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International Consultant (Final Evaluation of UNDP GEF-LDCF-2 Climate Change Adaptation project)

undp/ccap project

  • Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
  • Location: undp/ccap project
  • Grade: Consultancy - International Consultant - Internationally recruited Contractors Agreement
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Development Cooperation and Sustainable Development Goals
    • Environment
    • Meteorology, Geology and Geography
    • Monitoring and Evaluation
    • Climate Change
    • Project and Programme Management
  • Closing Date: Closed

Background

UNDP Global Mission Statement

UNDP is the UN’s global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries, working with national counterparts on their own solutions to global and national development challenges.

UNDP Afghanistan Mission Statement

UNDP helps countries to achieve sustainable development by eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, accelerating structural transformations for sustainable development and building resilience to crises and shock. In Afghanistan, a country in conflict, UNDP works for development and recovery choices that reduce vulnerability and contribute a development perspective to strengthen humanitarian and peace-building responses, to strengthen the continuum from relief to rehabilitation and development.

UNDP Livelihoods and Resilience Unit:

The focus of the UNDP Livelihoods and Resilience programme in Afghanistan is on reducing poverty and creating mechanisms that help the country to cope with socioeconomic stresses resulting from limited human development, the humanitarian crisis and climate change. The unit provides quality assurance for the Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage climate change-induced disaster risks Project implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL).

Project Background:

UNDP-GEF-LDCF is a Full-sized project titled Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage climate change-induced disaster risks (PIMS#5098) implemented through the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL).

The project with financing from the Least Developed Country Fund (LDCF) has been designed to strengthen the capacity of the Government of Afghanistan to integrate Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) into development framework and planning, support the development of alternative climate resilient livelihood options for subsistence farmers as well as improve productive irrigation infrastructure so that agricultural productivity is not constrained under changing conditions. The main results of the projects are as below;

  • Integrated into local planning and budgeting processes;

  • Rural income and livelihood opportunities for vulnerable communities enhanced and diversified;

  • Productive infrastructure improvements.

The project has a duration of 5 years and has been planned to last from April 2014 to April 2019. In accordance with UNDP and GEF M&E policies and procedures, all full and medium-sized UNDP support GEF financed projects are required to undergo a terminal evaluation upon completion of implementation. These terms of reference (TOR) sets out the expectations for a Terminal Evaluation (TE) of the “Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage climate change-induced disaster risks” (PIMS #5098). The essentials of the project to be evaluated are as follows: 

Project Summary Table           

Project Name: Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage climate change-induced disaster risks.

GEF Project ID: 00087639; at endorsement (Million US$) 9,000,000; at completion (Million US$) 9,000,000; Country: Afghanistan; Region: Asia; Government contribution: $32,000.000; Focal Area: Climate Change Adaptation; FA Objectives, (OP/SP): Adapting Afghan communities to the negative impact of climate change; Total co-financing: $112,000,000; Executing Agency: Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL); Total Project Cost: $11,400,000; Other Partners involved: Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD), National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) and Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW); ProDoc Signature date: 27 April 2014; Project Closing Date: 26 April 2019.

Duties and Responsibilities

Overall objective of the consultancy:

The Terminal Evaluation (TE) will be conducted according to the guidance, rules and procedures established by UNDP and GEF as reflected in the UNDP Evaluation Guidance for GEF Financed Projects.  The objectives of the evaluation are to assess the achievement of project results, and to draw lessons that can both improve the sustainability of benefits from this project, and aid in the overall enhancement of UNDP programming.

Scope of Work and Deliverables

Evaluation Approach and Method:

An overall approach and method[1] for conducting project terminal evaluations of UNDP supported GEF financed projects has developed over time. The evaluator is expected to frame the evaluation effort using the criteria of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, and impact, as defined and explained in the UNDP Guidance for Conducting Terminal Evaluations of UNDP-supported, GEF-financed Projects.    A  set of questions covering each of these criteria have been drafted and are included with this TOR (fill in Annex C) The evaluator is expected to amend, complete and submit this matrix as part of  an evaluation inception report, and shall include it as an annex to the final report. 

