Practice Based and Action Learning Research Consultancy

Terms of References

SEE Change Practice based and Action Research Consultancy

1. BACKGROUND INFORMATIONS

Lebanon continues to witness multifaceted and intertwined crises that further aggravate a vulnerable socio-economic situation pushing a substantial percentage of Lebanon’s residents under the poverty line. The severe economic crisis was compounded with COVID-19 pandemic and a devastating blast in Beirut port that destroyed large neighbourhoods in the capital, and led, in August 2020, to the resignation of the government. In the absence of a functioning government, the socio-economic and Covid-19 situations have continued to deteriorate. 

Social Entrepreneurship (SE) is increasingly regarded as a tool capable of easing communal tensions and contributing to communities’ socio-economic development. SEs can “contribute to the economic security of all segments of the population and contribute to economic diver­sity as it invests in territorial development and proximity, promoting community participation, prioritizing local impacts and modelling participatory values”[1].

In Lebanon, a 2019 mapping showed that SE has recently gained more national visibility among urban communities in big cities[2]. This can be explained by the fact that SE responds to the national priorities and is aligned with Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) goal, and the strategy of both the Livelihood and Social Stability Sector. During the past few years, several projects started promoting SE as a tool to strengthen social stability and support local economic development for Lebanese, Palestinian, and Syrian refugees. Some of the projects invested in building the knowledge and awareness of community members on social entrepreneurship, others supported the identification of social ventures and their evolvement into SE through the provision of ad hoc technical and financial support, while others focused on developing a legal framework for social entrepreneurship[3].

Brief presentation of projects

SEE Change: Oxfam in partnership with Beyond group and COSV is implementing an EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian crisis (EUTF) Funded project entitled “Social Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Change” (SEE Change).  As of September 2020, and over the course of three years, the project will be implemented in five different areas in Beqaa, North, South and Mount Lebanon.

The project aims at increasing   the   impact   of   social entrepreneurial activities in Lebanon, creating employment and social stability opportunities, and supporting the local economy.

The action aims to have an impact on 4 levels:

• Technical level: Developing the capacity of around 7000 community members through the provision of trainings on SE, social economy, social impact measurement, and community outreach.
• Social level: Engaging at least 200 community members in: 1) identifying local assets that hold the potential of being transformed into social justice incubation programs, 2) monitoring and measuring the social impact of SEs that will be supported by the program.
• Economic level: Providing technical and financial resources to support the scale-up, social and economic impact of around 60 existing SEs. Additional support will be provided for the Social Entrepreneurship Support Organisations (SESOs) to ensure that they provide improved and tailored support to the SEs.   
• Policy level: Sustaining the advocacy work initiated through previous projects, namely BADAEL[4], FURSA[5], and MedUp![6], aimed at creating a conducive ecosystem for SEs, civic engagement, and inclusive economic development.

2. PURPOSE OF THE RESEARCH/ RATIONALE

SEE Change (Oxfam) aims to increase the   impact   of   social entrepreneurial activities in Lebanon, creating employment and social stability opportunities, and supporting the local economy. By strengthening the Social Enterprises (SEs) and the Social Entrepreneurship support organizations (SESOs) to respond to the social and economic situation in Lebanon.

For this purpose, actions are taken on different levels to achieve the overall goal “to contribute to social stability and local economy of the targeted areas”

SEE Change (Oxfam) launched a national sub granting Call for Support and awarded 60 social ventures all over Lebanon with financial and business development (technical) support. The competition targeted new and existing SEs, from start-ups to maturity level. The type of activities that were supported include, but are not limited to, equipment linked to the core activities of the SE, small infrastructure intervention, cash, marketing & communication related activities, capacity building costs, etc.

Additional support will be provided for the Social Entrepreneurship Support Organisations (SESOs) to ensure that they provide improved and tailored support to the SEs. SEE Change will develop a capacity development plan to improve the of 120 members of SESOs on technical, financial, legal, operational, and organisational capacities of the SESOs.

In the past year two reports were generated that described in detail all the activities implemented by the different partners in the consortium.

 Oxfam is looking for a consultant over a period of 7 months (expected to start Feb 1, 2023 and Ends August 31st 2023 with expected total number of 60 days) to:

1.  Conduct an Action learning research in order to track the implementation of the technical support program implemented across all Lebanon, identify key challenges that require prompt solution, classify specific trends (sector, area, value chain…) highlight success stories and mainly track the multiply and direct effect of the technical and financial support of the SE in the 1. Community level 2. Growth 3. Social impact

Therefore, the research will be guided by the following research questions:

• How are communities involved in social entrepreneurship activities? How can they play a role in oversight and monitoring of social impact?
• What were the needs of the local communities to take on their role? Did the Project provide them with those requirements?
• Was the support provided to SEs relevant to their context and operations? Did the support provided benefit the SEs and helped in scaling-up their operations?
• Did the advocacy plan target the right audience? Were the approaches and tools used coherent with the set objectives?
• What other activities were recommended to pursue the objectives of the Project?
• What are the main lessons learned from the project?

2.  Conduct a practice-based research in addition to his/her role on the action learning reach the consultant is required toensure that the lessons learned from the implementation of the capacity building of SESOs is documented and shared with other members of the SE ecosystem and to support Beyond Group to develop a 5-modules learning toolkit/manual that documents the processes and outlines those main issues to take into consideration.

