Context and Rationale

About SOS Children’s Villages Ethiopia

SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia is an International Non-governmental organization and a member of the SOS Children’s Villages International Federation. The organization started its humanitarian work in Ethiopia with the opening of its first Village in Mekelle, the Northern part of Ethiopia in 1974. Since then, it has expanded its programmes to different regions including Amhara, Oromia, Somali, Harari, Sidama, Southern Ethiopia, and South-Central Ethiopia regions. Through its unique family-based care model, the organization has provided a nurturing environment where children can flourish, grow, and realize their full potential. The programme also works with different youth empowerment initiatives, supporting young people to help them become productive and independent members of society. The family and community development programme has enabled many families in the communities to become sustainable and provide the necessary care for their children. Furthermore, SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia also provides humanitarian assistance interventions in cases of natural and human-made disasters, when the livelihoods of families and communities are disrupted. SOS CVE collaborates and partners with like-minded organizations, community structures, government entities, and relevant all in advocating for the fulfilment of the rights and needs of vulnerable children, young people and families. 

SOS CV Ethiopia engages with a variety of community-managed organizations and local government authorities. It supports them in providing an enabling environment for the most vulnerable communities and families to access vital social services and protection whether in peaceful times or crises, to ensure care and protection for all children and youth living in their community

Description of Program Location and Context

The SOS CVE Mekelle Program Location was established in 1974 and primarily implements Alternative Care and Family and Community Strengthening Program. In addition, the program location manages education facilities including a kindergarten and the Hermann Gmeiner School (primary and secondary levels).

Following the conflict in Northern Ethiopia, Mekelle and surrounding areas of Enderta Woreda experienced extensive disruption to social services, livelihoods, protection systems, and community cohesion. Children, young people, women, and caregivers were exposed to displacement, psychosocial distress, protection risks including gender‑based violence (GBV), and loss of livelihoods.

In response, SOS CVE Mekelle has expanded its interventions beyond regular development programming to include emergency response, recovery, and resilience‑building initiatives focusing on mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), protection and livelihoods The Tigray Humanitarian response Project is implemented within this post‑conflict recovery context in Axum, Kolla-Tembien and Samre.

Project specific context

According to the unpublished data from local government offices (August 2024), Kola Tembien hosts 256 separated and unaccompanied children, including 75 girls. In Samre, this figure stands at 36, with 13 girls, and 278 with 123 girls in Axum. Axum also has 2,686 vulnerable children, of which 1,350 are girls. Exploitation of child labor is rampant as child labor is among major coping mechanisms. GBV is one of the most serious and life-threatening occurrences that have affected women and children during the war. Women and girls experienced sexual violence, mostly rape, physical violence and psychological violence including sexual slavery, insertion of foreign objects into their reproductive organ and harassment. There are 775 cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) reported in Kola Tembien, 1,108 in Axum, and 317 in Samre.

SOS CVE was implementing a 2-year emergency response and recovery project tilted as “Multisectoral protection measure for children, young people and women affected by the conflict and drought in Tigray, Ethiopia. The project has a total of direct project participants: 45,846 (29,386F, 16,460M), out of which children consist of 30,109 (20,000F, 10,109M). The project has been planned to reach 19,808 directs beneficiaries (IDPs, host populations) with top up budget designed as part of the continuation of the initial project.

Rationale and overall purpose of terminal evaluation:

The Tigray Humanitarian Response Project has been under implementation through October 1st, 2024, to September 30th, 2026, to strengthening a protective and enabling environment and enhancing the resilience and well-being of conflict-affected communities and individuals, with a particular focus on children, youth and women in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

The project primarily focused on improving protection services for children, youth, women and vulnerable households affected by conflict and drought in the Tigray region, Ethiopia. The project has now reached its completion phase, and a Terminal evaluation is required to assess achievements against objectives, measure outcomes, their effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, impact, and sustainability, document lessons learned, and inform future programming, scale-up, and sustainability strategies. Assess the extent to which the project has achieved its intended outcomes and contributed to improving the protection and well-being of conflict- and drought-affected children, women, youth and vulnerable households in Axum, Samre and Kola Tembien.

Measure achievement of all outcomes and output indicators in the Log frame. Assess child safeguarding, accountability to affected populations (AAP), gender, disability, and inclusion (GDI) integration, assess compliance with Sphere and CHS commitments, document lessons learned, best practices and provide practical recommendations. Generate evidence-based recommendations for future child-focused and resilience programming.

Evaluation Objectives

Overall objectives

The overall objective is to assess the extent to which the project has achieved its intended outcomes and contributed to improving the protection and well-being of conflict- and drought-affected children, women, youth and vulnerable households in Axum, Samre and Kola Tembien.

Specific objectives

The specific objectives of the Terminal evaluation are to:

• To assess the extent to which the project achieved its intended outcomes and outputs as defined in the approved project log frame, with particular attention to the effectiveness of interventions in Child Protection, Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Education in Emergencies (EiE), Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), Nutrition, Food Assistance, and Livelihood Recovery, including progress against the revised targets introduced through the project top-up.
• To evaluate the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence, impact, and sustainability of the project using the OECD-DAC evaluation criteria, assessing the extent to which the project responded to the priority humanitarian needs of conflict-affected and drought-affected 
• To determine the extent to which the project strengthened community and institutional capacities for sustainable humanitarian response, including child protection systems, GBV referral mechanisms, education recovery, MHPSS services, nutrition management, community participation, accountability mechanisms, and collaboration with government and community structures to ensure continuity of services beyond the project period.
• To assess the integration and application of cross-cutting humanitarian quality standards throughout project implementation, including the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS), Sphere Humanitarian Standards, Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP), child safeguarding, gender equality, disability inclusion, protection mainstreaming, conflict sensitivity, and the "Do No Harm" principle, and identify lessons for improving the quality and accountability of future humanitarian programming.
• To identify key achievements, challenges, lessons learned, good practices, and strategic recommendations to inform the design, implementation, and scaling of future humanitarian and recovery interventions.

Project outcomes and outputs:

Project Goal: Contributing to strengthening a protective and enabling environment and enhancing the resilience and well-being of conflict-affected communities and individuals, with a particular focus on children, youth and women in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

Project Outcomes & Outputs:

Output 1: Strengthened protection mechanisms for 7078 children at community level and promotion of positive gender norms and violence prevention in the communities. 

Output 2: 2900 survivors of gender-based violence receive access to comprehensive protection and health services

Output 3: 18,898 students will have a conducive instructional environment and improve their academic performance. 

Output 4: 7,600 vulnerable children and young people have access to high-quality MHPSS. 

Output 5: Improved nutritional status of a total of 9,370 people (malnourished and undernourished children under the age of five, pregnant and breastfeeding women and vulnerable households)

Major evaluation /research questions:

The commissioned consultant should list relevant and possible evaluation questions by referring to the project document and the project result framework and show the terminal evaluation questions during the inception report presentation.

Scope and project targets:

Geographically, the terminal evaluation is limited to the project participants, women, girls, boys and families, and the communities in the Tigray region Samre, Kola Tembien and Axum towns and surrounding rural Woredas at Tigray Humanitarian Response project.  The Tigray Humanitarian Response project at the SOS Children's Village in Samre, Kola Tembien and Axum towns has been implemented across selected kebele. Thus, the terminal evaluation will cover and be implemented in in Samre, Kola Tembien and Axum from October 1st, 2024, to September 30, 2026, and will focus on the performance of the project October 1st, 2024, to September 30, 2026. Tigray Humanitarian Response project has the following direct project participants. The project has a total of direct project participants: 45,846 (29,386F, 16,460M), out of which children / youth: 30,109 (20,000F, 10,109M). People proposed to be reached under each result areas are:

• Result 1: 7,078 people (4,711F,2367M), benefiting 7,078 children from promoted positive gender-based norms and violence prevention.
• Result 2: 2900 people (Girls and women), providing various service for 2900 survivors of GBV
• Result 3: 18,898 (11200F,7698M), benefiting18,898 students from improved academic performance. 
• Result 4: 7,600 people (4,575F, 2,825M), children and young people benefiting from high quality MHPSS.
• Result 5: 9,370 people (6,000F,3370M), benefiting 9,370 under five children, pregnant and breastfeeding women 

Table 1: Direct Project participants based on the approved project document.

Terminal evaluation methodology:

The consultant(s) must develop a strong data collection methodology for this terminal evaluation, ensuring the data's reliability and validity. A mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative research methods, is recommended to produce the highest quality and most credible evidence. This study will collect data, disaggregated by sex, age, and disability, for the indicators listed in the result framework (the RF will be annexed for the winner consultant). The chosen methodology must be sensitive to the local context and ensure that all respondents, regardless of their background, have an equal opportunity to participate in the baseline study. The terminal evaluation environment should be designed to provide safe and inclusive spaces that encourage all participants to respond freely, irrespective of gender, age, disability, origin, or religious beliefs. As far as possible, the consultant should disaggregate data by sex, age, and disability while collecting and analysing data. Furthermore, the consultant should also clearly explain which questions will be answered using which methods. The Consultant should also ensure that the survey and qualitative methods (such as focus group discussion (FGD), key informant interview (KII) and group discussion) with participants are representative of the project’s target groups and key stakeholders (Community members, women, girls, boys and children).

Sampling

The consultant is required to propose statistically sound sampling strategies to ensure representativeness. He/she is required to clearly state the sample size and the acceptable margin of error. The consultant will develop a detailed data analysis plan, outlining the statistical methods to be used for the quantitative data and the thematic analysis approach for the qualitative data. All data collection activities should be conducted following the highest ethical standards, ensuring informed consent, confidentiality, and the safety of all participants. 

Work plan and expected deliverables

Work plan/timetable

The terminal evaluation task is expected to be finalized within 45 days after the contractual agreement is signed. The consultant is expected to develop her/his detailed work plan based on the following table.

Role and Responsibility of the consultant:

The awarded consultant shall show feasible logistical arrangements for the assignment as part of the technical proposal

Refer the project document, result framework and indicators and develop terminal evaluation questions and detailed tools for both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods.

