Job Vacancy @ International Rescue Committee – Partnership Mapping and PEERS Training-Consultancy

Job Description

 Requisition ID:

Job Title: Consultant – Mapping of CSO, Government and Private Sector including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups in Sierra Leone

Sector: Grants and Partnerships Unit

Employment Category: Consultant

Employment Type: Part time-Time-based

Duration of the contract: 40 working days, 10 August to 20 September 2022.

Open to Expatriates: No

Location: Freetown with travel to other districts

International Rescue Committee Background:

The International Rescue Committee responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, IRC offers life-saving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in more than 40 countries and in 22 U.S. cities, IRC restores safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted by conflict or disaster. IRC leads the way from harm to home.

The IRC began emergency operations in Sierra Leone in 1998 during the civil war. In the post-conflict reconstruction period, the IRC consolidated its operations into three core programmatic areas: health, education, and women’s protection and empowerment. In addition, the IRC leads consortia in education and health working with 8 partners at national scale. The IRC has offices in Freetown, Bo, Kenema, Kailahun, and Kono Districts but implements programs in many other districts through partners and one of its consortium projects is implemented in all the sixteen districts in the country. The IRC is implementing projects in Health, Education and Women and Girls Protection and Empowerment (WPGE) across the country and is planning on introducing projects in WASH, Governance and Economic Well-Being.

Project Background:

The IRC Sierra Leone Country Program just completed the development of its “Strategy 100” strategic plan through which it aims to provide the best possible impact for the most vulnerable women and girls, boys, and men in the country, working in collaboration with the Government line ministries, local and international NGO partners and the private sector. The country program is also in the process of exploring options to increase the delivery of its programs through cash. In all that we do, we strive to deliver through IRC’s core values of Integrity, Accountability, Service and Equality. As part of our commitment to the Grand Bargain in general and again as a Feminist Organization in particular, the IRC recognizes the need to work in partnership with other with local civil society, government, and private sector actors and to be deliberately inclusive of women-led and women-focused organizations. The country program recognizes that working with partners will enhance program quality and scale, and result in better outcomes for the people we serve and enable our programs to provide more durable outcomes by strengthening local capacity and systems. In addition, the IRC acknowledges that women need to lead and be more involved in programming targeting improvements in the lives hence will focus on identifying actors with a bias towards this group. The country program recognizes working in partnership is a key enabler of other Strategy100 priorities, including gender equality, and client centered programming. This is in line with the IRC’s global, S100 plan, regional priorities and reflected in the Country Strategic Action Plan which sets specific targets for strategically partnering with other actors including women-led and/or women-focused organizations with the objective of maximizing reach to the most disadvantaged communities and ensuring equal outcomes for diverse groups of women and girls in Sierra Leone.

To achieve this objective, the IRC will work with the identified actors to: conduct capacity sharing activities that will help the IRC and partners further develop existing capacities and resources and contribute to system strengthening; systematically co-design programming and solicit feedback from partners and clients on the IRC’s and partners programming and adapt programming accordingly to ensure they reflect clients’ priorities, build on partners’ core competencies and are gender sensitive and as much as possible and gender transformative; facilitate learning and reflection events with partners to document lessons learned and good practices from the collaboration with the other actors.

Purpose of Consultancy:

The contracted consultant will be focusing on the following project components: Identifying Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups and providing key information and recommendations that will support IRC’s strategy to partner with them. Please find below more information about the expected deliverables of this consultancy.

Tasks:

• Mapping exercise to identify potential partners Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups active in Sierra Leone.
• Studying and documenting the following: name/names (formal or informal), contact details, structures, composition, mission and vision, scope of work and sectors, past experience, access to networks and resources, registration status, locations and reach (catchment population so we are able to identify later areas that lack such groups), static or mobile presence, connections to national, regional and global networks, and any other information that might be useful for IRC to determine how to engage with each of them in its programming.
• Basic social network analysis showing how these organizations and partners engage with one another, with regional and global networks and with communities they work in.
• Based on the above mapping exercise, analyze, and provide a criteria/definition for the various type, i.e., organizations vs. groups vs. committees vs. other present in Sierra Leone.

