TENDER NOTICE: BASELINE SURVEY Community Health Advancement and Networking for Growth and Empowerment

Job Description

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

TERMS OF REFERENCE

BASELINE SURVEY

Community Health Advancement and Networking for Growth and Empowerment (CHANGE)

1. About MoPADA-SL

Movement towards Peace and Development Agency–Sierra Leone (MoPADA-SL) is a national NGO dedicated to enhancing the quality of life of vulnerable populations, particularly children and women, through community and systemic change. The organization focuses on impactful outcomes by collaborating with Local Councils, District Health Management Teams and community leaders to implement community-led programmes in areas such as WASH, health, nutrition and socio-economic empowerment. MoPADA-SL emphasizes inclusivity and has partnered with agencies including the European Union and UNICEF to address pressing needs in Sierra Leone.

2. Project Background

MoPADA-SL, in collaboration with German Doctors e.V. and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), is implementing a two-year project titled “Community Health Advancement and Networking for Growth and Empowerment (CHANGE)” across five chiefdoms in Kailahun District: Peje West, Peje Bongre, Upper Bambara, Yawei and Jawie.

The project seeks to enhance primary healthcare service delivery and access while strengthening accountability mechanisms at individual, collective and institutional levels. It will use context-appropriate capacity-building approaches, including technical support, peer learning and training.

The project places strong emphasis on citizen engagement so that communities can participate more effectively in monitoring service delivery, engaging service providers and interacting with local authorities. It will also address identified gaps in the existing WEL BODI programme by improving rural communities’ access to health and nutrition information through health education campaigns and community engagement, thereby contributing to a culture of accountability in healthcare delivery.

3. Beneficiaries and Project Reach

Direct beneficiaries will include 555 women of reproductive age, 500 young people and adolescents, 600 children and 125 members of Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). Indirect beneficiaries will include more than 112,566 community members in the relevant catchment areas, together with health and facility management committees.

4. Project Goal and Expected Outcome

The overarching goal of the project is to empower populations with enhanced health literacy and support systems, contributing to community health systems strengthening in Kailahun District.

The expected outcome is increased utilization of improved primary healthcare services among women, children and youth, while strengthening local health structures for better service quality and accessibility.

5. Purpose of the Baseline Survey

MoPADA-SL is seeking a qualified consultant or consultancy firm to conduct a baseline survey for the two-year CHANGE project. The baseline will establish the pre-intervention status of health knowledge, healthcare-seeking behaviours, access to and utilization of primary healthcare services, perceived service quality, community participation and social accountability, and the capacity of relevant community and health structures in the project’s operational communities.

6. Baseline Objectives

6.1 Overall Objective

To establish baseline values and assess the prevailing conditions related to health literacy, healthcare-seeking behaviour, primary healthcare access and utilization, service quality, community participation, social accountability and local health-system capacity in the five target chiefdoms, thereby providing a credible basis for measuring project progress and results.

6.2 Specific Objectives

• Assess health literacy and knowledge related to primary healthcare, maternal and child health, sexual and reproductive health, nutrition and family planning among women of reproductive age, adolescents, young people, caregivers and other relevant community members.
• Determine the current utilization of primary healthcare services, including antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, postnatal care, immunization and adolescent-friendly services among relevant target groups.
• Assess healthcare-seeking behaviours and identify geographical, financial, cultural, gender-related and other barriers affecting access to and utilization of primary healthcare services.
• Assess the availability, accessibility and perceived quality of primary healthcare services, including staffing, essential supplies, infrastructure and service responsiveness.
• Assess the capacity and functionality of community and health-facility structures, including community health workers and facility management committees, to support health promotion, oversight and accountability.
• Assess levels of citizen participation and social accountability in healthcare delivery, including awareness of rights, participation in health planning and use of feedback and complaint mechanisms.
• Establish baseline values for key project indicators that can be used to track changes in health literacy, service utilization, community engagement and health-system strengthening throughout the project period.

7. Key Baseline Questions

8. Scope of the Assignment

The consultant will cover the five project chiefdoms—Peje West, Peje Bongre, Upper Bambara, Yawei and Jawie—and engage relevant project participants, community members and stakeholders. The assignment should cover, as applicable, women of reproductive age, young people and adolescents, caregivers/households, children through appropriate respondent or caregiver approaches, VSLA members, community health workers, facility management structures, health service providers, local leaders and other relevant stakeholders.

