Country: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Closing date: 22 Jun 2017
1. BACKGROUND
Plan International is a non-religious, non-political and non-governmental child centred international organization, operating in 70 countries in Africa, Asia, Middle East and South America to advance children's rights and with a particular focus on equality for girls and youth. Plan International implements programmes in child protection, sexual and reproductive health, education, water and sanitation, livelihoods and youth economic empowerment, including in emergencies and humanitarian settings.
Child Protection in Emergencies programming is intended to mitigate and respond to increased risk of exploitation, abuse and violence facing boys and girls when disaster hits communities. A focus area for Plan International is Modern Day Slavery. This includes serious human rights violations of children including the worst forms of child labour, such as bonded and forced labour, trafficking for sexual exploitation and recruitment into armed groups and forces, as well as some forms of child, early and forced marriage.
A global review of the worst forms of child labour in 2014 undertaken by the global Child Labour Task Force under the former global Child Protection Working Group, showed gaps in effective prevention and response to hazardous and worst forms of child labour in emergencies.
Today, there is more attention for modern slavery in humanitarian settings, as a result of increased disasters, more people being displaced than ever before, the rise of terror groups such as Boko Haram and IS, and on-going and protracted conflicts. However, gaps remain in the data about how many and in which ways children are affected by modern slavery, and there is limited analysis of how gender plays a role in affecting girls and boys differently. There is still limited documentation within this field of protection and there is a need to better understand which prevention and response interventions are most effective to reach and address the needs of these children.
1.1. Project context: The study will focus on humanitarian and fragile contexts in selected countries where Plan International has active programming in this field, both in prevention and in response to modern child slavery, involving the worst forms of child labour. These countries are: Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria, Tanzania, South Sudan, Nepal and Myanmar, Philippines.
1.2. Project rationale: Plan International is leading this initiative to contribute to the global evidence-base data on modern slavery and children in fragile contexts. The review and detailed documentation of Plan International’s programming in this field aim to contribute to the evidence gathering and compilation of lessons learnt, and providing recommendations on best practices for future programming. This project will particularly focus on collecting data on the gender and age dynamics of modern day slavery.
1.3. Project aims and objectives: To conduct a review of modern day slavery and children in humanitarian settings and to document Plan International’s prevention as well as response work related to modern slavery including bonded and forced labour, trafficking, recruitment into armed forces as well as forms of child, early and forced marriage in fragile contexts.
1.4. Outputs
To conduct a review of modern day slavery, including forms of forced and early marriage, forced and bonded child labour, children associated with armed groups and forces and trafficking of children in humanitarian settings.
Documentation of Plan International’s programming in relation to different forms of modern day slavery and children in humanitarian and fragile contexts with specific attention to the gender and age dimension. The review will include production of 7 case studies on Plan International’s programming. This document will also include key findings, overall trends, opportunities, gaps, along with recommendations on best practices.
NB: The review should not exceed 30 pages, including executive summary and case studies.
1.5. Time frame: the execution of the research is to be completed by 15 August 2017
2. OBJECTIVE OF THE CONSULTANCY
2.1. To contribute to global evidence on both strategies and effective and relevant programming on modern day slavery in emergencies.
2.3. To identify, capture and document best practices from Plan International programmes in 7 selected programme countries on the modern slavery agenda (bonded and forced labour, trafficking, recruitment of children in conflict, as well as forms of early and forced marriage)
2.4. To improve programme design and delivery in emergencies related to modern day slavery and worst forms of child labour.
2.5. To contribute to gathering evidence based data on modern day slavery and children for future advocacy campaigns based on research findings.
3. METHODOLOGIES
3.1. The research will involve desk based review, literature review, documenting and analysing project activities, including through telephone interviews with relevant CO staff and other key informants and practitioners working on modern day slavery and children in emergencies.
3.2. The consultant is requested to propose his/her own methodology and/ or approach for how he/she will cover all the key questions.
4. KEY ACTIVITIES/SCOPE OF WORK
4.1. Completion of the consultancy will involve:
Developing a detailed work plan and outlining research methodology, including key sources of information and research tools. The methodology will be shared and agreed upon with Plan International UK before the commencement of work.
Participating in the initial briefings with Plan International UK to ensure that the consultant is clear on the expectations of the research. Plan International UK will provide the list of key informants from our country offices and external stakeholders known in the field of modern slavery to be interviewed.
