Consultant Team for Project-level Baseline Assessments

Terms of Reference

Position Title: Consultant team for project-level baseline assessments (consulting contract): 02 lead consultants and 04 team members
Location: Hanoi, Son La and Lao Cai
Period of Assignment: May-October 2019
Reporting To: MERL Manager

Background:

With more than 30 years of experience, CowaterSogema is Canada’s global leader in management consulting services specializing in international development. We have managed the implementation of over 800 projects in more than 80 countries around the globe for clients such as DFID, DFAT Australia, the World Bank and Global Affairs Canada. We work with governments, partner organizations, communities and civil society to design and implement sustainable solutions that generate lasting social, economic and environmental impacts. Our adaptive approach to management has led to our award-winning work and recognition as one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies in 2017 and 2018.

CowaterSogema is recruiting a consulting team (a group of individual consultants) to conduct project-level baseline assessments to support the Aus4Equality|Gender Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT) Program. The GREAT Program is a flagship initiative of the Australian aid program in Vietnam – it commenced in November 2017 and will run until December 2021. The Program seeks to promote women’s economic empowerment in the ethnically diverse north-west region of Vietnam through market system development (MSD) in the agriculture and tourism sectors. Under GREAT, there will be approximately fifty separate projects each implemented by a lead partner. The projects are being launched between March and May 2019. Baseline assessments are going to be conducted between May and July 2019.

Statement of Duty:

The consulting team, especially the lead consultants (one for Lao Cao and one for Son La) with work closely with the technical and MERL teams of the GREAT program to conduct the baseline assessments according to GREAT’s Guide for Project-level Baseline Assessments.

The role will involve working closely with partners to implement the assessments though each stage. The successful team will coordinate with the GREAT team to ensure that partners participate sufficiently in the process to have real ownership of the data and use the outputs for designing project activities and measuring the
project’s performance The approach and support has to be nuanced based on the capacity of partner’s and the complexity of the project.

The team will need to conduct baseline assessments for approximately 30 projects implemented in seven districts in Lao Cai and Son La province. As these projects
may support the same products in the same districts, the team needs to develop an approach to the baseline assessments of all projects that is cost-effective and well-coordinated. Once the team is contracted, the consultants will be provided with concrete information of the projects and project areas to be able to revise the approach submitted by the team in the recruitment process.

Specific Duties:

Through working with the GREAT’s respective teams and partners, the consulting team will

  • Develop plans and tools for baseline assessments for the projects in the list provided by GREAT
  • Pilot and test the tools
  • Collect, clean, code and synthesize data, including quantitative and qualitative data, working with partners as appropriate
  • Create a database of the collected data
  • Write reports for individual baseline assessments in conjunction with partners
  • Prepare and share the synthesised findings in the Data and Reflect/Refocus workshop (to be decided)

Deliverables

  • Baseline assessment plan, including approach to the assessments of the projects of the same products and/or implemented in the same communes
  • Baseline assessment tools
  • Pilot test and tool test plan and report
  • Clean databases of every baseline assessment
  • Transcripts of in-depth interviews and/or focus group discussions if conducted
  • Baseline assessment reports
  • Presentation on synthesis of findings for Reflect/Refocus workshop (if required)

Required Qualifications

Lead consultants (02)

  • Master’s degree in related field.
  • A minimum of 10 years directly relevant experience.
  • Demonstrated understanding of MSD approach and project results chains in agriculture and tourism sectors
  • Proven track record of leading similar consulting team (evidence of at least two similar contracts implemented during the last five years)
  • Excellent understanding of quantitative and qualitative research
  • Ability to analyse and interpret data
  • Strong report writing skills and the ability to generate real insights
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills in Vietnamese and English.
  • Ability to manage multiple demands and prioritise tasks, work effectively and collaboratively with diverse stakeholders.
  • Ability to engage partners effectively in the assessment process
  • Strong organisational skills and attention to detail.
  • Good interactive skills
  • An understanding of gender and women’s economic empowerment is an advantage.

Team members (02 per each province, 04 in total)

  • University degree in related field
  • A minimum of five years directly relevant experience.
  • Ability to manage multiple demands and prioritise tasks, work effectively and collaboratively with diverse stakeholders.
  • Ability to engage partners effectively in the assessment process
  • Strong organisational skills and attention to detail.
  • Good interactive skills
  • An understanding of MSD approach and project’s results chains in agriculture and tourism sectors, of gender and women’s economic empowerment is an advantage

Contract arrangement

The maximum number of LOEs for this TOR is 150 work days. This takes into account the time that the GREAT staff, members of the Project Management Units and project partners who will involve in data collection.

Fees: following GREAT’s standard cost norms for consultant fee and reimbursable costs. Copy of the cost norms shall be provided via an email request to the below
email address.

Type of contract: Consultant Contract

Recruitment process

Interested consulting teams need to submit proposals to [email protected] by 5 pm (Hanoi time) 17 May 2019, indicating the subject line “GREAT – Baseline Assessment” The proposal should include:

  1. CVs of all team members, including confirmation of interest and availability by all members proposed.
  2. Outline of the technical approach and methodologies for the assessments (maximum 3 pages).
  3. Estimated LOEs and a detailed budget estimate of the consultancy fees.

The GREAT Guide for project level baseline assessments, cost norms and other relevant information will be provided by email upon request of interested teams.

Only shortlisted teams will be invited to have an interview. A final selection will be made based on the assessment of CVs, technical approach and methodologies and competitiveness of the fees.

Job Details
Organisation Name: 
Aus4Equality|GREAT Program
Vị trí: 
Hanoi, Son La and Lao Cai
Application Deadline: 
Fri, 2019-05-17