TERMS OF REFERENCE – CONSULTANCY TO EVALUATE THE EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS PROJECT

  • Deadline: July 6, 2026

A.  Background

The African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) is a premier research-to-policy institution, generating evidence, strengthening research and related capacity in the African research and development ecosystem, and engaging policy to inform action on health and development. The Center is Africa-based and African-led, with its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, and a West Africa Regional Office (WARO), in Dakar, Senegal. APHRC seeks to drive change by developing strong African research leadership and promoting evidence-informed decision-making (EIDM) across sub-Saharan Africa.

The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organization comprising seven Partner States: Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and the United Republic of Tanzania, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania. In collaboration, APHRC and EAC implemented the EAC Pandemic Preparedness and Response Project (2023–2026) to strengthen regional and national capacities for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR).

The project builds on existing EAC One Health foundations, including the EAC Regional Contingency Plan for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, the Regional Risk and Crisis Communication Strategy, and the One Health Standard Operating Procedures developed under the PanPrep project. It also aligns with the EAC Health Sector Investment Priority Framework (2018–2028) and the Digital Regional East African Community Health (Digital REACH) Initiative.

B.  Objectives

The purpose of this consultancy is to conduct an independent End-Term Evaluation (ETE) of the project. The evaluation will assess the extent to which the project has achieved its intended objectives and outcomes, focusing on relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability. The evaluation will support evidence-informed decision-making by the EAC Secretariat, Partner States, and development partners, and contribute to strengthening regional resilience to future public health emergencies.

Specific tasks and deliverables will include:

  • Provide a comprehensive and evidence-based assessment of project performance against its results framework, including outputs, outcomes, and key indicators.
  • Identify key achievements, challenges, gaps, and lessons learned from project implementation.
  • Assess the contribution of the project to strengthening regional and national PPR systems, including alignment with regional, continental, and global frameworks (e.g., EAC strategies, Africa CDC, WHO, and One Health approaches).
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of coordination, partnerships, and data-sharing mechanisms established under the project.
  • Generate actionable and strategic recommendations to inform future programming, policy development, and investment in pandemic preparedness within the EAC region.

C.  Scope of work

The consultant will conduct an End-Term Evaluation of the EAC Pandemic Preparedness Project, covering the following key tasks:

Inception and evaluation design

  • Develop an inception report outlining the methodology, workplan, data collection tools, and evaluation framework aligned with standard evaluation criteria (relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability).

Data collection and analysis

  • Conduct a desk review of key project documents and analyze performance against the results framework and indicators.
  • Undertake qualitative and quantitative data collection, including key informant interviews with EAC Secretariat, Partner States, and relevant stakeholders.

Assessment of project performance

  • Evaluate the achievement of project outputs and outcomes.
  • Assess relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability of the project.

Institutional and strategic analysis

  • Analyze institutional arrangements, partnerships, and coordination mechanisms.
  • Assess alignment with regional and global frameworks, including those of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.

Lessons, gaps, and recommendations

  • Identify key lessons learned, challenges, and gaps.
  • Provide actionable recommendations and highlight opportunities for strengthening pandemic preparedness in the EAC region.

Validation and reporting

  • Facilitate a validation process with stakeholders.
  • Prepare and submit a comprehensive End-Term Evaluation Report.

D.  Methodology

  • Outline the process of reviewing the EAC Pandemic Preparedness project 2024-2026.
  • Undertake an institutional and partnership review of the implementation of the agreed EAC Pandemic Preparedness project2024-2026.
  • Conduct both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data will be gathered through a desk review of work plans, available tools, reports, and related documents, as well as interviews with key informants. Evidence gathered through interviews will be triangulated with data from the desk review. Measures will be taken to ascertain data quality, validity, and credibility. The findings will be substantiated by valid evidence on record.
  • Conduct the desk review: A list of documents to be reviewed will be prepared by the EAC Secretariat Health Department in coordination with the partner states and the consultants. The documents will be shared electronically with the evaluator.
  • Conduct a regional-level analysis of the outcome and impact against key project indicators.
  • Conduct an analysis of the contribution of the EAC Pandemic Preparedness project 2023-2026 against the key global, continental, and regional commitments that focus on one health.

E.  Delivery dates and how work will be delivered (e.g, electronic, hard copy etc)

The consultant will be expected to provide the following deliverables electronically:

  • Inception report outlining the process for developing the End-Term Evaluation of the EAC Pandemic Preparedness project 2023-2026, demonstrating how the consultant will deliver on the scope of work, with a Gantt chart showing timelines.
  • Institutional and partnership review.
  • Regional-level analysis of the outcome and impact against key EAC Pandemic Preparedness project 2024-2026 indicators and against the key global, continental, and regional commitments that focus on One Health and targets.
  • Facilitate a validation workshop with key stakeholders to finalize the report.
  • Finalization of the end-term evaluation, incorporating relevant inputs from stakeholders.

F.  Monitoring and progress control, including reporting requirements, periodicity format and deadline:

  • The consultant is required to seek inputs and provide periodic updates to the Project Manager-APHRC on the progress of conducting the end-term evaluation of the EAC Pandemic Preparedness project 2023-2026.
  • The consultant will be required to participate in meetings required to finalize the report.

G.  Qualifications and Competencies

  • Graduate-level education (master’s or higher) in public health, health economics, monitoring, evaluation, and learning or related fields.
  • At least 5 years of experience in conducting similar evaluation assignments for health programs/projects at national, regional, and continental levels.
  • Fluency in English (written and spoken). French and Kiswahili will be an added advantage.

H.  Place of service delivery, duration, and working Schedule

This assignment will be for 30-days within 2 months from the date of the contract signing, and the consultant will work in a hybrid environment.

I.  Oversight

The consultant will contractually work under the supervision of the Project Manager-APHRC.

J.  Ethical considerations

All facilitated, consultative and document review activities must adhere to APHRC’s ethical standards and data protection policies, including informed consent, confidentiality, and responsible data management.

K.  Application Process

Application documents should include:

  • A cover letter outlining their eligibility for the assignment and understanding of the Terms of Reference (TOR).
  • A technical proposal detailing the proposed approach, methodology, work plan, and any relevant organizational development frameworks to be applied.
  • A financial proposal, including an itemized budget.
  • Detailed curricula vitae (CVs) of key personnel proposed for the assignment.
  • A company profile, including a reverse chronological list of similar projects/assignments and contact details (name, email address, and phone number) of supervisors/clients.
  • Three professional references.

Applications should be submitted via email to consultancies@aphrc.org, copying procurement@aphrc.org with the email subject “End Term Evaluation Consultant”. The deadline for application submission is July 6th, 2026.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.  For more information about APHRC, visit our website: www.aphrc.org.

Special Notice

APHRC is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. All employment decisions are made based on qualifications and organizational needs. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

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