Consultant - Team Leader of Evaluation team

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FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender and nationality

People with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

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Organizational Setting

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Evaluation Office (OED) is conducting an evaluation of its country program in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Given the nature of this program in the DRC, the evaluation will focus on Resilience.

The evaluation of FAO's program in the DRC will cover the period 2017-2021 and all of the organization's work in the country. As of the Summer of 2020, the volume of FAO's portfolio over this period amounts to just under US $ 190 million and 85 projects. During the period under review, FAO supported national institutions as well as communities through capacity building at the individual and organizational level. FAO implemented mainly technical assistance interventions in the areas of agricultural, animal and fishery production, food and nutritional security, rural poverty reduction, but also interventions related to gender, emergency situations and humanitarian crises as well as the migration of people, especially ex-combatants, within the framework of the Humanitarian, Development and Peace Nexus.

This evaluation will seek to examine and understand the results of FAO contributions at the country level while analyzing FAO's strategic relevance to the DRC development context. It is being carried out when both the country programming framework (CPF 2019-2023) in the DRC and the new United Nations Cooperation Framework for Sustainable Development (UNSDCF) are at their mid-point. Therefore, the conclusions and recommendations of this evaluation can feed into both their implementation and the formulation of future reference frameworks.

The evaluation will specifically look at FAO's contributions to the priority areas developed in its current CPF (CPF 2019-2023) in the DRC. It will also have to compare the results of the program to both the previous CPP given that some projects are fully designed and finalized under one or overlap both, as well as to the UNSDCF framework that encompasses these CPPs. The four priority areas of the 2019-2023 CPP, implemented with particular attention to issues of gender, follow:

• Strengthen the governance in the sectors of agriculture, fishing and livestock, rural development and the environment (water, forests and biodiversity)

• Develop / Promote sectors and value chains (plants, animals and fisheries)

• Promote sustainable management of the environment and natural resources and improve adaptation and mitigation of risks related to climate change

• Strengthen the resilience of populations' livelihoods in the face of food and nutrition insecurity

The evaluation will also look at how the country program integrates the concept of the Humanitarian Development and Peace Nexus, as well as its approach to emergencies and its humanitarian actions within the framework of the United Nations reform as it pertains to humanitarian aid.

Field mission(s) are expected, subject to the health and safety situation in DRC and to FAO’s protocols.

Reporting Lines

Under the overall administrative responsibility of OED’s Budget Holder, and the close technical and methodological guidance of both the Budget Holder and Evaluation Manager, the Evaluation Team Leader (TL) will carry out this evaluation and lead the members of the evaluation team. His/Her tasks and responsibilities (expected deliverables) are in line with and derive from the terms of reference for the evaluation; they are detailed in his/her individual terms of reference.

Technical Focus

Proven experience determined largely by proven technical experience (either through professional experience or academic credentials) in at least one of the areas necessary to conduct the evaluation. This expertise must be in at least one if the following:

• Emergencies and humanitarian context, familiarity with the Humanitarian development and peace nexus,

• Nutrition and food security

• Gender, youth and other minorities

• Forests

• Money transfers (Unconditional, cash for work, etc., preferably within FAO)

• Climate change

• Agriculture (agricultural production; animal production, small livestock and veterinary care / animal health; fish production)

• Social safety nets and means of subsistence, particularly in post-conflict situations (population migration)

The TL should be an expert in at least one of these areas.

Tasks and responsibilities

The FAO Evaluation Office (OED) manages and guides this evaluation, which will be carried out in several stages. The TL’s specific tasks include the following:

• Review and analyze relevant background documentation, including policy/strategy papers, project documents, financial reports, sectoral studies;
• Contribute to and finalize the Terms of reference for the evaluation;
• Develop/finalize methodological approach and evaluation tools, such as Theory of Change, evaluation matrix, evaluation questions, checklists, surveys, questionnaires and other data collection tools;
• Design a field visit (minimum of one week) with the objective of involving the government, FAO staff and partners in the evaluation process, further refining the questions that the evaluation should raise, developing a detailed methodology;
• Prepare an initial report and train the evaluation team;
• Lead and coordinate the collection of relevant primary and secondary data through a field visit (at least three weeks), during which the evaluation team will conduct interviews with stakeholders in government, civil society as well as the private sector. Field visits covering the different provinces or a representative sample of regions where FAO has implemented interventions / projects during the evaluation period will also be organized based on security and health constraints;
• At the end of the mission, lead the organized evaluation feedback workshop with the Representation team and stakeholders;
• Draft the evaluation report and disseminate for comments;
• Integrate comments and prepare the final report;
• Organize workshops, debriefing sessions or events enabling the exchange of results and facilitating learning, in collaboration with the Representation.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University diploma showing technical academic expertise in one of the areas mentioned above (Nutrition, Agronomy, Forestry, Veterinary Sciences, Fisheries, Agricultural economics, Geography, Rural development, Economy or other human sciences such as political science, international development, management of humanitarian actions and crises, or related fields)
• Working knowledge of French (mother tongue or minimum level C), at least limited knowledge of English (minimum level B, C desired)
• The evaluation team leader will never have had a professional relationship, in any capacity, with FAO during the evaluation period (2017-2021). He / she will sign the OED declaration of no conflict of interest form.
• Proven experience as a complex program and / or country evaluator (10 years or more preferred); experience with projects or program evaluations in conflict and / or humanitarian contexts.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Extent and relevance of professional experience in evaluation

• Extent and relevance of professional experience in the relevant field(s) chosen

• Extent and relevance of professional experience in the DRC, in emergency situations, in the humanitarian field and/ or in conflict situations

• Knowledge and familiarity with FAO's mandate

• Familiarity with the United Nations reform, in particular as pertaining to humanitarian aid

• Strong knowledge of the region and its challenges in the humanitarian context

• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written

• One previous experience as team leader on another evaluation is recommended

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Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

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