Assessing the Status and Technical Support Needs of Civil Society Organizations in Thailand

Organization: EpiC Thailand Project, Family Health International (FHI 360)

Issue Date: 17 July 2024

Response Deadline: 2 August 2024

Background:

The USAID Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control (EpiC) Project managed by FHI 360 is a global project with specific scopes of work in multiple countries. In Thailand and in several other countries in the Asia Region, EpiC focuses on interventions to reduce HIV transmission among men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM), male sex workers (MSW), and transgender women (TGW) populations (collectively known as “key populations”) and to improve the quality of life of people living with HIV (PLHIV). Most interventions are implemented through civil society organizations (CSOs) and include reach-recruit-test-treat-prevent-retain (RRTTPR) interventions such as targeted online interventions on social media, differentiated service delivery for HIV testing, Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), and antiretroviral treatment (ART) including telehealth services, and cross-cutting issues of stigma and discrimination reduction and policy advocacy.

CSOs play a crucial role in addressing Thailand's AIDS epidemic. These organizations can establish community service points, utilizing their staff as service providers, which greatly facilitates access to testing, prevention, and treatment services for the target population. Over the past decade, Thailand's efforts to combat HIV have underscored the significant contributions of CSOs. They have been instrumental in reaching out to at-risk individuals, referring them to HIV testing and infection prevention services, and ensuring those who test positive receive antiretroviral treatment.

In Thailand, there are more than 400 CSOs or networks of community organizations providing HIV services. Most of these organizations receive funding from foreign sources. They all operate under the Reach-Recruit-Test-Treat-Prevent-Retain (RRTTPR) Strategy, through the forms and levels of service delivery vary. These organizations can be broadly categorized based on the services they provide as follows:

Groups providing services: Access to prevention services and support for entry into health services (Reach and Recruit).
Groups providing services: Access to prevention services, support for entry into health services, and follow-up to retain individuals in the health service system (Reach, Recruit, and Retain).
Groups providing services: Access to prevention services, support for entry into health services, HIV and STI screening tests, and follow-up to retain individuals in the health service system (Reach, Recruit, screening Test, and Retain).
Groups providing services: Support and follow-up PLHIV to retain in ART treatment and the health service system (Retain positive).
Groups providing comprehensive services in all processes (Reach, Recruit, Test, refer to Treat, Prevent, and Retain).
Groups providing support for specific issues (without RRTTPR services or with partial services), such as organizations offering services for reducing stigma and discrimination, protecting rights, or providing social and legal support.

To support all CSOs providing HIV services in developing systematic capacity, ensuring they deliver quality services to target populations in line with the key measures of the National Strategy on Ending AIDS, and ensuring the sustainability of these services, the Ministry of Public Health, the National Health Security Office (NHSO), and relevant agencies established a certification and accreditation of CSO competencies in 2019. Additionally, since 2022, the NHSO has allowed accredited organizations to register as service units under Section 3 of the NHSO, enabling them to directly claim service fees from the NHSO.

However, due to the diversity and number of CSOs operating and providing HIV services in Thailand, only 47 CSOs have been registered as service units under Section 3 of the NHSO (data from https://reghosp.nhso.go.th/ as of June 30, 2024).

Feedback from representatives of CSOs and related organization during a meeting with the Thai NGO Coalition on AIDS (TNCA) on July 3-4, 2024, revealed several obstacles. The main issues preventing CSOs from registering as NHSO service units including limitation to access to capacity development and certification due to inadequate communication and lack of comprehensive information about the benefits of capacity development and NHSO registration. Many medium and small organizations in rural areas are unaware of the information and procedures for training due to the absence of dedicated support and oversight agencies.

As evidenced by multiple surveys on HIV services provided by CSOs in Thailand, many organizations reported not receiving information or being uncertain about participating in the surveys, resulting in incomplete data coverage of all CSOs in the country. Consequently, it was proposed that the TNCA serves as a central agency to coordinate among CSOs in Thailand, assessing the status and technical assistance needs of all CSOs in Thailand to ensure all organizations will plan to access for capacity development and financial assistance equitably and effectively.

Purpose:

The EpiC Thailand Project by FHI 360 seeks to engage individuals or agencies to conduct a comprehensive survey, leveraging the collected data to plan coordination and support for partner organizations within the TNCA network. This initiative will enable TNCA to effectively disseminate information and collaborate with relevant agencies, providing technical and organizational management support to CSOs nationwide. Furthermore, it aims to set targets for organizations to register as NHSO service units or access various funding sources.

Additionally, FHI 360 intends to utilize the survey results to identify the needs of all CSOs, thereby strengthening TNCA’s capacity to lead and advocate for HIV-related policies in Thailand. FHI 360 anticipates that TNCA will not only represent and lead NGOs but also empower them at all levels to advocate for domestic funding opportunities and policy changes at both provincial and national levels.

Objectives:

1. Assess the organization status, operations, and support (technical, financial and management) from relevant agencies, as well as the capacity development needs of CSOs in Thailand.

2. Compile a summary of CSOs in Thailand and report on their capacity development needs.

3. Leverage the assessment findings to craft a capacity development plan positioning TNCA as a leader in policy advocacy.

Activity Details:

1. Develop tools to assess the organization status, operations, and support (technical, financial and

management) among CSOs in Thailand and from relevant agencies, as well as the capacity development

needs of CSOs in Thailand.

2. Conduct a survey using the developed tools through electronic media and direct data collection at the

organizations.

3. Summarize the survey results, compile a registry of CSOs nationwide, and create a capacity

development plan.

4. Organize meetings and workshops to present findings and develop a consensus on the capacity development plan for TNCA. This plan will position TNCA as the leading advocate for other NGOs, focusing on policy changes related to HIV, including leveraging domestic financing opportunities and enhancing the quality of service delivery, testing, prevention, care, and treatment.

5. A practical and comprehensive capacity development plan for TNCA's advocacy efforts

Timeline:

August 7 - September 15, 2024

Deliverables:

By August 10, 2024: Development of survey and assessment tools for evaluating the status, operations, support from relevant agencies, and capacity development needs of CSOs in Thailand, to be administered via electronic media.

By September 15, 2024: Summary of survey results covering CSOs in all provinces of Thailand, including at least 100 CSOs and 100 PLHIV support units (ศูนย์องค์รวม) under the Thailand Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS.

By September 15, 2024:

A summary report on the capacity development needs of CSOs in Thailand.
A practical and comprehensive capacity development plan for TNCA's advocacy effort

**The vendor must be a Thai company or a Thai national**

Evaluation:

The evaluation will consider previous experiences, the proposed approach, and overall costs.

Response deadline and format:

Response to this RFP should be submitted by email to: procurement.epic.th@fhi360.org.

All files in pdf format.
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Proposal: A comprehensive plan for achieving the scope of work and tasks, including a detailed budget.
CVs of Key Staff: Resumes of the main personnel who will be assigned to this project.
Supporting Documentation: Any other relevant documents that demonstrate the company’s competence and suitability for the tasks.

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