The consultant should ensure that the design and implementation of the baseline appropriately address gender, age, social inclusion and ethical considerations.

9. Methodology and Approach

The consultant is expected to propose a robust mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative and qualitative methods. The methodology should be proportionate to the project objectives, feasible within the timeframe and capable of generating reliable baseline values.

9.1 Minimum methodological components

Desk review of project documents, relevant secondary data and MoPADA internal documents, as applicable.

Quantitative field data collection through an appropriate household/community or beneficiary survey.

Qualitative data collection through key informant interviews, focus group discussions and/or other appropriate participatory methods with stakeholders and beneficiaries.

Assessment of relevant community and health-facility structures and service delivery conditions, where appropriate.

Data quality assurance, including enumerator training, piloting/pre-testing of tools, supervision, validation and appropriate data cleaning procedures.

Analysis that disaggregates findings, where appropriate, by sex, age, chiefdom and relevant beneficiary category.

Integration of gender and social inclusion considerations throughout the design, data collection, analysis and reporting processes.

9.2 Sampling and analysis

The consultant shall propose and justify the sampling strategy, sample size, respondent selection procedures and analytical methods in the technical proposal and inception report. The proposed approach should provide sufficient rigour to establish credible baseline estimates while remaining feasible within the approved timeframe and resources.

10. Ethical and Data Protection Considerations

Obtain informed consent from all adult participants before data collection.

Use appropriate assent and consent procedures when collecting information involving children or adolescents.

Maintain confidentiality and anonymity of respondents and securely store all research data.

Ensure participation is voluntary and that respondents may decline to answer or withdraw without consequence.

Use trained data collectors who understand safeguarding, confidentiality, respectful interviewing and referral procedures for sensitive issues.

Avoid collecting unnecessary personally identifiable information.

11. Expected Deliverables

The final report should include: Executive Summary; Introduction/Background; Methodology; Findings; Conclusion; Recommendations; and Annexes, including an updated logframe/results matrix with baseline indicator values and the data collection tools.

All narrative deliverables must be submitted in both editable and PDF formats. Raw and cleaned datasets must be submitted digitally in an agreed format.

12. Proposed Workplan and Timeline

13. Reporting and Management Arrangements

The consultant will report to the German Doctors e.V. Country Representative in Sierra Leone and will work closely with designated MoPADA-SL and German Doctors e.V. focal persons. Regular progress updates will be expected throughout the assignment. All major methodological decisions, fieldwork arrangements and deliverables will be subject to review and approval by the designated project representatives.

14. Payment Schedule

The consultant is responsible for all logistics and operational costs required to complete the assignment unless otherwise specified in the contract.

15. Required Qualifications and Experience

• A registered and reputable consultancy firm or individual consultant with at least five years of relevant consultancy experience and evidence of successfully completing similar assignments.
• The Lead Consultant should possess a university degree or equivalent qualification in social sciences or a related field, with demonstrated expertise in monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment. Additional qualifications in project management will be an advantage.
• Demonstrated experience in health promotion, disease prevention, community health, primary healthcare and/or related public health programming.
• Demonstrated capacity to design and implement mixed-methods baseline studies, including quantitative surveys and qualitative research.
• Experience working with NGOs, development agencies, donor-funded programmes and relevant government/community structures is desirable.
• Strong analytical, report-writing and communication skills, with the ability to present findings clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• 16. Technical Evaluation Criteria

17. Proposal Submission Requirements

Interested consultants/consultancy firms should submit a technical and financial proposal containing, at minimum:

• Technical proposal demonstrating understanding of the assignment and proposed methodology.
• Detailed work plan and timeline.
• Proposed sampling and data analysis approach.
• Financial proposal with a clear and itemized budget.
• CV of the Lead Consultant and CVs of other proposed key team members.
• Evidence of relevant previous assignments, including examples of comparable work where available.
• Brief profile and legal/registration information of the consultancy firm, where applicable.

Applications should be submitted by email to abdulai.kamara@ext.german-doctors.de and copied to fanta.daboh@ext.german-doctors.de no later than 24 August 2026.

18. Confidentiality and Ownership of Outputs

All information, datasets, tools, analysis and reports generated under this assignment shall be treated as confidential and used solely for the purposes of the CHANGE project. Ownership and permitted use of the final outputs and project data shall be governed by the consultancy contract.