BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Lao PDR is among the most heavily bombed countries per capita in the world, with over two million tons of munitions dropped on it during the Indochina War (1964-1973). This includes 270 million sub-munitions from cluster bombs, up to 30% of which may have failed to detonate. While the number of accidents has dropped markedly from 305 in December 2008 to 47 in December 2023, unexploded ordnance (UXO)/mine contamination remains a threat to the safety of the population, especially children, and an obstacle to rural development in poor and remote areas. Around 80% of people in Lao PDR live in rural areas, where livelihood opportunities are often scarce, and food and nutrition security indicators are particularly poor. 42 of the 46 poorest districts in the country are UXO/mine contaminated. Systematic surveys are currently being undertaken in the country to determine the extent of contamination in populated areas. This work was started in 2015 and is currently still underway.
In Lao PDR, the UXO and explosive contamination challenge is highly relevant to all 17 United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as it places constraints on all aspects of sustainable development and poverty eradication. As a crosscutting theme across all SDGs, in 2016 the Government of Lao PDR also adopted an 18th national-level SDG – “Lives safe from UXO”. The crosscutting nature of the UXO and explosive hazard challenge places UNDP Lao PDR in a highly relevant role, as globally, UNDP acts as the SDG facilitator and enabler across the UN system. The United Nations Mine Action Strategy 2019-2023 also emphasizes the role of UNDP on linking mine action to development and achievement of the SDGs and helping UXO/mine-affected communities achieve resilience and sustainable development.
UNDP, working with government partners, notably the National Regulatory Authority for the UXO/Mine Action Sector (NRA) and the Lao National Unexploded Ordnance Programme (UXO Lao), seeks to address four major needs and challenges to the UXO sector in country, notably: i) improving holistic coordination, capacity and multi-sectoral approach to link land release with development priorities; ii) individuals continue to undertake unsafe behaviour with UXO: iii) UXO victims’ rights are not fully met; iv) need for stronger policy and legislative environment.
Some key achievements so far:
- The UXO Project has supported poverty reduction efforts through developing the national capacities of the UXO sector on surveying, clearance, risk education, and through support to UXO victims and survivors. In 2023, UNDP helped clear 685 hectares (ha) in 8 provinces, benefiting 62,398 community members (50% women)[1].
- A Post-Clearance Impact Assessment (PCIA 2023) in UXO contaminated communities was published highlighting the impact of ordnance contamination and benefits of clearance for rural development. The study found that UXO clearance has contributed to improvements in livelihoods of 505,380 people (covering Bolikhamxay Province from 2017 to 2022 and in XiengKhouang Province from 1999 to 2022). Clearance reduces risk of death and maiming by UXO. Clearance of land for community infrastructure has improved access to schools and health centres, and has provided opportunities for greater community interaction and information sharing.
- In close cooperation with the Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), working on the NRA Information Management capacity development project, the UXO Programme has supported a capacity needs self-assessment of the NRA in January 2023 and January 2024 to identify capacity building needs and gaps. A series of capacity development training workshops have been conducted to strengthen the Government’s roles and responsibilities within the UXO sector to ensure they fulfil their mandate.
- Four critical UXO knowledge products[2] have been produced, providing data and evidence for strengthening the efficiency of the sector, and positioning UNDP as a key government partner and integrator for the sector. Most importantly, the findings from the ordnance depth distribution study have helped initiate an informed discussion on the revision of the National Standards, looking at further improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the sector.
- A consultancy researching financing scenarios for the sector to meet 2030 strategic targets and to envision scenarios beyond 2030 is being finalized and aims to support the Government in charting a strategic direction and long-term vision for the sector.
Transition of UXO Sector Supervision
The supervision of UXO sector has recently been transferred from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (MoLSW) to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), effective 4th September 2023. The transition to MoFA, the Lao National Sustainable Development Goal Secretariat as well as international treaty focal point, facilitates the government to strengthen the cross-sectoral collaboration among different Ministries to fulfil the international obligations on survey and clearance of UXO-affected areas, allow for inclusive opportunities for the integration of UXO victims and survivors and foster socio-economic development.
