Terms of Reference

Research on broadening contextual understanding of Housing Land and Property Rights in the Afgooye district.

Location:                    Afgooye district (Afgooye town, Lafoole, Mareerey and Afgooye corridor)

Duration:                   45 working days

Critical interface:     Head of Programme, ICLA PDM, ICLA Managers, &HLP focal points

Consultancy type    International ILocal

Travel:                           No travel is required for this consultancy

Background and Context

Somalia represents one of the world’s most complex and long-standing humanitarian crises, where a complex interplay of climatic extremes, conflict, and socio-economic vulnerabilities have combined to create a cute needs and protracted humanitarian crisis. Although concerted efforts by the government and international partners have positioned Somalia on a positive trajectory toward recovery, the legacy of protracted instability is being exacerbated by intermittent climatic shocks, insecurity, and evictions. Forced evictions remain among the most severe and prevalent protection threats in Somalia, representing both a cause and a multiplier of the displacement crises. Congested cities with weak urban systems are struggling to cope as the complex interplay between natural hazards, climatic shocks, conflict, and insecurity continues to drive mass displacements across the country.

The climate-induced disasters, compounded by ongoing conflict and insecurity, have led to record displacement levels, with 2.9 million people displaced in 2023 alone[1]. The majority of these displacements were due to climatic shocks, emphasizing the growing impact of climate change on human mobility. Furthermore, the conflict situation has escalated, with civilian casualties continuing to rise and almost 654,000[2] recorded between January and December 2023. The attacks on critical infrastructure and humanitarian workers have further constrained the delivery of aid and access to essential services[3]. Moreover, forced evictions continue to increase vulnerabilities in urban centers with approximately 207,851 people facing secondary displacement in 2023 t a slight increase from the 2022 figures of 188,186 people forcefully displaced across key towns in Somalia. NRC established an eviction monitoring network in Afgooye recording 1,728 people forcefully displaced. The causes of forced evictions in Somalia revolve around a set of intertwined dynamics that encompass illegal occupation and squatting, unplanned and rapid urbanization, land grabs, development and infrastructure projects, urban redevelopment, property market forces often supported by state intervention, contested and multiple claims, and natural hazards e.g. flood risk, potential flooding, and drought or famine.  Evictions take place at both settlement and household levels. Settlement-level removals are the most visible and are easier to track than household-level incidents, which can be more insidious, and less visible. Owing to a lack of access to financial resources, the majority of IDPs exchange humanitarian aid received instead of rental fees, inadvertently fueling a problematic cycle of exploitation by landowners. This rental economy prompts some landowners to engage in the commercialization of evictions - evictions threatened or executed with a deliberate view to attracting humanitarian attention and/or assistance.

Afgooye is a city in the Lower Shabelle region of Southwest State, Somalia, and is the administrative capital of the Afgooye district hosting more than 52[4] IDP sites accommodating 10,105 households or 57,753 individuals. Compared to the last site verification conducted in May 2023, there was an increase of 11 sites, 3,054 Households or 15,571 individuals representing a quintessence of the dynamics and challenges confronting displaced populations across Somalia.

In 2023, Afgooye received over 41,000[5] newly displaced persons while another 51,000 people fled Afgooye district to the neighbouring towns due to flood (25,000), drought-related (19,000), and conflicts/generalized insecurity (7,000) people with the majority forced to either create new unplanned sites or join existing settlements due to the limited absorption capacity. NRC conducted an Eviction Risk Mapping exercise in December 2023 under EU NEGAAD project to identify the eviction at-risk IDP settlements, inform tenure arrangements, and advocate for better site-level eviction risk management approaches. 43 IDP settlements were assessed with 63,648[6] people covering Afgooye city and Lafoole.