The evaluation must provide evidence-based information that is credible, reliable and useful. The evaluator is expected to follow a participatory and consultative approach ensuring close engagement with government counterparts, in particular the GEF operational focal point, UNDP Country Office, project team, UNDP GEF Technical Adviser based in the region and key stakeholders. The evaluator is expected to conduct a field mission to (Mazar, Herat, Panjsher and Uruzgan if security allows), including the following project sites (Khulm, Balkh, Dehdadi, Chemtal, Nahr-e-Shahi, Charbolak, Dawalat Abad, Charkent, Charbola, Sholgara, Injil, Karokh, Zindajan, Ghoryan, Adraskan, Gozara, Trinkot, Bazarak, Unaba, Rokha, Paryan, Abshar, Khenj, Shutoland Dara). Interviews will be held with the following organizations and individuals at a minimum: (MRRD, MAIL, MoEW, Kabul University, NEPA and Community Development Councils members).

The evaluator will review all relevant sources of information, such as the project document, project reports – including Annual APR/PIR, project budget revisions, midterm review, progress reports, GEF focal area tracking tools, project files, national strategic and legal documents, and any other materials that the evaluator considers useful for this evidence-based assessment. A list of documents that the project team will provide to the evaluator for review is included in Annex B of this Terms of Reference.

Evaluation Criteria and Raings:

An assessment of project performance will be carried out, based against expectations set out in the Project Logical Framework/Results Framework (see  Annex A), which provides performance and impact indicators for project implementation along with their corresponding means of verification. The evaluation will at a minimum cover the criteria of: relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and impact. Ratings must be provided on the following performance criteria. The completed table must be included in the evaluation executive summary.   The obligatory rating scales are included in  Annex D.

Evaluation Ratings:

  • Monitoring and Evaluation: rarting;

  • M&E design at entry: rating;

  • M&E Plan Implementation: rating;

  • Overall quality of M&E: rating;

  • Quality of UNDP Implementation – Implementing Agency (IA): rating;

  • Quality of Execution - Executing Agency (EA): rating;

  • Overall quality of Implementation / Execution: rating.

Assessment of outcomes:

  • Relevancre: rating;

  • Effectiveness: rating;

  • Efficiency: rating;

  • Overall Project Outcome Rating: rating.

Sustainablity:

  • Financial resources: rating;

  • Socio-political resources: rating;

  • Institutional framewok and governance: rating;

  • Enviromental: rating;

  • Institutional framework and governance: rating;

  • Environmental: rating;

  • Overall likelihood of sustainability: raring.

Project Finance/Cofinance:

The Evaluation will assess the key financial aspects of the project, including the extent of co-financing planned and realized. Project cost and funding data will be required, including annual expenditures.  Variances between planned and actual expenditures will need to be assessed and explained.  Results from recent financial audits, as available, should be taken into consideration. The evaluator(s) will receive assistance from the Country Office (CO) and Project Team to obtain financial data in order to complete the co-financing table below, which will be included in the terminal evaluation report. 

Mainstreaming:

UNDP supported GEF financed projects are key components in UNDP country programming, as well as regional and global programmes. The evaluation will assess the extent to which the project was successfully mainstreamed with other UNDP priorities, including poverty alleviation, improved governance, the prevention and recovery from natural disasters, and gender.

Impact:

The evaluators will assess the extent to which the project is achieving impacts or progressing towards the achievement of impacts. Key findings that should be brought out in the evaluations include whether the project has demonstrated: a) verifiable improvements in ecological status, b) verifiable reductions in stress on ecological systems, and/or c) demonstrated progress towards these impact achievements.[2]

Conclusion, Recommendations and Lessons:

The evaluation report must include a chapter providing a set of conclusions, recommendations and lessons. 

Implementation arrangement:

The principal responsibility for managing this evaluation resides with the UNDP CO in Afghanistan. The UNDP CO will contract the evaluators and ensure the timely provision of per diems and travel arrangements within the country for the evaluation team. The Project Team will be responsible for liaising with the Evaluators team to set up stakeholder interviews, arrange field visits, coordinate with the Government etc. 

Evaluation Timeframe:

The total duration of the evaluation will be 35 working days over a time period of 12 weeks according to the following plan:

  • Prepeation: 5 days, expected completion date is 15 December 2018;

  • Evaluation Mission: 15 days, expected completion date is 15 January 2018;

  • Draft evaluation report: 10 days with expected completion date, 15 February 2019;

  • Final Report: 5 days, expected completion date is 15 Marhc 2019.

