1. Background
The aim of this project is to improve the living conditions of conflict and drought affected IDPs and host communities through an integrated response of WASH, nutrition, protections/ shelter. Implementing partners have worked with local, national, international, and governmental actors to address the existing humanitarian needs, especially of those with specific needs and vulnerabilities such as older people, in response to prevailing crisis. The project takes place in Borena and Bale, Oromia region, two of the zones most affected by internal displacement and extreme drought in Ethiopia.
The evaluation of this project is commissioned by HelpAge Deutschland (HAD). The project is implemented by HelpAge Ethiopia and its local partner Rift Valley Children & Women Development Organization (RCWDO). The project started on April 1st, 2020 and is to be finished on 30th September 2021. The project’s total volume amounts to 1,050.000,00 EUR, 95,24% being funded by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs (AA) and 4.76% covered by UN OCHA and RCWDO.
According to the Ethiopia Humanitarian Needs Overview 2021, there are a total of 23,5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, of which 4 million are IDPs and IDP returnees. 6% of the affected population are older persons. The highest proportion of people in need are in the Oromia region, totalling 6,7 million people, where the project in title is under implementation, followed by the Tigray and Somali region, with 4,5 and 3,8 million people, respectively.
Although Ethiopia is considered as a “young country” with 40% of the population being under the age of 14, over 5% of the 100 million Ethiopians are more than 60 years old. This proportion of older people is anticipated to nearly double to 9,9% by 2050. Older men at the age of 60 are expected to live an additional 18 ½ years and older women an additional 17 years after their 60th birthday.
Vulnerable groups are often the ones left behind in humanitarian crisis situations:
Older persons and persons with disabilities (17,6% of the Ethiopian population) face more barriers accessing basic services and claiming their rights than others in emergency settings. They may be restricted by the physical environment, lack of accessible information and communication, discrimination, and exclusion. Due to lack of capacity or knowledge, this is commonly overlooked in humanitarian assistance as well.
Older people and persons with disabilities are also at risk of physical, sexual, and emotional exploitation and abuse, requiring additional considerations as affected population to ensure their safety and dignity.
Program Rationale
The project was designed under participation of the crisis-affected population and in line with the strategic objectives of the humanitarian community, specifically the HRP 2020, HelpAge’s organizational strategic focus and the priorities of the Ethiopian government. After the implementation of the first AA funded project in Borena 2018–2019, HelpAge extended their reach through the local partner RCWDO to Bale. Phase II was expected to continue and scale-up the much-needed humanitarian response to contribute to improving the living conditions of IDPs and hosting communities in Oromia (Impact).
Key outcomes of the project included:
Outcome 1: Health and resilience of particularly vulnerable people is improved by treating malnutrition and extending health care structures.
· Output 1: Supplementary food, medicines and health services are available.
Outcome 2: Protection including shelter is improved by taking protection related issues into account and addressing them.
· Output 2: Adequate services to strengthen protection are available.
· Output 3: Temporary shelter for IDPs/ returnees is available.
· Outcome 3: Hygiene conditions and hygiene consciousness has been improved by awareness-raising measures and improved water management.
· Output 4: Access to clean water, drinking water and sanitary facilities is available.
2. Evaluation purpose and scopes
HelpAge intends to undertake an end-of-project evaluation which marks the preliminary end of the current funding cycle supported by AA on this project. The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the overall impact of the program in accordance with OECD-DAC criteria. Further, lessons shall be drawn on what has worked well with special focus on malnutrition management, access to safe and potable water, improved hygiene practices and enhanced protection for most at-risk population groups. Additionally, potential bottlenecks to the achievement of the project goals shall be identified where applicable.
Where possible, the evaluation should explore how socio-structural characteristics (age, gender, ethnicity, income, disability etc.) were addressed and how the project supported the heterogenous needs and priorities of different population groups.
Lastly, the evaluation is expected to deliver recommendations for improvements of adjustments of potential future projects of a similar nature.
3. Evaluation Questions
Relevance/Appropriateness:
· Are HelpAge´s project activities, their concepts, and approaches of intervention appropriate and relevant within the context of ensuring improved access to protection, health, and WASH services in the region?
· Do the project activities cover the specific needs of the target group(s)?
· Were there specific needs of the target group(s) that were not considered? If so, why?
· Have the project activities targeted both IDP and host community members?
Effectiveness:
· Was the project design logical and coherent? Was there a program outline/structure in place and what is its level of functionality?
· To which extent have outcomes, outputs, and milestones of the project been achieved?
· What changes have occurred as a direct result of the project at different levels, and for different stakeholders, e.g. government organizations, health facilities?
· To what extent have project interventions (e.g., WASH, protection, health and nutrition) contributed to the inclusion of older people in other INGOs, local NGOs, and government agencies?
· To what extent has the project impacted indirect beneficiaries through implemented activities?
· Did the project effectively reach the most vulnerable PSNs?
· Have there been changes to the project context throughout the project period? If yes, how did the management adapt accordingly?
· Are there key gaps in the service delivery of HelpAge´s activities in the region? How is the coverage of the target group in the area?
Efficiency:
· Are the services and capacity development measures delivered in an efficient way?
