TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR CONDUCTING A FEASIBILITY STUDY ON BEHALF OF SOS CHILDREN’S VILLAGES UGANDA SOS CHILDREN’S VILLAGES RWANDA SOS CHILDREN’S VIL, July 2022 – NGO Jobs

Overview of the Multi-stakeholder Approach (MAP) Project

SOS Children’s Villages Uganda (SOS Uganda), SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda (SOS Rwanda), SOS-Kinderdörfer weltweit / Hermann-Gmeiner Fonds Deutschland (HGFD) agreed upon the development of a joint application to the German Federal Ministry for economic cooperation and development (BMZ) for co-financing of a multi-stakeholder project in Uganda and Rwanda. The project will be implemented in Gulu, Kakiri, Entebbe and Fortportal locations of SOS Uganda as well as Gasabo, Gicumbi, Kayonza and Nyamagabe locations of SOS Rwanda for a period of 3 years starting from 2021.

The overall objective of the project is to improve employability and labor market integration of young people in Uganda and Rwanda. This will be achieved through a set of activities that may include: firstly, direct support activities to improve the employability and labor market integration of young people (including vocational training, career counseling, internships, mentoring, micro-entrepreneurship training, financial literacy training); secondly, capacity building of personnel and infrastructure of partnering vocational training schools, employability training providers, and youth groups; thirdly, the establishment of a dialogue platform between local, national, regional, and international stakeholders; and lastly, the further development of policies that contribute to the transformation of the framework conditions for youth employment.

The project targets 1,330 vulnerable young people (with a focus on girls,young women and young people with special needs). These young people will be selected from various categories including: unemployed graduates from vocational training schools and universities; young people living in households affected by poverty; young people from Alternative Care. This may also include young people without any TVET or University qualification, young people with TVET qualification but struggling to get jobs, graduates that work individually or in cooperatives, graduates without internship, industrial attachments, mentorship, coaching gaps, etc. The selectino of the target group will be as follows:

o Uganda: 630 young people (in between 18-25 years from the locations of Gulu, Kakiri, Entebbe and Fortportal)

o Rwanda: 700 young people in Rwanda (aged 16-30 years from locations of Gasabo, Gicumbi, Kayonza and Nyamagabe districts).

The foundation of the project is the Multi-stakeholder Approach (MAP). This means that the project shall include all relevant stakeholders who contribute to employability and labor market integration, including government bodies, private businesses, trainings institutions, NGOs, CBOs and youth groups. The MAP project shall contribute to SDGs 4 (education), 8 (decent work) and 17 (global partnerships). For more information on the BMZ funding frame multi-stakeholder partnerships, please refer to www.partnerschaften2030.de/en (English website). The stakeholders: Partners, networks, forums and platforms shall play a key role in achieveing sustainable change towards the labor market integration of young people in the two countries. So far, the following stakeholders have been identified:

o Uganda: DHL Uganda, Gudie Incubation centre, Enterprise Uganda, Youth technical working groups, Youth councils at the district level;

o Rwanda: Youth community volunteers, local authorities, Ministry of Youth and ICT, employers; especially corporate companies, private sector federation, DHL Express Rwanda, Rwanda Polytechnic, University of Rwanda, Youth Employability Technical Working Group.

A. Main aim of the feasibility study

A feasibility study is to be carried out in Gulu, Wakiso and Kabarole disctricts of Uganda as well as Gasabo, Gicumbi, Kayonza and Nyamagabe districts of Rwanda in order to provide SOS (SOS Uganda, SOS Rwanda and SOS Germany / HGFD) with a basis for decision making on what type of interventions, services and activities are feasible within the planned project, in the best interest of the target group. The feasibility study is required in the identification phase of this project to ensure that a) the most crucial problems of the target group are identified, b) important stakeholders are identified, analyzed and approached for their possible role in this programme, c) a proper risk analysis is carried out and d) alternative solutions are appraised and the preferred solution meets the defined criteria. The study will provide SOS with sufficient information to justify acceptance, modification or rejection of the proposed intervention for further formulation.

B. Study objectives

The purpose of the feasibility study is to provide a sound basis for developing a project concept, by identifying project preconditions, opportunities and risks. This entails in particular an assessment of the feasibility of a project and a systematic review of the extent to which the project approach can plausibly achieve the planned changes under the existing conditions. This enhances project effectiveness and helps avoid bad investment decisions from the start.