Team Composition:

The evaluation team will be composed of one international and one national evaluators. The international consultant would be the team leader to finalize the report. The consultants shall have prior experience in evaluating similar projects.  Experience with GEF financed projects is an advantage. The evaluators selected should not have participated in the project preparation and/or implementation and should not have conflict of interest with project related activities.

Expected Outputs, Deliverables and Timelines:

The following key deliverables are expected from this assignment:

  • Evaluation inception report—An inception report should be prepared by the evaluators before going into the fully-fledged data collection exercise. It should detail the evaluators’ understanding of what is being evaluated and why, showing how each evaluation question will be answered by way of: proposed methods, proposed sources of data and data collection procedures as per the GEF guidline. The inception report should include a proposed schedule of tasks, activities and deliverables for each task or product. The inception report provides UNDP and the consultant evaluator with an opportunity to verify that they share the same understanding about the evaluation and clarify any misunderstanding at the outset. The Evaluation inception report should outline a clear overview of the mid-term review approach, including:

    • The purpose, objective, and scope of the review;

    • The approach should include a summary of the data collection method, and the criteria on which the methodologies were adopted;

    • A proposed work plan including a schedule of tasks, activities, and deliverables;

    • Any limitations for the Terminal Evaluation.
    • Evaluator should provide clarifications on timing and method, No later than 2 weeks before the evaluation mission: 15 December 2018:  5 working days, payment of 15% of the professional fee after completion and approval of the Inception Report.
  • Initial findings presentation — An initial findings presentation and report, presented on the last day of the MTE first mission. The proposed timing for this is 15 January 2019: 5 working days, payment of 15% of the professional fee after completion and approval of the Inception Report;

  • Draft Terminal Evaluation report—Full draft report and annexes should be submitted as per the GEF TE guidline, UNDP and key stakeholders in the evaluation will review the draft evaluation report to ensure that the evaluation meets the required quality criteria. This should be completed Within 3 weeks of the evaluation mission: 15 February 2019: 15 working days, payment of 40% of the professional fee after completion and approval of the Inception Report;

  • Final evaluation report -  Revised report all comments incorporated. This should be completed Within 1 week of receiving UNDP comments on draft: 15 March 2019: 10 working days, payment of 30% of the professional fee after completion and approval of the Inception Report.

*When submitting the final evaluation report, the evaluator is required also to provide an 'audit trail', detailing how all received comments have (and have not) been addressed in the final evaluation report. See Annex H for an audit trail template.

Payment Modality:

Payments under the contract shall be delivery based and be made on receipt of the specific milestone reports indicated above and including a timesheet according to UNDP procurement formats for individual contractors. These shall be as indicated in the table above and shall be made upon approval and certification of the Head of the Livelihood and Resilience Unit in with Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL). Upon receipt of final comments, the consultant shall finalize the sustainability report for formal acceptance by UNDP (see final deliverables above) at which point the final payment shall be released.

[1] For additional information on methods, see the Handbook on Planning, Monitoring and Evaluating for Development Results, Chapter 7, pg. 163

[2] A useful tool for gauging progress to impact is the Review of Outcomes to Impacts (ROtI) method developed by the GEF Evaluation Office:  ROTI Handbook 2009

Competencies

Competencies

  • Ability to lead strategic planning, results-based management and reporting;

  • High analytical skills oriented towards problem-solving;

  • Leadership and self-management;

  • Focuses on results and responds positively to feedback;

  • Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive attitude;

  • Demonstrates openness for approaches to manage complexity;

  • Team spirit and excellent interpersonal skills;

  • Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN's values and ethical standards;

  • Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP and the UN;

  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Special skills requirements

  • Demonstrated knowledge of climate change and natural resources management in Afghanistan;

  • Strong analytical skills, particularly applied to environment profiling;

  • Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines;

  • Understanding data collection procedure and having data analyzing skill.

Functional Competencies:

  • Building Strategic Partnerships;

  • Results Orientation.

Results Orientation

  • Ability to take responsibility for achieving agreed outputs within set deadlines until successful outputs are achieved.

