Terms of Reference Summary
| Project Name | Linking policy and implementation for gender equality in Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe |
| Target Location | Malawi, Namibia, Zimbabwe |
| Project Goal | To contribute to an increase in gender equality and a reduction in GBV in Southern Africa. |
| Project Outcomes | Outcome 1: MEA country secretariats and members have strengthened capacities to coordinate, implement, enhance, and scale up their gender transformative approaches to GBV prevention and gender equal parenting, including greater accountability to women’s rights principles. Outcome 2: An increased body of evidence from MEA country secretariats and members on promising practices to transform gender norms is disseminated by MEA communication channels and SADC Gender Unit to MEA members, with expectation that MEA members will have increased knowledge about promising practices. Outcome 3: MEA country secretariats and members have influenced the development, implementation and monitoring of national and regional laws and policies that promote gender transformative strategies for gender equality and GBV prevention, including the adoption and implementation of the GBV Model Law at SADC level. |
| Direct beneficiary | MenEngage country networks in Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. |
| Project deliverables | Inception report (30% fees disbursed upon approval of inception report) Evaluation survey tools Initial findings presented to Sonke. Draft evaluation report (40% of fees disbursed upon submission of report) Final evaluation report (30% of fees disbursed upon submission of report) |
| Project lifespan | 2021-2024 |
| Evaluation Purpose | The purpose of this end-term evaluation is to assess the extent to which project implementation in Malawi, Namibia and Zimbabwe have contributed to an increase in gender equality and a reduction in GBV. |
| Evaluation Start and End Dates | June 2024 – August 2024 |
| Anticipated Evaluation Report Release Date | 30 August 2024 |
Project Overview
GBV is a phenomenon deeply rooted in gender inequality and continues to be one of the most notable human rights violations within society. The World Health Organization reports that globally 35% of women experience “either intimate partner or non-partner violence.” GBVF is caused by gender inequality – including unequal power relations between women and men, rigid gender roles, norms and hierarchies, and ascribing women to lower status in society. Deeply rooted structural obstacles such as unequal distribution of resources, power, and wealth, combined with social institutions and norms that sustain inequality, are holding African women and girls, and as a result, the rest of the continent, back.
While women and girls are the most visible survivors of sexual and GBV, men’s violence affects other members of the community, including children of both sexes. These adult men witnessed or experienced abuse as children, people with disabilities and members of the LGBTQI community. In sub-Saharan Africa around two-thirds of children suffer physical violence, a third of girls suffer sexual violence, a quarter of children suffer emotional violence and half of the children witness domestic violence. Parents, partners, teachers, and neighbors are the primary perpetrators. This is a cause for major concern given the significant body of evidence showing the positive effect of the presence and active involvement of a father/male caregiver in a child’s life chances; academic performance; and social, emotional, and cognitive functioning, and the improvements to gender equality between parents if men do more unpaid childcare work.
Despite having laws and policies in place in Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe, GBV and gender equality remain challenges in all three countries due to resistance to changing deeply rooted social norms, attitudes, and societal behaviors. Further, the implementation of laws and policies has remained a challenge because of poor enforcement by those mandated to do so. Often law enforcement agents exhibit a lack of understanding of the laws and policies they are mandated to enforce, lack the resources necessary to implement them effectively, and are not held appropriately accountable to report on progress. Further, as policy and decision processes are often male-dominated, policy and decision-makers also exhibit some prejudices rooted in harmful social norms and practices.
Despite tremendous progress towards the inclusion of gender equality as a global goal – including in numerous UN conventions, the Sustainable Development Goals, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Agenda 2063 – gender inequalities continue to undermine women’s rights, gender equality and the enjoyment of human rights by all women and girls; to impede development and democracy building; and to compromise people’s lives in dramatic and devastating ways. Recent time-use surveys have shown that in Sub-Saharan Africa, women do at least three times as much unpaid care work as men do. This inordinate burden of work on women prohibits opportunities for development and economic activity and increases women’s vulnerability to violence.
Outcome 1
MEA country secretariats and members have strengthened capacities to coordinate, implement, enhance, and scale up their gender transformative approaches to GBV prevention and gender-equal parenting, including greater accountability to women’s rights principles.
