Middle East Education Resilience Design Consultant

DFAT Syria Resilience Fund: Save the Children and World Vision No Lost Generation submission Terms of Reference: Design Framework Consultancy Background Syria’s children have endured appalling suffering over the last five years. Close to 5 million Syrians have fled the country, approximately half of them children, and most are now living in over-stretched refugee camps, makeshift shelters or villages in neighbouring countries. Many have fled Syria on foot, taking only what they could carry. Five years of conflict have tripled the proportion of Syrian children out of school from 0.9 million (14 per cent) in the 2011/12 school year to 2.8 million (40 per cent) in the 2014/15 school year. Many Syrian school-age children in Syria and the surrounding host countries have tragically never been to school and those in school continue to be at risk of dropping out. Syrian children have been deprived of their childhood and their futures, along with their right to education. No Lost Generation Over five years into the Syrian crisis, nearly one million Syrian refugee children are out of school – and the numbers are rising. The education crisis is fuelling rates of child labour and early marriage. The No Lost Generation initiative was launched by partners in 2013 to focus attention on the plight of children affected by the Syrian crisis. By articulating real concerns about the possible ‘loss’ of a generation of children to the effects of violence and displacement, the initiative put education and child protection at the centre of the response inside Syria and across the 5 refugee hosting countries (Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt). Save the Children and World Vision are the NGO co-leads of the No Lost Generation Initiative. Objective Save the Children and World Vision have strong Education capacity across their Syria Response programs with SC the co-lead of the Education cluster. IN addition, both organisation have a strong history in cash-based programming. In Lebanon, both organisations are part of the Lebanon Cash Consortium, which is led by Save the Children. As such, Save the Children and World Vision have formed a partnership and will jointly design an Education and Resilience strategy in Jordan and Lebanon To support the development of this strategy, SC Australia and WV Australia seek to engage a consultant to develop a high level programmatic framework, an operational plan for on the ground implementation as well as a plan for the research component of the program.  This consultancy will include travel between Lebanon and Jordan and facilitating stakeholder consultations including an in country workshop. The consultant may be required to travel to Australia and present the findings to key stakeholders in Melbourne. Scope of the Consultancy In close collaboration with Save the Children and World Vision country team, the consultant will identify Key stakeholders at a country and regional level and propose an engagement strategy that includes travel to Jordan and Lebanon. The consultant will work with the Programme and Technical teams to design interventions and delivery methods in Education and cash based programming appropriately and bring no harm to children. The Consultant will coordinate with Advocacy/Policy and Technical Teams (in country, regional and head offices) to identify new areas of research for the research component of the program, which can also be used for advocacy purposes. The consultant will organise consultation workshops to present initial findings. This includes capacity statement of Save the Children and World Vision, review of Education & Resilience needs and a proposed programmatic framework and advocacy and research opportunities. The Consultant, upon soliciting feedback from key stakeholders, will complete a program design framework including budget and M&E components The consultant will produce an operational plan for implementation (partnership arrangements between Save the Children and World Vision including roles and responsibilities)   Key Deliverables Identification of local Partners and key stakeholder engagement in coordination with WV and SC country offices. October 2nd Organise key meetings with local partners and stakeholders, including key ministries (Ministries of Education, Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation in Jordan and Ministry of Social Affairs in Lebanon) Schools, community members and children. October 17th Organise meetings with key staff at Save the Children and World Vision, including field and head offices (advocacy, technical and operation teams) October 17th Coordinate with Advocacy/ Policy and Technical Teams to identify research topics October 17th Organise Consultation workshops to present initial findings and advocacy and research opportunities (soliciting feedback from COs and MOs ROs) October 20th First draft of design framework shared; including Programme Design Analysis of research opportunities and recommended approach Operational plan and Ways of Working October 28th Second Draft of design shared November 3rd Final Design Framework submitted November 7th   Timeline The consultancy will be 6 weeks in duration including 3 weeks of travel between Jordan and Lebanon. Planned start date is September 25th. Key Policy Requirements Child safe Recruitment: The Consultant and all researchers will undergo child safe recruitment procedures, including training and signing up to Save the Children Child Protection Policy and Code of Conduct. They will also be provided with information on the child protection reporting process on what to do if a child discloses abuse during an interview and possible referral options.  Qualification & Experience: Intimate knowledge of the Middle East political and operations context, particularly in Jordan and Lebanon. Minimum 10 years’ experience working in international development programs designing, implementing and monitoring humanitarian and development programs. Demonstrated experience in leading assessment activities and of designing, monitoring and evaluating education and resilience programmes in emergencies for international NGOs. Fluency in English required with with a proven ability to produce high quality reports and briefings. Language proficiency and ability to communicate effectively in Arabic is strongly preferred. Strong communication skills with demonstrated experience in leading and facilitating meetings with Government officials and community representatives. Politically and culturally sensitive with qualities of patience, tact and diplomacy Strong influencing skills and Strong understanding of Regional advocacy needs and opportunities.   Application Process Applicants will have to undergo child safe recruitment procedures, reference check and a National Criminal Record check prior to the engagement as required Save the Children independent consultant’s policy. A contract will be drawn up between the consultant and Save the Children Australia. Deliverables will be jointly managed by Save the Children Australia and World Vision Australia. CVs and letters of application including proposed consultancy rate should be submitted by email to nadine.haddad@savethechildren.org.au and Erin.Joyce@worldvision.com.au . This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .Closing date for application is 22 September 2016. No applications will be received after this time. Insurance Any external consultants involved in this study will be required to have in place insurance arrangements appropriate to provision of the requirements in this Terms of Reference including public liability, professional indemnity and travel insurance.