Organizational Context
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred in Türkiye at 4:17 am on 6th February 2023, followed by eighty-three aftershocks at a maximum level of 6.7. An additional separate earthquake of 7.6 occurred at 1:24 pm the following day in the same region. Adiyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Gaziantep, and Malatya are reportedly the hardest hit. Almost two weeks after the initial earthquake, a separate 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Defne district, close to the Syrian border in Hatay province, on 20th February. This was followed by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake on the same evening in Samandag district, Hatay, causing further destruction to the already heavily damaged area.
Evaluation purpose and scope The IFRC is conducting this OR because of its commitment to the people being assisted and in improving the relevancy, efficiency and effectiveness of the evolving response. The International Federation is committed to ensuring quality assurance, standards, and a strong culture of learning in its disaster response and, as such is committed to carrying out evaluations/reviews in the wake of all major disasters requiring an international response and as a mandatory exercise when the scale and scope of the operation meets certain triggers.
The focus of this evaluation is to assess the IFRC Network’s response in Turkiye with the following purposes: 1. Evaluate the relevance, efficiency and effectiveness of the support provided by IFRC to the Turkish Red Crescent relief operation. 2. To evaluate the coordination mechanisms established and used by the Federation at all levels and highlight any gaps or bottlenecks. The OR will feedback information to managers at field and headquarters levels to help them improve management and coordination. It will also make recommendations to assist decision-making on the ground, within the region and in Geneva. As the humanitarian phase in Türkiye is likely to continue for several months, it is important that this review feeds into the ongoing operation to improve delivery as well as delivers critical learning for future operations globally. 3. To analyse the current operation and situation in Türkiye, in order to identify relevant opportunities, challenges and risks and to assist the Turkish Red Crescent and the Secretariat management in Geneva, region and country level to plan for future programming, especially the early and longer-term recovery and rehabilitation of the affected population. The TRC relief operation is defined by the provisions of the Turkish National Disaster Management Plan and the operational decisions taken by TRC senior management – this OR is not to evaluate decisions in operational design. Instead, the evaluation focuses on learnings from the implementation of the set response plan. 4. To use its snapshot of the operation to identify the main lessons to be learned for the TRC teams on the ground, for the Secretariat’s management at each level and for the wider organisation, especially related to preparedness and localization.
Job Purpose
Evaluation Objectives and Key Questions:
Considering the above purpose and scope, the OR will focus on below objectives: a. Localization i. How did TRC’s localized structure mobilize during the initial response? What challenges did the TRC face in doing so? How did TRC deliver on its specific responsibilities in the national disaster management plan? How did disaster law affect the response operation? ii. What circumstances are enabling for local action at scale, and what are detrimental? Are there any learnings from TRC’s preparedness and localized response that can be utilized in preparedness work globally? How did TRC utilize its branch and volunteer network? What existing preparedness tools and systems were in place and how did they work? iii. How were the lessons learned from the previous responses to crisis utilized to ensure the challenges are addressed/resolved? iv. How were existing assets from ongoing large-scale programmes utilized in IFRC and TRC’ structures? o Integration and use of surge capacities into an existing strong IFRC structure o Empowered decision making across the structure. o TRC`s large scale Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) programme, payment platform, CEA/hotline as well as PGI capacities
b. External and internal coordination (Including efficiency of mobilizing the existing TRC and IFRC structure) i. Learnings from the TRC’s Disaster Management Structure and coordination of with the National Disaster Management Agency at national level, TRC and other stakeholders that are involved in the mass feeding (where TRC has the lead role: these include the municipalities, local NGOs, etc.) ii. Coordination between TRC and the IFRC Secretariat across all levels – leadership and technical level cooperation, with a clear focus on harmonising the response. iii. IFRC’s performance in strategic and operational Membership coordination – utilization of the network’s capacities iv. The IFRC and TRC as key actor in coordination with authorities and the international humanitarian system.
c. The IFRC secretariat’s added value to a National Society with its strong existing capacities – with special focus on Resource Mobilisation, Communication, External Relations and Coordination. i. Inter-agency coordination and external positioning, including IFRC’s lead in technical shelter coordination ii. Support in communications and managing risks and challenges iii. Support in Mobilising RC/RC and external financial support iv. Applicability of ERU in a developed country and urban context
d. Sectoral approaches and standards in the emergency and recovery phase i. What standards and cross-cutting approaches have been in place, and what needs strengthening for recovery and other TRC programming in areas of: o Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) o Protection, Gender and Inclusion (PGI) and Safeguarding o Preparedness for Effective Response (PER) o Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER)
Job Duties and Responsibilities
Methodology
The team will carry out the OR through a series of approaches, including:
- Secondary data analysis (Emergency Appeal, Operation Updates, in-country documents, mission reports, debriefs, assessments). No primary data collection from assisted people is planned for this OR, this evaluation should utilize results of existing primary data sets collected by TRC or jointly by TRC and IFRC (existing datasets and surveys, studies and analysis completed by TRC and/or IFRC, also including existing reviews and evaluations completed by Kizilay Academy).
