Terms of Reference Endline Project Evaluation “More than a Woman: Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics and Governance- Phase II” At SEND Sierra Leone

SEND Sierra Leone is an independent structure and a national NGO registered in Sierra Leone. Our portfolio includes gender and women’s empowerment, community development, WaSH, ICT, health, education, Livelihoods, climate adaptation, and nutrition/agriculture.

SEND is dedicated to creating a Sierra Leone with respect for human rights, accountable governance, food and nutrition security, and equal opportunities for men and women to thrive. We liaise with communities, traditional authorities, government institutions, and partners to combine resources to develop innovative solutions to alleviate poverty and enhance quality self-reliance.

Our vision is to see a Sierra Leone where people’s rights and well-being are guaranteed. Our mission is to promote good governance, voice, accountably essential services, and equality for women and men in Sierra Leone. Intervention areas include Kailahun, Kenema, Kono, Western Areas (Urban & Rural), Port Loko, Falaba and Bonthe districts. Our Headquarters is in Kenema.

SEND Sierra Leone has adopted the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to guide national development planning and implementation with our strategic approach. The pursuit of economic equality and social equity are mainstreamed in the SDGs. Our government’s commitment is to improve social services delivery, strengthen gender and social inclusion, and prioritize Agriculture.

1. Background of the Project

The More than a Woman Project: Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics and Governance-Phase II empowers women in Sierra Leone’s Eastern Region and Bo and Bonthe districts in the Southern Region to enhance their involvement in decision-making, politics, and governance. This three-year initiative builds upon previous support received from Irish Aid.

Using the Kailahun Model Women in Governance Network initiative, the project scales up lessons learned from the Promoting Women’s Participation in Governance Project (2017-2019). It incorporates the 2018 EU Observation Mission Report recommendations on promoting women’s participation in politics and governance. It also contributes to achieving SDGs Goals 5 and 16 and the Sierra Leone National Development Plan of 2019-2023 (SLNDP).

With support from Irish Aid, SEND-SL has been implementing the “More Than A Woman: Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics and Governance – Phase II ” project (1st June 2

2021 to 31st May 2024). During the implementation period (2021-2024), the project made substantial progress as a direct outcome of the comprehensive training, awareness building, mentorships, coaching, conferences, media engagement, exposure visits, resource mobilization support, etc., provided to women within the adult and young women networks. These included support for successful advocacy engagement with political parties to increase women’s participation in local governance and the national parliament. Notably, in Kenema, Kailahun, Bonthe, and Kono districts, 52 women were elected out of 160 female councillors elected nationally, accounting for 32.5%. Moreover, three (3) female district council deputy chairpersons were elected, and both Kono and Kenema districts’ councils elected female deputies for the first time.

Additionally, Bonthe elected its first female district council chairperson. Out of the 42 women Members of Parliament elected nationwide, 13 from the project districts represent 31% of the overall women in the Sierra Leone parliament. The project also celebrated the election of eight young women as councillors across the four districts and two young women Members of Parliament from the Kenema and Kono districts.

Throughout this implementation period, the project has played a pivotal role in empowering local communities by offering training and support to 586 Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) groups across the four districts. This outreach effort has had a profound impact, reaching over 17,500 members. The project’s dedication to this cause resulted in establishing, training, and supporting women to mobilize over $100,000 as group members’ savings.

The project contributed immensely to enacting the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act of 2022, which advocated for 30% of women’s representation in leadership positions, while the Public Elections Act significantly contributed to the election of MPs and Councillors. As a result, significant progress was made following the 2023 general elections in achieving a minimum of 30% women’s elections and appointments. The Women in Governance networks played a pivotal role in vigilantly monitoring the implementation of these legislative measures. Consequently, the project also contributed alongside other players to develop Sierra Leone’s Women’s Manifesto, which inspired women’s political aspirations in Sierra Leone.

The project works with target beneficiaries across the four districts of Kono, Kenema, Kailahun and Bonthe, with a few interventions in the Bo district with the Young Women in Governance Network.

Overall goal: Improved women’s participation in decision-making, politics and governance in Sierra Leone

Overall outcome: SEND’s organizational and delivery capacity is enhanced, and women’s participation in politics, decision-making, and governance in the Eastern and southern regions is strengthened.

Four outputs espoused for success include:

1. Strengthened women’s collective voice, knowledge, capacity on gender, and accountability in politics and governance at district and regional levels.
2. Women are economically empowered through resource mobilization and utilization.
3. Increased national-level advocacy and networking on women’s participation in decision-making, governance and politics.
4. Enhanced capacity of SEND for effective and result-oriented program delivery

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The research aims to provide data to measure project Outcomes by assessing key indicators approved by the project. SEND will provide the approved indicators during contracting to ensure the evaluation captures and evaluates their impact.

1. Objectives of the Evaluation:

The objectives are to:

• Assess the degree to which the project has achieved its desired goal and expected outcomes, and measure critical indicators stated in the results framework and project description,
• Assess project approach and coherence in delivering results.
• Assess the factors influencing local ownership of the project results and its sustainability.
• Guide SEND and Irish Aid in improving strategic focus and knowledge when supporting future interventions on women’s participation in politics and governance in a broader perspective,
• Document good practices and key lessons learnt during project implementation to guide SEND and its partners in future programming.
• Assess the knowledge, visibility and communication strategy employed by the project staff and stakeholders around the project results.
• Proffer concrete recommendations that may be required to enhance a future project’s relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability.

1. Methodology of the evaluation:

This evaluation will be based on a combination of:

• Literature Review: a desk study of available project data, other publications, reports, and documentation on gender and women empowerment.
• Key Informant Interviews: interviews with Irish Aid Staff, SEND-SL Staff, core districts and local stakeholders in the three project district locations, including MPs, Councilors, political party leaders and Female Parliamentarians from the target districts.
• Focus Group Discussions: with rural network executives and their members in selected communities in Kailahun, Kenema, Kono, Bo and Bonthe districts.
• Questionnaire Survey: with VSLA groups, women groups, women networks, traditional leaders, and radio stations

The evaluation for the ‘’More than a Woman: Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics and Governance project will be conducted according to the OECD/DAC criteria for assessments, namely, relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability, what has changed**,** learning and replicability of the project’s intervention.

5. Scope of work

The scope of this evaluation will comprise but not be limited to open questions along the OECD/DAC Evaluation criteria: No

Evaluation Criteria

Evaluation Questions (Suggestions)