Consultancy opportunity – End of Project Evaluation At Traidcraft Exchange

Role: Consultancy to undertake End of project evaluation for Promoting the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Cocoa, Coffee and Palm Oil Value Chains (CCP) project in Tanzania

Location: TanzaniaContract Period: part-time

Traidcraft Exchange is an international development charity which uses the power of trade to bring about lasting solutions to poverty. It runs development programmes in South Asia and Africa, works directly with businesses to improve their supply chains and does advocacy and campaigning in the UK to promote justice and fairness in international trade.

Traidcraft Exchange has been implementing a four (2018-2022) year project titled ‘Promoting the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Cocoa, Coffee and Palm Oil Value Chains (CCP) with funding from National Lottery Community Fund (former Big Lottery Foundation). The project interventions aim at reducing household poverty and empower 1000 people with disabilities and 500 smallholder farmers and/or micro entrepreneurs, engaged in the coffee, cocoa, palm oil sectors, ground nuts and vegetables value chains in Mbeya, Songwe and parts of Dar es Salaam.

Traidcraft Exchange plans to undertake end of project evaluation to understand project impact among target beneficiaries.

The purpose of this consultancy is to conduct an independent final evaluation to assess the impact of the project on both economic empowerment and wellbeing of target beneficiaries. The evaluation will also assess the effectiveness, relevance, and efficiency (value for money) of the project in relation to its stated goal, objectives and expected results and identify and document lessons learnt from the project during the four -year implementation period.

Terms of Reference for undertaking End of project evaluation for Promoting the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Cocoa, Coffee and Palm Oil Value Chains (CCP) project in Tanzania.

1. Introduction

Traidcraft Exchange TX is implementing a four (2018-2022) year project titled ‘Promoting the Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Cocoa, Coffee and Palm Oil Value Chains (CCP) with funding from National Lottery Community Fund (former Big Lottery Foundation). The project interventions aim at reducing household poverty and empower 1000 people with disabilities and 500 smallholder farmers and/or micro entrepreneurs, engaged in the coffee, cocoa, palm oil sectors, ground nuts and vegetables value chains in Mbeya, Songwe and parts of Dar es Salaam.

Traidcraft Exchange plans to undertake end of project evaluation to understand project impact among target beneficiaries. This Terms of Reference is intended to guide the contracted consultant who will undertake the evaluation.

1. The Organisation

Traidcraft Exchange is the UK’s only development charity specializing in making trade work for the poor by working to enable poor producers in Africa and Asia to grow their businesses, find markets, and engage effectively in trade. Traidcraft’s mission is to fight poverty through trade, practicing and promoting approaches to trade that help poor people in developing countries transform their lives. Established in 1979 as a Christian response to poverty, we combine a trading company and a development charity – Traidcraft Exchange. We build lasting relationships with producers, support people to trade out of poverty and work to bring about trade justice.

1. Project background and context

The project interventions aimed at reducing household poverty and empower 1000 people with disabilities and 500 smallholder farmers and/or micro entrepreneurs, engaged in the coffee, cocoa, palm oil, ground nuts and vegetables value chains in Mbeya, Mbozi and parts of Dar es Salaam region. The project has been developed through close partnership and collaboration with Disabled Persons’ Organizations (DPOs) in Tanzania and was informed by findings of a scoping study that was conducted in 2017 with financing from Traidcraft Exchange and a market assessment and baseline that was financed by National Lottery Community Fund. The project is being implemented in the following districts: Rungwe, Kyela district in Mbeya reion, Mbozi Districts in Songgwe region and Ilala, temeke and Kinondoni districts in Dar es Salaam. The project expected to deliver the following outcomes.

• Outcome 1: People with disabilities are better organized into inclusive economic groups and work collectively and with other target beneficiaries to access livelihood opportunities in the target value chains (coffee/cocoa/palm oil/groundnuts/vegetables).
• Outcome 2: Enhanced access to financial and business development services for People with disabilities and target households.
• Outcome 3: Improved access to reliable and profitable markets for target value chains (coffee/cocoa/palm oil/groundnuts/vegetables).
• Outcome 4: Positive improvement in community knowledge, attitude, behavior and practices towards participation by People with Disabilities in the target value chains (coffee/cocoa/palm oil/groundnuts/vegetables).

In recognition that PWDs need specific support, the project seeks to economically empower PWDs through enabling the individual to develop the ‘power within’ through intensive 1:1 mentoring, confidence building and skills development; ‘power with’, through strengthening farmer and marketing organizations and collective approaches to economic empowerment which include PWDs and increasing awareness of the abilities of PWDs within the community; ‘power to’ through engaging on issues which reinforce unequal access to resources, such as access to finance and services for PWDs; and ’power over’ through engagement on critical areas of policy reform in engagement of PWDs in agribusiness.

1. Purpose and Objectives of this assignment

The purpose of the independent final evaluation is to assess the impact of the project on both economic empowerment and wellbeing of target beneficiaries. The evaluation will also assess the effectiveness, relevance, and efficiency (value for money) of the project in relation to its stated goal, objectives and expected results and identify and document lessons learnt from the project during the four -year implementation period.

Specific objectives of the end of project evaluation are to:

1. To assess the project results based on expected outcome and output indicators (as per the logical framework and based on OECD-DAC evaluation principles).
2. To identify the factors (positive and negative) that have impacted the achievement of the objectives and expected results within the project time frame.
3. To analyse what has worked well for the project, the main bottlenecks and what needs to be done in future for similar projects.
4. Develop recommendations for further developments of the project or the guidance of similar projects in the future.
5. Draw key lessons learnt to contribute to the organisational learning of Traidcraft and other stakeholders using project learning questions listed below:

Learning questions

• What can we learn about overcoming barriers (practical and cultural) faced by PWDs in participating in and benefitting equitably from their participation in agricultural trade?
• How successful has the project been on ensuring the inclusion of women PWDs compared to men PWDs?
• How successful was the project in ensuring PWDs benefit equally from the interventions?
• How has the work impacted on the wider organisation and is the organisation ready to mainstream disability programming across the organisation?
• When PWDs become more economically empowered does their ability to access their other rights also strengthen?
• What has been the impact of external factors such as COVID-19, Climate change on the implementation of the project against the activity plan?
• How has the work impacted the wider, non-material dimensions of wellbeing?
• What parts of the approach should be replicated in other initiatives?

The consultant will be expected to familiarise him/herself with the project outcomes, indicators and milestones of the project. Each outcome has specific indicators which the consultant is expected to assess and provide data on achievement of the milestones.