Methodology:

The proposed methodology is divided into three phases below. The consultant is free to propose an alternative or modified methodology for IRC’s review.

Phase 1: Desk Review

• Review of existing data on Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women led or women focused organizations in Sierra Leone.
• Review of existing studies and literature, if any, on Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led community-based groups and community-based structures that support women and girls in the areas of interest.

Phase 2: Data Collection

• Based on desk review and consultations with IRC program teams, the consultant will design or adapt existing IRC data collection tools to collect data for the field-based mapping exercise for the Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups in the agreed areas
• Using the approved tools, the consultant will conduct a field-based mapping exercise for Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and/or women-focused organizations in the areas of agreed areas.

Phase 3: Ranking and profiling Potential Partners

• Using a pre-agreed criterion, profile four (4) organizations from each category (CSO, government, private sector where 50% of each category are women led or focused) per geographical area with the highest potential for strategic partnership with IRC

Deliverables:

The consultant will be responsible for the following deliverables:

1. Inception summary to cover the consultant’s understanding of the assignment, analysis framework, detailed work plan, proposed case study and final report structure
2. Initial desk review report
3. Final adapted tools for tools for mapping and profiling
4. Field sourced map and profile for Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups
5. Draft of the report for review
6. Producing the final report containing an executive summary, findings, analysis, conclusions, and actionable recommendations including the proposed organizations for strategic partnership
7. Final analysis report summary in visual presentation format.

The IRC will be responsible for the following:

• Providing background on the IRC’s existing programs and activities, including guidance notes on definitions of Civil Society Organizations, Government and Private Sector actors including women-led and women-focused organizations/groups
• Providing available information on Program Areas, Geographical coverage, and contacts
• Providing timely feedback on the submitted reports, data collection tools and briefs.
• Providing technical guidance and support.
• The IRC will provide the Consultant with accommodation at an IRC Guest House where available or hotel in the field.
• The IRC will not provide any meals and/or DSA but the Consultant will meet their own costs for meals and any additional human resource support they will need.

Required Qualifications and Experience:

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree or equivalent in International Development, Gender Studies, Social Policy, journalism, or similar fields and minimum three years of experience in humanitarian assistance.
• Demonstrated experience in conducting mapping activities. Preference given to persons with experience in gender-specific mapping exercise.
• Strong ability to analyze data and develop concrete, actionable recommendations.
• Excellent oral and written communications skills and demonstrated ability to write and produce documents under pressure of a deadline.
• Familiarity with the areas of specific interest for IRC programming
• Excellent English speaking/writing skills

Treatment of Information and Confidentiality:

All data and information received for the purpose of this assignment is to be treated confidentially and is only to be used in connection with the execution of these terms of reference. All intellectual property rights arising from the execution of these terms of reference are assigned to the IRC. The contents of written material obtained and used in this assignment may not be disclosed to any third parties without the expressed advance written authorization of the IRC.

Consultancy Manager: Deputy Director of Programs, IRC Sierra Leone, based in Freetown

Consultant will liaise directly with the Senior Grants Coordinator and/or Grants Coordinator from the Sierra Leone Country Program.

Note: List of responsibilities, professional and personal skills are considered indicative and not exhaustive; actual duties may differ or change depending on office and agency priorities at the time.

Applications  

Apply on-line from the IRC careers website. Applicants should attach:

• CV
• Past performance references for similar assignments.
• Writing sample of an evaluation report or relevant study (unedited).
• Financial proposal, including any costs necessary to complete the assignment, consultant number of days and daily professional fee rates
• Adherence to IRC’s safeguarding policies is a must.

See Below Link to Apply:

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