Terms of Reference (ToR) for a Consultant

Job Description

A Terms of Reference (ToR) for a Consultant to Conduct an Impact Assessment on the PROSSAN Project Implemented in Freetown Urban and Rural Districts

Project title: 

Improving the health of vulnerable communities, especially women, children, and adolescents, through enhanced access to quality essential health services in Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Sierra Leone

Duration of the Activity:

December – February 2024 

Background

Strengthen the quality and access to health services with active participation of communities to support vulnerable populations including pregnant women, children under-fives, women of childbearing age, Adolescents, and marginalised populations remains a key priority to achieve in ACF work in Sierra Leone as implemented in one of its health and nutrition PROSSAN projects. 

ACF PROSSAN project is implemented in Freetown’s Urban and Rural districts where 10 health facilities (5 in urban and 5 in rural) are supported in collaboration with DHMT to strengthen its reproductive, maternal, under-five, and adolescent health system. The project is a multi-country project including Liberia, Ivory Coast, and Sierra Leone. The project is led by Action Against Hunger which collaborates with three other partners. (SOLTHIS, CAWEC and CAPS) 

PROSSAN project has been implemented in phases, where phase 1 (PROSSAN 1) started in 2019 and ended in 2022, phase 2 (PROSSAN 2) started in 2022 and will run through April 2025.  PROSSAN has been improving health outcomes in Freetown’s urban and rural where it focuses on promoting health and well-being through community-based initiatives, including Capacity building of health care professionals, School Health Club activities, Adolescents’ engagement in health-friendly spaces, and Village Savings and Loan (VSL) activities for mothers’ support groups. The project had focus to foster behavioral change, enhance access to health services, and improve the socio-economic resilience of the communities. To quantify these gains made had paid way for an impact assessment to be conducted specifically on the four community base initiatives; Capacity building of health care professionals School, school Health Club activities, Adolescents’ engagement in health-friendly spaces, and Village Savings and Loan (VSL) activities for mothers’ support groups. 

Objectives of the Impact Assessment

The objective of the assessment is to assess the impact of the PROSSAN project in four specific areas:

1. Access the impact of Capacity building of health care professionals on service delivery in PHUs  ( Training, joint mentorship program with DHMTs, ACF Capacity building Midwife the job mentorship) to ensure sustainable improvement in quality service delivery and identify lessons learned, successes, challenges and recommendations
2. Access the impact achieved on School Health Club activities in 6 schools, where evidence-based impact will be assessed and reported 
3. Activities involving adolescents in 4 friendly spaces within health facilities and their catchment communities would be assessed to identify learning, lessons learned, successes, challenges, and recommendations achieved during implementation. 
4. Village Savings and Loan activities implemented among 10 mothers’ support groups, FMC in Freetown rural and urban communities would be reviewed to bring out learning on the activity. 
5. Production of 3 capitalization sheets on Mother Support Group, Adolescent Friendly Space and School Health Club activities (MSGs, AFS & SHC), including testimonials, success stories, and learnings on activities 

3. Scope of Work

The consultant will be responsible for the following tasks:

1. Review Project Documents:
   • Analyze project documentation, including reports, baseline data, implementation strategies, activity records, etc.
2. Design Assessment Methodology:

With a clear overview of the assessment given by ACF technical lead in a meeting, with the Tor designed to guide the assessment, the consultant will develop a clear methodology for conducting the impact assessment, including data collection methods, tools, sampling strategies, and data analysis approaches and reporting. The methodology should involve both qualitative and quantitative data collection.