Overall the feasibility study will have the following objectives:

1. Provide in-depth analysis of youth employability opportunities and challenges in Uganda and Rwanda generally and in the project locations specifically (Uganda: Gulu, Kakiri, Entebbe and For Portal; Rwanda: Gasabo, Gicumbi, Kayonza, Nyamagabe). Picture the social and economic environment by providing an in-depth analysis of the situation of youth and young people at the project locations and at national levels (e.g. poverty rates, unemployment statistics, migration situation etc.). This analysis should also identify main root causes for youth unemployment (e.g. skills mismatch, job search barriers, barriers for setting up small enterprises, unavailability of effective employment services for the target group, opportunities for attaining required job experience, etc.);
2. Analyse the gaps in the in the current response on youth employability. Analyse the current policy framework, government policies and strategies, standards, guidelines and practices on youth employability, job creation and youth economic strengthening programs as well as the related gaps in the implementation;
3. Analyze the current local response structures and services to address the needs of the target group (incl. existing gaps) and to identify the type of interventions and services most needed (and feasible) in the coming years, regarding the qualification, employability and labor market integration of youth and young people. It will assess relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of existing legal framework and services (current policy framework, standards, guidelines and practices as well as the related gaps in the implementation) provided currently with focus on the above-mentioned target group, their ability to meet community needs as well as participation of key stakeholders (governmental, non-profit, and private) at local level. Identify the existence of similar projects or interventions on local or national level and opportunities for alignment and synergies. Analyze lessons learnt from these in the past and gaps still present today;
4. Provide target groups and participants analysis; identify direct and indirect target group, make a clear description of each of these groups;
5. Provide a list of potential stakeholders and partners that can be involved, describe their services, capacities and roles during project identification, formulation, implementation and evaluation. Describe the opportunities and challenges of the multi-stakeholder approach of the project. Identify potential implementing partners and analyze their institutional, programmatic and financial capacities as well as capacity building needs. Their possible role during project identification, formulation, implementation and evaluation should be described. This should be based on a thorough stakeholder analysis of companies and corporates (especially from the textile industry), state institutions (especially those working in the areas of qualification, labor market, private sector cooperation and employment), civil society organisations. community based organisations, youth self-help structures (with a focus on youth employability and labor market integration of young people) etc. Identify the opportunities within the core partners (SOS Uganda, SOS Rwanda, DHL) to address the needs of the target groups. Analyze possibility of providing capacity of personnel with partner organisations that support employability to ensure sustainability, quality assurance and further followups on the young people joing the job market;
6. Analyse critically the feasibility of the proposed project and recommend the relevant type of interventions, services and activities to address youth unemployment in an effective and sustainable way. Conduct the evaluation of planned activities – motivate the relevance, effectiveness, impact and sustainability of planned activities;
7. Provide concrete recommendations for a smooth implementation of proposed/suitable interventions and activities;
8. Highlight potential risks and mitigation measures, particularly with regards to the Covid-19 pandemic;
9. Identify existing dialogue forums and platforms which facilitate knowledge sharing around youth employability and labor market integration. This includes, both, dialogue on national level as well as dialogue between the two countries. Their potential synergies with the project and current service gaps should be assessed. Describe how dialogue structures can lead to sustainable social change;
10. Analyse the opportunities and challenges of the planned bi-national approach and describe how the implementation of a jont project in the two neighboring countries can create added value.

C. Issues to be studied

The study will assess the following issues and provide information on and analysis of the relevance, feasibility and sustainability of the proposed project.

a) The relevance of the project intervention and its compliance and consistency with the overall national/regional development objectives specified in the laws/bylaws and government programs on this issues; and the compatibility and complementarity of this project with other relevant projects.

The consultant will study:

● Root causes of youth unemployment and underemployment, inability to get paid jobs, skills gaps, under-estimation of TVET skills at labor market, lack of zeal and career determination, inability to embrance high competition at market labor, lack of mentorship, coaching, limited opportunities for professional internship and industrial attachment, inability to initiate and run own business. Provide quantitative and qualitative information on identified youth employability problems; from previous studies; to express the magnitude of the problems;

● The legislation covering government policies and strategies on youth employability, job creation, labor market integration of youth and young people and youth economic strengthening programs (national and international standards/procedures, as well as a brief analysis of implementation/ enforcement);