These figures represent a quintessence of the dynamics and challenges confronting displaced population across Somalia and is also prone to changes in power dynamics due to an evolving political governance. As Baidoa expand and competition for resources increases, IDPs are typically being transformed into the urban poor, integrated into chronically poor host communities or desolate settlements with few livelihood options or opportunities. IDPs and other marginalised communities remain exposed to the ongoing threats of eviction due to the informal nature of housing in Somalia combined with the absence of adequate HLP regulatory frameworks and limited government capacity in leading eviction-prevention initiatives. These intertwining dynamics and persistent   negative   trends   continue   to   weaken   the   overall   protective   environment,   undermine humanitarian investments, and precipitate protection challenges spanning the safety, health, dignity and livelihoods of displaced communities in Baidoa. IDPs remain disproportionately affected across the city, particularly women and children who constitute the most vulnerable substratum of the population.

Noticeable progress has been made to address the issue of forced evictions in Baidoa, including the adoption of a moratorium prohibiting evictions during the Covid-19 crisis and the establishment of a Taskforce  to  enhance  eviction  prevention  and response  capacity,  but  the  underlying  factors persist. Eviction as a problematic phenomenon remains a foundational imperative to addressing the issue of displacement in a realistic, comprehensive and sustainable way. To achieve this, an important first step is to gain a deeper and more balanced understanding of the underlying intricacies. It is against this backdrop that the current study has been commissioned.

OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE

The research studies will focus on broadening contextual understanding of HLP and legal identity in general, provide evidence and data to inform HLP programming and advance practical policy solutions to address the problem at different levels. The studies will provide an in-depth review of the practice of HLP rights in Afgooye, with practical recommendations for change or new practices that could reinforce the aim for durable solutions for displaced populations, especially women, in the district.

PROPOSED METHODOLOGY

§  The methods expected of the consultant would embody a comprehensive desk review of relevant literatures, published reports and statistics, analysis of raw datasets, as well as the conduct of key informant   interviews. 

§  The qualitative fieldwork will include focus group discussions (FGD) with male and female IDP community members and key stakeholder interviews (KII).

§  The   information   gathered   would   be   extensively   analysed   from   different perspectives while employing multiple techniques and statistical procedures. To gauge the perception, the   consultant   will   be   required   to   survey   a purposively   sampled number   of   key   governments, development, private sector, humanitarian and community stakeholders, including cluster coordinators.

§  In addition, NRC shall collect a number of case studies to gain an in-depth understanding of the issues and how they affect DACs. All names of individuals shall be withheld to respect respondents’ privacy.

§  The research team shall triangulate all the findings across multiple data sources, in particular the comparison of the qualitative findings with ICLA programme’s experience and data.

The expected sample frame shall encompass but not be limited to:

·         Heads of  local  government  agencies  whose  responsibilities  are  linked  to  the  promotion  or protection of HLP rights

·         Heads of agencies of local government that are responsible for or involved in eviction prevention and response.

·         Senior officials of the municipality of Baidoa

·         Landlords

·         A cross-section of settlement leaders

·          Representatives of humanitarian organisations

·          Cluster and sub-cluster coordinators

·         Selected members of the Afgooye Eviction Taskforce/BRA Eviction Taskforce

·         The HLP sub-cluster

·         Representatives of the EU BREACH/NEGAAD consortium

·         Representatives of development actors and the private sector

·         Urban planners Etc.

EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

§  Conduct a targeted literature review.

§  Document focus group discussions and interview notes from the key stakeholder interviews (KII)

§  A comprehensive report of  not  more than 30 pages consisting of  a cover  page,  table of content with figures tagging, an executive summary, report details interspersed with data visualisation charts and graphs, key findings and recommendations. The report should further  that outlines the challenges, gaps and recommendations, including a compelling rationale as well as practical policy and implementation options. This should include pathways for stakeholders to operationalize the available innovative tools, frameworks and approaches to secure land tenure and rights; and show how existing and innovative tools can be used together to foster HLP rights

§  A  condense  3-pager  of  the  executive  summary  and  key  finds  and  recommendations  for advocacy purposes.

§  Not less than 10 pages a PowerPoint presentation