End-line Study (Civil Society Support Programme – Phase 3) At Search for Common Ground

1. Context

Search for Common Ground (Search)

Search is an international conflict transformation NGO that aims to transform the way individuals, groups, governments and companies deal with conflict, away from adversarial approaches and towards collaborative solutions. Headquartered in Washington DC, USA, and Brussels, Belgium, with 52 field offices in 29 countries, Search designs and implements multifaceted, culturally appropriate and conflict-sensitive programs using a diverse range of tools, including media and training, to promote dialogue, increase knowledge and determine a positive shift in behaviors.

The Project

Based on Search’s strong belief that effective civil societies and enduring change require years of relationship building with partners on the ground, this project provided comprehensive and strategic capacity development opportunities to well-established civil society organizations (CSOs). Transversely, Search focuses its work on building peace, empowering women in civil society leadership, promoting positive masculinities and gender sensitivity, and preventing sexual- and gender-based violence (SGBV). In addition, the project aimed to mainstream the objectives of Search’s Women Peace and Security Strategy: i) to empower women to engage in peacebuilding, civil society leadership, and to prevent Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV); and ii) to engage both women and men to work for greater women’s empowerment. This is also aligned with the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, through the promotion of stability and prevention of radicalisation and transforming violent extremism in a gender sensitive manner. This work was done through tailored training programmes, workshops, and the facilitation of opportunities for organisations to share experiential knowledge with one another.

The project supports local civil society organizations (CSOs) in maintaining a civic space for peacebuilding programmes within the targeted communities by leveraging i) CSOs’ strengthened strategic and technical capacities; ii) CSOs’ enhanced ability to identify and respond to community needs in an inclusive, and gender sensitive manner, and iii) strengthened linkages between grassroot-level CSOs across dividing lines.

This project follows two phases that were implemented and finalized in 2019 and 2020. These phases provided capacity building to selected CSOs and enabled them to better identify community needs in an inclusive and participatory manner. They also enabled them with operational capacities and tools to implement peacebuilding activities. This Final Evaluation will assess phase 3 of the project taking into consideration phase 2 to draw trends of changes in a holistic approach.

Target groups

The primary target group of the project is 12 local civil organizations. The secondary target groups are the wider members of target communities in addition to 15 other local civil society organizations (CSOs engaged as downstream beneficiaries).

2. Goal and Objectives of Study

Search is seeking a consultancy team/firm who can conduct an Endline Evaluation to understand the extent to which community members have benefited from CSOs’ peacebuilding initiatives and to the degree these initiatives have contributed to maintain civic space in their communities”. The Endline Evaluation will also assess the level of CSOs capacities and cooperation between each other following the project as well as their strengthened ability to identify and effectively respond to local needs in an inclusive manner.

The Endline Study should enable Search to inform future program design and will assess the overall success and effectiveness of the implemented project. In specific terms, the Endline Evaluation has the following objectives:

• Assess the intended (according to the project’s logical framework) and the unintended outcomes and determine Search’s contribution to identified changes.
• Update the project’s logframe and indicators with endline values.
• Assess the project’s Relevance, Efficiency, Effectiveness and Impact, and Sustainability as per The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development – Development Assistance Committee (OECD-DAC) evaluation criteria.
• Assess the level of changes in capacities of CSOs to impact change locally due to project inputs.
• Capture best practices, compile lessons learned throughout the lifespan of the project, and

draw recommendations to inform future programme design in a similar context.

This Endline Evaluation is expected to give specific focus on assessing the effectiveness of the activities in communities towards achieving the objectives and outcomes of the project. The activities conducted are training of trainers for CSOs on CGA, CDA and Men Engage, CSO-led cascade training to other junior CSOs, coaching sessions, community initiatives, local dialogue sessions between CSOs and community members, “The Peacebuilding Hub” networking and dialogue sessions, and CSO coordination sessions between CSOs across dividing lines.

1. Key Questions of the Study

End-line Questions

The Endline study should support the team to answer key questions below. The study is expected to prioritize collecting feedback from direct and indirect beneficiaries from the community members including CSOs.

