Consultancy for the Final Evaluation of a Humanitarian Programme At Oxfam

Introduction

Oxfam-Solidariteit, hereafter Oxfam, non-governmental organization for humanitarian assistance and development cooperation launches an invitation to quote for proposals for the final evaluation of the project “Empowering communities to respond to conflict-induced protection risks and high food insecurity levels in six vast humanitarian crises.

The IQ is structured as follows

1. Terms of reference
2. Submission procedure
3. Decision proceduret
   This invitation to quote does not entail any obligation for Oxfam to make a purchase. This invitation should not be interpreted as a contract offer with your company and/or organization.

1 Terms of reference
1.1. Summary of the evaluated project
Project title
Empowering communities to respond to conflict-induced protection risks and high food insecurity levels in six vast humanitarian crises.
Stakeholders
Oxfam Belgique (grant signatory), Oxfam in Countries, 11 partner organisations (at field level).
Funded by
Directorate-general Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid (DGD)
Geographical coverage
Middle East: Yemen and the occupied Palestinian territory Sahel: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger Great Lakes: the DRC
Project duration
5th October 2021 – 30 November 2023 (including a 2-month NCE).

The full consolidated project proposal will be shared with interested candidates.

1.2. Project background
Over the spring 2021, Oxfam Belgium and Oxfam International through the Global Humanitarian Team supported the development of multi-country Humanitarian Programmes that was submitted to the DGD on July 15th 2021 that had launched a “Protection financial framework”. For the first time, the Belgian Donor had attributed pre-identified envelopes to its 8 humanitarian partners. The Oxfam topline intervention had been discussed with the DGD prior to the final submission of the programme.

In line with DGD regulations, one final evaluation of the programme is required to justify the use of the funds. The evaluation report must be submitted to the administration within six months after the end of the action.

1.3. Project objective and outcomes
As per the Executive Summary of the Programme submitted on July 15th 2021:
As needs are rising, assistance and humanitarian funding remain insufficient. Governments need to play their role and meet their population needs; they must guarantee equal opportunities and safety. Communities, youth, women and the most vulnerable must be at the center of all responses to improve resilience, make their voice heard and be involved in developing sustainable solutions to food insecurity and protection mechanisms.

Oxfam and its dual approach on Protection
Within the humanitarian sector, two distinct practices are emerging among non-mandated protection actors: protection as an approach and protection as a sector. Oxfam works on both. On the one hand, this programme will use a safe programming approach to ensure that humanitarian work does not inadvertently cause harm by preventing or mitigating risks including – but not limited to – sexual exploitation and abuse and other forms of gender-based violence, by being conflict sensitive, and upholding humanitarian principles. In addition to this, Oxfam will also carry out specific protection activities, using the ‘sector’ approach. Protection work indeed involves understanding and responding to specific kinds of widespread and systematic threats: violence (e.g. arbitrary killing, torture and rape); coercion (e.g. forced recruitment and sexual exploitation); and deliberate deprivation (e.g. blocking access to basic supplies and appropriation of land) – and building a more protective environment both in the short and longer-term.

Oxfam’s integrated response
In fragile states, a two-stage approach is required. First, there is a desperate need for urgent humanitarian aid to meet food security and protection risks now, and secondly there is a need to address the root causes of those vulnerabilities, including most notably conflict, inequality, poverty, and the climate crisis. Oxfam will focus on the humanitarian response, but in line with the nexus approach it will be tied strongly to Oxfam’s broader advocacy on addressing the root causes of poverty and inequality beyond the humanitarian sphere. Under this intervention, Oxfam and its partners will implement a multi-country program in three regions – six countries under the same logical framework. Activities selected are needs and context-based, in line with previous interventions and countries’ strategies. The six countries will all intervene under protection, EFSVL and advocacy outcomes but not under all outputs of the common logical framework. The community-based approach and reinforcement of local structures are grounding this program’s approach.
Outcome 1: in each community across the six countries, Oxfam will support them identifying the main protection risks they face and self-organise to prevent, mitigate and address them, notably through action plans. The community-based protection approach aims at empowering women, men, girls and boys living in the targeted community to take the lead of their own protection. It enables communities’ members to play a more active and protective role face to old and new risks, identifying and implementing community-based solutions that promote peace and social cohesion.
Outcome 2: to meet immediate food security needs, Oxfam will provide food assistance through unconditional cash transfers and in-kind distributions. In a resilience approach, livelihoods opportunities will also be strengthened through income generating activities, the distribution of agricultural inputs and/or small ruminants as well as cash-for-work activities. To ensure preparedness of communities when a shock arises, community-based early warning systems will be strengthened, and community-led responses will be possible through Group Cash Transfers.
Outcome 3: Local advocacy will be context-based and defined during the project, following workshops and discussions with local actors and communities. This program will also contribute to continue building international advocacy to address the root causes of poverty and to press for action on the interplay between conflict, protection and hunger.

