Procurement Notices

Consultancy Title: PSDN Mid-term Review

Project Name:  MID TERM REVIEW OF THE PSDN 2014 – 2019 STRATEGIC PLAN & DEVELOPMENT OF ITS MONITORING AND EVALUATION FRAMEWORK

Period of assignment: 25 days, 1st March, 2017 and completion by 30th April, 2017

Duty Station: Fiji

Consultancy Proposal should be mailed to C/- UNDP Fiji MCO, Private Mail Bag, Suva, Fiji or sent via email to procurement.fj@undp.org no later than 22nd February, 2017 (Fiji Time) clearly stating the title of consultancy applied for. Any proposals received after this date/time will not be accepted. Any request for clarification must be sent in writing, or by standard electronic communication to the address or e-mail indicated above. UNDP will respond in writing or by standard electronic mail and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all consultants. Incomplete, late and joint proposals will not be considered and only offers for which there is further interest will be contacted. Failure to submit your application as stated as per the application submission guide (Procurement Notice) on the above link will be considered incomplete and therefore application will not be considered.

1. BACKGROUND

1. SCOPE OF WORK

3.     REQUIREMENTS FOR EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATION

4.   EVALUATION CRITERIA

5.   DOCUMENTS TO BE INCLUDED WHEN SUBMITTING CONSULTANCY PROPOSALS

Annex 1- Terms of Reference

MID TERM REVIEW OF THE PSDN 2014 - 2019

STRATEGIC PLAN &

DEVELOPMENT OF ITS MONITORING AND EVALUATION FRAMEWORK

1. BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE

The Pacific Sexual Diversity Network was officially registered as a regional network for men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgenders (TGs) in Samoa in 2009. It was originally created by three LGBTI activists from Fiji, Samoa and Tonga in recognition of the need to develop an effective regional response to the actual and potential threat that HIV and AIDS posed to MSM and TG across the Pacific. PSDN is now the focal network of Pacific Islanders of Diverse Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the Pacific (PIDSOGIE), the LGBTQI (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Intersex) community in particular. It is currently in the process of relocating to Fiji in order to strengthen its partnerships with regional and international organisations, most of which are based in Suva, Fiji. There are on-going efforts to register PSDN in Fiji while its registrations in Samoa and Tonga remain valid for the moment.

PSDN membership has continued to increase over the years and now has affiliates in 14 member countries (American Samoa, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu).  The PSDN mission includes advocating for resourced and sustainable LGBTI community organizations at country level, increased political commitment to PIDSOGIE, reform of discriminatory laws and government policies, greater sensitivity towards PIDSOGIE by law enforcement agencies, increased availability of strategic information through research and routine data collection, reduction of institutionalized and social stigma and discrimination, positive engagement with religious institutions and inclusive educational opportunities.

To achieve its mission, PSDN has developed two Strategic Plans, the first of which covered the period 2009-2013 and the second from 2014-2019. The plan has identified four (4) strategic goals: Goal 1 Punitive laws removed and reduce stigma and discrimination towards Pacific Islanders of diverse sexual orientation and gender identities; Goal 2 Improved health and well-being of PIDSOGIE, including PIDSOGIE Plus; Goal 3 Reduced transmission and increased uptake of testing and treatment for HIV and STI among PIDSOGIE; Goal 4 A fully functional and well-resourced PSDN and national member organisations.

In designing the Strategic Plans, it was expected that its implementation should be based on 1) principles of sustainable partnerships with organisations, networks, national and regional health institutions and with the technical and financial partners working in the Pacific region and 2) intervention principles that are specific to PSDN including advocacy, facilitation and dissemination of information on the human rights and health status of PIDSOGIE prevailing in the Pacific region. Two evaluations were also planned to be conducted during the implementation of the current plan including a mid-term review in 2017 and a final evaluation in 2019.

It is within the above framework that the Management Board of PSDN is carrying out the mid-term review evaluation as planned. This will be conducted with the support of external consultants. The purpose of this review is to provide those involved in the implementation of the plan with information on the progress made in the process of implementation of the current strategic plan, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that have been identified and draw lessons for possible reorientation or insertion of innovating actions and interventions to eventually optimise outcomes.