Therefore, the research will be guided by the following research questions:

• Was the support provided to SESOs relevant to their context and operations? Did the support provided benefit the SESOs and helped in scaling-up their operations?
• Was the support provided to SESOs scaling up in their impact? What tools are used to monitor this impact?
• any specific trends that has been captured ?
• How are communities involved in social entrepreneurship activities? How can they play a role in oversight and monitoring of social impact?
• What other activities were recommended to pursue the objectives of the Project?

The findings and recommendations will be generated periodically throughout the implementation of the project in Year 3, to allow the team to incorporate the recommendations during implementation.

3. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY

For the action learning research, the suggested methodology as follow:

The research consultant is expected to develop the methodology for the research, manage the research using qualitative and quantitative tools, and produce research pieces of the process and the learnings. To meet this expectation, the research consultant is expected to monitor, take part, and follow-up on technical support activities that are being implemented all over the country.

For the practice-based research, the suggested methodology as follow:

Prepare an interactive methodology to describe the research that looks at identifying gaps, the tools that will be used to reach the needed outcomes by documenting the processes, challenges, and learnings. Track the capacity building improvement of the SESOs/SE in order to detect the gaps, understand the challenges faced, highlights the process of development, learnings and success stories.

4. EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

By the end of the project, the consultant should present to the project team two reports  one for each component:

1. For Action learning research:

2. Type of deliverable

Deadline

A. Methodology and workplan

3 days

B. Development of the quantitative & qualitative tools to collect data prior to each phase (e.g. observation checklist, semi-structured interviews, Key Informant Interviews (KII), online surveys, etc…

5 days

C. Feedback on each observed project activity (visits, meetings, calls, short report, etc…)

10 days

D. Progress report on the implementation

7 days

E. Final report

5 days (on or before August 31st)

3. For Practice-based research:

Type of deliverable

Deadline

A. Methodology and workplan

3 days

B. Development of the quantitative & qualitative tools to collect data prior to each phase (e.g. observation checklist, semi-structured interviews, Key Informant Interviews (KII), online surveys, etc…

5 days

E. Track the implementation of the capacity building of the SESOs

10 days

F. Identify key challenges and propose solutions, classify specific trends (sector, area, value chain), highlight success stories etc.

7 days

G. Progress report on the implementation

5 days

H. Final report

3 days (on or before August 31st)

Consultancy duration is for 7 months (expected to start Feb 1, 2023 and Ends August 31st 2023. Expected total number of days is 60

Consultant qualifications:

This project should be led by a consultancy group or an individual with:

• Masters’ Degree (or equivalent degree/experience) in Economics, Development Economics, Social Entrepreneurship, or a related field is mandatory.
• Relevant work experience in conducting similar research studies for businesses, social businesses, associations and NGOs;
• Prior experience working with SEs/SMEs in Lebanon;
• Strong experience in conducting quantitative and qualitative research;
• Experience facilitating discussions on online platforms;
• Tech-savvy and agile, able to deploy tech devices and programs for the benefit of conducting meetings and interviews using digital applications such as Zoom and Microsoft teams.
• Excellent interpersonal, organizational, and time-management skills;
• Excellent communications skills in English, including advanced writing skills;
• Knowledge and experience of EU policies towards sustainable development is a plus.

Expression of Interest (EOI)

Interested consultants should submit their:

• CV
• A brief proposal which includes a detailed methodology for the study

• 3 Previous researches, reports prepared and delivered by the consultant
• Quotation including consultancy fees and all associated estimated costs such as logistics and communication costs.
• Minimum of three references of similar activities implemented, preferably INGO or local NGO experiences.
• Legal documentation to be attached to the proposals:
• Registration and official government documents, if applicable. Noting that 7.5% will be deducted from the total amount if not registered.

Oxfam International in Lebanon reserves the right to reject any and all bids, including the Bidding processes, or not to award the contract at any time, without thereby incurring and liability to the affected Bidders.

Please submit the EOI and other documents (as mentioned above) by midnight of 2nd of January 2023 Lebanon time to lebanonprocurement@oxfam.org.uk mentioning “Practice Based & Action Learning Research consultant” in the Subject line.

[1] Developing Social Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation in the Mediterranean and Middle East. 2019. Tallie Hausser, Constantin Tsakas, Karine Moukaddem. Med Brief No 23.

[2] BRD, 2019. Mapping of SE in Lebanon. Unpublished report.

[3] EU MADAD-funded BADAEL and EU MADAD-funded FURSA

[4] A project implemented by Oxfam, BRD, Utopia, and Najdeh between 2017 and 2020. It aimed to raise awareness around social entrepreneurship in tens of local communities in Bekaa and North Lebanon, supported 45 SEs financially and technically, contributed to national advocacy initiatives

[5] A project implemented by SFCG, COSV, UPP, NOVAC between 2015 – 2018. It aimed to strengthen the prospects of youth in refugee and host communities for social and economic inclusion in Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey. COSV supported 10 SEs among 25 SMES.

[6] A regional project that is currently being implemented by Oxfam in different countries in the MENA region, including Lebanon. The project aims to support over 10 SESOs and 10 SEs, contribute to national advocacy initiatives, and create platforms for regional and international exchanges