• Relevance:
• To what extent did the intervention’s objectives and design respond to the needs of CSOs in strengthening their roles to promote a sustainable civic space of peacebuilding?
• To what extent has ‘do no harm’, conflict sensitivity and barriers been taken into consideration in the design and implementation and what were the effects?
• Have experiences from previous interventions been used successfully to improve the overall quality of the project?
• Effectiveness and Impact:
• To what extent has intervention been effective in achieving its results and planned outcomes (SO)?
• What unintended outcomes (positive and negative) emerged from project implementation?
• What factors (positive and negative) have had the greatest influence on the achievement of results?
• To what extent has the intervention been able to contribute to longer-term effects (impact)?
• Was the level of partnership(s) with CSOs appropriate to support the effective achievement of the intervention’s objectives?
• Efficiency and Value for Money:
• To what extent have resources been allocated and utilized in an efficient manner to achieve value-for-money?
• Sustainability:
• To what extent are the benefits of the program likely to sustain in the long term? What are the main factors behind this?
• Cross Cutting Issues:
• How and to what degree did the project adapt in response to monitoring data and contextual factors? To what extent have adaptations resulting from reflections and learning activities been effective?
• To what extent have gender issues been taken into consideration in design and implementation and what were the effects?
• Geographic Locations

The Endline study will provide quantitative and qualitative information, gender-age disaggregated data and analysis on 6 target communities in six targeted areas.

1. Methodology and Data Collection Tools

The Endline Evaluation will utilize a mixed method approach consisting of both qualitative and quantitative primary and secondary data collections. The Endline Evaluation will be conducted to triangulate data from multiple sources and stakeholders in order to infer reliable findings. In addition to the proposed conventional approach, the consultancy team will be taken to carry out the evaluation through using the evaluation questions (section 3) included in the ToR, and to integrate and apply ‘Outcome Harvesting’ techniques to identify the most significant results and the project’s contributions to these changes. The level of integration should be defined clearly in the proposed methodological approach in the submitted technical proposal.

In addition to assessing the intended outcomes and objectives of the third phase of the project, the consultancy team will be expected to investigate synergy with the second and the first phases of the project and draw trends of changes in a holistic approach.

Firstly, the consultant(s) will review key project documents including the proposal, MEL framework, logframe and set meetings with key personnel to better understand the project, its goal and activities. The consultant is expected to review the above background documentation as part of the desk review phase of the study.

Secondly, the consultant will utilize primary available monitoring and evaluation data that was formerly collated by project staff including activity surveys and assessments, baseline data, project quarterly reports, etc. In addition, the consultant will rely heavily on the completed Final Evaluation of phase 2 and the CSOs capacity assessment conducted at the beginning of phase 3 to facilitate reliable judgments on what has changed.

Thirdly, the consultant will develop quantitative and qualitative data collection tools and collect data in the form of surveys, interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs), and possibly Case Studies using a solid sampling approach and participatory methods with project beneficiaries and other stakeholders. The consultant(s) shall additionally propose the team set up for data collection (if necessary).

The consultant shall determine the appropriate sample size and approach in consultation with Search’s MEAL Manager and Project Manager and referring to the M&E plan. The sampling strategy will take into consideration carried out activities, target population and the project areas (95 % Confidence Level and 5% Margin of error to the degree possible) and other contextual consideration to accessibility. S/he will meet with the project participants, partners, Search staff and other relevant stakeholders.

The methodology and data collection tools need to be validated and approved by Search’s MEAL Manager.

The consultant(s) is also required to develop a detailed evaluation matrix with judgment criteria that captures the study’s objectives and evaluation question of which will guide the evaluation process into reliable judgments and outcomes.

Data collection, analysis and the results should represent Inclusiveness—the methodology should include a wide range of viewpoints, specifically gender and age-sensitivity when applicable.

6. Deliverables

Search expects the following deliverables from the external consultant(s) as they correspond to the timeline and budget:

• An inception report detailing the methodology, data collection tools and timeline;
• Any necessary training of data collectors or set-up of systems for data collection;
• All original data will be submitted to Search;
• A draft endline report in English for review by Search staff and partners to be presented and discuss with Search’s MEAL and project team; and
• A final report in English (40 pages max in length, excluding appendices) consistent with Search branding and standards for evaluation. The report:
• Uses the Search reporting template unless otherwise agreed in the contract
• Provides a clear connection between the conflict or context assessment and the intended results, articulate the project’s ToC, and include other relevant project specifics
• Fully explains the objectives and research questions of the study, limitations and methods chosen for analysis,
• Findings respect Search’s evaluation standards, are structured around the main objectives of the study, and are presented in relation to the intended target groups. The findings should speak to the link between the project, it’s Theory of Change and its contribution to our strategy. It should explain adaptations that occurred during the project and their impact on results.
• Recommendations should have a clear audience and be specific, accessible, and actionable.
• Indicator table showing all indicators
• Appendices should include detailed research instruments, list of interviewees, terms of references and evaluator(s) brief biography.
• A one-to-two-page document with key project lessons that Search can use in its business development efforts
• A PowerPoint presentation and the actual presentation of results to Search and the donor.