When the Strategic Plan was implemented, a work plan for 2014-2019 was developed, but without a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework. The PSDN Board, at its meeting in August 2015, has indicated the need to develop this framework to assist them in monitoring and evaluating the work of the organisation and support the organisation’s learning and accountability objectives. Therefore this consultancy will need to deliver two outputs/deliverables: : (1) Review progress in the implementation of the current strategic plan (2014-2019) including progress towards reaching the strategic goals  and (2) Develop  a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the activities remaining to be implemented.

The deliverables will be used to inform the management of PSDN on strategic directions, the development of the programme, demonstrate results and possible impacts and inform the development of policies of the organisation.  

1. THE SCOPE OF THE REVIEW OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND DEVELOPMENT OF ITS M&E FRAMEWORK

The Mid-Term Review will involve all the four strategic goal areas of the Strategic Plan, the work plan that was developed for the implementation and some specific project interventions that have been implemented under the Strategic Plan funded by different development and donor partners.

As a second deliverable, a Monitoring & Evaluation framework for the remaining time and activities of the current Strategic Plan (2017-2019) and the work plan will need to be developed during the review process as well. The consultant(s) will be expected to carry out and deliver on the following tasks in relation to the development of the M&E framework:

1. Review relevant documents and existing monitoring and evaluation tools and develop/formulate PSDN’s Theory of Change and an overall log frame to reach the strategic goals as set out in the Strategic Plan.

    

2. Develop a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework and road map for implementation for the strategic plan, based on the views from the ultimate beneficiaries, which must include:

    

3. The baselines for measurement.

    

4. Performance indicators and targets (output and outcomes) with clear definitions, milestones, (relevant) data collection strategies, and frequency of collection, as well as desired and envisaged impact. It should include methodologies for measuring these and indicate the actor(s) responsible for collection and analysis.It should also clearly demonstrate how the impact outlined in the framework will be measured over time. Systematic disaggregation of data including by sex, SOGIE, geographical location and others, will be important throughout.

5. Take into consideration national M&E systems as used by PSDN’s members and other relevant stakeholders, draw on existing data available and ensure new data collection proposed is complementary to existing systems. The collected data have to be made available to national stakeholders as much as possible and an indicative dissemination strategy would need to complement the framework.

    

6. Develop the final evaluation strategy that draws on OECD-DAC evaluation criteria related to relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability, coverage and coherence and the programme’s Theory of Change. Evaluation methods to test and explore impacts should be specified. The evaluation has to gather robust evidence about how, where and why (or why not) the programme was effective and achieved results and impact. Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) changes will be important to capture. The evaluation strategy should correspond with the strategic plan’s operational context, learning and operational needs, as well as donor requirements.

    

7. Develop draft terms of reference for conducting the independent final evaluation of the strategic plan in 2019.

1. OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES OFTHE ASSIGNMENT

3.1 General Objectives

The general objective of the review is to assess the implementation of the second Strategic Plan over the first three years (2014-2016) in order to provide the PSDN Board and management and other key actors with necessary information on the progress made towards planned activities, outputs, outcomes and impact, including budgetary efficiency in reaching these. Further, the assignment will formulate constraints encountered; lessons learnt and formulate recommendations to possibly redirect the actions and interventions to optimise the outcomes and impact of PSDN’s work.

It is also the goal of the MTR to identify ways in which the implementation  of the remainder of the current Strategic Plan (2017-2019) can be strengthened in its effectiveness, and create more leverage in changes in the rights situation of the PIDSOGIE  community in general  and the community’s social and economic development.

The consultant(s) will also be contracted to develop a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework and implementation plan to be used for assessing and understanding the progress towards PSDN’s programme outputs, outcomes and impact. It will also establish baselines and provide donors and stakeholders an assessment of progress on best practices, with a high level of accountability required.

3.2 Specific objectives:

• To assess progress in implementing the Strategic Plan taking into consideration the expected outcomes of the first 3 years (2014, 2015 and 2016);

   

• To identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats and constraints in the implementation so far;

   

• To draw lessons in order to possibly re-orient the programmes and project interventions that can eventually improve the impact of PSDN’s programmes for the 2nd period of the plan and ultimately reach the formulated strategic goals;

   

   

• To formulate recommendations to improve the implementation of programmes;

   

• To validate the results of the MTR by key stakeholders involved in the implementation of the Strategic Plan; and

• To develop a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the remaining time of the Strategic Plan (2017-2019).