Outcome 2
An increased body of evidence from MEA country secretariats and members on promising practices to transform gender norms is disseminated by MEA communication channels and the SADC Gender Unit to MEA members, with the expectation that MEA members will have increased knowledge about promising practices.
Outcome 3
MEA country secretariats and members have influenced the development, implementation and monitoring of national and regional laws and policies that promote gender transformative strategies for gender equality and GBV prevention, including the adoption and implementation of the GBV Model Law at SADC level.
Purpose of this Consultancy
Sonke seeks to recruit the services of a consultant to conduct an end-term evaluation of the project: Linking policy and implementation for gender equality in Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. The evaluation aims to assess the following:
- To assess the project on its quality, efficiency, effectiveness, and contribution towards the MEA Strategic Plan.
- To measure to what extent the project outcomes have been achieved, and their impact or relevance to the sub-regional, regional, and international developmental priorities.
- To assess the capacities of country secretariates to coordinate, implement, enhance, and scale up their gender transformative approaches to GBV prevention and gender-equal parenting, including greater accountability to women’s rights principles.
We anticipate that the key audiences and end users of the report include
- Members and partners of the partnership. The findings will be used by country implementing partners to identify successful strategies and lessons learned. Insights from this evaluation will provide perceptions into which approaches need to be started, continued, revised, or stopped for which target groups.
- Project participants and stakeholders in each country. Engaging directly with this audience ensures downward accountability, learning, inspiration, and motivation.
- International knowledge platforms. This will contribute to global learning and innovation concerning best practices, scalable interventions, and lessons learned.
- Furthermore, the evaluation report will be shared with the Austrian Development Agency (the primary donor of the project).
Evaluation Scope
The end-term evaluation will be conducted in the project implementation countries of Namibia, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. A mixed-method approach of online and in-person data collection is preferred. The estimated duration of the evaluation is 3 months, starting in June 2024 and ending in August 2024 when the final report will be submitted.
Within the first 2 weeks of the consultancy, the consultant is expected to produce an Inception Report, including a detailed work plan and methodology. The consultant is expected to convey the main findings and recommendations in a meeting with Sonke and partner staff before finalization of the report.
Evaluation criteria and evaluation questions
Relevance
- Was the project design and implementation relevant to the beneficiaries needs and context?
- Assess the project on its quality, efficiency, effectiveness, and contribution towards the MEA Strategic Plan.
Effectiveness
- How effective was the project in contributing to linking policy and implementation for gender equality in Malawi, Namibia, and Zimbabwe?
- How effective was the project in achieving the expected project outcomes?
- Was the project aligned with sub-regional, regional, and international developmental policies and priorities?
- How has the project been effective in responding to and adapting to political, socio-economic, and environmental changes throughout the implementation period at a country level?
Efficiency
- Were the resources (human and financial) allocated sufficient to demonstrate the desired outcomes?
- Are the implementing partners capacitated to coordinate and implement advocacy projects?
Impact
- How has implementation changed individual lives?
Research design and methodology
Proposed data collection methods and analysis
Both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods should be used through a combination of surveys, focus group discussions/interviews, desk studies (reviewing project documents, annual progress reports, and other relevant evaluation documentation), and additional primary data collection required. Data collection tools should be developed by making use of the project monitoring and evaluation framework, with questions linked to the outcome and if applicable output indicators. A mixed-method approach of online and in-person data collection is preferred. Evaluators can make use of tools such as Google Forms, Survey Monkey or any other relevant software for quantitative data collection. Qualitative data collection should take place physically. All qualitative data must be recorded and transcribed accordingly to ensure data quality. Data analysis should be conducted on Stata, SPSS, or any other relevant software. Additional follow-up data collection should take place to fill in any knowledge gaps and further validate findings.
In preparing the proposal the evaluators must put in place specific safeguards and protocols to protect the safety (both physical and psychological) of respondents and those collecting the data as well as to prevent harm. Members of the evaluation team should understand and be sensitive to the political, socio-economic, historical, and cultural context in the countries where data collection occurs and ensure the rights of the individual are protected and participation in the evaluation does not result in further violation of their rights.
