Consultancy Job Vacancy at Search for Common Ground (SFCG)

Location: Jos

About the Project
Goal and Objectives:

• The Plateau Will Arise (PWA)! Phase II: Consolidating an Architecture for Peace, Tolerance and Reconciliation Project is funded by the European Union. It has the objective of “developing and ensuring the sustainability of an active, locally owned, and inclusive Peace Architecture in Plateau State beyond 2015”. Implementation of the project started on 2 July 2015 and the project will be terminating on January 2, 2017.

The specific objectives of the project are:

• To improve the climate of peace in 10 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Plateau and Kaduna State
• To strengthen the capacity of states and local actors to secure their communities
• To increase collaboration and outreach by religious, women and youth leaders to reduce post-election tension;
• To strengthen the capacity and knowledge of local civil society to implement this kind of programming (Cross Cutting Objective)
• The target stakeholder groups for the project include:
  • Community residents including children, youth, men, women, PWD, IDPs and conflict victims;
  • Community leaders and other influential actors, who can either positively or negatively impact the potential for mediation and future conflict prevention;
  • Civil society, security and Government Leaders who were targeted both for capacity building, as well as for activities aimed to bring them together.
• A cross section of these stakeholders, inclusive of participants and non-participants of the project, will be engaged in this evaluation to draw lessons and gauge results of the project.

Evaluation
Evaluation Questions:

• The study will primarily evaluate the Project Theory of Change (TOC).
• It will also evaluate components of the Project, inclusive of the community and media engagements, and respond to key project indicators as specified in the Project Monitoring Plan.
• This evaluation will be participatory, centering around three DAC criteria - effectiveness, relevance and sustainability of the project.

Evaluation questions will include:

A.) Theory of Change and Design:

• How relevant is the Project Theory of Change and design to the context and area in which the project intervened?
• How can the attribution of the project be verified? Can any causal chain of the project be identified and confirmed?

B.) Effectiveness:

• How effective have the Early Warning System, Community Security Architecture Dialogues (CSADs) and Peace Architecture Dialogues (PADs) been in contributing to increased communication and information sharing on emerging conflict issues in communities, LGAs and the state?
• How effective have the Project’s media programming and community engagements been at reaching the targeted demographics, and supporting the shifts in public knowledge and attitudes on conflict issues that are targeted through this project?

C.) Relevance:

• How relevant has the project been in contributing to, or hindering:
  • Increased intergroup confidence, reduced tensions, the gradual return of peace to the region, and by extension economic growth?
  • Increased social cohesion within the targeted communities, reinforced informal ties, as well as deliberately created relationships aimed at bringing together multiple stakeholders for violence prevention?
  • Increased linkages between government, civil society and security agencies, creating opportunities for a more broad-based and inclusive policy response to conflict both at the state and local levels? How sustainable are these linkages?
  • What unexpected changes, both positive and negative, has the project contributed to?

D.) Sustainability:

• How sustainable are the Early Warning System, Community Security Architecture Dialogues (CSADs) and Peace Architecture Dialogues (PADs) supported by this Project, in communities, LGAs and the state?
• If the project has contributed to the building of relationships and linkages between groups in targeted communities, as well as government, civil society and security agencies, how sustainable are these relationships and linkages?

Findings from this evaluation will be shared widely with project participants and partners, and presented during the Peace Architecture dialogues. The evaluation - with sensitive details redacted - will eventually be published on SFCG’s website and shared with other learning networks in order to enhance the broader field of peace-building in Nigeria and the world.

Methodology

• The final evaluation will adopt a mixed approach methodology, comprising of both qualitative and quantitative methods.
• In addition to an in-depth desk review of project documents and other supporting documents, the evaluation will utilize focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and a survey.
• The evaluation will target community residents, inclusive of communities in which the project was implemented, and those in which the project was not implemented.
• It will also target civil society, security and government leaders within Plateau State and Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

Deliverables
The final evaluation deliverables are:

• An inception report detailing the proposed method, study matrix, data collection tools and work plan. It is to be approved by SFCG before starting data collection.
• Draft report for review by SFCG staff and other stakeholders.
• Final Report (maximum 30 pages, excluding appendices), consisting of but not excluded to: Executive Summary, Methodology, Findings and Analysis, Conclusions, Lessons Learned and Recommendations. The report should be structured according to the evaluation questions.
• Appendices, including data collection tools and list of interviewees.
• A power point presentation of the report.

Requirements
The ideal candidate and/ or team will have the following:

• More than 5 years of experience in evaluations with international organizations;
• Graduate degree in Conflict Studies, Human Rights, Social Work or other relevant degree;
• Experience in peacebuilding, conflict resolution and human rights;
• Experience in international development, prior work experience in North Central Nigeria; 
• Experience with mixed methods;
• Strong analytical skills;
• Excellent written communication and report writing skills in English;
• Ability to communicate fluently in Hausa;
• Ability to be flexible with time and work schedule

Logistical Support

• SFCG will provide the following logistical support to the consultant:
  • Transmission of background materials (project proposal, meeting notes, etc.);
  • Availability of meeting room in Jos;
  • Use of SFCG printers;
  • Meeting arrangements with stakeholders and beneficiaries if requested by the consultant;
  • Support of a SFCG Field Officer for introductions to key stakeholders and equivalent.

Timeframe 
The evaluation will take place during January - February 2017, and the final deliverables are due end of February, 2017.

The consultant is required to respect the following Ethical Principles:

• Comprehensive and systematic inquiry: Consultant should make the most of the existing information and full range of stakeholders available at the time of the review.
• Consultant should conduct systematic, data-based inquiries. He or she should communicate his or her methods and approaches accurately and in sufficient detail to allow others to understand, interpret and critique his or her work. He or she should make clear the limitations of the review and its results.
• Competence: Consultant should possess the abilities and skills and experience appropriate to undertake the tasks proposed and should practice within the limits of his or her professional training and competence.
• Honesty and integrity: Consultant should be transparent with the contractor/constituent about: any conflict of interest, any change made in the negotiated project plan and the reasons why those changes were made, any risk that certain procedures or activities produce misleading review information.
• Respect for people: Consultant respect the security, dignity and self-worth of respondents, program participants. Consultant has the responsibility to be sensitive to and respect differences amongst participants in culture, religion, gender, disability, age and ethnicity.