Data Collection and Analysis:

The impact of the following activities will be assessed, therefore data collection will target to assess the impact on the key deliverable: 

• Capacity building of health facility staff: On top of knowledge improvement, access the concrete quantitative and qualitative sustainable impacts of Capacity building of health care professionals on service delivery in PHUs including, nutrition, SRH, HIV & Aids and Mental health and psychosocial support   through Formal Training as recommended by MoHS, joint mentorship program with DHMTs, ACF Capacity building Midwife on the job mentorship. The impacts will consider sustainable improvement in quality care delivering and identify lessons learned, successes, challenges and recommendations 
• School Health Club Activities: Evaluate the impact of Sexual and Reproductive health education, mental health, psychosocial support, protection, and gender-based violence, activities conducted through School Health Clubs in 6 schools, focusing on changes in students’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors especially in dealing with adolescent health.  
• Adolescents-Friendly Spaces: Assess the participation, outcomes, and perceived benefits of adolescent-friendly spaces implemented in 4 health facilities, looking at areas such as sexual and reproductive health awareness, mental health support, drug abuse, and service utilization, within their homes, communities, and peers. Emphasize how the transition to MoSW ownership was conducted, with structured supervision playing a central role in guiding this handover and promoting the ongoing sustainability of these spaces that are key for these vulnerable groups.
• Village Savings and Loan Activities: Review the economic and social impact of VSL activities on 10 mothers’ support groups, facility management committee, PHU staff  (5 in rural and 5 in urban districts in Freetown) including financial inclusion, income generation, and health-related expenditures. Show how this initiative has impacted the sustainability of the groups, supported their routine activities carried out by the groups to improve the health of vulnerable population 

1. Stakeholder Consultations:
   • Engage with relevant stakeholders including project staff, District health management team, health facility staff, school authorities, community leaders, mothers’ support groups, Facility management committee members, and adolescents to collect insights and validate findings through a workshop.
2. Draft and Final Report:
   • Prepare a comprehensive draft report summarizing findings, conclusions, and recommendations, and submit it for review. Incorporate feedback and finalize the report.  A summary version of the report highlighting key findings and recommendations will be produced. 
   • Apart from the assessment report, the consultant will prepare a capitalization sheet, on MSGs, AFS, SCH activities  reviewed,  portraying successes  stories  impact, and learning  on the activities 

Deliverables: 

The consultant will deliver the following outputs:

• Inception Report outlining the methodology, work plan, and tools.
• Data Collection Tools for approval.
• Draft Impact Assessment Report with preliminary findings.
• A draft capitalization sheet detailing beneficiary stories on MSG, AFS, and SCH activities 
• Presentation of findings to stakeholders during a validation workshop.
• A final  capitalization sheet detailing beneficiary stories on MSG, AFS, and SCH activities 
• A final Impact Assessment Report with detailed findings, conclusions, and actionable recommendations, and a summary version. 

5. Timeframe

The consultancy is expected to last for 50 working days, including preparation, data collection, analysis, and reporting. Beginning from the day the contract is signed between ACF and the consultant. 

Proposed Work Plan

• Management of the assessment

Action Against Hunger will provide the list of targeted facilities, beneficiaries, stakeholders, and other relevant documents and information required in conducting the assessment. The consultant must be willing to work closely with our partners. The necessary supporting document would be provided for the consultant. 

Required Qualifications:

The consultant should have:

• A postgraduate degree in Public Health, Social Sciences, Development Studies, or a related field.
• At least 5 years of experience in conducting impact assessments or evaluations, particularly in health and Nutrition -related projects.
• Strong understanding of community health, adolescent health, and socio-economic empowerment programs.
• A strong proven ability to collect and analyze both qualitative and quantitative data.
• Excellent report-writing skills.
• Proof of concept in completing similar work completed in the past with international nongovernmental organization , UN agencies and GOSL

1.  Application Process

Qualified consultants should submit:

• A cover letter outlining relevant experience.
• A technical proposal detailing the ToR understanding, proposed approach, methodology, and work plan.
• A financial proposal (consistent with the budget estimate).
• A current updated CV.

• Mode of Application

Interested consultants are requested to send the above application requirement by hand in hard copy to our address: 10 Sall Drive, Cockle Bay, Off Aberdeen Road, Freetown. Latest 1st  December, 2024 at 5:30 PM. Action Against Hunger is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all competent person/consultant irrespective of gender, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons with disabilities to apply and become part of the organization.

NOTE: ONLY consultancy Firms are to apply and NOT Individual Consultants!!!