● Assessment on how the proposed project is coherent with the overall framework of national development objectives and the development policies of the relevant ministries of the government, including existing local, national and regional measures and strategies which address qualification, employability and labor market integration, including particularly measures and strategies which target youth unemployment (aiming at both labor market integration as well as self-employment / micro entrepreneurship). Interaction of the planned project with other interventions or priorities of ministries, agencies and donors that may affect or be affected by the proposed project (incl. identification of challenges, potential for cooperation and use of synergies). Suggest other interventions or priorities of government institutions, agencies and donors (individual and corporate) that may affect or be affected by the proposed project (including identification of challenges, potential for cooperation and use of synergies);

● The number and type of beneficiaries the proposed project potentially affects, including self-help efforts and coping mechanisms of the target group (if applicable) as well as description of heterogeneity / homogeneity of target group regarding gender, age, ethnicity, sexual affiliation, language, capacity etc and its impact on the project design. Assessment on how the proposed project responds to the demands as expressed by the relevant stakeholders and the target group. Assessment of key interventions and activities as suggested by the target groups. Highlight different levels of vulnerability among youths aged 16-30 years, provide description of possible direct and indirect target groups;

● Capacity assessment of all existing and potential stakeholders (state institutions, private companies, civil society organistions, NGOs, youth groups, etc.) involved in the proposed project and the intended improvement of the situation, incl. including current local response and services provided to address the needs of the target group (with best practices if applicable). Assessment of all organizations, agencies, community structures affected by or involved in the delivery of proposed interventions and activities and their roles. Assessment of key interventions and activities as suggested by the target groups;

● Risks with regards to the proposed project using PESTLE analysis (political, economic, social, environmental, cultural, legal, technological, health, etc.) including mitigating measures to reduce the effect/likelihood of these risks, with partiulcar reference to the Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences;

● Critical assessment of feasibility, relevance, effectiveness, impact, sustainability of proposed interventions and come up with recommendations of suitabale ones to respond to identified problems to address the needs of the target group;

● Information from previous studies and evaluations relevant to the proposed project (if any).

b) The feasibility of the proposed project consistent with the economic, social and institutional framework. The consultant will prepare a recommendation for the project to be structured as follows:

● Overall objectives: Why is the project important to the target groups and beneficiaries, the location and the government? What is the desired social development/impact which will be targeted in the project?

● Project objective: Why do the target groups and beneficiaries need the project?

● Project results: What products and services will the project deliver to the target groups and beneficiaries? What assumptions are required to achieve the project purpose?

● Project activities: What is the scope of activities to be undertaken and what are the associated assumptions for achieving the project results.

The feasibility analysis will be carried out based on the OECD DAC critera Relevance, Effectiveness, Efficiency, Impact, Sustainability. The project purpose and results should be measurable by objectively verifiable indicators, and project activities should be quantified wherever possible.

c) Potential sustainability of the project results after completion as determined by an assessment of the key sustainability factors: ownership by beneficiaries, policy support, potential for adoption by government bodies, economic and financial factors, socio-cultural aspects, gender, appropriate technology, environmental aspects, and institutional and management capacity.

d) preliminary indication of any conditions, an initial cost estimation and possible time schedule.

The project purpose and results should be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timebound) by objectively verifiable indicators, and the identified problems should be quantified wherever possible. Potential sustainability measures of proposed interventions and activities of project should be determined by an assessment of the key sustainability factors such as ownership by beneficiaries, policy support, economic and financial factors, socio-cultural aspects, gender, appropriate technology, environmental aspects, institutional and management capacity, etc.

D. Workplan

On the basis of the proposed time schedule outlined in the ToR, the consultant(s) will prepare a work plan for the study and include this in their offer, and report on the approach taken in the study. The work plan should set out the consultants’ approach to the following activities:

● Desk study, fact finding/data collection/surveys;

● Workshops, focus groups, consultations and other means of ensuring local participation;

● Identification of possible options for the proposed project;

● Consultation meetings with stakeholders and decision makers;

● Preparation of the draft and final feasibility study report (see Appendix, p.10).

E. Methods for gathering the necessary information

· A review of existing laws, policies, strategies, statistics, studies, thesis and reports related to the situation of vulnerable youth and young people (e.g. youth in Alternative Care, members of youths groups, etc.) from project locations (Uganda: Gulu, Wakiso and Kabarole; Rwanda: Gasabo, Gicumbi, Kayonza, Nyamagabe);

· Interviews, focus group discussions and/or questionnaires with national/local authorities/institutions, public institutions, municipalities and non-governmental organizations dealing with the target group. As an input to the study, authorities should state their expectations towards SOS Uganda / SOS Rwanda and outline potential modes of collaboration and public funding for a project;

· Interviews, focus groups, and/or questionnaires with representatives of main experts, initiatives, non-governmental organisations that are active in the field of youth employability

· Interviews with local/community organizations representing targeted groups and/or non-governmental organisations that are active in the field of vulnerable groups or focus on economic empowerment

· If possible, interviews or focus groups with vulnerable youth and young people from the target group (e.g. youth in Alternative Care, members of youths groups, etc.)

