Time Commitment: 17 days, to finish by 31 May 2023
Location: Remote, travel to Thailand and/or Myanmar may be considered
WHO ARE WE?
International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is an Australian-based organisation, resourcing diverse women’s rights organisations primarily in Asia and the Pacific, and contributing to global feminist movements to advance our vision of gender equality for all. We have worked for more than 35 years to defend and advance the rights of diverse women and girls.
Our roots are in the development sector, as Australia’s only development organisation entirely focused on gender equality. This brings strengths in the form of deep and long-lasting relationships with the network of women’s rights organisations we support. And increasingly, our future lies as part of the global feminist movement.
IWDA’s approach represents a third way between the models of women’s funds and international development NGOs: we resource the work of diverse women’s rights organisations, enable them to be more effective by providing support that goes beyond money, and we make our own contributions to feminist movements through advocacy, knowledge creation and translation.
OUR VISION
Gender equality for all
OUR PURPOSE
To defend and advance the rights of diverse women and girls.
VALUES
Feminist, Accountable, Collaborative, Transformative
All IWDA consultants are required to
Support and demonstrate IWDA’s Values and Behavioural Competencies
Act at all times in accordance with IWDA’s Code of Conduct and Policies
Comply with IWDA’s Occupational, Health, Safety & Wellbeing Policy and practices
Support a child safe organisation and undertake a police check prior to commencement and every 3 years thereafter.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Women Leading Change (WLC) is a five-year programme to support Women’s Rights Organisations (WROs) and feminist movements to advance gender equality and the rights of women and girls in Myanmar. The programme started in March 2022, and is delivered by IWDA with three WROs based in Thailand and Myanmar.
WLC’s theory of change is based on the Gender at Work Framework and is designed to enable the program to be flexible and adaptive to ensure timely and appropriate support for WROs and their communities as needs evolve. WLC’s Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) follows this approach and is iterative, and evidence based. The purpose of WLC’s MEAL is to strengthen the implementing partners activities and help the programme meet its outcomes.
The MEAL has two complementary approaches: outcome-level monitoring and structured reflection. Based on IWDA’s feminist approaches, it intends to maximise the responsiveness and positive impacts of the programme, following these guiding principles: 1) Participatory; 2) Adaptive and iterative; 3) Transformational; 4) Accountable; and 5) Do No Harm.
Details of these approaches and principles can be found in WLC’s Programme Narrative and MEAL Framework.
CONSULTANCY BACKGROUND
IWDA is seeking a consultant or a team of consultants with extensive experience in monitoring and evaluation for culturally and linguistically diverse target audiences in the Global South to conduct baseline data collection for the WLC programme, guided by its Programme Narrative, MEAL Framework, Theory of Change and Results Framework. This work will provide a baseline for IWDA and the implementing partners to understand changes over the WLC programme life cycle.
The consultant(s) will work closely with the IWDA team (and the implementing partners to:
Assess the capacity of the feminist movement in Myanmar, using the Global Fund for Women Movement Capacity Assessment Tool
Develop a baseline understanding of women’s roles in the decision-making process of key socio-political entities in Myanmar
Explore and document WLC’s progress during the first year against the programme’s high-level outcomes
SERVICES TO BE PROVIDED
Once the consultant(s) have been contracted, the baseline data collection process will be carried out through three phases: Planning Phase, Data Collection Phase, and Synthesis Phase; and it will be guided by the following documents:
WLC’s programme documents: Programme Narrative, MEAL Plan, Theory of Change, and Results Framework.
Global Fund for Women Movement Capacity Assessment methodology and tool
IWDA’s Feminist Research Framework: IWDA strives to observe the highest ethical standards in any research or evaluation conducted through programs. As a result, IWDA has developed a Feminist Research Framework that will need to inform the design and implementation of the evaluation.