7. Logistical Support

The firm/consultant(s) will be responsible for organizing their own logistics for data collection (vehicles, fuel, and drivers), and this must be budgeted into the financial proposal. Search can provide support in arranging interviews (if applicable).

In addition, Search will share the following elements with the external consultant(s): Background materials including the project proposal and logframe, etc.

1. Ethical Considerations

The consultancy should take consideration of the rights of participants in line with the ethical codes and guidelines of research. The participants should be asked to provide their consent and made aware that their identities would not be revealed. Cultural rights will be respected; minors below 18 years of age would not be assessed while collected data would be protected for confidentiality all through the data management process.

The firm/consultants are required to respect the following ethical principles:

• Comprehensive and systematic inquiry: Consultant should make the most of the existing information and full range of stakeholders available at the time of the review. Consultant should conduct systematic, data-based inquiries. He or she should communicate his or her methods and approaches accurately and in sufficient detail to allow others to understand, interpret and critique his or her work. He or she should make clear the limitations of the review and its results.
• Competence: Consultant should possess the abilities and skills and experience appropriate to undertake the tasks proposed and should practice within the limits of his or her professional training and competence.
• Honesty and integrity: Consultant should be transparent with the contractor/constituent about: any conflict of interest, any change made in the negotiated project plan and the reasons why those changes were made, any risk that certain procedures or activities produce misleading review information.
• Respect for people: Consultant should respect the security, dignity and self-worth of the respondents, program participants. Consultant has the responsibility to be sensitive to and respect differences amongst participants in culture, religion, gender, disability, age and ethnicity.

The assignment should take into account precautionary measures to avoid Covid-related complications during data collection. These measures should ensure social distancing and remote interactions where possible. Therefore, applicants are kindly required to integrate a detailed multiple scenario strategy in their proposed methodologies and work plans that would ensure efficacy in the delivery of the assignment and allow for flexibility to switch between different modalities (i.e., to virtual data collection and vice-versa) whenever there is a need to do so.

1. Data Quality Assurance and Management

All deliverables will be reviewed and approved by the country office and global Institutional Learning Team prior to acceptance of the final product. The consultant(s) are also required to develop a clear and rigorous quality control plan during the inception phase of which will be implemented and deployed throughout all phases of the evaluation process to ensure reliability and validity of findings.

1. Timeline

The evaluation timeline is expected to be kicked off Mid-January 2022 and concluded in March 2022 by submitting the final deliverables requested above.

1. Budget
   The total budget available for this study is 25,000 USD. A detailed budget should be provided, including daily rates for personnel, and costs related to data collection (per total number of people sampled, sites for collection, etc.), analysis, and production of deliverables.
2. Requirements of Consultant

Education:

• Lead consultants must have at least a Master’s degree (PhD preferable) in research methods and/or evaluations, development, conflict or peacebuilding, M&E or any related social sciences.

Skills and experience:

The following skills and experience are expected by Search for our evaluator for this project:

• Excellent proficiency in English and Arabic – written (including professional English reporting) and spoken;
• More than five years of experience in programme/project evaluation, including collecting data in interviews, surveys and focus groups and analysis;
• Experience in conflict analysis and working with justice and civil society sectors;
• Experience working with international organizations;
• Experience conducting quantitative surveys and analysis;
• Monitoring and Evaluation methods and data collection skills; and
• Familiarity and experience with contextual challenges in the geographic location(s) where the study will take place.

13. Selection Criteria

Consultant proposals will be selected for:

1. Relevance of proposed methodology to the goal, objectives, and research questions for the project.
2. Quality of proposed methods, conflict sensitivity approaches, and quality control measures.
3. Qualifications of the candidate(s).
4. Proposed budget in relation to proposed methodology, deliverables and team.
5. Timeline for proposed activities. **