Title of Consultancy

Terms of Reference (ToR) to engage a consultant to undertake the development of a Comprehensive Community Engagement and Social Mobilization Strategy for Education

Contracting Office

Ministry of Education Culture and Higher Education (MOECHE)

Advert Date

27th October 2024

Deadline

7th November 2024

Period of Consultancy

Development of a Comprehensive Community Engagement and Social Mobilization Strategy for Education

Consultant type required

 Consultant Firm

Responsibility for Logistics arrangements and Costs

MOECHE will pay the fees for the consultant firm lead in a lump sum and will not reimburse any incurred costs during the assignment. The firm lead consultant will cover their Logistical arrangements and costs in the country to coordinate and implement the consultancy services. MOECHE will cover costs associated with consultation and validation workshops.

Taxation Provisions

The firm consultant shall be responsible for all Taxes arising from the consultancy in line with the local Tax regulations applicable at the MOECHE contracting office named above.

Travel requirements

The consultant firm will cover their travel costs (tickets) and arrange local travel to field sites if needed

Security requirements

The consultant firm will comply with standards of MOECHE Security procedures prior to travel to Somalia.

INTRODUCTION:

The Ministry of Education, Culture & Higher Education of the Federal Government is responsible Establishing quality education system for all Somali citizens that offers equal opportunities and promotes respect for human rights and observes Islamic principles as articulated in the provisional Constitution of the Federal Government of Somalia (2012) and the National Education Policy (revised in 2023). The Overall goal of the education sector is to ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood, basic and primary, secondary, technical and vocational, higher education, and complete with relevant and effective learning outcomes. The strategic goals of the sector are governed by the National Development Plan (2020-2024), the Education Sector Strategic Plan (2022-2026), the Somali Partnership Compact (2023-2026).

BACKGROUND:

In the face of persistent challenges such as high dropout rates, particularly among girls and marginalized groups, the Ministry of Education Culture and Higher Education (MOECHE) is implementing a multi-year Global Partnership for Education (GPE) funded System Transformation Grant (STG). This initiative is a key component in addressing access gaps in both rural and urban settings, especially in marginalized communities. The project has three components (outcomes):

·         Outcome 1: Equitably increased primary gross enrolment rate,

·         Outcome 2: Equitably improved literacy and numeracy and completion rates,

·         Outcome 3: Strong regulatory and financing framework,

One of the key outputs under Outcome 1 is to develop a comprehensive community engagement and social mobilization strategy in a bid to strengthen community engagement to increase local communities’ ownership and support for education. The strategy will serve as a road map for the STG program and guide community engagement efforts and working with local communities/CECs throughout the course of implementation. The program will focus on three major areas: (a) participation and accountability of the communities and parents; (b) capacity building with a focus on community, parents, and CECs partnership; and (3) social behavioral change aspects to guide awareness raising efforts at various levels. The strategy will inform the revision and/or development of materials and targeted interventions where the gaps exist. The active participation of CECs, parents and communities in schools helps increase access, attendance, and retention of children.

The strategy will also help the REOs, DEOs and CECs to lead community forums and discussions with local businesses/private sector, traditional elders, politicians, women groups, and youth groups to explore ideas for long term sustainability of education interventions at the district level.

Additionally, the strategy will support campaign activities such as annual enrolment drives, awareness campaigns, and door-to-door parental engagement. The strategy must emphasize inclusive education through a gender-responsive and intersectional approach, ensuring that all marginalized groups, including girls, children with disabilities, and children from marginalized communities, are at the heart of the strategy’s objectives. The consultant is expected to lead the design and execution of community engagement campaigns, leveraging innovative and evidence-based approaches to enhance participation. In addition to facilitating collaboration among consortium members and education clusters, the consultant will ensure alignment with global best practices in social mobilization, adapting these to the Somali context.

Therefore, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Higher Education is seeking a qualified, experienced and competent firm support the development and endorsement of a Comprehensive Community Engagement and Social Mobilization Strategy for Education. The consultant firm will closely work with the Director General for Basic Education of the Federal Ministry of Education, Culture and Higher Education.  

KEY GAPS AND OPPORTUNITIES

Many community engagement and public mobilizations activities have been implemented across the country by various actors including government institutions, school administrations, and local and international NGOs. However, they often lack alignment and cohesion. The consultant firm is expected to:

·         Assess existing strategies from both governmental and non-governmental organizations, including past and current strategies by GPE Grant agents (SCI & CARE) and other education cluster members to ensure continuity and prevent duplication.

·         Create synergies between different actors and consortium members to streamline messaging and community engagement activities. This will involve reviewing their strategies and collaborating with them to ensure alignment.

·         Leverage consortium networks to drive greater community participation in education-related initiatives, ensuring that the consultant's work is grounded in a collaborative and cross-cutting approach.

·         Additionally, the consultant firm is expected to integrate gender-focused strategies and engage disability and marginalization issues to ensure that these groups are well represented in community engagement efforts.

OBJECTIVE OF THE CONSULTANCY

The overall objective of the Consultancy is to support MOECHE in the development of a comprehensive community engagement and social mobilization strategy for education.

Specific Tasks and Objectives:

·         Conduct a comprehensive analysis and desk review of community engagement and social mobilization strategies/guidelines used by the different education development partners. This includes identifying gaps, strengths and opportunities for alignment and ensuring coherence between consortium-led initiatives and government efforts.

·         Engage in targeted consultations with key education stakeholders, including government representatives, local authorities, teachers' unions, NGOs, community leaders, and other important community figures to discuss the assessment findings from the desk review.