· An inventory of possible resources: studies, university studies / thesis, organization reports, documentation, resource persons/experts, etc.

F. Expertise required

· The person(s) carrying out this study should have a thorough understanding of situation of marginalized youth / groups and root causes of socio-economic exclusion (e.g. skills mismatches, job search barriers, ineffective employment services etc). This includes a thorough understanding of the problems of youth employability in Uganda and Rwanda and the livelihood of the target group.

· The consultant(s) should have proven competence and experience in conducting social research (at least 4 years of proven competence and experience in conducting cross sectional studies).

· A social science background, e.g. higher education qualification of Master’s Degree (from a reputable university) in social work, psychology, population studies/Statistics, social-pedagogy, community development, law is of advantage.

· Experience in organizing and implementing feasibility study in general, identifying relevant sources of information, setting up questionnaires etc. is an added advantage.

· A proven experience in conducting youth employability related studies will be an added advantage.

· A proven experience in participatory research methods, excellent analytical, research and report writing skills, good facilitation and interpersonal skills are also desireable.

· The person(s) / consultant firm(s) have to be based and registered either in Uganda or Rwanda with a network of associates / partners in the respective project country other than the country of registration.

The knowledge about SOS Children’s Villages organization is optional. Precondition for the involvement of an external expert is that he/she interviews key SOS programme staff for better understanding of SOS programmes and policies. If an external expert carries out the study it is a must to ensure that the interests and approaches of the organization are well represented. SOS staff has to be involved in working out the conclusions and developing recommendations. The person(s) carrying out this study must be well acquainted with the core SOS policy documents, especially the ones related to child protection.

G. Reporting

The study’s conclusions should be presented in the feasibility report in the obligatory format in appendix I specified below, with the underlying analysis included in the appendices. The feasibility study should be conducted, completed and reported in a period of 60 calendar days maximum (starting from 2 December 2020). The final report (maximum length excluding appendices: 30 pages.) must be in English and submitted to SOS Uganda or SOS Rwanda (depending on contracting entity) on or before 30 January 2021.

The feasibility report should be strictly structured as follows:

1. Executive Summary
2. Purpose, objectives and use of the feasibility study
3. Initial situation and problem analysis of youth employability in Rwanda and in the four districts particularly
4. Stakeholders analysis country and their roles
5. Target group & participant analysis

a) Target group

b) Participants

1. Evaluation of the planned project according to OECD DAC criteria

a) Relevance

b) Effectiveness

c) Efficiency

d) Impact or significance

e) Sustainability

1. Appendices

a) Technical appendices to the feasibility report

b) Administrative appendices to the feasibility report

H. Time Schedule

The consultants should include the timetable in appendix II in their offer, indicating whether and how they can adhere to or improve on it. **

I. Assistance to the consultants by the contracting authority

The Contracting Authority will make available the following information and facilities to the consultant(s):

● all relevant reports, documents, maps, data;

● where available, office space, furniture, and access to computers and communication facilities;

● counterpart staff.

J. Application Documents

Application should contain the following information:

1. Name and contact details of an individual expert(s) and description of previous evaluation experiences.
2. Introduction
3. Feasibility study objectives
4. Description of the methodology (including the target groups; description of quantitative and qualitative research methods that will be used; description of sampling and size of sample etc.)
5. Proposal how the project team will be involved in the study
6. Description of Product(s) (deliverables)
7. Detailed Work plan; including the time line of relevant tasks
8. Time schedule of activities (a time schedule should be prepared for each element of the work plan and of the reporting requirements)
9. A list of research members composed of at least 3 research members and provide for each expert proposed his/her curriculum vitae and 3 traceble referees, including information about consortium partner / associates in country other than the consultant´s registration country (CVs, experience, registration, etc.)
10. At least 4 certificates of good completion related to previous studies and research conducted
11. Detailed financial proposal commensurate to expected deliverables (the cost should be taxes inclusive)
12. Any other information to support further the eligibility of the candidate
13. If in Rwanda: Tax Clearance certificate from Rwanda Revenue Authority

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