KOICA’s Support to the UXO Programme
The Government of the Republic of Korea has been supporting UNDP UXO projects in Lao PDR since 2015 -in total USD 16.87M over three phases. The project focuses on strengthening the national capacity of the National Regulatory Authorities for the UXO/Mine Action Sector (NRA) and the Humanitarian demining teams of the Lao People’s Army (Unit 58). As of January 2024, 20 humanitarian demining teams of the Lao People’s Army (Unit 58) were trained and equipped, conducting clearance in 2 provinces (Bolikhamxay, Vientiane) and emergency response (roving tasks) nationwide. The sector remains highly donor-reliant, with more than 95% of the budget funded by external sources. Given the magnitude of contamination in the country and the current rate of clearance (15% of Confirmed Hazardous Areas), it would require the sector to continue for another hundreds of years of clearance. Therefore, building residual capacity is urgent and critical. Korea has been the key donor to support the NRA and Unit 58 since 2015 to ensure a long-term sustainable approach towards UXO sector coordination and clearance in Lao PDR.
Please refer to ANNEX A for the project’s Results Framework and Theory of Change.
[1] As per the NRA Dashboard as of 18th January 2024, 9,020 people were benefited from the area clearance and 53,378 people were benefited from roving task.
[2]Post Clearance Impact Assessment (FINAL REPORT: Post-Clearance Impact Assessment for UNDP’s UXO Clearance Support | United Nations Development Programme) and the ordnance depth distribution study (A Study On Ordnance Depth Distribution In Lao PDR | United Nations Development Programme (undp.org)) are available on the UNDP website. Gender Analysis in the UXO Sector and Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Study will soon be available for the public.
EVALUATION PURPOSE, SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES
Purpose
UNDP conducts outcomes, portfolio and programme/project evaluations at different stages of the Country programme to capture and demonstrate evaluative evidence of UNDP’s contributions to development results at the country level, as well as to programme-specific objectives and goals. To this end, UNDP will carry out an independent evaluation within the overall provisions contained in the UNDP Evaluation Policy. In line with the UNDP Lao PDR Evaluation Plan, the proposed evaluation will be conducted to assess the status of Implementation of the UXO Programme (2022-2026).
The purpose of the evaluation is (1) to inform the strategy for the remaining period of the programme, and (2) to provide a learning opportunity and make course corrective action accordingly. The evaluation will be a learning opportunity for UXO Lao, NRA, Humanitarian demining teams of the Lao People’s Army (Unit 58), UNDP and other relevant stakeholders to improve on the implementation before the end of the project in 2026. The evaluation will identify what has been working and what has not and the factors behind them. The evaluation findings and results will be disseminated to and shared with relevant stakeholders, including donors and government partners, and communicated to project beneficiaries. These results will facilitate adjustments and course correction in the areas where necessary.
Scope and Objective
The independent mid-term evaluation will cover the beginning of the project up to the day of evaluation, April 2022 – June 2024. The evaluation will focus on the support the project has been providing on many different fronts of the UXO sector in Lao PDR including a specific evaluation on KOICA’s contribution in the sector. The scope of the evaluation is expected, but not limited to, to be in the areas of the following:
- The relevance of the project’s strategy, objective, and priorities to respond to the needs and challenges in the UXO sector in Lao PDR.
- The project’s results achieved against expected results outlined in the project document. Identifying the gaps to achieve the intended results can be one of the focus areas of the evaluation.
- The assessment of the early potential impact of the project interventions. Possible gaps/weakness in the current project design and implementation that can be improved to better support the Government and other key stakeholders in the future.
- The overall assessment of project management including, but not limited to, monitoring activities, reporting, knowledge management, strategic partnerships and implementation arrangements.
- The inclusion and integration of cross-cutting issues, such as innovation, human rights, gender equality, Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), ethnic groups, and other marginalized groups within the project, its implementation and results achieved so far.
- The factors that have contributed to or have hindered the achievements of the project so far. The general lessons learned and best practices from project implementation that can be adopted for the remaining period of the project and can be considered for future programming.