· Was adequate human resource, financial and logistics resources applied to delivering the project outcomes?
· Was output delivered in a timely fashion? Were the monitoring mechanisms effective in providing timely data to inform programming decisions?
Impact:
· To what extent do HelpAge’s activities contribute to the provision of better access to basic services and enhanced protection for elderly persons in the project regions? To what extent do they make a difference in the lives of affected people?
· Has the project produced any unintended (negative or positive) effects?
· Has the cooperation with the local partner RCWDO made their programming more inclusive? How will this benefit the crisis-affected population?
· To what extent have HelpAge’s interventions contributed to the inclusion of older people in WASH programs and the broader humanitarian response in the project region?
· What is the major impact of the project onto the local economy and life-saving food support of malnourished older people?
Connectedness:
· Have structures been built or can be built that can be taken over by other institutions?
· How is the planned exit-strategy implemented?
· To what extent has the local ownership of partners been considered in the implementation of the project?
Coherence:
· Do the project activities complement other actors (state, NGOs, or international donors) in the region? How was the level of cooperation and coordination between actors?
· Are there synergies with other interventions supported by HelpAge? To what extent do other stakeholders support or undermine the project interventions?
· What are the coordination challenges that the program team faced and how were they handled?
COVID-19:
· Has the relevance of the project been affected by the COVID-19 situation? Has HelpAge been able to adapt the program to maintain its relevance for the target population?
· How did HelpAge Ethiopia office adapt to the COVID-19 crisis? And were the new methodologies effective in implementing the activities without negative effect on the project’s results?
· Were COVID-19 measures taken by HelpAge efficient?
· How has the COVID-19 situation affected the performance and achievements of the project, both in quantity and in quality?
4. Sampling/Methodology
The evaluation will employ quantitative and qualitative methods. Information will be derived from primary and secondary sources, including a desk review of relevant documents, as well as interviews with key informants and focus groups discussions with project beneficiaries and other stakeholders, including governmental institutions, international and national organizations. All information will be triangulated for validation.
The evaluation should include a variety of views from different stakeholders and levels including:
· Older men and women, recipients of project deliverables (NFIs, food, WASH, and protection services) and representatives from community and IDP settlements
· Representatives from RCWDO
· Project focal persons and representatives of national and local NGOs with a link to the program
· Representatives from the broader humanitarian community
Full details and contacts of all relevant program beneficiaries and contacts will be provided to the chosen consultant.
5. Outputs/key Deliverables
The outputs for this ToR will be:
· Inception Report and desk review to propose research framework and methodology and data collection tools (e.g. KII & FGD questionnaires)
· Primary field data collection presentation of draft findings and recommendations to project stakeholders
· Draft evaluation report for comments by the donor & the implementing agencies
Final evaluation report (max. 30 pages), including recommendations and an executive summary (max. 2 pages). The consultant shall also submit, together with the final report, a log of all comments provided on the draft report and outline with regards to how far they have been addressed
· Power point presentation of the main findings
HelpAge will require a full evaluation report in English language written in clear non-technical language, making use of clear examples and case studies where possible and include and highlight the voices of older people and other most at-risk people who have been part of the project.
The structure of the report will be agreed during the discussion about the research framework and methodology.
6. Roles and responsibilities of HelpAge
HelpAge will be responsible for:
· Provision of beneficiary and distribution lists
· Provision of other relevant project documents (e.g. project proposal, regular reports submitted to the government and donors, monitoring reports by the project team, success stories and best practices)
· Support to identify key project stakeholders, such as GOs, NGOs and community organizations, for interviews
· Facilitation of meetings with direct and indirect project beneficiaries, government agencies, NGOs etc. in reference to the pre-scheduled program
· Facilitation of field visits incl. organisation of necessary logistics to the project sites
· Feedback on the draft evaluation report and sign-off of the final version
7. Time requirements and duration
The final evaluation report should be presented no later than end of October 2021. Based on this, the consultancy firm is expected to present a time plan with his offer.
8. Indicative budget
HelpAge is looking for Expressions of Interest (see section 10) for this assignment including all costs e.g., consultancy fee, subsistence allowances and travel expenses.
9. Qualifications/requirements of consultant
HelpAge anticipates hiring a consultancy team/agency with the following qualifications.
· Relevant academic background, e.g., in the areas of development studies
· Multi-disciplinary team members, including WASH, health, nutrition, and protection.
· Familiarity with the region and humanitarian context in the project location.
· Proven experience (at least 3 years) in qualitative research methods and in the evaluation of multi sectoral humanitarian projects relevant to the areas covered by this project in Ethiopia.
· Strong communication skills, proficient in working across all levels of institutions with experience of conducting interviews sensitively in a range of context.
· Excellent report writing skills in English and for at least one team member fluency in relevant local language Oromia.
· Understanding of issues relating to ageing, disability, and other specific vulnerabilities especially for older people in displacement contexts.
· Impartiality towards HelpAge and its partners in Ethiopia.
Special attention will be given to evaluation teams of international and local consultants with gender balance considered. It will also factor positively into the candidate selection if the applicant(s) plans to cooperate with research institutions such as universities.
This vacancy is archived.