   

  3.3 Expected Outputs and Outcomes

   

  The assignment will deliver two specific outputs: a mid-term review report of the current strategy and a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the remaining implementation time of the current strategic plan.

   

  Mid-Term Review Report

  The mid-term review report of the implementation of the strategic plan is produced and available and provides information on the general implementation of the strategic plan and on specific actions and project interventions to be assessed. The review must include:

   

• the results achieved and the progress made in the period 2014-2016

• identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats

• the lessons learned

• recommendations to possibly redirect programmes and project interventions to optimise the end results of the Plan

The results and findings of the review have to be validated by key stakeholders, first and foremost the PSDN Executive Committee, Policy Development Committee and the PSDN Secretariat.

The Monitoring and Evaluation framework for the Strategic Plan

The consultant(s) will provide a final framework plan that includes 

• A newly-developed comprehensive M&E framework for the Strategic Plan including a detailed implementation plan for monitoring activities, an evaluation strategy as well as design and information requirements for the final evaluation.

• Findings gathered during the framework development and review of existing M&E systems, with recommendations how to make improvements.

• A baseline assessment and plan to address any information gaps through surveys or other relevant data collection tools.

• Terms of Reference for the independent final evaluation to be conducted in 2019.

The outcome of the assignment will be that PSDN can more effectively work towards realising its strategic goals and objectives as formulated in its strategic plan 2014-2019 and has the tools and framework how to measure and evaluate progress towards reaching the formulated objectives and goals.

1. QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED

Key guiding questions to be addressed for the conduct of the mid-term review of the Plan as a whole could include, but should not be limited to:

• Did the implementation of the Strategic Plan take place as expected during the first 3 years?

• Did the results achieve the desired level of each priority areas of the Plan?

• Were human resources, material and financial resources mobilized adequately and sufficiently for the implementation of the Strategic Plan during the first 3 years? In what way have they contributed to the achievement of results?

• Were operational principles of sustainable partnership and the principles of intervention of PSDN complied with and did they contribute to the achievement of results?

• Were implemented actions and interventions appropriate to address some of the principle health and human rights problems of the Pacific region?

• What are the identified strengths of the organisation that facilitated the implementation of the plan?

• What are the identified weaknesses/constraints that have hampered the implementation of the plan?

• What are the opportunities to support future implementation of the plan?

• What are some of the threats to be mindful of that could affect the implementation of the plan?

1. APPROACH AND METHODS OF EVALUATION

The technical offer, as requested when expressing the interest in carrying out the assignment, should specify the proposed approach, methodology and methods of carrying out the assignment to come to the final products: the mid-term review report and the monitoring and evaluation framework. When doing the assignment, the consultant(s) will be assisted by the Executive Committee of the PSDN Board, the Policy Development committee and the PSDN secretariat and by technical partners, if required.

1. ARRANGEMENTS MADE FOR THE CONDUCT OF THEASSIGNMENT

6.1 Consultant Tasks and Responsibilities

The consultant or consultants are expected to deliver the end-products as formulated in the TOR in a concise and timely manner. Steps in this process include, but are not limited to:

• To propose an implementation plan for the review. This plan shall be validated by PSDN

   

• To collect, compile and analyse primary and secondary data

   

• To present a draft review and framework report to PSDN for commenting and validation

   

• To present the final report, conclusions of the review and recommendations to stakeholders including PSDN staff and partners involved in financing and implementing the Plan;

   

6.2 Co-ordination of logistics

The consultant(s) will be responsible for arranging their own logistics, including meetings, transport and accommodation, if required. It is not envisioned that the consultant(s) will need to travel to target countries, except possibly to Fiji to work with and in the PSDN secretariat, if agreed with PSDN. PSDN will compile background documents and data collected for the review, as requested by the consultant(s). PSDN will also facilitate contact with stakeholders including national focal points and beneficiary groups.

6.3 Duration and proposed time table

The maximum duration of the assignment is 25 days. It is anticipated that the assignment will be completed within a total of six-eight (6-8) weeks from the date of the signing of the contract between UNDP and the consultant. The envisaged start date is 1 March 2017 with the final deliverables completed between 15 and 30 April 2017.

 The consultant is expected to work home based and/or possibly in Fiji for work sessions at the PSDN secretariat during the consultation process.

Payment Schedule

Consultant to provide a tentative payment schedule