- The contribution of KOICA’s financial support particularly, but not limited to, through the NRA and Unit 58 on the achievements of the objective as stated in the relevant documents, the coherence and synergies within the UXO programme with other donors, and sustainability of the support.
EVALUATION CRITERIA AND KEY QUESTIONS
The evaluation will follow the OECD-DAC framework, investigating the following criteria: relevance and coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability.
Additional criteria such as UNSDG Agenda 30 principles of human rights and leaving no one behind (LNOB) and other cross-cutting issues including gender equality and women’s empowerment, and people with disability will be considered. Essentially, the evaluation will attempt to answer the following questions:
- To what extent has the project achieved its intended and unintended results?
- What are the factors that support and/or hinder the project’s achievements?
- What are the lessons learned from the project? What can be improved to ensure objectives will be achieved for the rest of the project implementation?
In addition, the following questions below are more specific into the evaluation criteria. The list can serve as the guiding questions and should be further refined and added by the evaluation team in close consultation with UNDP and key stakeholders.
Relevance/Coherence:
- To what extent is the project in line with national development priorities (including 9th Five Year National Socio-Economic Development Plan (NSEDP) and National Strategic Plan for the UXO Sector (SPF III), Lao PDR-United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2022-2026, UNDP country programme, UNDP Strategic Plan, The United Nations Mine Action Strategy 2019-2023, and the SDGs including Lao PDR national SDG 18, Lives Safe from UXO?
- To what extent is the project respond to the needs of the people regarding the challenges that UXO poses to the community?
- To what extent does the project is adaptable and responsive to the changing development context in Lao PDR, particularly in the UXO sector?
Effectiveness:
- To what extent does the project achieve, or not, its intended results up to date?
- To what extent has advocacy been useful to scale-up best practice and desired goals, looking at UNDP’s role and participation in national dialogues and ability to influence national policies?
- What is the unintended impact (if any) that the project brought about?
- To what extent is the project governance structure and the implementation arrangement effective in providing strategic guidance to achieve results?
Efficiency
- To what extent have the project implementation arrangement and execution been efficient?
- To what extent have resources been used efficiently? Have activities supporting the strategy been cost-effective?
- Were resources (human, financial, and time) used as planned and appropriately? Did the project underspend or overspend resources?
- While considering the roles, engagement and coordination among various stakeholders in the UXO sector, were there any overlaps and/or duplications that impacted the efficiency of the programme?
Sustainability:
- To what extent does the project enhance capacities (human resources, institution, system) to create sustained impact of the project and what could be done to strengthen sustainability?
- To what extent is the ownership of the national partner (UXO Lao and NRA) able to sustain the positive impact of the project? Is there an exit strategy put in place to ensure sustainability of the project’s impact?
- To what extent have knowledge management products contributed to the sustainability of the programme?
Cross-cutting: Innovation, Human Rights, Leave No One Behind (LNOB), Gender Equality, and PwD
- To what extent do the marginalized groups, such as women, persons with disabilities (PwD), ethnic groups, benefit from the project?
- To what extent was gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) integrated into the project’s design, and implementation?
- To what extent is the project design and implementation applying the human rights-based approach and LNOB principle?
- To what extent does the project apply innovative approach to achieve the project’s targets?
- To what extent is the project’s M&E used to measure impact for women, persons with disabilities (PwD), ethnic groups, and other marginalized communities?
METHODOLOGY
The evaluation methodology must be participatory and inclusive given the complexity of the UXO programme and how development challenges are always intertwined. The evaluation approach must be gender-responsive and use human rights-based approach and leave no one behind (LNOB) principle and consider other cross-cutting issues in analyzing the information and evidence gathered from the evaluation process.
The findings and the recommendation in the evaluation products must be strictly supported by hard-evidenced, credible, useful and reliable data. The following are the methodologies that the evaluators may consider applying. The evaluation team is responsible for revising the approach as necessary. Any changes should be in-line with the international criteria and professional norms and standards (as adopted by the UN Evaluation Group). They must also be approved by UNDP before being applied by the evaluation team. The evaluation will be carried out in accordance with UNEG Evaluation Norms and Standards and OECD/DAC Principles.