Planning Phase
After reviewing the above documents and discussing the scope of work with IWDA and the implementing partners, the consultant(s) will develop a methodology for the Data Collection Phase and Synthesis Phase, including but not limited to: detailed workplan; approach to undertaking the Capacity Assessment survey; recommended approach to developing the baseline to measure women’s participation in political leadership at all levels; indicative list of people to be interviewed; risk management plan, need for interpretation/translation; and dates of any travel and itinerary (if field trip is proposed).
The consultant(s) should adopt a consultative and participative approach in the work plan that is flexible enough to accommodate for any necessary changes in the field. The methodology needs to base on the information contained in this terms of reference, and should outline the consultation process, including the mix between individual interviews and focus groups/workshops.
During the Planning Phase, the consultant(s) will also prepare for the capacity assessment of the women’s movement in Myanmar based on the tool designed by the Global Fund for Women. Derived from the suggested questionnaire in the tool, the consultant(s) will customise and contextualise the survey questions to make them relevant to WLC, its stakeholders, and the socio-political contexts in Myanmar. The consultant(s) will then develop a comprehensive online survey in both English and Burmese and upload it in a secure online platform. The methodology for the survey should outline an approach to ensure an appropriate sample size and that respondents represent different parts of the movement,
Persons invited for interview and to participate in the survey can include WLC’s stakeholders, people who are actively engaged in the feminist movement in Myanmar, and can be extended to their alliances and networks. IWDA will provide an initial contact list which can be supplemented by the consultant(s). In conducting interviews and workshops with participants, it is the responsibility of the consultant(s) to ensure that there is informed consent from all involved. It is essential that the information provided by interviewees and survey respondents is kept private and secure. The consultant(s) is/are expected to develop interviewing/survey procedures that ensure data security as part of a comprehensive risk management plan.
The outputs of the Planning Phase are:
A detailed methodology for data collection and synthesis, with detailed workplan, specific milestones, timeline, list of potential interviewees, and consultation process with IWDA and the implementing partners.
A contextualised online survey based on the Global Fund for Women Movement Capacity Assessment tool hosted on a secure platform in both English and Burmese with a list of potential survey respondents with contact information.
A detailed risk management plan for data collection and synthesis, including how to securely conduct interviews and online survey and safely release the findings, with careful consideration of digital security.
These outputs will be submitted to IWDA in a Desk Report by an agreed date.
Data Collection Phase
The Data Collection Phase will commence following IWDA’s approval of the Desk Report.
The consultant(s) will collect data through three separate activities as listed below.
Release the online survey to assess women movement capacity in Myanmar through two main stages:
Invite people in the list of potential survey respondents to complete the online survey
Monitor the survey participation, including trouble-shoot survey questions and invite additional stakeholders as needed
Conduct a desk review of documents prepared by civil society organisations and local and international organisations that summarise and analyse the policies, laws, frameworks and mechanisms adopted by political entities in Myanmar that enhance gender equality and the rights of women and girls.[1]
Undertake a baseline assessment of women’s participation in socio-political leadership as outlined in the methodology.
Conduct interviews and/or focus group discussions with programme stakeholders. The consultant will be required to:
Conduct interview/focus group discussion with relevant stakeholders to explore and document what progress has been made against the programme’s high-level outcomes within the first year.
Identify lessons learnt and opportunities to adapt the programme
Apply a contribution analysis approach to describe (a) progress against each outcome, and (b) the contribution of the WLC programme to any progress
[1] The consultant(s) may propose collecting and analysing primary source documents from political entities in Myanmar if they consider this could be done without causing harm to the programme. This should be proposed in the methodology.
Synthesis Phase
This phase is for the preparation and presentation of the preliminary findings, and preparation of the final report. The preliminary findings will be reviewed with IWDA and implementing partners through a Discussion Seminar, to engage IWDA and implementing partners in co-analysis and co-interpretation of findings. On the basis of work completed at the Discussion Seminar, the consultant(s) will develop the final report. The Discussion Seminar may be combined with the programme’s Annual Reflection Workshop in May 2023.
