INVITATION TO BID FOR CONSULTANCY: Consultancy to Screen, Assess, andP rovide recommendation for intervention in Inclusive Educational wellbeing for children with disabilities in Beledweyne ECE schools for SC Italy project.

1.    Background Information

Many contexts, even where there is political will to provide educational support to children with disabilities, often lack sufficient processes and systems to do so. While overarching teaching strategies, such as universal design for learning, response to intervention, and differentiated instruction, can help all children learn, teachers who understand each child’s needs, including the needs of children with disabilities, can better help them learn. Therefore, identification, coupled with targeted follow-up, is essential to promoting quality education for all.

Disability and poverty are deeply interrelated factors, and many with disabilities face rampant exclusion from education, the workforce, and social and civic participation. Without identification, a child may struggle to learn to read due to visual acuity problems that are easily correctable with proper eyeglasses. Children with “invisible” disabilities, such as cognitive or emotional impairments, are particularly likely to go unidentified and may be branded as struggling learners, possibly discouraging interest in school, disincentivizing continued investment in education by resource-strapped families, and ultimately leading to school dropout. Indeed, an estimated 90% of children with disabilities are recorded to be out of school in developing countries.

The need to prioritize inclusive education beyond the boundaries of the school and classroom is real. A holistic and systematic approach is critical to strengthening technical and institutional capacities of the MOEs to effectively deliver educational services to most of the Disadvantaged groups who include out-of-school children and children with disabilities. There is commitment to Inclusive Education under the broad approach of Child-Friendly Schools (CFS). However, even though the CFS approach can commendably improve teaching practices and attitudes of learners, some barriers are unique to children with disabilities and cannot always be resolved through general improvements alone. There is an overall challenge to the national education system on the means to meet the education needs of children with disabilities and specifically, policy gaps which have not spelt out among other critical aspects, how to adequately address learning and participation needs of students with disabilities; qualifications for special needs education teachers; safety and accessibility of the learning environment for children with special needs.

The Ministry of education culture and higher education (MOECHE) has developed and finalized the National Special Needs and Inclusive Education Policy in 2018, and Somalia has ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2019. However, children with disabilities remain invisible in Somalia and have very limited access to educational opportunities. Children with disabilities face many barriers including an inaccessible physical environment, lack of community awareness, negative attitudes and stigma as well as a lack of assistive devices and mobility aids1. Girls with disabilities in particular face a double burden due to their gender and disability. The population of children with special needs in the country is unknown. There is a general lack of accurate real-time reliable data on the numbers of children with disabilities, the type of disability and their geographical location. According to recent reports from DANIDA and ECHO funded EIE (Education in Emergencies) actions, enrolment rates were found to lowest for children

with disabilities and other disadvantaged groups including girls, rural and refugees. Barriers to access for children with disabilities are considerable and include negative attitudes towards them, unfavorable learning environments without necessary assistive devices, and teachers lacking training on inclusive education. Girls with disabilities face additional barriers in accessing education due to gender stereotypes based on discriminatory and cultural norms such as marginalization, stigma, and the preference for boys to access education. Eliminating all barriers to education including those related to gender, disability and special needs is a priority area in the ESSP.

Save the Children through funding from Save the Children Italy to support Early learning interventions plans to improve the access to education for

Children with disabilities through (a) identification and screening/assessment of children with disabilities; (b) conducting community awareness raising and enrolment campaign; (c) provision of equipment, assistive devices and teaching materials to children with disabilities.

SCI plans the following:

•       Screening/assessment for children with disabilities in ECE schools.

•       Provision of equipment and assistive devices for children with disabilities in the supported ECE schools.

2.    Consultancy objective

The objective of the assignment is to gather information for decision-making and intervention in the following three areas:

•       Asses and Screen children with disability across program target ECE schools in Beledweyne in 10 ECE schools supported by SC Italy.

•       Provide in-depth information (Data) and needs to stakeholders (parents/caregivers, SCI, CECs and MOE) to inform decision such as the kind of equipment and the type of assistive devices needed to support the children to access education equally.

•       Provide recommendations and way forward to improve and support the access of educational opportunities for children with disabilities

3.    Scope of Work

The consultant should consider the purpose of each assessment and gather initial information at the onset of the

process. The following are some general considerations

•       Identify and conduct screening of children with disabilities in 10 supported ECE schools in beletweyne.

