Consultant: Evaluation of the Sports and Culture for Development Programme in Dormitory Schools and other Centres - 2013 - 2018. at UNICEF

Job Number: 523918
Location: Nigeria
Work Type: Consultancy

Background

• Globally, Sport and Culture have proven to be effective and flexible tools for promoting peace and development objectives. In the UN General Assembly resolution 70/1, entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, the roles of sport and culture in advancing social progress are acknowledged as important enablers of sustainable development. Sport and culture are recognised for their growing contribution to the realisation of development and peace in the promotion of tolerance and respect for children and women. Sport and Culture contribute to the achievement of SDG 3, 4, 5, 11, 16 and 17.
• Across the Caribbean, Sport and or Culture programmes draw upon adolescents’ intrinsic attraction and build personal, social and emotional character, while promoting health and positive lifestyles. Through these complementary areas, children are offered an opportunity to develop their leadership skills and creativity while playing sport and being involved in culture.
• In Guyana, recognising that structured sports, physical activities and cultural expressions are healthy and safe alternatives for adolescents (10-19 years), and recognising that sports and culture are preventive and responsive interventions for adolescents who are exposed/at risk  to violence and abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), the Government of Guyana and UNICEF included Sport and Culture for Development (SC4D) in the 2012-2016 and 2017-2021 programmes of cooperation.
• The Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana over the years has accommodated over 4,000 secondary school children 11-17 years old, who live too far from the school to allow a daily commute, at dormitory schools. During joint GoG-UNICEF programmatic visits, it was noted that there was a lack of extra-curricular activities in Dormitory Schools in the hinterland Regions i.e.1, 7, 8, 9 and 10 and for children in detention (Region 2) and children in rural communities.
• Due to the copious poorly supervised free time students were exposed to risky behaviours, resulting in high incidences of adolescent pregnancy, violence, suicide, substance abuse and school dropout. To fill this gap, a baseline survey was conducted, and the data was analyses and used by the Government of Guyana in partnership with UNICEF, and with support from the UNICEF UK National Committee, designed and launched the Sport and Culture for Development (SC4D) Programme in 2013.
• It was expected that over the first two years of the programme at least 2,360 children and adolescents in seven hinterland dormitory schools; one Juvenile detention facility and holding centre and two rural communities with high incidences of teenage pregnancy, violence, suicide and substance abuse, will benefit. This programme is expected to provide access to sports and cultural activities but also to critical life skills such as Communication, Leadership, Decision-Making, Problem Solving and Critical-thinking, and information on their rights and responsibilities to support staying in school to complete their primary and secondary education. UNICEF partnered with the Ministry of Education (MoE) and two NGOs – the Linden Care Foundation located in Region 10 and FACT (an NGO in a rural community) in Region 6 and with vulnerable youth at the community level. Once girls and boys identified the sport of their choice and the requisite equipment were procured to ensure that both girls and boys have enough equipment for activities.
• This successful pilot was used to inform the implementation of the SC4D programme, from 2015 and 2017, from seven (7) to eighteen (18) dormitory schools in seven regions in Guyana, from two (2) to eleven (11) communities and from one (1) to two (2) juvenile detention/holding centre and one (1) State-run institution for vulnerable children in need of care. 
• To determine the changes made by the programme (contribution/attribution) and to ascertain where the programme can be expanded to all secondary schools in Guyana, it is necessary that a Summative evaluation is conducted at this time.

This evaluation follows the norms and standards established by the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) (http://www.unevaluation.org/document/detail/1914) as well as the UNEG Code of Conduct for Evaluation in the UN system (http://www.unevaluation.org/document/detail/100) and will have to be endorsed by the Evaluators during the evaluation process.
 
Objectives:

• This is a summative evaluation and it is part of UNICEF’s exit plan as the main financier (funds were provided to UNICEF from the British NatCom) and technical-support lead for the programme. This evaluation aims to assess the effectiveness, relevance, efficiency, impact, sustainability and crosscutting contributions of the programme and the findings will inform decisions and preparation for a whole-country implementation i.e. in all primary and secondary schools along with all current centres.

The Evaluation Aims to:

• Determine the extent to which the Sports and Culture for Development Programme (SC4D) in dormitory schools is achieving its objectives.
• Based on number 1, identify challenges and facilitating factors encountered in the delivery of the SC4D programme
• Drawing on 1 and 2 compile lessons learned and recommendations to inform the future rollout of the SC4D programme in Guyana.
• Determine how the approach has been sustainable and provide recommendations to ensure its sustainability

The knowledge sought by this evaluation will:

• Provide information on the reduction, in the past 5 years, related to adolescent pregnancy, violence, suicide, substance abuse and school dropout, that can be attributed, (if any) to this programme and the specific contributions of the programme.
• Inform policy and other decision makers, at the national and sub-national levels if and to what extent each programme outcomes is achieved and to inform a review of outcomes/outputs and other modifications before the whole-country implementation.
• Identify and report over the past five years, on current and possible bottlenecks/barriers, risks and assumptions, enablers and strategies that should be considered for continued implementation and scale up.
• Use the values for money calculations for Cost-Effectiveness, Cost-Utility Analyses, Cost-Benefit and Social Return on Investment (SROI) analyses, to determine if this program gives value for money and or if there are other viable alternatives to achieve the same output/outcomes.

Profile of the Evaluation Team

• These terms of reference are for a team of Evaluators (3-4 persons) with at least 10 years of experience conducting evaluations, between them.
• The contract will be for a period of 6 months. The following characteristics are required and desirable. The evaluation Team Profile should include at least a General Coordinator; a Specialised Evaluator (Culture and Sports specialisation as an advantage); a quantitative and qualitative Methods responsible person; a Value for Money expert, and a fieldwork operations officer.

Required:
This consultancy is for a team of Evaluators (3-4 persons) who must possess the following competencies:

• The General Coordinator should possess an Advanced University Degree in Social Sciences, Anthropology, Sociology, Education a specialisation in Sport and Culture (theatre arts) will be an advantage - the other team members should have bachelor’s degrees in relevant fields.
• A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in leading and managing outcome and impact evaluations.
• Proven experience in conducting evaluations and research;
• Proven experience in the design and methods of qualitative and quantitative evaluation and research.
• Proven experience in conducting value-for-money and cost-efficiency/effectiveness analysis (and lease one team member should be a VfM expert)
• A demonstrable understanding of equity issues in education
• Proven experience in facilitating and collecting information, including data collection with children
• Knowledge of the SC4D programme in Guyana
• Knowledge of the equity and gender approaches and their application;
• Knowledge of Results-Based Management;
• Fluency in spoken and written English
• Good ability to write reports clearly and concisely.
• Strong organisational, and presentation skills

Desirable:

• Previous work experience with the United Nations System;
• Knowledge of UNEG evaluation standards;
• It is recommended that a description of the role and responsibilities of each team member and an explanation of his or her competencies (i.e. matching the required skills) be provided.

A complete Terms of Reference can be accessed here: ToR-Evaluation of the Sports and Culture for Development Programme in Dormitory Schools.pdf