International Consultancy: Assessment of the Embassy of Ireland-UNICEF Karamoja Education Programme on promoting access to Quality and Equitable Education for Karamoja children (2016-2020)

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Uganda is one of the over 190 countries and territories around the world where we work to overcome the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease, and discrimination place in a child’s path. Together with the Government of Uganda and partners we work towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, the objectives of the Uganda National Development Plan, and the planned outcomes of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework.

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Background

Uganda, as in most of sub-Saharan Africa, is experiencing a rapid expansion of access to primary education, thanks to the implementation of the Government of Uganda’s Universal Primary Education (UPE) policy. This has in part led to a deterioration in the quality of education provided. Large class sizes, high pupil to teacher ratios or teacher absenteeism, inadequate supply of suitably qualified teachers and an insufficient infrastructure characterize the system. This is one of the core problems in Karamoja, the most underdeveloped region of Uganda, located in the North Eastern region of the country. Karamoja is populated by largely pastoral communities, in contrast to the rest of the country. An estimated 84 per cent of children in Karamoja face multi-dimensional poverty, with a monetary poverty rate of 60 per cent. The people of Karamoja are undertaking an enormous transition within an accelerated period of time, from pastoralism to integration into the modern economy and way of living. Education outcomes are affected by the complex realities of these wide ranging social behaviour challenges

The Uganda Demographic Health Survey (2016), Karamoja ranks nationally as the lowest performing region in primary net enrollment (35.5%), secondary net enrollment (10.1%), primary gross enrollment (55.6%), secondary gross enrollment (17.5%) and those who have never attended school (51.0%). Despite this, the National Assessment of Progress in Education (2018) showed the region has having 12.4% higher proficiency rate than the national average across the measured competencies. The most common issues across the region include low enrolment of the school aged population, high pupil-to-teacher ratios, high teacher absenteeism, inadequate supply of suitably qualified teachers and learning facilities, ineffective education governance, limited use of child friendly learning methodologies and inappropriate use of financial and human resources. This is further compounded by limited parental and community endorsement of education as well as a high rate of teenage pregnancy (23.6%) and socio-cultural practices including child marriage.[1] The gender parity index for primary enrollment was .84 in Karamoja compared to a national average of 1.07, while at secondary it is .66 to .99 respectively.[2] Poor quality of education combined with gender and social norms that prevent girls from completing their primary education and transitioning to post-primary education are common in Karamoja. Karamoja is a region known for the high presence of gender-based violence, child marriage, and cultural norms which negatively affects girls’ access to education[3].

Purpose

The Promoting Access to Quality and Equitable Education for Karamoja Children Programme (2016-2020)

Since 2016, UNICEF has implemented the “Promoting access to quality and equitable education for Karamoja children” funded by a 5-year commitment from the Embassy of Ireland to Uganda representing the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Ireland.

The specific results for all districts of Karamoja region are:

Programme Outcome: By 2020 an effective and efficient well-resourced formal quality education & training system that is inclusive, relevant and accessible to all boys and girls with increased school retention, completion and achievement rates.

1. Output 1: By 2020, strengthened capacity of the Gender Unit in MoES, District local government officials and targeted schools in Karamoja[4] to plan, coordinate, implement and monitor primary education programmes that are of good quality, equitable, easily accessible, inclusive and sustainable, to impart relevant knowledge and skills.
2. Output 2: By 2020, improved knowledge, skills and participation of adolescents’ girls and boys to access essential health services to reduce their vulnerability to teenage pregnancy, child marriage and violence.

The above results were envisaged to be implemented through three main cross cutting components: Quality Education, Gender in Education and Violence against Children in schools.

