(RFB) consultant(s) to conduct Mid Term Project Evaluation for Enhancing the capacity and participation of small-scale farmers and civil society organizations in decision making and governance processes related to sustainable agriculture and food security

Trócaire

Trócaire is the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland, established in 1973 and currently has presence in more than 17 countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia including Rwanda. Trócaire has been operating in Rwanda since 1994 and its office is located in BHC Building, 260 Bvd de l’Umuganda, Kacyiru.

Request for bids (RFB) for a qualified consultant(s) to conduct Mid Term Project Evaluation for Enhancing the capacity and participation of small-scale farmers and civil society organizations in decision making and governance processes related to sustainable agriculture and food security  

 Co-funded by the European Union

1. Introduction

Bids are invited to be considered for a suitably qualified consultant to provide consulting services to Trócaire for a Mid-Term Evaluation.

This RFB document deals with:

• Section 2: Confidentiality
• Section 3: Profile of Trócaire
• Section 4: Rationale for the Midterm Evaluation
• Section 5: Methodology
• Section 6: Key questions the Midterm Review should address
• Section 7: Roles and Responsibilities
• Section 8: Deliverables
• Section 9: Timeframe
• Section 10: Selection Criteria
• Section 11: Reporting
• Section 12: Travel
• Section 13: General Terms and Conditions
• Section 14: Conflict of Interest
• Section 15: Safeguarding
• Section 16: Intellectual Property
• Section 17: Termination of Contract
• Section 18: Submission of bids

1. Confidentiality

Trócaire will treat the content of all bids as strictly confidential and information provided in the bids will be used solely for the purpose of deciding on the award of a contract as described in this document.

1. Profile of Trócaire

Trócaire is the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland, established in 1973 and currently has a presence in more than 17 countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia including Rwanda. Trócaire has been operating in Rwanda since 1994 and is currently focusing on 3 Programme pillars: Resource Rights, Women’s Empowerment, and Preparing and Responding to Emergencies. Trócaire does not implement programmes directly. Instead, the organization works in partnership with local civil society Organisations.  More information about Trócaire can be found on http://www.trocaire.org/.

Effective August 2018, after a successful submission to a local call for proposals,  Trócaire signed a 36-month agreement with the European Union to implement the project entitled: Enhancing the capacity and participation of small-scale farmers and civil society organizations in decision making and governance processes related to sustainable agriculture and food security in Nyaruguru, Nyamagabe and Nyagatare Districts.

The specific objective of the project is to promote the effective participation of small scale farmers (particularly women) and civil society organizations in the development, implementation, and monitoring of agricultural policies and strategies in view of the fact that levels of engagement of farmers in policy and strategy design to date have been minimal, despite the existence of legislation and policies underpinning the rights of citizens to participate in local governance and decision making.

Trócaire is implementing the project over 3 years as the lead organization in partnership with Caritas Gikongoro, Initiative Pour la Promotion de la Famille et du Genre (IPFG), and Conseil de Concertation des Organisations d’Appui aux Initiatives de Base (CCOAIB).  

1. Rationale for the Midterm Evaluation (MTE)

It is expected that the Mid Term Evaluation for Enhancing the capacity and participation of small-scale farmers and civil society organizations in decision making and governance processes related to sustainable agriculture and food security aims to assess the relevance of planned intervention and the progress made in achieving project objectives since the Baseline conducted in 2018. It will also provide an opportunity to highlight key successes, challenges as well as lessons learned and recommendations.

1. Methodology

The Midterm review exercise should be conducted in a participatory manner between the consultant, the Trócaire project team composed of the Country Program Manager, the Technical Advisor-Sustainable Livelihoods and Natural Resources Management, the EU Grant Project Manager, the Monitoring Evaluation and Learning Advisor and the executive secretaries of the partners to the project IPFG, CARITAS GIKONGORO and CCOAIB, as well as relevant field officers and other stakeholders.

The consultant is requested to submit a methodology in his or her proposal. However, it is anticipated that this midterm evaluation exercise will involve a mixed-method approach that will enable the project’s quantitative and qualitative indicators to be accurately measured. When developing methodologies consultants are asked to note that for quantitative data Trócaire usually requires a statistically valid approach, with a margin of error of no more than 5%. However, consultants can propose alternative quantitative methodologies as long as there is a strong rationale for why the alternative approach is to be taken.

The survey will seek to apply a participatory approach and will include different stakeholders to gain a deep insight into the key Midterm questions. Key audience to be targeted for sampling for the MTE will be:

• District Agriculture Committees (DAC):  30 members
• Sector Agriculture Committees (SAC):  405 members
• Cell Agriculture Committees (CAC):  322 members
•  Village Agriculture Committees (VAC): 460 members
• 60 Civil society organizations members engaged in Agriculture and Food Security
• 11,040 small scale farmers
• Relevant directors in Rwanda Agricultural Boards and Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources; and
• Trócaire and implementation partners with technical and leadership teams.