Team Work and Communication skills

  • Excellent time management skills;

  • Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;

  • Creating and promoting enabling environment for open communication;

  • Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. 

Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing

  • Identifies new approaches and strategies that promote the use of tools and mechanisms;

  • Knowledge of inter-disciplinary development issues.

Required Skills and Experience

Requirements for Experience and Qualifications:

  • An advanced degree (Master) in environment, natural resources management, or any other related field;

  • Minimum 5 years of relevant professional experience;

  • Knowledge of UNDP and GEF;

  • Previous experience with results-based monitoring and evaluation methodologies;

  • Technical knowledge in the targeted focal area(s): Climate Change;

  • Experience with evaluating similar GEF financed projects is an advantage.

Language requirements:

  • Fluency in written and spoken English is required;

  • Good knowledge of (Pashto and Dari) is an asset.

Work Arrangement:

Institutional Arrangements

  • Under the overall guidance of the Head of the UNDP Livelihoods and Resilience Unit and in close cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL), the Consultant will undertake Terminal Evaluation of the project;

  • UNDP/ Country Office and/or MAIL will provide office space and internet facility, logistical and other support service. The Consultant however is expected to bring his/her own laptop and mobile phone and meet local communications costs (UNDP will provide a local pre-paid SIM card). Costs to arrange meetings, workshops, travel costs to and DSA during field visits (if any), etc. shall be covered by UNDP.

Duration of the Work

  • Duration of the contract: 3 months, 35 working days in total, not less than 14 days in the field (Kabul, Herat, Mazar and Panjsher) for the entire project time frame. At least 2 missions to Afghanistan within the contract time frame. The authorization for each respective payment will be made by UNDP Programme Officer after the acceptance and certification of each deliverable by the Head of the Livelihoods and Resilience Unit. 

Duty Station:

  • UNDP Country Office and Project Office of the project in the Ministry of Agricuture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL), Head Office, Kabul.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

The contractor shall submit a price proposal as below:

  • Daily Fee – The contractor shall propose a daily fee, which should be inclusive of his/her professional fee, local communication cost and insurance (inclusive of medical health insurance and evacuation). The number of working days for which the daily fee shall be payable under the contract is 35 working days;

  • UNDP/CCAP Project will provide accommodation free of charge to the Consultant in UNOCA compound or UN cleared guest hourse. The contractor is NOT allowed to stay in a place of his choice other than the UNDSS approved places. UNDP will provide MORSS compliant accommodation to the contractor. The payment of UNOCA accommodation shall be made directly by the contractor;

  • Travel & Visa – The contractor shall propose two estimated lump-sum for home-Kabul-home travels (two round trips only) (economy most direct route) and Afghanistan visa expenses.

The total Professional fee, shall be converted into a lump-sum contract and payments under the contract shall be made on submission and acceptance of deliverables under the contract in accordance with the schedule of payment linked with deliverables.

Evaluation Method and Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

  • Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

  • Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and;

  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

* Technical Criteria weight 70%

* Financial Criteria weight 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria for Evaluation (70 points)

Technical Proposal (50 Marks)

  • Technical Approach & Methodology (20 marks) – Explain the understanding of the objectives of the assignment, approach to the services, methodology for carrying out the activities and obtaining the expected output, and the degree of detail of such output. The Applicant should also explain the methodologies proposed to adopt and highlight the compatibility of those methodologies with the proposed approach;

  • Work Plan (10 marks) – The Applicant should propose the main activities of the assignment, their content and duration, phasing and interrelations, milestones (including interim approvals by the Client), and delivery dates. The proposed work plan should be consistent with the technical approach and methodology, showing understanding of the TOR and ability to translate them into a feasible working plan;

  • Interview: 20 Marks.

Qualification and Experience (20 marks) [evaluation of CV for shortlisting]:

  • General Qualification (5 marks);

  • Experience relevant to the assignment (15 marks).

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested international consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document:

  • Duly accomplished Confirmation of Interest and Submission of Financial Proposal Template using the template provided by UNDP (Annex II); as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;

  • Personal CV, indicating all experience from similar projects.

Technical proposal:

  • A brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment; and

  • A methodology, on how they will approach and complete the assignment as well as the work plan as mentioned above.

Incomplete proposals may not be considered.

Note: Relevant annexes will be shared later.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.
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