Developing the research tools which will be shared with Plan for discussion and agreed upon by the two parties before the research starts.
Present to Plan the key findings and allow discussion and input from the team through debrief.
Submit draft report to Plan for review, comments and inputs which will be taken into consideration before submission of the final report.
Confidentiality of issues discussed shall be safeguarded by the consultant/s in all aspects of (e.g. the study presentation package; individual project case studies; overarching synthesis report).
5. RESEARCH REPORT
5.1. The production of the research report will be the liability of the researcher(s) covering all the evaluation questions, objectives and areas outlined in this ToR. Plan International UK will be responsible for coordinating the research exercise, in partnership with Plan International Country offices. During the research process, the researcher will keep the organisation up to date and agree on changes to the methodology where appropriate.
5.2. The report shall be produced in English language and should be simple in expression (jargon free).
5.3. The Executive summary should include a brief description of the project, a brief section on methodology but with most text for conclusions and summary of recommendation. The text should be an A4 paper size in Calibri font size 11 and no longer than 30 pages including case studies and executive summary (excluding appendices).
5.4. The consultant will be liable to submit an electronic version of the evaluation report in PDF Version by the agreed deadline.
5.5. The final product should be fully referenced, with findings clearly linked to evidence.
6. ANTICIPATED OUTPUT
6.1 The evaluation will result in the following outputs/deliverables:
Inception report including detailed proposed work plan.
Research tools.
Draft report for input and feedback from Plan
Final report addressing all objectives, research questions and including clear recommendations.
Presentation of the key findings, lessons learnt and recommendations during a launching event.
7. TIME FRAME
The research process will take 15 days including: preparation, interview with Plan Country Offices or relevant external informants, and report writing. It is expected that the consultant starts as soon as possible and completes latest by 15 August 2017. The consultant will follow the agreed work plan.
8. REPORTING LINE AND LOGISTICS
8.1. The consultant shall work under the supervision of Plan UK CPiE Programme Officer
8.2. The International IH will play an advisory role in the planning and implementation of the review.
8.3. The consultant and the relevant Plan international staff will meet as per the agreed timings, particularly at stages in the research process when deliverables are produced.
9. SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES
9.1. The desired specifications and qualities of the consultant(s) are:
A minimum of 6 years’ experience in carrying out research, demonstrable relevant academic and practical experience in qualitative and quantitative research methodology, research design and implementation.
Good understanding of children’s rights with a particular focus on child protection and with proven background in carrying out similar research topics.
Strong analytical, facilitation and communication skills, especially with regards to working with children and youth.
Knowledge of child protection procedures when working with children and youths.
Experience of effective interaction with local and national organizations, government departments, and marginalized communities in rural and urban areas.
Conversant with child protection in emergencies, gender in emergencies and analysis, child rights and advocacy.
Good spoken and written communication skills in English. Knowledge of French would be an asset.
CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION
All documents and data collected will be treated as confidential and used solely to facilitate analysis.
Where necessary, the respondents will not be quoted in the reports without their permission.
All those contracted by Plan must agree to sign and abide by the Child Protection Policy.
How to apply:
10. BID REQUIREMENTS
10.1. Interested consultants or firms are requested to submit:
An Expression of Interest detailing their interpretation of the TOR, proposed methodology including sampling framework and work schedule.
A detailed budget for proposed costs including all taxes liable to be paid
A capability statement demonstrating how they meet the required qualifications and competencies;
Copies of all relevant Curriculum Vitae (CVs). Only CVs for the specific individuals that will form the proposed evaluation team should be included.
A sample of a research report for a similar project completed within the last 24 months (this will be treated as confidential and only used for the purposes of quality assurance) along with contact details for the responsible person from the organisation for whom the evaluation was done.
Two references (including one from your last client/employer).
N/B: The entire bid should be a maximum seven (7) pages including the budget. Bids not meeting this requirement will not be considered.
11. APPLICATION PROCEDURE
11.1. If you believe you qualify for this post and you are the candidate that we are looking for, please submit your applications as per the bid requirements in English by submitting proposals to huda.ghalegolabi@plan-uk.org
11.2. The closing date for this post is 22 June 2017
11.3. The shortlisted 3-4 candidates may be invited to submit modifications or make a short presentation for the final selection.
11.4. We are committed to ensuring diversity and gender equality within our organization.