ThaiNGO

THIS IS A SUB-CONTRACTED CONSULTANCY OPEN TO THAI CITIZENS HOLDING THAI ID ONLY.

IT IS NOT AN HI JOB

Call for consultants - Thailand

Local evaluators for final evaluation

1. BACKGROUND
   1. About Humanity & Inclusion (Handicap International)

Handicap International runs its program under the operating name Humanity & Inclusion (HI) is an independent and impartial international aid organisation working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. Working alongside people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups, its action and testimony are focused on responding to their essential needs, improving their living conditions and promoting respect for their dignity and their fundamental rights. HI is currently implementing projects in more than 50 countries worldwide, including Pakistan.

1. 2. Context in which the project takes place

Growing Together! (GT) project is implemented in refugee camps and internal displacement settings in Bangladesh, Thailand and Pakistan. The project is directly implemented by country teams in each location and in addition counts with a regional coordination unit based in Thailand.

Project Goal: Enable children with disabilities or chronic illnesses, children at risk of developmental delays and psychological distress (0-12 years old), to develop their full potential on an equal basis with other children and acquire fundamental educational and social skills through games, sport, cultural arts, early years’ education and complementary learning in displacement settings in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Thailand.

The project started in June 2016. The implementation of activities will take place until July 31st 2020 and the phase-out stage will take place from June to November 2020. Currently activities are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic but individual remote support for children and parents is continuing.

1. 1. 1. The project in Thailand

1. 3. Justification for calling upon a Consultant

Approaching the end of the project’s implementation period, the project is looking to conduct a final evaluation to examine the project’s overall performance and effectiveness, identify intended and unintended impacts generated, consider the sustainability of the benefits produced to the population, and to identify best practices and lessons learned for future initiatives. As well, the project is looking to have recommendations based on the findings, aiming to support possible adjustments of the project’s approaches and interventions for replicability in other displacement contexts.

In February a team of international evaluation consultants was selected by HI to conduct the final evaluation. In the framework of the current COVID-19 pandemic, due to international travel restrictions, the consultants may not be able to travel to the project locations as originally planned. In this scenario, the evaluation team is seeking to identify national evaluators or data collection specialists who can conduct focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews, within the evaluation framework designed by the evaluation team. Ideally the national evaluators should already be in the provinces where the project evaluation will take place to avoid setbacks due to national COVID related restrictions. This consultancy will focus only on the project implemented in Thailand, but the results will be combined with similar exercises in Pakistan and Bangladesh to produce the final evaluation findings.

Therefore, this Terms of Reference (ToR) has been prepared to hire highly competent evaluation or data collection specialists who will conduct high quality KIIs and FGDs with the remote guidance of the evaluation team.

2. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY OF THE ENDLINE
   1. Objectives

The objective of the final evaluation of GT! project is to measure the project’s impact in the life of beneficiaries, the achievement and sustainability of outcomes and objectives against the project’s performance indicators, to assess program effectiveness by comparing end-line results to qualitative and quantitative data collected at the program’s baseline and mid-term evaluation, as well as to analyze aspects of the project according to HI’s project quality framework, with a practical emphasis on a quality analysis of the results achieved and the expected and unexpected changes produced.

1. 2. Methodology

The methodology of the evaluation has been developed by the evaluation team. It mainly focuses on qualitative methods, with some quantitative information being gathered through questions during the FGDs and KIIs. The evaluation intends to use participatory techniques, and in particular the gathering of stories of most significant change. Narrative stories describing the most significant change the project has led to will be collected from parents, community workers and other key stakeholders. Children will be asked to either narrate a story or draw the changes that have occurred. The consultants will facilitate selection workshops with representative committees from the project participant population at the end of the data collection period to short-list the most representative stories.

OBJECTIVES OF THE CONSULTANCY

The consultants will be responsible for conducting a series of KIIs and FGDs, and gathering stories of change from evaluation participants. They will provide interviews notes to the evaluation team and participate in regular Skype briefings to update on progress of the data collection.

1. 3. Key responsibilities and tasks

The consultant is expected to:

• Attend the remote orientation training provided by the evaluation team;

• Review key project documents and interview and FGD guides;
• Conduct KIIs and FGDs according to the guides developed by the evaluation team;
• Ensure note keeping of the KIIs and FGDs, and provide coherent notes back to the evaluation team;
• Gather stories of most significant change from evaluation participants;
• Facilitate selection workshops for representative samples of project participants to shortlist the stories;
• Participate in regular Skype calls at the end of the day to brief the evaluation team on the progress of the data collection;
• Timely feedback the evaluation team on the performance of the evaluation tools and troubles encountered/solved;
• Be available for any other activity which will prove necessary to successfully carry out the survey.

3.2       Deliverables

• Conduct KIIs and FGDs as per the evaluation timetable;
• Daily reports to the evaluation team leader on data collection activity;
• Full transcripts in English of the notes of the KIIs and FGDs.
• Stories of change collected from evaluation participants (either narrative or scans of drawings with explanations)

3.3       Timeline

The consultancy is expected to require for a minimum of 7 and a maximum of 12 working days, in late June / early July 2020. The logistic of the survey will be planned in accordance with the evaluation team and locally with the project team (HI and partners), dependent on activities planned for the proposed timeframe.

3. PROFILE OF THE CONSULTANT.

The expert should combine the following skills, experience and knowledge:

4. APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.

Applicants should send a cover letter, Thai ID and updated CV to gtfinalevaluation@gmail.com with the subject line “Consultant-Growing Together Evaluation Thailand” by Friday 5^th June.

Due to the urgent nature of the recruitment, the GT Evaluation team will review applications on a rolling basis.

The cover letter must include an explanation of why the applicant’s skills are relevant for the consultancy and a proposed daily rate. A list of similar consultancies should be included either at the end of the cover letter of be clear in the CV.

Ideally the national evaluators should already be in the provinces where the project evaluation will take place to avoid setbacks due to national COVID related restrictions. i.e. travel restrictions. Quarantine periods, etc

Please note contracting will be between the evaluation team and the selected consultants. Queries on the TOR should be directed to the email address above and not to HI.