External Evaluator - Dfid

IMPACT EVALUATION   EVALUATION OF THE IMPACT ON CHILD POVERTY AND HOUSEHOLD DECISION MAKING OF THE INTEGRATED APPROACH OF SAVE THE CHILDREN WITHIN THE DFID FUNDED INTERVENTIONS IN LEBANON  Role The purpose of this evaluation is to provide evidence on the impact of the integrated approach within the targeted most vulnerable communities with focus on child sensitiveness. It will address the short and long-term outcomes of the integrated Save the Children International Lebanon interventions within the DFID funded interventions; including impact on health and protection vulnerabilities, social stability, livelihood opportunities, local economy, rental market, and security of tenure. The purpose of this evaluation is to provide an understanding of how refugee families make their decisions based on the humanitarian support they are provided with; and what impact this has on outcomes at the household level. Currently refugee families receive a range of different services that either increase household income or decrease household expenditure. These come in a range of different formats. To date the package received alongside other variables that impact on HH decision making and how these decisions then have either a positive or negative impact on vulnerability has not yet been analyzed. This evaluation aims at supporting the basic assistance sector in understanding what the optimal package of services would be, and what variables would then influence household’s decision making. With this knowledge it should be possible to tailor packages to achieve the greatest level of impact for particular groups. This would also guide the discussions on the additional support that can be provided in terms of ensuring child rights are realized. Supervisor MEAL Director          Time Frame of Assignment 30 working days         Location Bekaa & Beirut Start date of the evaluation 9th September 2016 End date of the evaluation 30th October 2016 Project Background DFID’s partnership has been critical to Save the Children International Lebanon’s operations in the MENA region and constitutes a substantial portion of Save the Children International Lebanon’s Syria response funding. DFID support has been particularly significant for Save the Children International Lebanon innovative inside-Syria work and Lebanon refugee response.  The funding requested from DFID targets sectors where Save the Children International Lebanon believes it has major impact built on Save the Children International Lebanon existing work. DFID funding fits into Save the Children International Lebanon’s broader funding portfolio within the MEAN region through three programs: the Northern Syria Response (cross border from Turkey), the Syria Partnership Program, and the DFID Lebanon Save the Children International Lebanon Program for implementing consolidated programming around the key areas of WASH, FSL and shelter/NFI, with increased focus on sustainable livelihoods and building social cohesion. The DFID Lebanon Save the Children International Lebanon intervention is meant to “Deliver integrated response to meet the needs of refugees and host communities in Akkar, Bekaa, and potentially Mount Lebanon”. This integrated component aims to address some of the key protection concerns for refugee communities in Lebanon, namely the continuous degradation of the living conditions which impact on individual safety (especially that of children), whilst strengthening the resilience of host and refugee populations through household-level livelihoods interventions and community-based investment aiming to strengthen social cohesion. Ensuring access to shelter, WASH and livelihoods plays a key role in not only responding to the needs of vulnerable families and their children, but is also key in preventing negative coping mechanisms and other risks (such as water borne diseases) which are related to the outlined key sector interventions. The program four elements encompass interventions at three levels, reflecting a transition from short-term humanitarian activities to longer-term recovery programming with a central focus on social cohesion: Continuing to meet basic needs for Syrian refugees through direct assistance with a focus on shelter and WASH targeting both community and household-level needs; Improving protection and resilience of Syrian refugees and Lebanese host communities through integrated interventions with a greater emphasis on making sustainable long-term improvements to affordable shelter solutions, the provision of water and sanitation services, and livelihoods opportunities; Fostering strengthened social cohesion through community investment and institutional capacity building jointly addressing the long-term challenge of the Syrian refugee presence in Lebanon, the impact this has on public service provision and social cohesion, and the slow-down of the Lebanese economy. All activities selected are in line with UNHCR strategy and are in accordance with the requirements set by the Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA).  The elements described below are implemented in the same communities to maximize integration potential. Save the Children integrated approach is designed to: Meet immediate basic needs in shelter and water and sanitation for refugees; Provide durable improvements in living conditions for the most vulnerable populations; Reduce competition for resources and boost income and social cohesion for refugees and host communities through community support projects; Deliver sustainable improvements in self-reliance and employability for vulnerable households, with a focus on women and youth.       Deliverables The evaluation team will submit three reports and three presentations to the Save the Children International Lebanon Steering Committee: Inception report: Following the desk review and prior to beginning of the field work, an inception report will be produced subject to approval by Save the Children International Lebanon. This report will detail a draft work plan with a summary of the primary information needs, the methodology to be used, and a work plan/schedule for the field visits and major deadlines. With respect to methodology, the inception report will include a description of how data will be collected and a sampling framework, data sources, and drafts of suggested data collection tools such as questionnaires and interview guides. It should also include the draft of the final report outline (i.e. Table of Content).  Once the report is finalized and accepted, the evaluation team must submit a request for any change in strategy, methodology or approach to the Save the Children International Lebanon MEAL Director. Draft report: A draft evaluation report will be submitted to Save the Children International Lebanon MEAL Director who will lead the revision process with the reference group and provide feedback within two weeks of receipt of the draft report. Quantitative and qualitative data collected and analysis developed should be annexed to the draft report. Final report: The Final Evaluation Report should include a two page executive summary that summarizes the key lessons learned, conclusions and recommendations. It should also include best practices case studies that can be shared with Save the Children International Lebanon technical and management staff. Quantitative and qualitative data collected and analysis developed should be annexed to the draft report. Presentation of findings: At the end of the field work and after submission of the draft report, the evaluation team will present preliminary findings to validate and prioritize learning at the Save the Children International Lebanon Lebanon level After submission of the Final Evaluation Report, the evaluation team will provide a final presentation for relevant stakeholders One Skype call for the Save the Children International Lebanon headquarters and other interested Save the Children International Lebanon staff who may benefit from the learning with the lead Evaluator. All material collected in the undertaking of the evaluation process should be lodged with the Save the Children International Lebanon Person to be referenced by the MEAL Director prior to the termination of the contract.   Essential competencies required Save the Children International Lebanon seeks expressions of interest from people with the following skills/qualifications and expertise: Background in delivery of Shelter programs (process rather than engineering focus) Understanding of Security of Tenure– ideally in both global, local and humanitarian context Understanding of rental markets, Expertise in Social and Child Protection with focus on Child Protection approaches Expertise in WASH programming evaluations Sound and proved experience in conducting evaluations, particularly utilization and learning focused evaluations. Expertise in qualitative data collection techniques Expertise participative evaluations with focus on child participation and designing evaluation tools Proposals must include the following: Outline of evaluation framework and methods, including comments on the ToR, proposed time frame and work plan Proposed evaluation budget and proposed payments schedule aligned with deliverables schedule (Proposals over 4 pages will be automatically excluded) CV and evidence of past evaluations