Desk Review
The project manager will provide all relevant documents for the evaluation purpose. The evaluators are expected to review the relevant documents, and if necessary, ask for clarifications and more documents. The project manager stands ready to provide the documents that are useful for the evaluation.
Please refer to ANNEX C for a suggested list of documents and materials.
Semi-structured Interview
The project manager will facilitate the evaluation team to design the data collection instruments, and conduct interviews with key stakeholders including, but not limited to, national and sub-national government counterparts such as Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare and UXO Lao, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and NRA, Humanitarian Lao People’s Army (Unit 58) among other stakeholders. Also, the evaluation team is encouraged to interview donors and members of the community in the targeted areas.
The evaluation team is expected to develop the interview (and survey) questions with the guidance from the list of questions (see section III) with the final confirmation from UNDP before the data collection commences.
Project Analysis
The evaluation team is encouraged to consult with the project team from UNDP to verify and triangulate the information gathered from the desk review.
Post-data Collection Debriefing
The evaluation team is expected to conduct a debriefing following the data collection activities. The debriefing is to triangulate and validate the preliminary finding to the stakeholders and seek clarifications, if needed, prior to drafting the evaluation report.
Other methods such as Focused Group Discussion (FGD), In-depth Interview or others can be applied.
EVALUATION PRODUCTS (KEY DELIVERABLES)
The evaluation team is expected to deliver the following products:
a. Evaluation Inception Report. An inception report is the result of preliminary discussion between the project team (UNDP) and the desk review of the relevant documents. The inception report must be produced before any further evaluation activities, such as interviews and field visits. The inception report should include an elaborated workplan of the evaluation process together with the timeline as accurate as possible. Inception report should include an evaluation matrix that maps out the evaluation design and methodology to approach stakeholders. Please see ANNEX F for evaluation matrix template. The inception report should be between 10-15 pages.
b. Evaluation Debriefings. The evaluation team is expected to provide evaluation debriefing as required to the UXO Lao and NRA (and other government partners if necessary), UNDP, the donors, and other relevant stakeholders.
c. Draft Evaluation Report. Following the activities done by the evaluation team collecting data and evidence, a draft report is expected to be submitted to UNDP for comments and feedback. It should be between 40-60 pages. Please refer to ANNEX G for the outline of the report and include a separate section dedicated to the assessment of KOICA’s contribution to the programme.
d. Evaluation Report Audit Trail. The project team and other relevant stakeholders are expected to provide comments on the draft evaluation report. The comments and feedback must be compiled in one document where the evaluation team is to address them. The response to the comments by the evaluation team must also be retained.
e. Final Evaluation Report. Following the comments from the project team and other relevant stakeholders, the evaluation team is expected to produce the final evaluation report that addresses the comments as well as questions and clarifications if there is any in the Audit Trail. The final report must be logically structured, supported the evidence-based findings and provides conclusion with recommendations.
The recommendation part of the evaluation is essential. The formulated recommendations should be solution-oriented, linked to findings, evidence based, and as specific as possible. Therefore, the evaluation team should propose a maximum of seven (7) concrete, and actionable recommendations.
The final report should be between 50-70 pages, excluding the Annexes. Please refer to ANNEX G for the outline of the report and include a separate section dedicated to the assessment of KOICA’s contribution to the programme.
EVALUATION TEAM COMPOSITION AND REQUIRED COMPETENCIES
The evaluation team will be composed of one (01) international consultant, and one (01) national consultant (being recruited separately). The international consultant will be the evaluation team leader. The potential consultants must not have been involved in the preparation of the evaluation and/or in the implementation of the project to avoid conflict of interest with the evaluation.
The potential international consultant must have the following required qualifications:
Education:
Master’s degree or equivalent in economics, international relations, governance and public policy, peace and conflict studies, political/social science, or other relevant field of study.
Technical knowledge and experience:
- Minimum 7 years of solid experience in results-based management, project MEALP (monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning, and planning), and project management.
