TERMS OF REFERENCE

FOR

CONDUCTING A FINAL-TERM EVALUATION FOR THE KNH/BMZ FUNDED PROJECT

Project Title

Empowering local communities to combat FGM/C in Somaliland

Project Number

69024

Country

Somaliland

Duration

42 months (3 years and 10 months)

Start date

November 2022

End date

October2026

Project sites

Awdal, Togdher and Marodijeh – Somaliland

Type of evaluation

Final-term evaluation

Donor

KNH/BMZ

1.    Background

 Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) remains one of the most pervasive harmful practices in Somaliland, sustained by deep‑rooted social norms, gender inequality, and community expectations around purity, marriageability, and cultural identity. Despite decades of advocacy, a significant proportion of girls and women continue to undergo FGM/C, particularly in rural and marginalized communities where traditional beliefs remain strong.

Over the past years, local civil society organizations, women’s groups, and international partners have intensified awareness efforts to highlight the severe health risks, psychological consequences, and human‑rights violations associated with FGM/C. These initiatives have contributed to growing public dialogue and emerging grassroots movements advocating for abandonment of the practice. However, resistance persists, and progress remains uneven due to limited enforcement of protective frameworks, inconsistent community engagement, and the absence of a national Anti‑FGM law.

In response to these challenges, NAFIS Network, with funding from Kindernothilfe (KNH) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), has been implementing a multi‑year community empowerment project across Maroodi‑Jeex, Togdheer, and Awdal regions.

The project adopts a multi‑level social norms change approach, working through:

• Self‑Help Groups (SHGs) and Cluster Level Associations (CLAs) to strengthen women’s collective agency and community‑led advocacy
• NAFIS member organizations and civil society partners to enhance institutional capacity for coordinated FGM/C prevention
• Health workers in Mother and Child Health Centres to improve survivor‑centered care, counseling, and medical response
• Policymakers, legislators, and government institutions to advance legal and policy reforms aimed at protecting girls and women

Through this integrated model, the project seeks to shift harmful social norms, strengthen community structures, improve service delivery, and contribute to national efforts toward the abandonment of FM/C in Somaliland.

2.    About the project

The project tackles FGM/C in Awdal, Togdheer, and Marodi_jeh by working through grassroots CLAs to shift norms, raise awareness, and push communities to abandon the practice. It strengthens NAFIS member organizations to embed FGM/C advocacy in their work, while amplifying civil society voices to drive national anti-FGM/C legislation. At the same time, it supports survivor care through counseling services, and pushes for stronger coordination between NGOs, government, and local authorities.

Overall objective: FGM/C is considered a violation of child protection and women's rights. Communities are willing to abolish it through a grassroots movement supported by NAFIS affiliates and other civil society organisations in the three project regions of Maroodijeeh, Togdheer and Awdal.

Key outputs:

• CLAs in all communities advocate at grassroots level, understand FGM/C as a human rights violation and work to end the practice.
• The capacity of NAFIS member organizations (NMOs) and other civil society organizations to advocate for an end to FGM/C has increased.
• Health workers in mother and child health Centres better understand the human rights and medical dimensions of FGM/C
• Politicians and legislators have a full understanding of how FGM/C violates the rights of girls and women and are ready to approve the FGM/C law and directive.

3.    Purpose of the Final-term evaluation

 The Final‑Term Evaluation aims to generate an independent, credible, participatory and evidence‑based assessment of the project “Empowering Local Communities to Combat FGM/C in Somaliland” at the end of its implementation cycle (November 2022 – August 2026). The evaluation will determine the extent to which the project has achieved its intended results, contributed to social norms transformation, strengthened civil society and health‑system capacities, and influenced national policy and legislative processes related to FGM/C.

The evaluation should not only assess project performance, but also generate strategic learning on community-based social norms transformation approaches for FGM/C abandonment in Somaliland. Particular emphasis shall be placed on:
• Social norms transformation;
• Community ownership and sustainability;
• Gender and power dynamics;
• Institutional strengthening;
• Survivor-centered approaches;
• Contribution to policy and advocacy processes;
• Scalability and replicability of the CLA/SHG approach.

The evaluation should apply a contribution-oriented approach, recognizing the influence of multiple actors and contextual factors affecting FGM/C abandonment efforts.

4.    Scope of the evaluation

 The Final‑Term Evaluation will assess the full implementation period of the project from November 2022 to July 2026 across the three implementation regions, Maroodi‑Jeex, Togdheer, and Awdal.

The evaluation shall assess:
• Activities, outputs, outcomes, and emerging impacts;
• Quality of project implementation and adaptive management;
• Community-level social norms transformation;
• Institutional and policy-level contributions;
• Sustainability prospects;
• Unintended positive or negative effects;
• Contextual factors including political, economic, environmental, and social developments.

Fieldwork is planned for 01–30 July 2026, beginning with an inception briefing at the NAFIS Network office, and the overall assignment is expected to take 30 -40 working days.

Geographical scope: the project was implemented in Marodijeh, Togdher and Awdal regions in Somaliland and the evaluation scope will be based on these regions.

1.    Qualifications of the consultant

The Final term evaluation survey to be done by a local consultant/firm with a mix of expertise in:

·         FGM programming

·         Gender and human rights

·         Social norms transformation

·         Child rights and protection

·         , women and community empowerment,

·         Policy and advocacy evaluation

The lead Consultant should preferably hold a Master’s degree and demonstrate:

·         Proven experience of at least five years in evaluation

·         Experience in fragile or humanitarian contexts

·         Strong analytical and reporting skills

·         Experience conducting qualitative and quantitative research

·         Familiarity with Somali and English language, command of local language(s) is an asset

Interested Consultants/individual or firms are requested to submit: 

1.    A technical proposal detailing their interpretation of the TOR, proposed methodology including sampling framework, work schedule and proposed budget;

2.    A capability statement demonstrating how they meet the required qualifications and competencies;

3.    Copies of all relevant Curriculum Vitae (CVs). Only CVs for the specific individuals that will form the proposed survey team should be included.

4.    Examples of previous work similar to this assignment

All applications should be submitted electronically to [email protected] with subject line: “Final-Term Evaluation FGM/C project” Deadline for submission: 18Th June 2026.