·         Work closely with GPE Grant agents (Save the Children and CARE) to align messaging and strategies at various intervention levels—national, regional, and grassroots. These collaborations should ensure unified messaging, Resource sharing to avoid duplications and maximize impact,

·         Develop and endorse a comprehensive community engagement and social mobilization strategy for education that provides clear guidance on community and parental involvement, social be havioral change communication and long-term sustainability measures, such as local resources mobilization and public-private partnership.

Specific Deliverables:

The firm will be required to deliver the following:

The firm is required to submit an inception report within the first 10 days of the assignment, followed by a draft framework within 30 days. A full draft of the strategy should be submitted for review by key stakeholders within 40 days, with the final validated version to be delivered by the 45-day mark. Produce a framework/outline of a comprehensive community engagement and social mobilization strategy.

·         Conduct consultations with stakeholders on the draft framework/outline for inputs.

·         Produce a draft comprehensive community engagement and social mobilization strategy.

·         Conduct a consultation and validation workshop for the draft strategy and incorporate inputs from education stakeholders.

·         Submit the final validated versions of the strategy both in English and Somali language.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATION WHEN DEVELOPING THE STRATEGY:

·         Engagement of religious leaders as part of the social mobilization efforts, particularly in regions where religious views on education might influence attendance rates for girls and marginalized groups.

·         A media and digital engagement strategy must be developed to expand the reach of community mobilization efforts. This should include social media campaigns, SMS messaging, and other digital tools that can effectively engage young people, parents, and marginalized communities, ensuring data-driven decision-making and targeted outreach.

·         A robust participatory monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework should be embedded in the strategy. This framework should include clear key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress in community participation, gender parity, and access for marginalized groups. The M&E approach should involve community stakeholders in both data collection and feedback processes to ensure transparency and local ownership.

Roles and Responsibilities

·         The sought service requires level of effort from a firm that can provide experienced consultants who will deliver the work, reporting to the MOECHE and Grant Agent.

·         MOECHE and FMS MOEs– will provide all the necessary information/facilitation support to the selected firm that would help complete the deliverables successfully.

·         MOECHE – will manage the contract of the consultant firm and provide necessary support both technical and financial.

·         The consultant firm lead – will take the responsibility to accomplish the deliverables.

·         The consultant firm lead will work closely with the MOECHE and FMS MOEs team and the SCI education technical team. The consultant will also liaise with education development partners as relevant.

Budget and Payment Terms:

The budget for the consultancy will be allocated based on a detailed cost breakdown provided by the consultancy firm lead . Payments will be disbursed in installments upon satisfactory completion of agreed-upon milestones and deliverables.

Lines of Communication

·         Primary reporting: The consultant will report directly to the Director General for Basic Education of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Higher Education with dotted technical review of MOECHE communication team.

·         Coordination: The consultant will also work closely with a task force comprising the education stakeholders to be nominated by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Higher Education.

·         Engagement with relevant ministries: The consultant firm will also engage with FMS MoE and BRA Education Directorate to align community engagement and educational initiatives with broader social services.

5.       Duration and timeframe

·         The duration of the assignment will be a total of 45 days, from the date of contract signing.

Qualification and Experience

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

The consultant firm lead should possess the following qualifications and expertise.

·         At least 8 years of progressively responsible professional work experience in education with proven experience in developing policies, strategies and guidelines.

·         Advanced university degree in education or a related field.

·         Excellent written and verbal communication skills including the ability to present complex processes and issues clearly to a heterogeneous audience and in an actionable manner.

·         Demonstrated experience in leading preview of policies, strategies and guidelines processes.

·         Knowledge of governance framework and issues in the Somali context.

·         Fluency in English and Somali.

·         Excellent facilitation skills

·         Availability at the preferred time/during the time window

·         Acceptability to all key stakeholders

Selection Criteria

Essential Criteria:

1.      The consultant firm consultant to submit proof of valid registration certificate from ministry of commerce Federal government of Somalia  

2.      The consultant firm consultant to submit valid tax compliance certificate from ministry of finance of the Federal government of Somalia  

Technical Criteria

a)      Technical Proposal including work plan

Detailed technical proposal with clear methodology of how the consultant firm consultant intends to carry out the development of the strategy; effective strategies for engaging stakeholders, identify gaps of the existing strategies, ensuring adaptability and effectiveness in the Somali context, and understanding of the TOR. This to be evaluated based on:

1. Overall quality, clarity, organization and relevance of the technical proposal document

     II.            Clarity, sequence, and relevance of the proposed methodology and approach to meet the requirement in this assignment

1. The work plan detail and how it is related to the proposed methodology

b)      Experience

The consultant firm’s lead consultant to share a proof of relevant experience in similar context including relevant academic background.

c)      Technical/ lead team CVs and profiles

Updated CVs for all technical teams with detailed qualifications and experience including the consultant firm’s profile.

Commercial criteria

Detailed financial proposal with budget breakdown including all expenses, fees, and taxes. The consultant firm to share bank statement with traceability, the bank statement should be fully stamped.

All interested consultancy firms should submit their applications and related documentations via email to the following email address [email protected] before the 7th November  2024 with the subject of the email as ‘Consultancy firm to Develop a Comprehensive Community Engagement and Social Mobilization Strategy for Education".

“All attached documents should be clearly labelled so it is clear to understand what each file relates to. Emails should not exceed 15mb – if the file sizes are large, please split the submission into two emails. Do not copy other email addresses into the email when you submit it as this will invalidate your bid.

The deadline for submission is 7th November 2024