Appel à manifestation d’intérêt : Organisation Internationale du Travail(OIT) recrute un.e Consultant international pour une meilleure gestion régionale des migrations Évaluation de l’évaluabilité du programme à Djibouti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. PROJECT OBJECTIVES, EXPECTED RESULTS, BENEFICIARIES AND TIMELINE

The Better regional migration management (BRMM) project will continue the work carried out by BRMM project phase I and will focus on strengthening the capacities of countries in East and Horn of Africa to govern labour migration by using evidence-based policies, enhancing migrant workers’ qualifications and skills, and actively engaging the social partners. The project will cover three inter-related components of interventions, namely:

  • Outcome 1 – Labour migration policies and programmes that support productive migration in East Africa and Horn of Africa are evidence-based and gender sensitive.
  • Outcome 2 – Labour migration governance is more equitable and effective recognizing skills and facilitating social inclusion and decent work;
  • Outcome 3 – Labour migration governance is strengthened through being more inclusive of social partners.

The imperativeness of strengthening each of these 3 pillars has been recognized widely by both countries of origin and destination, as well as by employers and workers’ organizations, providing a basis for dialogue and action within and across countries.

The BRMM project stakeholders are:

  • Governments, and primarily ministries of labour, education, foreign affairs and interior, national statistics offices, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institutions, and other relevant government bodies at the national and subnational levels.
  • African Union Commission and Regional Economic Communities, namely IGAD and EAC
  • Employers’ and Workers organizations and their members in countries covered by the project
  • National and regional social security institutions and associations such as the East and Central Africa Social Security Association (ECASSA)
  • Private employment agencies, civil society organizations and research / academic institutions.
  • International and developmental partners.
  • UN Organizations.

In accordance with International Labour Organization (ILO) policy governing technical cooperation projects, an evaluability assessment is required for the BRMM project in the first 12 months. To support results-based management of ILO projects and programmes, it is critical that their design meet the minimum standards for monitoring and evaluation (M&E). This can be determined by assessing a set of design-specific aspects prior to implementation, which are defined as “evaluability.”

The project started in July 2022 with the inception phase and has consisted with mainly the establishment of management frameworks to govern and guide the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the project at three levels namely:

  • Tier 1 – Steering committee (SC) at Political level (Regional);
  • Tier 2 – Labour migration advisory group (LMAG) at technical level (Regional); and
  • Tier 3 – Technical Working group (WG) at technical level (National).

This phase will also facilitate the recruitment and establishment of the project management team.

One of the priorities of the project team was to put in place a system to regularly collect and analyse data on implementation, to assess actions, make evidence-based decisions to redirect and adjust actions if necessary. That is the purpose of this evaluability assessment, which aims to assess the effectiveness of these mechanisms put in place and the extent to which they can facilitate the evaluability of the project at the mid-term and at the end of its implementation.

The assessment will be guided by the ILO’s evaluability instrument to score the BRMM project on a set of M&E criteria and provide recommendations for improvement. It will review the programme’s M&E strategy in 7 areas:

  1. Clarity of objectives/outcomes
  2. Quality of Indicators
  3. Establishment of baselines
  4. Inclusion of time-bound milestones
  5. Assessment of risks and assumptions
  6. Comprehensiveness of M&E system
  7. Validity of methodology for gender analysis

The evaluability assessment will be conducted in compliance with the principles and standards for project evaluation set forth in the ILO Policy guidelines for results-based evaluation[1].

  1. COMPREHENSIVE MONITORING AND EVALUATION SYSTEM (CMES) AND MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS

Comprehensive Monitoring and Evaluation System

During the inception phase, BRMM project has developed its Comprehensive M&E system (MEL plan) that integrates a revised log frame, Theory of changes, Performance Indicators and Targets, detailed implementation plan, MEL operation plan, Evaluation plan, Learning Plan, and indicator performance tracking table (IPTT), to facilitate a shift towards a more rigorous and data-driven strategy for measurement of results and learning.

The M&E system outlines the objectives, criteria and indicators that will provide the basis for evaluating the project. The approach developed will serve four main purposes:

  1. Results-based management: To obtain empirical data on the results of the project in order to provide an evidence base for strategic planning.
  2. Learning and knowledge sharing: To document good practices and lessons learned that will contribute to the global knowledge base on child labour.
  3. Capacity development: To build the capacity of partners to apply a more results-based approach to policy and practice.
  4. Accountability: To ensure accountability to programme stakeholders and from implementing partners for achieving results that are in-line with expectations.

Management arrangements for monitoring and evaluation

Overall responsibility for management of the M&E system lies with the Chief Technical Advisor of BRMM project. This establishes a direct linkage between management decision-making and the results produced by the project.

Technical leadership for the design, implementation and backstopping of the M&E system is provided by the National M&E and Knowledge Sharing Officer based in Ethiopia. The National M&E and Knowledge Sharing Officer is also responsible for maintaining the relevance of the approach through making any adjustments that are necessary to respond to programmatic changes and lessons learned during the course of the programme. In addition, any M&E related queries or data requests by the donor and any other partner will be addressed by the National M&E and Knowledge Sharing Officer.

The Technical Officer based in Ethiopia and National Project Coordinators (in different countries) are responsible for data collection, use for management and learning and reporting within the scope of their countries and partnerships.

Presentation of progress by the project team at the different level of the management framework will provide the opportunity for stakeholders (government, social partners and civil society organizations) to obtain a clear understanding of achievements and challenges and provide input on adjustments to be made.

  1. EVALUABILITY ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES, CRITERIA, SCOPE AND CLIENTS
  2. Objectives

The evaluability assessment will assess the M&E strategy developed for the BRMM project to achieve four main objectives:

  1. Determine the extent to which the BRMM project has been designed in a manner that will allow for valid and impartial assessment of programme performance, providing information to support programme management decisions, and stakeholder needs.
  2. Determine the monitoring and evaluation capacities and gaps of key partners, further to the resources and management arrangements put in place by the project to implement its CM&ES plan.
  3. Define the causal logic and results-level linkages between the project, the Decent work country programs (DWCPs) of countries covered by the project, ILO Country program Objectives (CPO) as well as other national, sub-regional, continental and global level developmental frameworks and approaches.
  4. Provide recommendations for improving the project current CM&E strategy to improve the program’s evaluability (by the project and its stakeholders and by independent evaluators).
  5. Criteria.
  1. Qualification and Experience
  • Advanced university degree in statistics, demographics economics, public policy, international development sociology or a related discipline.
  • Minimum of 7 years’ professional experience in on conducting evaluations of and/or implementing M&E systems of similar complex regional projects
  • Proven understanding and experience of project M&E systems/strategies design and implementation (including quantitative, qualitative and participatory), logical framework, theory of change and other strategic planning approaches, information analysis and report writing
  • Fluency in written and spoken English. Oral French would be an asset but not mandatory
  • Excellent consultative, communication and interviewing skills
  • Demonstrated ability to deliver quality results within strict deadlines
  • Experience and knowledge of labor migration issues will be an asset
  • Understanding of Decent Work concepts and the ILO’s normative mandate and tripartite structure will be an asset
  • Knowledge of the UN System and of UN evaluation norms and its programming
  • Understanding of the development context of covered or similar countries in Africa.
  • No involvement in the project.

All interested individual consultant can send questions if any to ([email protected] ) until 10 May 2023. Questions will be answered and shared with the interested organizations by Close of Business on 15 May 2023.

Completed technical and financial proposals are to be submitted to [email protected] by Close of Business on 23 May 2023