The programme approach has focused on building the capacity of various stakeholders on gender responsive delivery methodologies within a child friendly schools’ framework. A total of 368 primary and 33 secondary schools were targeted in districts in the Karamoja region. The programme set out to support the development and implementation of evidence-based interventions for addressing violence against children in schools with a particular focus on girls. The results were foreseen to be achieved by: improving completion and increasing transition of girls to secondary school; increasing access to and utilization of adolescent-responsive prevention services in health, protect them from violence and harmful traditional practices such as child marriage; and equip them with vital information and life skills information that is gender sensitive. Various school health related challenges that impact enrolment, retention and completion of education were envisaged to be addressed through direct interface with learners, teachers and parents as gatekeepers of adolescents. Such interventions have included addressing growth and development; personal and menstrual hygiene including nutrition/school feeding programs for learners in school, safeguarding the environment and mitigating effects of climate change.

In summary UNICEF aims to assess the long-term and significant impact of the programme, including assessing the effectiveness of the integrated District Systems strengthening approach that build the capacity of Primary Teacher Colleges, Coordinating Centre Tutors, district education officials and school managers to impact on what goes on in the classroom and the teaching, learning and school environment the child experiences.

Partners in Implementation: The programme implementation consists of a partnership among the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES), in particular - the Gender Unit, Department for Basic Education, Special Education Needs Unit and Kyambogo University, two national Civil Society Organisations (Straight Talk Foundation and Trailblazers Mentoring Foundation) and Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), an international NGO. This has been supported by UNICEF’s technical and administrative staff both in UNICEF Uganda country office (Kampala) and the UNICEF Moroto Field Office. The program implements activities with and provides support to the national policy environment and MoES departments, through to district local government (DLG) in the region, DLG education departments, regional primary teacher colleges (PTCs), schools, both in and out of school adolescents and communities.

A total of 368 primary schools and 33 secondary schools (including private/community schools) are beneficiaries of this programme through the programmes partnership with each district local government. More extensive quality education support is provided to schools in the Karamoja region through VSO. Moreover, more schools receive more extensive adolescent development and life-skills support from Straight Talk Foundation (STF) and Trailblazers Mentoring Foundation (TMF).

Focus of the programme has been on all pupils, particularly adolescents and children at risk of dropping out of primary school and those who have dropped out of school. Children with special learning needs have been targeted using innovative and proven inclusive education approaches.

Justification

The assessment is being conducted to meet the dual-purpose of learning and accountability. The assessment will be a summative assessment in the context of the current phase of the programme and will provide accountability for the five years of investment in one of the education sector’s flagship programmes in Karamoja. At the same time, as UNICEF is going to continue its support for the next five year, possibly with funding from the government of Ireland, the assessment will generate lessons to inform UNICEF, Embassy of Ireland and MoES future and ongoing interventions in the Karamoja Region, decisions for scale up of similar education and gender related interventions. Hence, the assessment will act as a formative assessment in this broader context.

Moreover, in 2020 the Government of Uganda instigated measures to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Uganda, which included closure of the country’s educational institutions on 20 March 2020, staggered school reopening and again the current total lock down. This prolonged closure is expected to have impacted learning outcomes, enrollment levels, the safety of children and the motivation levels of teachers, all which could negatively affect the outcomes of the programme. The programme’s response to these challenges as a learning opportunity is of key interest of the assessment.

Objectives

The objectives of the assessment are:

1. To assess progress towards expected results of the Promoting Access to Quality and Equitable Education for Karamoja Children Programme (2016-2020);
2. To examine enabling factors and bottlenecks and review emerging contextual challenges and opportunities that could have affected programme implementation.
3. To generate actionable recommendations for consideration in promoting access to quality and equitable education for children especially in contexts of Karamoja

Scope, Approach and Methodology

Scope of the Assessment

The assessment will cover five years of implementation of the EURO 7.2 million programme from 2016 to December 2020. Cognizant of the theory of change underpinning the programme, the assessment will further examine the implementation has been flexible, and or laid mechanisms to incorporate emerging issues, specifically drawn from learning through implementation. The assessment will nest itself within the OECD DAC criteria.

The assessment will be undertaken in Karamoja region in North Eastern Uganda, covering nine districts of Abim, Amudat, Kaabong, Kalenga, Kotido, Moroto, Nabilatuk, Nakapiripirit, and Napak. Moreover, the assessment will also extend the implementation scope to cover policy level interventions executed with and by the Ministry of Education and Sports in Kampala.

