiale. Also Skype interviews with other relevant stakeholders shall take place.
• An inception report will be developed which will detail the evaluation work plan and methodology for qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis, including data collection processes and tools, etc.
Field evaluation
• The consultants will conduct site visits in South Kivu
• The consultants will conduct interviews and/or focus group discussions with key personnel of partner organizations and other stakeholders
• Focus group discussions/workshops are also foreseen with women of the partner organisations’ target groups, medica mondiale suggests to include story telling methods or other participative methods
• In a one-day “initial findings sharing workshop” with relevant stakeholders in South Kivu, organized in cooperation with the regional office in Bujumbura/Burundi, preliminary conclusions and recommendations will be presented, discussed and further refined. Participation of the partner organizations involved is foreseen. The workshop will be held in French.Reporting phase
• The consultants will write a draft evaluation report in English and share it with medica mondiale to obtain feedback. The consultants will present their findings and recommendation to medica mondiale in Cologne. The feedback from medica mondiale will be integrated into the final English and French versions of the report. The finalized report will then be shared by medica mondiale with the co-funders and partner organisations.
Outputs and Deliverables
• Inception report which will detail the evaluation work plan and methodology for qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis, including data collection processes and tools, etc.
• The evaluation team is expected to give a presentation of preliminary findings and recommendations in French (with presentation and handouts for participants) to partner organisations and other relevant stakeholders at the end of the field visits.
• The evaluation team is expected to compile a draft report in English 14 days after return from the evaluation mission which has to be shared with medica mondiale for feedback.
• A presentation of the findings and recommendations to medica mondiale in Cologne or possibly also via Skype
• The evaluation team is expected to compile the final report in English and in French (60 pages max. each, excluding appendices) after feedback for the draft report through medica mondiale.
• An overall assessment of the projects according to the compliance grid of medica mondiale (assessment grid will be provided)
• A summary of the evaluation which can be used for publication on the homepage
Tentative Period of Work
• Tendering of the evaluation mission in July 2016
• Selection of candidates September 2016
• Preparation phase in September/October 2016
• Field phase in January or February 2017
• Presentation in Cologne or via Skype and final report until end of May 2017
Suggested Quantity Structure
The final quantity structure will be defined depending on the proposed methodology and during the preparation.
How to apply:
Please email your application (CV in English, cover letter and references not exceeding 2MB) including your package proposal (technical, methodological and financial offer), and information concerning your availability with the subject “Evaluation in South Kivu” by 21nd August 2016 9am to:
pschaaf@medicamondiale.org
The selection of candidates will take place in calendar week 36, 5.-9. September 2016.
In case of questions regarding the evaluation and the project please contact
kknipp-rentrop@medicamondiale.org
We highly appreciate team applications and also consider the possibility of involving multiple teams. The budget for the evaluation including travel costs, accommodation etc. should not exceed 35,000 € in total.
Please note that we will not send any acknowledgement of receipt of the documents you have submitted. Only short listed / successful candidates will be contacted.
Further information on medica mondiale and our projects can be found on our website: www.medicamondiale.org
