Baseline Study Consultant at Sign of Hope (SoH)

• The goal of this project is to contribute to food security and peaceful coexistence of agro-pastoralists and pastoralists in the border region between Kenya and Ethiopia. The project targets hard to reach and marginalized Pastoralist and agro-pastoralists living in hard to reach cross border. Weak Humanitarian, Development and Peace (HDP) nexus characterize the area bordering Ethiopia and Kenya.
• The project will target 94,325 pastoralists and agro-pastoralist living in Marsabit and Turkana Counties (Kenya) and South Omo and Borana zone (Ethiopia). As a result, the marginalized and hard to reach pastoralists and agro pastoralists living across the border are characterized by chronic humanitarian conditions that are further exacerbated by poor/lack of developmental initiatives compounded by chronic resource (pasture and water) based conflicts leading to loss of lives and livelihood, limited capacity and coordination among partners across the border and climate related shocks. There is persistent an unacceptably high food and nutrition insecurity, poor livelihood options and social (health and education) services, as well as poor livestock marketing and limited financial services. Also, 85% of the population in the target areas live on a below average annual income. The area is being affected by recurring drought due to both natural disasters (climate change-induced) and man-made (overgrazing, and deforestation for firewood and charcoal). To address these interrelated factors the project will undertake a baseline study, develop and strengthen cross border coordination for HDP triple nexus actors, establish and/or strengthen multi-level peace building and advocacy structures, promotion of natural resource management (rangeland management, soil and water conservation measures), promotion of livelihoods (provision of water for production, climate smart agriculture, value addition and market promotion).

Baseline Study Objectives

• The baseline study should inform SoH, SCORE, CM, ECC-SDCO and DoL about the initial situation in the project region and of the target group with reference to the project outcome and outputs – measured by their respective indicators provided in the project proposal (and also presented in the Performance Indicator Matrix). Through this the baseline study shall lay the foundation for further project implementation, the mid-term evaluation and the final evaluation. Additionally, the study shall be used as information in the selection of project beneficiaries, identify potential risks to the project implementation and provide practical recommendations on how the project can adapt itself to reduce the impact of identified risks.
• Furthermore, the survey serves to obtain information on specific needs of the target group and to identify possible newly emerging risks and opportunities in the target group and project region. The baseline study report will be used as a measurement to monitor the project progress against the set of indicators over the course of the project implementation.

Duties and Responsibilities

The selected Consultant will work in close cooperation with the responsible SoH Officer and the local implementing partner.

The duties and responsibilities of the consultant will include:

• Develop a work plan outlining the proposed research methodology, geographical coverage, and schedule to conduct the baseline study,
• Carry out a project site visit to the project location to conduct research, collect data and establish contact with the local implementing partner, potential beneficiaries and relevant project stakeholders,
• Review existing policies and structures, government development strategies as well as relevant studies and research projects that could serve as a basis for the baseline study,
• Identify relevant project stakeholders at various levels (local, district and national if applicable), including local governing bodies, academia and industry as well as lessons learned and best practises of similar on-going and implemented projects relevant to the project,
• Evaluate all available data and sources providing background information on identified issues, the problem analysis as well as the selected intervention to address identified needs (baseline data with focus on the qualitative analysis),
• Assess the proposed activities, as well as their timing and required financial resources.
• Examine institutional, technical, staffing and financial capacities of the selected implementing partner, as well as its relationship with the target group. Based on the findings, determine if there are areas in which capacities of the local implementing partner need to be developed,
• Review main governmental and non-governmental stakeholders with a purpose to see if there is a potential overlap or conflict of interest as well as opportunities for coordination with the aim of creating synergies and new cooperation partnerships,
• Examine the identified target group, its needs and role in the broader social context as well as the relevance of the planned project activities for addressing their needs,
• Identify potential obstacles and alternatives to overcome the foreseen challenges,
• Review and analyse all available project design elements and draft documents related to the project concept, if necessary,
• Critically review the planned project in terms of OECD/DAC criteria of relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability
• Prepare a report containing the findings on the above items, specific recommendations for the project concept with a view to planning and implementing foreseen project activities.

Expected Deliverables

The study will produce the following deliverables:

• a baseline study outline, including the proposed methodology and data collection tools, table of content and a timeline of research activities (inception report) prior to the site visit to the project location,
• a summary containing a brief overview and the main findings of the study,
• a comprehensive report of a maximum of 30 pages with practical recommendations and relevant annexes,
• a review of the main project design elements and provision of concrete recommendations for improvement,
• an analysis of the institutional structure required for project implementation, stipulating the roles and responsibilities of staff members involved, a detailed problem analysis, a stakeholder analysis, a revision of the target group, an analysis of the potential risks and recommendations on how to mitigate these risks, a schedule of project activities, a financial plan (planning budget), a detailed project logframe with SMART indicators for the project objective and results listing related activities and required resources,
• a “Do-no-harm analysis” including recommendations on how to mitigate potential harm and conflict situations that can potentially arise during or as a result of the project activities
• a Gender mainstreaming analysis identifying potential risks and recommendations to ensure gender equality in all aspects of the project design and implementation.

A template will be provided to serve as a guide and suggested structure for the final report.

Process/Timeframe

• A total duration of the assignment is up to 20 working days within the period of 4th March to 29th March 2024.
• A planning meeting with CM, SCORE, ECC-SDCO and DoL handover of relevant documents 1 day
• Initial document review and preparing inception report 3 days
• Sharing inception report with SoH and CM, SCORE, ECC-SDCO, and DoL 1 day
• Data collection site visit to a project location 5 days
• Data analysis, draft report with annexes, presenting to SoH 5 days
• Incorporating received feedback and finalising the report 5 days

Qualifications and Experience

Essential:

• Minimum of 5 years of project evaluation and/or implementation experience in the result-based management framework
• Proven experience of conducting baseline studies, evaluations and other research projects
• Technical and methodological knowledge to conduct research projects and formulate conclusions based on a solid methodology, assessing projects for relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability of projects
• Experience working with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and partnered projects
• Fluency in written and spoken English

Desirable:

• Experience in the relevant field
• Fluency in written and spoken Kiswahili and/ or Amharic languages
• Professional familiarity with the project country/region
• Practical experience of working for and/or evaluating BMZ-funded projects

Academic Background

• An advanced level university degree (Masters’ degree or equivalent) in social sciences, conflict prevention and peace building, disaster risk reduction, public administration, international development studies, law and/or RELEVANT FIELD. A first-level university degree in combination with additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted.
• The consultant is to be independent and impartial with no liabilities to any other organisation or government entity regarding this evaluation.