The assessment will cover the programme in its entirety across the two objectives in the design. UNICEF is mindful that the prolonged closure of learning institutions for the greater part of the 2020 academic year could have affected learning outcomes, enrollment levels, the safety of children and the motivation levels of teachers, all which could negatively impact the outcomes of the programme. The programme’s response to these challenges amidst the CoVID19 pandemic should be a key part of the programmatic scope Assessment.

Envisaged Approach and Methodology

The assessment will be carried out by a two-person team: one national and one international. The International consultant will bring conceptual rigour, relevant international experience and ensure the quality of the report. The National Consultant will lead the assessment.

While the assessment will try to achieve the rigorous of a programme evaluation, the scope and the methodology will have to be adjusted as required by the prevailing Covid-19 situation at the time of the implementation of the assessment. The assessment will be summative with a forward-looking focus embedded. The assessment will adopt the UNICEF Ethical procedures and follow UNEG Assessment standards[5] during execution of the assessment as well as Embassy of Ireland Assessment principles and guidelines as much as possible. This Assessment will adopt a non-quasi experimental design using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methodologies and techniques as determined by the specific needs for information, Assessment questions set out in the TOR, availability of resources and by the priorities of stakeholders.

Specifically, to understand barriers, enablers and opportunities in implementing the programme, qualitative data will be collected using desk reviews, Key Informants Interviews, and Focus Group Discussions- face to face or through distance methodologies as appropriate. The assessment will include literature review of key documents[6] to gain a clear understanding of the logic and rationale of the programme, as well as the extent of the implementation of the same. In addition, Key informant interviews with Ministry of Education and Sports, District Local Governments, UNICEF, Embassy of Ireland, national and international civil society organizations. Given that an adolescent’s closest social circle and community-level influences of teachers, peers and school environment shape their behavior and experience, innovative CoVID19 Standard Operating Procedure sensitive school community sessions should be adopted to appreciate the dynamics influencing the learning environment, learning outcomes and VACiS. Moreover, given the multi-faceted response interventions by stakeholders, the assessment team is highly encouraged to employ Quality Comparative Analysis and Outcome harvesting techniques in addition to other qualitative techniques. Given the uncertainties posed by the covid-19 context, the methodology may have to be adjusted at the time of implementation.

The consultant is further encouraged to collate and analyze data from the Annual Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB) Student Performance, HMIS, ChildHelpline, Policy Crime Report and relate the same to the indicator performance across the five years in the monitoring framework of the Programme.

Stakeholder participation, specially the meaningful participation of the children, is essential and will be sought from the beginning of the process, employing appropriate covid-19 sensitive methods. The assessment will thus include interviews with different stakeholders aimed at ensuring multiple perspectives, with clear views and assessments from programme stakeholders and stakeholders outside the programme. The assessment will be carried out through a wide participation of all relevant stakeholders including the Ministry of Education and Sports, District Local Governments, Embassy of Ireland, partner civil society organizations (CSOs), beneficiaries and other UN agencies. Interviews with beneficiaries and local partners using participatory review and assessment methodologies are strongly encouraged. As resources (time, financial, human) are limited, it is thought that the assessment will effectively utilize recent progress and financial reports, relevant information from other reviews or assessments done on the programme, or its stakeholders, and other relevant available documentation.

Data will be analysed along the key themes of the assessment and conclusions thereafter drawn. Data will be presented in tables, charts and graphs depending on the assessment question of interest.

Moreover, at all stages of the assessment, gender and human rights principles will be integrated in the design of the assessment. Data will be disaggregated by relevant criteria including age, gender, marginalized and vulnerable groups, etc. and gender analysis will be applied.