1.4. Evaluation objectives
The evaluation aims to provide Oxfam and our local partners, DGD, key local and national authorities and other stakeholders in the intervention countries with an assessment of the results generated by the programme. The evaluation will focus on a set of criteria which are deemed most relevant for a multi-partner programme addressing needs resulting from active conflicts in 6 different countries. These are taken from the Oxfam Humanitarian Indicator Tool (HIT) which incorporate DAC criteria and add others.
Overall, through this evaluation, Oxfam aims at:
– Evaluating the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the project and/or its implementation process, as well as the sustainability of the approaches used;
– Identifying the achievements and shortcomings in the implementation of the project and the corrective measures to be taken for future opportunities / analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the project;
– Providing stakeholders with recommendations that may be used to adjust the objectives and ways of working of the next phase (and other programmes); Fostering knowledge-building and sharing, and mutual learning among the different stakeholders of the programme.

The specific objectives of the evaluation include:

1. Assess the Extent of Identification and Mitigation of Primary Protection Risks Across Six Countries: This objective aims to gauge the degree to which communities in the six target countries have identified and effectively addressed their primary protection risks.
2. Measure Empowerment Across Gender and Age Groups: This objective seeks to quantify the empowerment levels of women, men, girls, and boys in assuming proactive roles in their own protection within their respective communities.
3. Analyze the Impact of Community-Based Solutions on Peace and Social Cohesion: This objective entails an examination of the influence of community-driven solutions on the promotion of peace and the enhancement of social cohesion.
4. Evaluate Community Readiness and Responsiveness: This objective focuses on assessing the readiness and responsiveness of communities by strengthening community-based early warning systems and implementing Group Cash Transfer programs.
5. Assess the Effectiveness of Contextual Local Advocacy Initiatives: This objective involves evaluating the effectiveness of locally-driven advocacy initiatives developed in partnership with local actors and communities.
6. Examine Advocacy’s Contribution to Addressing Root Causes: Here, the goal is to evaluate how these advocacy efforts contribute to addressing the fundamental causes of poverty and foster action on the interconnected issues of conflict, protection, and hunger.
7. Analyze Alignment with Broader Advocacy Efforts: This objective will scrutinize the alignment of the humanitarian response with Oxfam’s overarching advocacy endeavors aimed at addressing root vulnerabilities, such as conflict, inequality, poverty, and the climate crisis.
8. Evaluate the Strengthening of the Humanitarian-Development Advocacy Nexus: This objective involves assessing the extent to which the intervention reinforces the connection between immediate humanitarian assistance and long-term development and advocacy objectives.
9. Assess Adaptability to Diverse Needs and Contexts: This objective will evaluate how well the activities adapt to the unique needs and contexts of each country while remaining in harmony with Oxfam’s strategic goals.
10. Evaluate Impact on Gender Equality and Inclusion: This objective will examine the intervention’s impact on promoting gender equality and the inclusion of marginalized groups in decision-making processes, protection measures, and food security initiatives.
11. Assess Partnership Effectiveness: This objective will gauge the effectiveness of Oxfam’s partnerships with local organizations and other stakeholders in executing the intervention.
12. Evaluate Synergy Between Oxfam and Partners: Lastly, this objective will analyze the synergy between Oxfam and its partners, exploring how effectively they collaborate to achieve the desired outcomes.