- Demonstrated experience in conducting and/or leading project evaluation, particularly on the issues of mine action/UXO sector
- Strong technical expertise on mine action, demining, UXO issues, livelihood programmes, victim assistance, risk reduction, and/or behavioural change
- Solid knowledge and experience in applying human rights-based approach and Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) in the evaluation
- Strong working knowledge of Lao PDR, particularly in the UXO sector within development context, including deep understanding of Lao Government programme, strategies, and policies on the UXO sector.
- Demonstrated experience in conducting qualitative, and to some extent quantitative, evaluation methods.
- Demonstrated experience in working with international development organization. Experience with the UN agencies is preferable.
Competencies:
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal)
- Strong analytical and reporting skills with the ability to conceptualize, articulate, and present (written and verbal) about mine action/UXO within the development context.
- Demonstrated integrity and ethical standards with the ability to maintain impartiality during evaluation.
- Excellent cultural, gender, age, and nationality sensitivity and ability to work with people from different backgrounds.
Proposed workplan and methodology
- All aspects of the TOR have been addressed in sufficient detail.
- Implementation schedule (and timing).
- Quality assurance measure.
EVALUATION ETHICS
This evaluation will be conducted in accordance with the principles outlined in the UNEG ‘Ethical Guidelines for Evaluation’ which are available here: http://www.unevaluation.org/document/detail/2866. The consultants must safeguard the rights and confidentiality of information providers, interviewees, and stakeholders through measures to ensure compliance with legal and other relevant codes governing collection of data and reporting on data. The consultant must also ensure security of collected information before and after the evaluation and protocols to ensure anonymity and confidentiality of sources of information where that is expected. The information knowledge and data gathered in the evaluation process must also be solely used for the evaluation and not for other uses without the express authorization of UNDP and partners.
Evaluation consultants will be held to the highest ethical standards and are required to sign a pledge of ethical conduct upon acceptance of the assignment.
MANAGEMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS
UNDP’s senior management as the evaluation commissioner will be acting as the advisory body that ensures the independency of the evaluation team and UNDP’s ownership of the report’s findings and recommendations.
To manage impartiality, Programme Officers of UNDP (UXO Unit) play a supporting role in ensuring that the evaluation team have the necessary documents and data for the evaluation process. The project managers also facilitate the evaluation team with the stakeholders for interview and data collection if needed.
Evaluation manager (UNDP Country Office, Head of the Programme Support Unit/M&E Focal Point) facilitates and assists the overall evaluation and makes sure the quality of the evaluation. The evaluation manager plays an essential role in reviewing and approving the inception report, the draft and final evaluation report as well as the management of the evaluation recommendation ensuring that the project team and UNDP implement them accordingly.
Evaluation team will be working closely with the UXO unit team from UNDP, in close collaboration with the responsible partners from UXO Lao, NRA, Humanitarian demining teams of the Lao People’s Army (Unit 58) and other relevant stakeholders.
The international consultant is responsible for leading the evaluation and deliver the outputs as stated in the TOR within the agreed timeline.
Criteria for Evaluation of Proposal
Offers will be evaluated according to the cumulative analysis of the Technical and Financial Scoring method – where the Technical proposal will be weighted at 70% and the Financial proposal will weigh at 30% of the total scoring. Only candidates obtaining a minimum Technical score of 49 points would be considered for a further Financial Evaluation.
The applicant receiving the Highest Combined Technical and Financial Score and meeting other minimum requirements in the Procurement Notice will be awarded the contract.
How to apply
This specific tender is managed via the new supplier portal system of UNDP Quantum. If you are interested in submitting a bid for this tender, you must subscribe following the instructions in the user guide.
If you have not registered a profile with this system, you can do so by following the link for Supplier Registration.
If you already have a supplier profile, please login to the Supplier Portal, then search for the negotiation using the reference number UNDP-LAO-00286, following the instructions in the user guide.
For more details, please visit this link UNDP | Procurement Notices or
Contact: Kongthanou Khanthavixay, Procurement Analyst – kongthanou.khanthavixay@undp.org