Data sources
Both primary and secondary data sources should be used, the proposed data sources include but should not be limited to:
- Desk review on institutional policies and relevant project documents such as the project document, logical framework, and project reports.
- Quantitative data is to be collected through a representative survey.
- Qualitative data is to be collected through focus group discussions and key informant interviews.
Proposed sampling methods
For the quantitative methodology, a reliable sample size should be calculated. Both primary and secondary beneficiaries should be selected via stratified random sampling/proportional random sampling considering beneficiary type, geographic area, and any, other key defining factors decided by the evaluator. For the qualitative methodology, purposive sampling should be used.
Evaluation Management Arrangements
The evaluation team will be responsible for undertaking the research from start to finish and for managing the research team under the supervision of the Research Monitoring Evaluation and Learning Unit Lead from Sonke Gender Justice. Evaluators will liaise with the Sonke RMEL unit and program staff for relevant project documentation and clarification, and assistance in liaising and connecting with relevant stakeholders and primary and secondary beneficiaries. The Sonke RMEL unit will also set up feedback/check-in sessions to discuss any further support or clarification required.
The main activities for the end-term evaluation can be seen in the table below.
| Evaluation Phase | Role | Primary Task | Estimated Timelines |
| Planning | Project team | -Conduct project introduction meeting with the consultant -Submit project documents to external research team | 1 July 2024 |
| External research team | -Develop evaluation methodology/questionnaire -Test and adjust survey tools | 8 July 2024 | |
| Technical team | -Provide technical inputs to improve evaluation methodology/questionnaire -Give the final approval to the consultant team to collect data | 19 July 2024 | |
| Data Collection and Analysis | External research team | -Fully facilitate the data collection -Fully responsible for data quality assurance -Present and validate data to the project and technical teams | 22 July 2024 |
| Project/Technical team | -Link the research team with local partners | 1 August 2024 | |
| Reporting and follow up | External research team | -Prepare draft report in English -Discussion with Sonke on findings and reflect the feedback in the final report -Final report submission -Provide presentation feedback on evaluation report to Sonke | 16 August 2024 |
| Project and Technical team | -Participate in discussion meeting and provide feedback | 30 August 2024 |
Expected deliverables
- Inception report including detailed methodology in line with the relevant checklist in the ADA Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations.
- Draft findings report in line with the relevant checklist in the ADA Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations.
- Validation workshop.
- Final report (printable and online version) including a completed Results Assessment Form in line with ADA Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations.
- Stand-alone communication products, such as a slide deck or an attractive digital application with main findings and recommendations.
- The language of the report is English, and it must be clear and concise language.
Budget
The budget amount is ZAR 150 000 – 200 000 (Please note that the budget amount is exclusive of travel and logistics for data collection).
Requirements for evaluators
- Experience of at least 10 years in conducting external evaluations, with mixed-methods evaluation skills and flexibility in using non-traditional and innovative evaluation methods.
- Experience with gender-responsive and gender transformative approaches, participatory approaches, and stakeholder engagement.
- Experience in collecting and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data as well as data visualization.
- The evaluators must not have been involved in the design or implementation of the project being evaluated.
- In-depth knowledge of the human rights-based approach.
- A strong commitment to delivering timely and high-quality results, i.e., credible evaluation and a report that can be used.
- A strong, diverse team with a gender balance, leadership, and management track record, as well as interpersonal and communication skills to help ensure that the evaluation is understood and used.
- Good communication skills and ability to communicate with various stakeholders and to express concisely and clearly ideas and concepts.
- Regional experience and knowledge.
- Language proficiency: fluency in English.
- A team of evaluators with a presence in the countries of implementation (Malawi, Namibia, Zimbabwe).
- Access to a South African bank account is an added advantage.
How to apply
Should you wish to apply, please send as five separate documents to Yanga Fadana by COB 17 June 2024. If selected, induction will start on 01 July 2024.
Email: yanga@genderjustice.org.za
- Brief 1-1.5-page cover letter citing your relevant expertise for the consultancy.
- Detailed CV including examples of similar evaluations completed (4 pages maximum).
- Detailed quotation.
- Short proposal including work plan and budget.
- Example of similar work completed.
Additional Information
ADA Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations: