MID-TERM EVALUATION STUDY ON THE KAME PROJECT

Kenya Arid lands drought Mitigation measures Enhanced (K.A.M.E.)

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI) TO CONDUCT A MID-TERM EVALUATION STUDY ON THE KAME PROJECT

ON LAND & NATURAL RESOURCE USE MANAGEMENT, PASTORAL PRODUCTION AND DROUGHT MITIGATION STRATEGIES AND PRACTICES IN ISIOLO COUNTY.

1. Introduction
   A brief about the implementers

The Lay Volunteer International Association LVIA, Resource Conflict Institute (RECONCILE) and the Merti Integrated Development Programme (MID-P) have been funded by the European Union under the Kenya Rural Development Programme for a period of 48 months started on the 18th September, 2014 and ends in September, 2018. The three partners are working on various sectors including relief and rehabilitation activities, health, water and sanitation, protection, peace-building, youth/children support and gender-based violence. Others sectors include; livestock production in a sense, supporting productive pastoralism, policy advocacy and land and natural resources.

Context

The ASAL counties of North-East Kenya (Arid and Semi-Arid Lands) continue to experience violent conflicts that constrain sustainable food security, livelihoods, and development in the region. Conflicts within the region are many, complex, and occur at different levels. They can be inter-ethnic, intra-ethnic, or cross border in dimension. Excluding inter-state wars, conflicts in the region mostly manifest themselves as pastoralist conflicts (livestock raiding or rustling, violent disputes at watering points, etc.), highway banditry, generalized insecurity, and other crimes.

Pastoralist conflicts are principally resource-based, revolving around livestock. These conflicts now involve the use of fire arms, making them even more violent (e.g.; indiscriminate killing) and destructive. Marginalization by post-independence governments has also compounded the pastoralist problem within the GHA. Over the years, pastoralist conflicts have become more frequent, more unpredictable, and exhibit marked escalation in violence and geographical spread

Specifically, conflict in Isiolo County is one of those that have existed over time, taking different shapes and faces hence getting complex each time it escalates. The conflict is centered on use, access and management of natural resources. Many divergence of opinions amongst communities on the access to, control and usage of land for pasture, have thus exacerbated clan politics as well as influencing different decision affecting resource and livelihood opportunities.

In addition to addressing resourced base conflicts, the project will address the ones arising from the devolved governments, the resort city, the international airport and the abattoir foreseen with the V2030. The merging of Sub-Counties and electoral boundaries under the county arrangement has generated new conflict avenues whereby local populations feel their control over territories and their resources are under threat. Although conflict prevention, management, resolution and transformation are the main crosscutting themes accompanying all projects, build institutional interventions through effective governance will be of key importance in this action.

Recognising this, donor funding is increasingly prioritising on the reduction of insecurity and community vulnerability to conflict and LVIA is therefore seeking a consultant to lead the study and develop a comprehensive resource-based conflict prevention and resolution study, designed integrating an engagement framework envisaging the full commitment of all NRM bodies such as the rangeland users, pasture, peace as well as water committees and associations are defined based on their statutory roles and community engagements.

The overall objective of the proposal is to enhance drought resilience of pastoral communities inIsiolo County.

To attain positive livelihoods outcomes pastoralists rely on specific strategies to manage their livestock effectively. Their livelihoods strategies have evolved over centuries in response to the local environment and climate, with low and erratic rainfall. Key strategies include accessing and managing natural resources (NR), mainly grazing land and water sources, and maintaining high levels of mobility across large tracts of land to make the most effective use of scarce resources and in response to environmental conditions. These sophisticated and dynamic strategies or ‘local livelihoods’ are sensitively adapted to the certainty that have allowed pastoralists to cope with the threats and risks that characterise their environment and to maintain a viable production and livelihoods system.

Drought is a major external shock and a primary trigger of livelihoods crises. Cyclical droughts are a defining feature of pastoralists’ way of life, however, in recent decades, it has become increasingly clear that pastoralists’ strategies have been significantly strained and pastoralists’ adaptive capacity to resist or recover from drought-related shocks has been progressively undermined. The project therefore will undertake the following activities that aim at improving the current situation by strengthening pastoralists’ drought resilience in Isiolo County supporting their livelihoods systems with timely and appropriate interventions aimed at protecting and strengthening livelihood assets and strategies. The action is expected to promote conflict sensitive interventions directly by supporting capacity initiatives for the Dedha Councils, Peace Building Committees and Local Authorities enhancing the conflict management and transformation skills.

The key results areas are;

Result 1. Pastoral communities dispose of instruments to reduce their vulnerability to drought and to transform conflicts over Natural Resources Management (NRM)

Result 2. Secured and improved revenue for livestock producers through animal disease control and value chain enhancement

Result 3. Improved resilience of pastoral communities through livelihood diversification focusing on NTPF value chain development

1. BACK GROUND OF THE CONSULTANCY/ ASSIGNMENT
   The consortium is seeking a consultant to conduct mid-term evaluation survey whose findings will inform and provide a better understanding on how the KAME project is being implemented after half of its completion (2 years). Indeed, the mid-term evaluation is expected to help the programme cross-checking KPIs for reference and also in the possible review of the log-frame based on the current context on the ground. The main study areas will be Merti and Garbatulla sub-counties. It is intended that the mid-term evaluation assessment will provide: a) Useful information and survey data for sharing and dissemination; b) Cross-check the KPIs present in the project’s LogFrame, against the verifiable data collected by the baseline surveys c) Provide information that will assist in developing and designing future programme’s Implementing, Monitoring and Evaluation plan. Most importantly, the process should be able to flag out community approaches to managing risks and building resilience as well as identify interventions and actors that can benefit and in retrospect of reciprocity actors benefit from it.
   1. Overall Objective
   The overall objective of the baseline survey is to provide useful information that will help in setting benchmarks for the project identifying areas for intervention in integrating effective strategies for best practices in ASAL livelihood. This study will further form the benchmarks for measuring impact and progress in achieving set objectives in different phases/semesters of project implementation.
   The survey specifically aimed at:
2. Carry out a thorough review and analysis of the project documents (baseline surveys, proposal, log frame, action plans, and budget).
3. Analyze the KPIs for result 1, 2 and 3 in the log frame, and identify the progress after 2 years of implementation
4. Propose, when and if necessary, ways to successfully meet the proposed KPIs which aren’t yet met, and to include in the project outlining a clear M&E Framework (in strict collaboration with the project staff)
5. Determine whether the project activities are beginning to bring about the change anticipated at the outset of the project. It also aims to examine which factors are proving critical in making change happen.

To this end, the mid-term evaluation should be conducted based on the following criteria:

RELEVANCE

The evaluation shall verify:

• the project design and implementation are aligned to national and local strategies/plans;
• the implementation strategy is adequate to the local context;
• the logical framework is relevant to project goals/objectives;
• the methodologies adopted are relevant to achieve the expected objectives/results.
  EFFECTIVENESS
  The evaluation shall verify:
• if and which impact the project has produced over the reduction of conflict amongst the target population
• if the project has produced non expected results (and, if so, which is their effect in relation to the project objectives)
• how the project could adapt/react to external factors;

EFFICIENCY

The evaluation shall verify:

• how efficiently have financial resources been allocated and utilized;
• how efficient is the contribution by each partner to the project

SUSTAINABILITY

The evaluation shall verify:

• If and to what extent project partners and beneficiaries have assimilated health-seeking behaviour messages and tools;
• if and how local authorities are committed to foster the project results; which changes have been produced across target groups and/or partners, increasing the sustainability of the intervention; which human, technical and financial resources are required to ensure the project sustainability, upon its completion;

IMPLEMENTATION

The evaluation shall verify:

• Which population is impacted by the project (wider or narrower than expected? similar or different from the expected one in terms of composition?)
• If non expected impacts have occurred (if so, which ones?)

Where applicable, the evaluation should clearly define lessons learnt, best practices and recommendations to readdress LVIA’s intervention in the sectors interested by the project, in order for LVIA to continue implementing a proper project intervention according to projects expected results and activities.

The Consultant(s) is free to identify additional questions for the completion of the assignment.

The consultant(s) will be also required to design, plan and carry out the project’s evaluation process, using a mixture of quantitative and qualitative data that should be collected from the project’s beneficiaries and stakeholders, discussed at the preliminary meeting with the project’s staff at the beginning of the consultancy.

The Consultant(s) is free to identify more sources useful for the completion of the assignment.

Methodologies and Tools

The Consultant(s) will present a MTE proposal which will:

1. Define and specify the methodology and participative qualitative and quantitative data collection tools to be adopted in the MTE for gathering information from beneficiaries at community level, and from Governmental Institutions/Ngo-s (to be reviewed with LVIA Project Coordinator).
2. Specify which primary and secondary sources the Consultant(s) is going to analyse;
3. Detail a plan for the MTE implementation, scheduling meetings/interviews/focus group discussions with stakeholders and field/visits and related logistic needed;
4. Specify data and information analysis tools/software.

LVIA would also like the Consultant(s) to suggest any particularly innovative or interesting methodology they may employ.

1. EXPERT PROFILE
   It is expected that the team will be multidisciplinary, bring together experts from different fields. At minimum the consultant(s) must possess the following:
   • At least a Masters Degree in Social Sciences, Environmental Studies, Agriculture, Development Studies, Journalism, or Land Use/Regional Planning or a related field.
   • Good understanding of Kenyan development context and in particular areas of policy and legal context on development of ASALs regions, land use planning and sustainable resource utilization.
   • Demonstrated experience in employing participatory approaches in undertaking studies in communities living in ASALs and engaging formal and informal institutions.
   • Conversant with application of cross cutting themes like gender, climate change (Disaster Risk Reduction), conflict sensitive programming, and governance.
   • Excellent analytical and report writing skills.
   • Fluency in spoken and written English and Swahili. Knowledge of any of the local languages (Borana, Somali) will be an added advantage.
2. DELIVERABLES
   The consultants will be expected to deliver the following;
   A draft report which will be presented to the partners and a few stakeholder in a validation workshop.
   The Mid-term evaluation report; such report outline should be produced by the consultant with the following elements:
   a) Table of contents
   b) A brief and clear executive summary with among others major findings of the past Baseline surveys and summary of conclusions and recommendations of the latter.
   c) The objectives of the Mid-term evaluation, its methodology and any challenges encountered in the field.
   d) A presentation of the findings and the analysis of the confirmed KPIs.
   e) Conclusions
   f) Recommendations with clear guidelines of how they can be implemented.
   g) Report annexes (including a Monitoring and Evaluation framework).
3. SIZE OF THE REPORT
   The consultant is expected to produce the Baseline report covering all the aspects as outlined in the ToR. The Baseline report will be in English and maximum of 30 pages excluding annexes. The team will be liable to submit at least one hard copy and one electronic copy of the report by the agreed deadline.
4. DURATION
   The entire period of this consultancy shall not exceed twenty-five (25) working days, divided in literature review, field work and production of final report.
5. SUPPORT TO THE CONSULTANT
   The Consultant will receive full support by the organization with the provision of all the project documents and files and assistance in meeting up authorities and beneficiaries. Logistic support can be discussed in the contractual agreement.
6. TERMS AND CONDITION OF PAYMENT
   The consultant shall be paid in installments of 50% as down payment and 50% after LVIA and its partners receives and approves the final report. Settlement of any tax liability arising from this agreement will remain the responsibility of the consultant. The fees will be liable to withholding tax to be remitted to the Kenya government.
7. APPLICATION
   Consultants who meet the above requirements should submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) not exceeding 10 pages, which should include the following:
   i. A suitability statement including a demonstration of competencies to undertake the assignment.
   ii. A brief statement of on the proposed study methodology including a detailed work plan.
   iii. A detailed financial proposal inclusive of all costs foreseen and VAT included.
   iv. Updated curriculum vitae of the consultant(s), inclusive of three references.
   9 How to apply:
   The expression of interest should be submitted Mr.Tommaso Menini at lvia.eu.projectcoordinator@gmail.com . The subject line should read KAME MTE-EOI before the 2nd of December 2016.