ToR for Documenting Literacy Boost/Community Action Results

B.P.2030
KIGALI

Tel:
280539555/

Email:Umuhuza_organisation@yahoo.com

Terms
of Reference for documenting Literacy Boost/Community Action results

1.
Background

Umuhuza
is a Non-Governmental Organization founded in 2005 and is recognized by the
Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) in the official gazette no. 50 bis of 15/12/2014
with legal personality no. 104/2014. Umuhuza aims to foster a culture of peace
through education focusing on educa

ting parents of young children to promote
improved childhood development and to create peaceful citizens.

Umuhuza
has gained expertise in leading community-based programs to encourage and equip
families in the culture of reading with their children at home and in community
reading clubs. Umuhuza programs include family/community literacy, early
childhood development/ positive parenting, child protection, violence
prevention/conflict resolution components.

Since
2013 Umuhuza, in conjunction with Save the Children Intl., has been
implementing the Literacy Boost Community Action project as part of the
Advancing the Right to Read program. Under Literacy Boost Community Action,
Umuhuza has mobilized communities in all the 21 sectors of Gicumbi district
around reading activities and improving the culture of reading by training
youth volunteers from Urugerero (national service) and community members to
manage community Book Banks and to conduct weekly Reading Clubs with children
from P1 to P3. Each year since 2013, Parents have been sensitized, Reading
Clubs were established in all villages and are led by trained community
volunteers, children’s books appropriate to P1 to P3 levels have been placed in
the children’s Reading Clubs, children are benefiting by learning reading
skills with accessibility of books after school and youth Urugerero (national
service) were trained and supported in reading activities within their
respective communities.

To
achieve this Umuhuza applied its Community-based approach by working with
families and local leaders directly, creating partnership with like-minded
organizations like churches and cooperatives and designed the programs and
activities for long-term sustainability.

Being
in the last months of the Literacy Boost project and after five years of
extensive engagement in all villages of Gicumbi District in literacy
activities, Umuhuza wishes to hire a consultant to document the project’s
achievements, best practices/ success stories and lessons learnt in written and
video formats.

2.
Objectives

The
general objectives of the assignment are:

To
document the achievements of the program towards the set objectives
according to criteria relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability
and impact.
To
document the best practices and lessons learnt from the project.

Specifically,
the consultancy aims at:

Identify
the Project achievements in relation to its objectives;
Document
the level of achievements on indicators
Document
whether the project interventions have met the identified needs of
beneficiaries;
Document
the project changes for the beneficiaries;
Document
different delivery models and their effectiveness/impact, especially in
relation with scalability and sustainability;

3.
Expected results/deliverables
The key learning questions are:

What
changes have occurred in families’ attitudes and practices in relation
with reading following Umuhuza community interventions?
What
has been the impact of the intervention on children’s school drop out?
What aspects of the program contributed, directly or indirectly, to
children returning to school and why?
Has
the intervention has a different impact on boys and girls? Children of
different ages? Children from different socio-economic status and family
backgrounds?
How
effective have the different methods of delivery been and why? What
recommendations/learning have arisen from these?
How
effective has the partnership model of delivery been? Umuhuza’s capacity
to train and equip others? Effectiveness at scale?
In
what ways could the intervention, approach or delivery be improved to have
greater impact?
What
have been the limitations to change?
What
are some of the best practices and lessons learnt?

Through
the above questions, the consultant will offer:

A
compiled document (written and video) highlighting:

The
projects outcomes and achievements;
Best
practices around the community reading clubs established, home literacy
environment, volunteers’ engagement in literacy programs, volunteers’
group initiatives, parents engagement in family and community literacy
programs, parents group initiatives, children, partners, local leaders and
story books writing initiatives. (Answering, among others the following
questions: how has the intervention influenced your own understanding of
the value of literacy? What impact has this had on the district education
plans and strategies (like imihigo)? How do you think this can be
integrated in your district long term practices and structures to ensure
sustainable changes in literacy?
Lessons
learnt during five years;
Testimonies
and success stories collected from the project beneficiaries

4.
Methodology

It
is the responsibility of the consultant to propose methodological adaptations
compatible with the local context and according to the requirements of the
goals of the project, to be discussed with, reviewed and approved by Umuhuza.
It is also the responsibility of the consultant to translate all the tools that
will be used for the work and ensure their consistent application across all
the communities.

The
study population will be all projects beneficiaries and stakeholders-local
authorities in Gicumbi district, children, parents, volunteers, local partners,
Umuhuza staff, etc- from which the consultant will select and determine the
participants.

The
consultant will use both quantitative and qualitative methods:

Interviews
Focus
group discussions
Questionnaires
Observation
etc

5.
Profile of the consultant

The
consultancy work requires the person with the following qualifications and
experience:

Background
in education studies, social studies, communications or related fields;
A
Minimum of 5 years of demonstrated work experience in the areas of
conducting project results assessment, evaluations and documentation;
Strong
knowledge of social research methods;
Strong
knowledge in video documentation;
Experience
in working with community stakeholders; The consultant will be selected
according to the following criteria:
Understanding
of the Terms of Reference;
Proposed
methodology and planning of the assignment;
Past
experience of working on projects documentation
Overall
quality of the proposal;
Cost.

6.
Duration:

The
consultancy will start immediately after the signing of the contract

The
final report, following presentation of a draft report and integration of
UMUHUZA comments, is expected to be submitted in hard and soft versions not
later than October 30th,2017.

7.
Application procedure

Interested
aapplicants are required to submit technical and financial proposals by email
to umuhuza_organisation@yahoo.com and/or
physically dropped at Umuhuza offices in Kacyiru, near the ministry of
Agriculture not later than September 22nd, 2017 at 1:00 pm.

Done
in Kigali, on September 8th, 2017

Mathilde
KAYITESI
Executive Secretary