- Key Informant Interviews (KII) with key Red Cross Red Crescent (RCRC) and external stakeholders (i.e. UN Agencies and international organizations) in country and for those who have recently left the operation; and at the Regional and Geneva levels, including interviews with key delegates involved in the earlier stages of the response.
- Meetings and focus group discussions with RCRC and external actors, including TRC, PNS in-country, etc.
- The list of external actors and stakeholders from which the OR will have interviewees will be agreed upon by the IFRC and TRC beforehand.
The Review/Evaluation team will present its preliminary findings to the Turkish Red Crescent, the IFRC in-country team in Türkiye, the ROE and Geneva Headquarters before departure, through a participatory meeting and/or virtual workshop.
An EMT will also be set up to manage and support the OR. The Evaluation Management Team (EMT) will oversee and support the implementation of the OR process, including the finalization and approval of the ToR, quality assurance and approval of deliverables by the commissioners and recruitment of the evaluator(s).
Evaluation deliverables and Timeframe The OR team will deliver the following: Inception Report: The inception report will iterate the parameters and the workplan to operationalize and direct each aspect of the evaluation and data collection plan, including the tools and methods to be employed. The Inception Report will elaborate on these terms of reference by:
- Agreeing on specific evaluation questions
- describing how the evaluation and data collection will be carried out
- refining and specifying the expectations
- detailing the methodology
- drafting data collection tools (interview guides, guidance for the FGDs, etc.)
- clarifying roles and responsibilities of the team;
- outlining the timeframe and activities for the evaluation;
- describing the planned structure of the evaluation final report.
Debriefings/feedback to management at all levels: The team will present its preliminary findings to the Turkish Red Crescent, relevant stakeholders, the ROE and Geneva Headquarters in a participatory meeting or virtual workshop, before the evaluation process comes to a close. This will allow all three levels to take on board any pertinent comments and/or to make any corrections or additions to the findings, as required before the finalization of the report.
Draft Report: A draft report, identifying key findings, lessons learned and recommendations for the current and future operation, will be submitted within one week of the team’s return from the field. Turkish Red Crescent and IFRC (at country, regional and HQ levels) will be given the opportunity to provide comments and require corrections or additions to the Draft Report.
Job Duties and Responsibilities (continued)
Final Report: The final report will contain a short executive summary (no more than 1,000 words) and a main body of the report (expected to be no more than 10,000 words) covering the background of the intervention evaluated, a description of the evaluation methods and limitations, findings, conclusions, lessons learned, and recommendations. Recommendations should be specific, feasible and evidence based. It will contain appropriate appendices, including a copy of the ToR, cited resources or bibliography, a list of those interviewed, and any other relevant materials. The report will also be made available to RC/RC stakeholders and external partners involved in the response via the IFRC Evaluation Databank, in a format agreed by all stakeholders involved.
The final report will be submitted one week after the receipt of comments on the draft report and will have to be validated by the Commissioners (IFRC Regional Director of Europe and USG NSDOC, Turkish Red Crescent Society Director General for International Affairs & Migration Services). Once validated, the final report and the Management Response will be shared with Turkish Red Crescent senior management, IFRC senior management, wider IFRC and Movement stakeholders and following approvals, the report be posted on the IFRC Evaluation Databank.
Below is the timeline of the activities and deliverables. The consultative process is expected to take place from August to November 2023: Activities / deliverables
Time Schedule
Consultant Working days
Development and Approval of ToRAugust 2023
Selection of Evaluation TeamsSeptember 2023
Desk ReviewDebriefings from key stakeholdersInception ReportOctober
10 days
Data CollectionPresentation of FindingsNovember 2023
13 days
Draft report and draft executive summaryFinal reportDecember 2023
10 days
Presentations (validation session and dissemination session)December/January 2023
2 days
Evaluation Management Team (EMT)
The EMT will manage and oversee the evaluation process at the technical level and will consists of:
- 1 x FP from IFRC Geneva HQ
- 2 x FP from IFRC Regional Office for Europe (ROE): Operations and PMER
- 1 x FP from TRC
Ethical Standards The evaluators should take all reasonable steps to ensure that the OR is designed and conducted to respect and protect the rights and welfare of the people and communities involved. The review should be technically accurate and reliable, conducted in a transparent and impartial manner, and contribute to organizational learning and accountability. Therefore, the evaluation team should adhere to the evaluation standards and applicable practices outlined in the IFRC Evaluation Policy.