•       Visit classrooms to gather information needed and identify different type of disabilities/developmental delay that children face

•       Involve in the assessment, representatives of persons with disabilities in the area. parents, other family members, related service practitioners, and clarify what roles will these individuals assume (for example, facilitator, observer, assessor) are to play in the assessment

•       Employ different methodologies, formal testing, observation, interview that suit best the child

•       Prepare in-depth report the detail and provide information’s needed to address challenges with recommendations of the type of assistive devices, equipment and materials needed to be supported on each child

•       Identify and document skills or behaviours that are important to the child in his or her environment

•       Document the adaptations which are necessary for the child to display optimal skills (for example, use of an alternative communication system, adaptive seating, assistive technology)

4.    Methodology

•       The lead consultant will be required to engage experts that are able to provide detailed screening of children with disabilities

•       The assessment methodologies will vary depending on the type of the disability of the child

5.    Deliverables

The following services and outputs are expected:

o   Detailed technical & financial proposal

o   Detailed work plan for undertaking the assessment. o Assessment Report and Debrief on the findings

o  Workplan on the way forward

•       Reporting and coordination: The consultants will report directly to the designated ACCM and MEAL leads and will be required to maintain regular communication and provide updates on the progress of the story collection process.

•       Data management and confidentiality: The consultants will be expected to follow strict protocols for data management and storage to ensure the confidentiality and secure handling of collected stories and personal information.

•       TIME FRAME

•       The consultancy work will last approximately 18 days. The days will start by the date the contract is signed.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

•       Consultancy fee: The consultant will come up with his/her own rate which will be subject to negotiation within the bounds of donor requirements and set standards of SC in Somalia. The consultant is expected to estimate all relevant costs for the exercise while undertaking activities related to this assignment.

CODE OF CONDUCT

Save the Children's work is based on deeply held values and principles of child safeguarding, and it is essential that our commitment to children's rights and humanitarian principles is supported and demonstrated by all members of staff and other people working for and with Save the Children. Save the Children's Code of Conduct sets out the standards which all staff members must adhere to, and the consultant is bound to sign and abide to the Save the Children’s Code of Conduct.

A contract will be signed by the consultant before commencement of the action. The contract will detail terms and conditions of service, aspects on inputs and deliverables. The Consultant will be expected to treat as private and confidential any information disclosed to her/him or with which she/he may come into contact during her/his service. The Consultant will not therefore disclose the same or thereof to any third party or publish it in any paper without the prior written consent of Save the Children. Any sensitive information (particularly concerning individual children) should be treated as confidential.

An agreement with a consultant will be rendered void if Save the Children discovers any corrupt activities have taken place either during the sourcing, preparation, and implementation of the consultancy agreement.

Copyright and intellectual property:

In consideration of the fees paid, the consultant expressly assigns to Save the Children any copyright arising from the work the consultant produces while executing this contract. All information collected, the consultant will not use, reproduce, or otherwise disseminate or authorize others to use, reproduce or disseminate such works without prior consent from Save the Children International Somalia.

ETHICS AND CHILD SAFEGUARDING

Consultants will collect children’s information in an ethical manner making sure children and project beneficiaries including best practices for collecting information, using a non-judgmental tone, obtaining informed consent, participant privacy and confidentiality, and data security measures. The Consultant will focus on the ethical aspects of data collection and how to ensure the dignity and psychological safety of the children with disabilities, including gender sensitive, child-friendly and inclusive methods. A contract will be signed by the consultant before the commencement of the action. The contract will detail terms and conditions of service, aspects of inputs, and deliverables.

•       Interested candidates in this position are expected to provide the following documentation:

•       A technical proposal with a detailed response to the TOR, with a specific focus on the scope of work, methodology, and timelines, and how the participation of the parents of the children with disabilities in the assignment will be ensured.

•       Detail work plan with timelines to be shared.

•       Firm/company profile on handling the related assignment if the consultant is firm.

•       Personal CVs for individual consultants highlighting qualifications and experience.

•       Contact details of referees which shall be organizations for whom you have conducted for similar assignments.

•       Financial proposal indicating consultancy fee and other costs related to the assignment

•       Contracts or reports of at least two previously conducted similar assignments.

Supplier Sustainability Policy and the included mandatory policies: Click Here to Access

HOW TO APPLY:

Applications can be submitted by either:

Electronic Submission via ProSave (Recommended)

•      Submit your response in accordance with the guidance provided in the below document:

•      Bidders are encouraged to apply via Ariba system. Please request the Ariba link via email sending your company profile and Business registration certificate/CV. Please address your request to apply via ProSave to [email protected]

Electronic Submission via Protected Email box (Optional)

•       Email should be addressed to [email protected]

•       Note – this is a sealed tender box which will not be opened until the tender has closed. Therefore, do not send tender related questions to this email address as they will not be answered.

The subject of the email should be “Assessment, Screening and providing intervention for Inclusive Educational wellbeing for children with disabilities in Beledweyne ECE schools for SC Italy project”.

•       – ‘Bidder Name’, ‘Date’’.

•       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 SCI email addresses into the email when you submit it as this will invalidate your bid.

−      Your bid must be received, no later than 25th November, 2024

−      Application Submission address: indicating “” as the subject.

−      Bids must remain valid and open for consideration for a period of no less than 3 weeks