1. Key questions the Midterm review should address

Mid Term Evaluation will seek to address the following questions related to Relevancy and Design, Efficiency, Effectiveness and management arrangements, Impact and sustainability.

Relevancy of design:

• What are the actual project midterm values for impact and outcome indicators set out in the project result framework?
• How appropriate and useful are the indicators described in the project result framework in assessing the project’s progress? Are the targeted indicator values realistic and can they be easily tracked?
• If necessary, how should they be modified to be more useful?

Efficiency

• Based on actual progress, will the project be likely to achieve its planned objectives upon completion? What are the main constraints, problems and areas in need of further attention?
• How have stakeholders been involved in project implementation? How effective has the project been in establishing community level and national level national ownership?
• Have project funds and activities been delivered in a timely manner?

Effectiveness of management arrangements

• Does project management facilitate good results and efficient delivery? Is there a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities by all parties involved?
• Does the project implementing partners receive conducive environment, technical and administrative support from the Trócaire and European Union?
• How effectively does the project management monitor project performance and results?

Impact and sustainability

• Besides impacts outlines in the results framework, what are other changes in the target population that are directly or indirectly are attributed to the project?
• What are the project interventions that are likely to remain in the community after the project’s lifetime?

NB: Trócaire is committed to mainstream gender across all the programmes and for the sake of this mid-term evaluation, all research questions should use a gender lens in order to to establish the Mid-Term situation for men and women, boys and girls.

1. Roles and Responsibilities

Trócaire will establish a Midterm Evaluation Management Team (MMT) to oversee the midterm evaluation exercise. This will consist of the Technical Advisor-Sustainable Livelihoods and Natural Resources Management, the Country Programme Manager, the EU Grant Project Manager and the Rwanda Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Advisor.

The MMT will be responsible for: 

• Providing guidance to the consultant and stakeholders throughout the evaluation process.
• Approval of all deliverables.
• Overall responsibility and accountability for the midterm evaluation.

In consultation with partners the MMT will also undertake the following tasks: 

• Identify and recommend any key sources of secondary information that can be used to supplement primary information gathered.
• In collaboration with the consultant, conduct fieldwork to gather data; and
• In collaboration with the consultant, select sample communities based on a clear sampling strategy.

The external consultant/s will be requested to:

• Participate in briefing and consultative meetings on the assignment;
• Develop a work plan and inception report that will operationalize and direct the midterm addressing:
• Expectations of the evaluation
• Roles and responsibilities of consultants, MMT, and partners
• Midterm evaluation framework and methodology
• Data collection and analysis
• Work scheduling and reporting
• Familiarise themselves with the EU development cooperation programme plans/framework and relevant documents;
• Develop data collection tools such as questionnaire surveys, focus group discussion questions and key informant interview questions in collaboration with the MMT and programme partners;
• Train partners and the MMT on the tools to be used;
• Carry out fieldwork, analyze data, and draft a preliminary report for feedback from the MMT;
• Finalize the data analysis and submit a final report setting out the midterm evaluation key findings;
• Present the information formally at a workshop with partners and key stakeholders; and
• Deliver on all agreed deliverables.

1. Deliverables

The following services and outputs are expected:

1. A detailed midterm evaluation inception report;
2. Detailed and comprehensive midterm evaluation tools to be used in data collection;
3. Training of partner staff and the MMT on use of the midterm evaluation tools and on the conduct of the evaluation;
4. Debrief session with the MMT following the completion of the fieldwork;
5. Workshop to present and validate the findings of the midterm evaluation survey with partners;
6. Comprehensive draft and final midterm evaluation reports; and
7. Handover to Trócaire soft copies of all datasets and tools used in data collection.

The draft and final reports should be submitted in soft copy to Trócaire in line with the timeframe, which will be agreed upon the signing of the consultancy contract.

1. Timeframe

The consultancy contract is a fixed-term consultancy contract and will commence at a specific date to be determined by the Country Management Team (CMT), and at the end of this date, the Consultant is expected to have submitted the final report to Trócaire Rwanda. The contract duration will have a maximum of 20 working days assigned to this midterm evaluation. It is anticipated that the evaluation will ideally commence in June 2020 and the final report should be available by 20 July 2020.

1. Selection Criteria

The successful candidate/s will have relevant and demonstrable experience in the following areas:

• Programme/project planning and evaluation.
• Participatory research techniques.
• Training of local development actors to engage in primary research processes.
• Developing high-quality monitoring and evaluation systems for similar programmes.
• Strong background and experience of working in the region/country and programme context.
• Knowledge of relevant thematic programme (e.g. Governance and Human Rights; policy and budget monitoring).
• Knowledge of Trócaire’s work.
• Knowledge and experience in sustainable agriculture and food security
• Knowledge of Rwanda policy framework, especially in relation to agriculture
• Knowledge and experience in the use of digital data collection
• Production of high-quality reports in English.
• Working to demanding deadlines.