Education
The IFRC Evaluation Standards are: 1. Utility: Evaluations must be useful and used. 2. Feasibility: Evaluations must be realistic, diplomatic, and managed in a sensible, cost-effective manner. 3. Ethics & Legality: Evaluations must be conducted in an ethical and legal manner, with particular regard for the welfare of those involved in and affected by the evaluation. 4. Impartiality & Independence: Evaluations should be impartial, providing a comprehensive and unbiased assessment that takes into account the views of all stakeholders. 5. Transparency: Evaluation activities should reflect an attitude of openness and transparency. 6. Accuracy: Evaluations should be technically accurate, providing sufficient information about the data collection, analysis, and interpretation methods so that its worth or merit can be determined. 7. Participation: Stakeholders should be consulted and meaningfully involved in the evaluation process when feasible and appropriate. 8. Collaboration: Collaboration between key operating partners in the evaluation process improves the legitimacy and utility of the evaluation.
It is also expected that the review will respect the seven Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent: 1) humanity, 2) impartiality, 3) neutrality, 4) independence, 5) voluntary service, 6) unity, and 7) universality. Further information can be obtained about these Principles at: www.ifrc.org/what/values/principles/index.asp
Evaluation Team Competencies and Qualifications: The RMT will select the members of the evaluation team, which will comprise of 3-4 persons, including a team leader. Efforts will be made to ensure gender diversity amongst the team, as well as to respect other diversity/skills criteria. The team leader will have the following skills and experience:
- Proven extensive experience in being the lead in conducting emergency response evaluation (7 to 10 years).
- Master’s degree in international development, social sciences, humanitarian assistance or other related fields.
- Familiarity with the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement and its disaster management system.
- Good knowledge of strategic and operational management of humanitarian operations and an ability to provide strategic recommendations to key stakeholders.
- Excellent writing and communication skills in English (reference and production of sample work required). Knowledge of written and verbal skills in Turkish is advantageous.
- Knowledge of cross-cutting issues, including protection, gender and inclusion (PGI) and community engagement and accountability (CEA) would be of interest
- Strong analytical skills and ability to clearly synthesize and present findings, draw practical conclusions and to prepare well‐written reports in a timely manner
- Good team player and familiarity with working with people from different cultures/contexts.
- Experience in managing teams remotely and comfortable working with online platforms.
- Should not have been involved or have a vested interest in the operation being reviewed.
The consultant will provide an independent, objective, and critical perspective, and will be the primary author of the evaluation report. They will be hired through a transparent recruitment process, based on professional experience, competence, ethics and integrity for this evaluation.
Experience
The consultant should take all reasonable steps to ensure that the piece of work is designed and conducted to respect and protect the rights and welfare of the people involved and to ensure that the evaluation is technically accurate and reliable, is conducted in a transparent and impartial manner, and contributes to better programming, organizational learning and accountability.
The team members will have the following skills and experience:
- Five years of experience or more working in international relief operations and/or monitoring and evaluation.
- Master’s degree in international relations, social sciences, humanitarian assistance and/or related fields or equivalent experience is preferred.
- Familiarity with the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement and its disaster management system.
- Experience in carrying out interviews and facilitating focus group discussions.
- Sound experience in data consolidation, analysis and presentation. Ability to clearly synthesize and present findings.
- Fluent in English
- At least one of the team members should be fluent in Turkish.
- Should not have a vested interest in the IFRC operation being reviewed.
As it is an ongoing operation, it is important that the team abides by all necessary security rules and that they are sensitive to the significant workload of the various teams and ensure that demands are kept to a minimum. Efforts will be made to appoint logistical focal points at the various levels to assist with the evaluation, along with interpreters at the country level to assist with data collection and analysis.
Knowledge, Skills and Languages
- Application procedures for team leader
Interested candidates should submit their application material by Sunday, 17 September 2023, 23:59 CEST to hr.europe@ifrc.org with ’Team Leader for the OR Turkiye EQ’ written in the Subject Line.
Application materials should include:
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Cover letter clearly summarizing experience as it pertains to this assignment, daily rate, and contact details for three professional referees.
- Applicants are required to provide 1 example of a previous evaluation report they have authored.
Application materials are non-returnable, and we thank you in advance for understanding that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
- Application procedures for team member
Interested candidates should submit their application material by Sunday, 17 September 202 3, 23:59 CEST to hr.europe@ifrc.org with ’ Team Member for the OR Turkiye EQ’ written in the Subject Line.
Applicants from National Societies are requested as seconded staff for the Operational Review.
Application materials should include:
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Cover letter clearly summarizing experience as it pertains to this assignment.
- Applicants are required to provide 1 example of a previous evaluation report they have authored.
Application materials are non-returnable, and we thank you in advance for understanding that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