The programme has a broad scope of ambition ranging from national policy support and systems to support at the district local government level. Most of the initiatives or activities are mainstreamed in overall national efforts to improve access to equitable quality education in Karamoja. The activities under the project have the potential to support across the spectrum of ongoing national efforts within the education sector. The assessment will therefore offer equally broader observations that the national efforts are making in relation to addressing issues affecting quality of learning in Uganda. However, the recommendations of this Assessment will specially focus on those that are within the precincts of the programme, MoES, UNICEF, Implementing CSO Partners and Embassy of Ireland.

Given that the assessment is summative in nature, assessment of impact criterion of OECD will only adopt a contribution analysis path of how the programme outcomes are likely or are contributing to the envisaged impact.

Major tasks and deliverables

The assessment is envisaged to proceed through the following phases.

1. Inception phase (August 2021): This phase aims to prepare the team for the assessment by ensuring that they have a good grasp of the expectations for the assessment and a clear plan for conducting it. The inception phase will include a desk review of secondary data and initial interaction with the main stakeholders. The assessment team is expected to engage with partners on the Programme and the abridged Core Reference Group. Consensus shall be drawn on the methodology including data collection tools, ethical approvals, and field data collection plans. The International consult will be intensively engaged with the National Consultant at this phase.
2. Field Data Collection (August 2021): The fieldwork will span over a period not exceeding 15 workman days and will include field visits to collect primary and secondary data from national and district level stakeholders. Both innovative traditional and remote data collection methods are encouraged. A debriefing session will be held upon completion of the field work. Due to the covid-19 related restrictions, the international consultant will not be engaged in field data collection.
3. Reporting phase (August – September 2021): The contractor will clean and analyze the data collected during the desk review and the field work, conduct additional consultations with stakeholders, as required, and draft the assessment report. The draft Assessment report will be submitted to the UNICEF CO, Regional Office and Embassy of Ireland for quality assurance. Stakeholders in the abridged core reference group will be invited to provide comments to the assessment team for their consideration before report finalization The international consultant will lead in preparing the final report.
4. Follow-up and dissemination phase (September 2021): The final Assessment report will be shared with the relevant stakeholders as highlighted earlier in the anticipated dissemination moments. The UNICEF working the MoES will respond to the assessment recommendations by providing actions that will be taken to address each recommendation and estimated timelines for taking those actions. Findings and lessons will be incorporated into a two pager Strategic Level Policy Brief which the consultancy firm undertaking this assignment is expected to develop from the executive summary of the assessment. While the International consultant will be engaged, the National Consultant will lead this phase

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

The selected Consultant should have:

• Post Graduate degree in the relevant field.
• At least 10 years of work experience, including in developing Countries. Experience in Sub-Saharan Africa will be an advantage.
• Knowledge of, and expertise in basic education at primary and secondary level. Extensive experience of education sector management and related district systems strengthening approaches. Proven track record in assessing similar complex national and local programmes in Education in Uganda and East Africa is an advantage.
• Advanced degree in Education or related fields
• Strong data analytical skills, including knowledge on standard international statistical measures used in the education sector
• Ability to design and conduct interviews and focus group discussions within short timeframes
• Good documentation and report writing skills.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment.
• Adaptability to changing environments and demonstrated flexibility in work style.
• Production of high-quality deliverables on time.
• Excellent English written and oral communication skills.
• Excellent analytical, research and report writing skills.
• Good communication and relationship-building skills.

Language:

• Fluency in English.

Application Procedure/Call for Proposals

Interested candidates are required to submit a technical proposal on how they intend to approach the work. The proposal should include a timeline, and methodology, based on the Terms of Reference. The proposal must also include detailed CV of the consultant, as well as a financial proposal, clearly indicating daily rate for professional fees. The financial proposal must be all-inclusive of all costs (consultancy fees and where applicable air fares, airport transfers, daily living expenses). This is an international level consultancy and competitive market rates should apply.

Evaluation of Candidate:

The consultant will be competitively selected from a list of applicants based on their past experience of doing similar work (extensive experience in writing donor reports, in compiling and editing annual reports for various UNICEF offices).

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The competencies required for this post are….

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

Remarks:

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.