To develop preliminary findings, it is expected that the consultant(s) will:
Analyse the results of the women movement capacity assessment in Myanmar using the survey designed based on the Global Fund for Women Movement Capacity Assessment tool. This can include visual summaries (e.g., graphs, charts).
Prepare an analysis of policies/ laws/ frameworks/ mechanisms/ procedures related to enhancing gender equality and the rights of women and girls, and an analysis of women’s current participation in decision making, as described above.
Prepare a short summary of progress against WLC programme high-level outcomes, the extent to which the WLC programme has contributed to any progress, and future opportunities.
Report Requirements
The reports must follow IWDA’s Feminist Research Framework and match IWDA’s quality standards and style guide. The text of the report should be illustrated, as appropriate, with maps, graphs, and tables.
The consultant will submit the following reports in English:
Methodology (of maximum 6 pages, main text, excluding annexes) to be submitted at the end of the Planning Phase, as described in section 9 above.
Draft Report (of maximum 15 pages plus annexes) using the recommended structure and taking due account of comments received from the reference group members. The draft report should be submitted to IWDA within 21 days from finalisation of the Data Collection Phase. Adjustment of the report may need to be made after the Discussion Seminar with relevant stakeholders.
Final Report (of maximum 15 pages plus annexes).
Distribution of all reports in electronic version will be sent directly to IWDA by the due dates. All documents and discussions relating to this evaluation are confidential and all products remain the property of IWDA.
Timeline & Budget
Deadline for the consultancy application is 22 January 2023. Following that, a total of seventeen (17) days consultancy service shall be rendered after the signing of the contract, tentatively by 31 January 2023.
Remuneration shall be based on IWDA consultancy rate, according to qualifications and experience of the final applicant. Any expenses associated with the evaluation activity, such as travel, accommodation, meals, etc. will be covered by IWDA.
REQUIREMENT SKILLS & EXPERIENCE OF THE CONSULTANTS
The consultant/s should possess the following skills and experience:
Commitment to feminist practices and approaches
At least a master’s degree in political science, international development, peace, conflict, and security studies, and/or another relevant discipline.
At least 5-7 years of relevant professional and diversified experience in support of gender and development initiatives for culturally and linguistically diverse target audiences in the Global South and have conducted at least 3-5 evaluations for programmes promoting gender equality, women’s human rights, and feminist movement capacity strengthening, especially in Southeast Asia, Myanmar and/or other conflict-affected settings.
Extensive experience on data management and analysis with excellent attention to detail and commitment to data integrity, ensuring data is accurate, thoroughly, and appropriately analysed, and complies with data security requirements
Excellent facilitation, diplomatic, communication and networking skills with at least 7-10 years working in a sensitive working environment
Previous experience collaborating with stakeholders within and external to an organisation, and across hierarchies
Excellent time management and record of accomplishment of delivering projects on time and budget.
Ability to work autonomously under general direction and work remotely
Excellent command of English, both spoken and written
DESIRABLE
Applicants based in Myanmar and Thailand are preferable, speaking Burmese is an advantage
Strong knowledge of and experience with the Gender at Work Framework and the Global Fund for Women Movement Capacity Assessment Tool
Familiar with remote approach to baseline data collection, including phone interviews, online questionnaires, online focus group discussion, text messages, etc.
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
Candidates are invited to submit expressions of interest, including:
A cover letter of no more than 2 pages addressing the following:
An overview of your experience and skills
An outline of how you would approach delivering this project, including how you would integrate feminist and decolonial principles into your approach
Daily fee rate(s) for the work with total contract amount
If the proposal is for a team to complete the work, it must clearly state the roles and responsibilities of each team member.
The consultant(s) may propose additional days of input, but this must be justified.
An example of prior work.
Expressions of interest that do not cover these requirements will not be considered. Applications are required by 11.59pm 22 January 2023 and should be sent, along with any questions to the Programme Coordinator Kyi Kyi Win Oo at [email protected]