The consultant/s will be responsible for the overall management of the assignment and the production of the final report.  The consultant/s will be assisted by the MMT throughout the whole exercise. The consultant will be selected according to the following criteria:

• Understanding of the Terms of Reference;
• Proposed methodology and planning of the assignment;
• Experience of developing midterm for similar programmes;
• CV of 2 senior officials who will take the lead on the evaluation as an annex;
• Copy of similar evaluations done within the last 6 months;
• Experience of working on M&E in EU funded projects;
• At least 2 certificates of good completion of services for similar work with international organizations, donor organizations, or government agencies delivered in the last 2 years.
• The overall quality of the proposal; and

Financial proposal with detailed unit costs and total cost for each planned activity and related logistics in RWF and clearly indicating VAT costs. VAT registration certificate issued by RRA and Company registration certificate from RDB should be presented as annexes.

Only Registered national and international consulting firms are encouraged to apply. Applicants are required to submit current CVs of all individuals engaged in the midterm review (including CVs of junior staff and of any associates sub-contracted to work on the study). The work plan must clearly outline which individual (s) will actively lead and deliver on each component. Senior consultants/team leaders will be responsible for the successful and timely delivery of each component of the assignment.

1. Reporting

The consultant will report to the Technical Advisor – Sustainable Livelihoods and Natural Resources Management. The Programme Manager will be responsible for signing off on the Midterm evaluation report.   

1. Travel

Where travel is required, Trócaire regulations will apply to the reimbursement of travel and accommodation expenses.

1. General Terms and Conditions

Trócaire Rwanda reserves the right to reject any and all Expressions of Interest not fulfilling requirements associated with this request. Trócaire Rwanda will in no case be responsible or liable for any and all costs associated with the preparation and submission of Expressions of Interest.

• Trócaire does not bind itself to accept the lowest priced tender;
• Trócaire reserves the right to engage other companies/consultants if required;

Trócaire shall be free to:

• To accept the whole, or part only, of any EOI;
• To accept none of the EOIs tendered;
• To republish this Request for EOIs;
• In the event of not accepting any of the EOIs received on foot of this Request for EOI, Trócaire shall be free to make such arrangements as it considers necessary in relation to the provision of the services;
• The EOI shall maintain strict confidentiality in relation to the services being sought and the evaluation process;
• Any subsequent contract shall be considered as a contract made in Rwanda, according to Rwanda law; and
• The Standard Terms and Conditions to which Trócaire expects all of its suppliers to respect is found on the Trócaire website – https://www.trocaire.org/about/work-with-trocaire/supply-chain.
• The Beneficiary(ies) shall limit access and use of personal data to that strictly necessary for the performance, management and monitoring of this Contract and shall adopt all appropriate technical and organizational security measures necessary to preserve the strictest confidentiality and limit access to this data

1. Conflict of interest

Any conflict of interest involving an applicant must be fully disclosed to Trócaire. Failure to disclose a conflict may disqualify an applicant or invalidate an award of the contract. Applicants are required to declare any current or past work which might reasonably be considered to represent a conflict of interest.  It will be for Trócaire to decide if any material conflict of interest exists and applicants in doubt in this regard should seek the advice of Trócaire.

1. Safeguarding

Trócaire is committed to safeguarding Programme participants from any form of exploitation or abuse as a result of our programmes or activities.  Anyone working for or on behalf of Trócaire must share this commitment. Trócaire’s Position Statement on Exploitation and Abuse and Trócaire’s Child Safeguarding Policy Summary document outline expectations in this regard, including a Code of Conduct.   All consultants, representatives, and volunteers of Trócaire will be expected to sign these documents along with a Declaration Form and a Self-Declaration Form.

1. Intellectual property

Any concepts, guidelines or other material developed during the contract will be considered as the property of Trócaire and may be used by Trócaire.

1. Termination of Contract

Trócaire reserves the right to terminate the contract at any stage on payment of reasonable and agreed costs accrued to the date of termination.

If at any stage during the contract, the services delivered by the consultant is found to be unsatisfactory, the contract may be terminated by Trócaire. In the event of such a termination, the consultant will only be entitled to receive payment in relation to the acceptable services rendered at that time.

1. Submission of bids

Your proposal clearly marked: “Mid Term Project Evaluation for enhancing the capacity and participation of small-scale farmers and civil society organizations in decision making and governance processes related to sustainable agriculture and food security” should be submitted ONLY through email on inforwanda@trocaire.org.

Any queries relating to this Request for Bids should be directed by e-mail to inforwanda@trocaire.org.

The financial proposal should be inclusive of tax and quoted in Rwandan Francs (RWF) clearly indicating the services/goods in the subject heading. Only suitably qualified local/international consulting firms will be contacted for further engagement.

The deadline for the receipt of bids is 13:00 PM 20 May 2020 

Country Director

Trócaire