End Of Project Evaluation For The One Health Project In Marsabit County, Northern Kenya And Dire Woreda Borana Zone, Southern Ethiopia At Malteser International

1: ABOUT MALTESER INTERNATIONAL

Malteser International (MI) is the worldwide relief agency of the Sovereign Order of Malta that has provided relief and recovery during and following conflicts and disasters for over 60 years. MI also works alongside vulnerable communities on long-term programs to deliver lasting change. Christian values and humanitarian principles form the foundations of our work: Bringing aid to people regardless of their religion, background, or political convictions with over 140 projects in more than 35 countries globally. MI’s vision is a life in health and dignity for all; its mission is to provide emergency relief in crises such as natural disasters, epidemics, or armed conflicts and carry out programs that enable people transform their lives for the better. The approach is to protect health by ensuring people have access to functioning medical structures, adequate nutrition, clean water, sanitation, and hygiene as well as strengthen the resilience of people in especially vulnerable regions against future crises.

Malteser International and Pastoralist Community Initiative and Development Assistance (PACIDA) have been implementing a 3yrs resilience project titled: “Using a One Health approach to strengthen the resilience of the semi-nomadic population in the border region of Kenya and Ethiopia.”

The project has three objectives namely:

1. Strengthened and established One Health systems and structures that can respond to zoonoses and epidemics in a coordinated and appropriate manner.
2. Improved human, livestock, and environmental health, through control and prevention of zoonotic diseases, increased food security and applied WASH practices.
3. Integration of One Health research components and establishment of two sustainable model farms for training, research, and best practices in the regions.

2: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

Southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya are arid and semi-arid regions increasingly affected by climate change, including recurrent droughts and floods. Growing human and livestock populations place additional pressure on already stressed ecosystems, leading to water shortages, lack of grazing land, and potential conflicts due to migration. The movement of pastoralist herds increases the spread of infectious diseases and zoonotic transmissions.

Health stations for both humans and livestock lack adequate medicines, equipment, and trained personnel. The project aimed to address this multidimensional crisis by integrating various sectors—health, agriculture, environment, and livestock—through a holistic One Health approach to enhance resilience among pastoralist communities. The intervention sought to:

• Strengthen and establish One Health systems and structures for coordinated responses to zoonoses and epidemics.
• Improve human, livestock, and environmental health through disease control, food security, and WASH practices.
• Integrate One Health research and establish sustainable model farms for training and best practices.

The cross-border project targeted approximately 61,000 people, with 51% in Dirre Woreda, Ethiopia, and 49% in Maikona Ward, Kenya. The communities, primarily the Gabbra and Borana ethnic groups, rely on pastoralism but face persistent water scarcity, limited access to markets, and frequent zoonotic disease outbreaks such as Rift Valley Fever, Brucellosis, and Rabies.

3: PURPOSE OF THE CONSULTANCY

The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the overall relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability of the One Health Project upon its completion. The evaluation will document key achievements, challenges, and lessons learned to inform future programming, sustainability strategies, and policy advocacy. The findings will provide recommendations for stakeholders, including donors, local governments, and implementing partners including Malteser International, to enhance future One Health interventions.

The evaluation will be structured around the OECD-DAC evaluation criteria:

• Relevance: Was the intervention appropriate in addressing identified needs?
• Coherence: How well did the intervention align with existing policies and strategies?
• Effectiveness: To what extent were the project objectives achieved?
• Efficiency: How well were resources utilized to achieve results?
• Impact: What tangible changes did the project bring to the target communities?
• Sustainability: Will the benefits of the intervention continue beyond project completion?

4: SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES OF THE EVALUATION

Assess the progress and achievements of the One Health Project in relation to its stated objectives.

1. Evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the project’s implementation approach.
2. Identify key successes, challenges, and lessons learned.
3. Determine the sustainability of project interventions and recommend strategies for long-term impact.
4. Identify opportunities to integrate successful One Health interventions into existing county programming and national strategies.
5. Provide recommendations for scaling up or adapting interventions in future phases of One Health programming.

5. METHODOLOGY AND SCOPE

The evaluation will employ a mixed-methods approach, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. The consultant will undertake the following activities:

1. Desk Review: Analyze project documents, progress reports, policies (including Marsabit County One Health strategy and equivalents), and relevant literature.
2. Field Observations: Assess physical infrastructure, model farms, and health facilities.
3. Key Informant Interviews (KII): Engage stakeholders local governments, specifically from the One Health Unit (Marsabit) & One Health Task Force (Ethiopia) in healthcare providers, and community leaders.
4. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs): Gather insights from community members, including pastoralists community health workers (of the human health, animal health & environment health sector) and One Health practitioners.
5. Household Surveys: Conduct structured surveys with beneficiaries to assess project outcomes.
6. Stakeholder Validation Workshop: Present preliminary findings and gather feedback before finalizing the report.

6. TIME FRAME AND DELIVERABLES

The evaluation is expected to be completed by the 15th of April 2025. The key deliverables include:

Inception Report: Outlining methodology, work plan, and data collection tools.

1. Desk Review and Preliminary Findings Report.
2. Field Data Collection and Analysis Report.
3. Draft Evaluation Report: Including key findings, lessons learned, and recommendations.
4. Stakeholder Validation Workshop: Presentation of findings and feedback session.
5. Final Evaluation Report: Incorporating feedback from the workshop and submitted to MI.

7: DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND ABILITIES

• At-least a master’s degree in public health, livestock health or other social sciences.
• A solid and diversified experience within livelihoods, One Health programming, food security/agriculture, Environment and Animal health sectors.
• General familiarity with the political, humanitarian and development context in ASAL regions of Kenya and Ethiopia particularly over the past 3 years
• Must have led at least two to three similar/assignments in the past 4 years and especially in the ASAL regions of Kenya and/or Ethiopia for a major donor, international NGO, or international organization.
• Strong analytical skills with proven experience in collecting and analyzing data, by using qualitative and quantitative methodologies.
• Excellent conflict sensitive approaches and able to work in highly sensitive environments.