Recruit and train data collectors/ enumerators 

Covers transport and per diem costs for data collectors

Develop inception report with data collection tools, data collection plans and present for SOS CVE team and data collection plans 

Compiled draft and final terminal evaluation report based on scheduled time

Note that SOS CVE programme location-level staff (SOSCVE) will be available to help organize the interviews including contacting SOSCV, announcing and local preparation for baseline study, and linking to community duty bearers and national authorities. SOSCVE team will facilitate while the consultant collects data from programme participants, partners and key government stakeholders.

Deliverables:

The commissioned external consultant must deliver the evaluation findings within 45 days of the contract signed. Based on the work plan, SOS Children’s Villages programme location, Mekelle program location, and the national office MEAL and HA teams expect the following deliverables:

• An inception report of 8 pages on the evaluation design, methodology, sampling frame, sampling technique, sample size, assessment tools and work plan
• Draft evaluation report.
• The consultant is expected to analyse the data and present findings (for both draft and final findings) in the intervention area.
• Final report - The findings of the evaluation report including an executive summary and data collection tools in both electronic and hardcopy formats, should be submitted.
• Raw data, which has been cleaned (both qualitative and quantitative, including original field notes for in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, and recorded audio material), should be submitted with the report. SOS CVE will have sole ownership of all final data, and any findings shall only be shared or reproduced with the permission of SOS Children’s Village Ethiopia.

Report criteria

The reporting criteria for the terminal evaluation shall be in line with the SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia’s result-based management (RBM) toolkit and the project framework which will be shared with the winner consultant along with the data review process and/or for the preparation of the inception report.

1. Child safeguarding and ethical issues.

SOS Children’s Villages is committed to ensuring that all research, evaluation and data collection processes (i.e. evidence-generating activities) undertaken by SOS Children’s Villages and its partners are ethical and respect child safeguarding policy and procedure. 

The consultant must respect the rights, dignity and protection of children and other vulnerable population groups and should ensure special protection for children and other vulnerable groups during any data-generating activities to minimize any potential risks. Any research, evaluation and data collection SOS Children’s Villages is directly carrying out or is involved in as a partner.

Ethical practices need to be ensured in the following circumstances: 

• Any research, baseline, midterm or final evaluations and data collection SOS Children’s Villages has commissioned for ethical oversight of these processes.
• Any research, evaluation and data collection carried out by researchers/consultants on SOS Children's Villages programmes and participants.

Hence, relevant Coordinator in SOS Children’s Village HA programme, family strengthening and child development project will ensure that any researchers, evaluators and data collectors should receive awareness training on, sign and adhere to SOS Children’s Villages core policies:

Obtaining consent from research participants is central to the research relationship and signals respect for the research participant's dignity, their capability to express their views and their right to have these heard in matters that affect them. Informed consent is an explicit agreement that requires participants to be informed about and understand the research/assessment. This must be given voluntarily and be renegotiable, so that participants may withdraw at any stage of the research process.

Logistical arrangements:

The awarded consultant shall show feasible logistical arrangements for the assignment as part of the technical proposal. National or location-level staff (SOS CVE) will be available to help organize the interviews including contacting SOS CVE, announcing and local preparation of evaluation, and linking to community duty bearers and national authorities if required.

Duration of the contract and terms of payment

Payment will be made only upon SOS Children’s Villages' acceptance of the work performed in accordance with the above-described deliverables. Payment will be affected by bank transfer in the currency of birr.

Funding and Payment: The consultancy firm will be paid by SOS Children’s Villages as follows: 

• 30% on the submission and approval of the inception report/Technical Proposal.
• 30% on completion of the draft report.
• 40% on completion of the final report.

Duration of contract: the contract is effective from the moment it was signed until the acceptance of work by the SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia management team. 

Notice of delay

Shall the successful bidder encounter a delay in the performance of the contract which may be excusable under unavoidable circumstances; the contractor shall notify SOS Children’s Villages in writing about the causes of any such delays within one (1) week from the beginning of the delay. 

After receipt of the Contractor's notice of delay, SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia shall analyse the facts and extent of the delay and extend the time for performance when in its judgment the facts justify such an extension. 

Copyright and other proprietary rights:

SOS Children’s Villages shall be entitled to all intellectual property and other proprietary rights including, but not limited to, copyrights, and trademarks, with regard to products, processes, inventions, ideas, know-how, or documents and other materials which the Contractor has developed for SOS Children’s Villages under the Contract and which bear a direct relation to or are produced or prepared or collected in consequence of, or during the course of, the performance of the Contract. The Contractor acknowledges and agrees that such products, documents, and other materials constitute works made for hire for SOS Children’s Villages. 

All materials: interviews, reports, recommendations, and all other data compiled by or received by the Contractor under the Contract shall be the property of SOS Children’s Villages and shall be treated as confidential and shall be delivered only to SOS Children’s Villages authorized officials on completion of work under the Contract. The external consultant is obliged to hand over all raw data collected during the assessment to SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia.

Termination:

The termination of the service agreement for the assignment will be in accordance with the contractual agreement to be included at the formal agreement's actual signing.