MEL Consultant - Protection Case Management

Work Arrangement:

Job Description

Project Background: Global Protection Case Management Initiative

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) works in more than 40 countries to help people affected by humanitarian crises to survive, recover and rebuild their lives. Our vision is that the IRC will lead the humanitarian field by implementing high-impact, cost-effective programs for people affected by crisis, and shape global policy and practice by sharing our learning and experience with others. The Violence, Prevention and Response Unit (VPRU) at IRC implements protection programming that prevents violence against women, children, especially girls, and other vulnerable groups, and responds to it when it does occur.

The value of case management services is well established in specialized sectors, such as Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Child Protection (CP). These services, however, are limited to respond to a narrow sub-set of protection violations; the coordinated and focused support of case management is also essential when applied to other violations, such as the risk of abduction or being killed, persons threatened with violence associated with their perceived political or religious affiliations; those targeted for their association with, or membership of, minority groups, or persons excluded from service provision including persons with disabilities or older persons.

In 2021, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and UNHCR developed the Protection Case Management Guidance [Field-Test Version], in response to this need. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), with IRC and UNHCR, is committed to sharing this resource with protection actors, seeking informal interagency support and elevating protection case management as a critical, core area of protection response.

This project aims to establish a structured approach to protection case management (PCM) at the global level, providing an endorsed interagency standard for case management to affected populations. To achieve this, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and IRC will provide the humanitarian protection sector with the knowledge, tools and guidance needed to develop and scale up a more standardized, coordinated, and quality PCM services. Building on the PCM Guidance [Field-Test Version], the project focuses on three key goals:

1. Increase global learning on PCM through incorporation of lessons drawn from country level implementation, leading to the elevation of this intervention to a core protection programming module in the humanitarian program cycle.

2. Integrate essential Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) services into the revised PCM Guidance in order to support the appropriate skill development of case workers through resources and capacity building.

3. Strengthen the Monitoring Evaluation and Learning (MEL) approach within the revised PCM Guidance to ensure delivery of quality services.

IRC is leading on the further development of MEL component for the revised PCM Guidance and is seeking an experienced MEL consultant to support on the development of a conceptual and measurement framework to monitor protection outcomes. These outcomes will be integrated into the project’s design and development of a responsive MEL toolkit that prioritizes field useability, feasibility, and reflects the learning needs of protection caseworkers.

Scope of Work:

Throughout 2023, IRC is using participatory and iterative approaches to design and develop a responsive MEL toolkit to support effective measurement and learning about protection case management. As part of this effort, duringSeptember – October 2023, the Consultant will collaborate with key team members to (i) identify and draft protection case management outcomes monitoring framework, (ii) design tools to measure against these outcomes, and (iii) suggest the outcome the methods to measure the outcomes

The Consultant will work together with IRC’s VPRU MEL Snr Specialist, Health and Data and Health and Protection Data Specialist, and PCM Project Lead at the beginning of the consultancy to clearly outline and confirm expected deliverables. These IRC focal points will work alongside the Consultant throughout the consultancy to provide supervision and support and ensure that key deliverables align with overarching project goals. Deliverables should be contextually and culturally adaptable across multiple contexts. Materials will be created in English (for later translation into additional languages).

Deliverables:

- Review existing material on protection outcomes including GBV and CP CM best practice, PCM Guidance [Field-Test Version], IRC’s gap analysis content, existing conceptual and theoretical frameworks,– (3 days) - Develop draft outcomes for protection case management, including through consultations with IRC, NRC, and other experts on desired protection outcomes – (6 days) - Develop data collection tools to measure discussed protection outcomes during the case management process, and incorporate one round of feedback from the project team on these tools – (7 days) - Lead the initial user testing of the tools, including a workshop with case managers and supervisors to test the usability and user-friendliness of the tool. Adjust tools based on case manager and supervisor feedback (3 days) - Develop a concise summary of the process and approach of the development of the tool (1 day) - Develop guidance on how to roll out and use the protection outcome tool for case workers and steps to contextualize the outcome monitoring (3 days) - After country pilot, adjust the tools and guidance as relevant (1 day) - Participate in ongoing project team meetings, coordination, and communication (1 day)

Qualifications

Qualifications:

- At least 4- 6 years of experience in MEL work, including development of outcome frameworks and/or indicators. - At least 5 years of previous experience in providing services or overseeing teams supporting displaced populations, migrants, refugees, or conflict affected populations - Solid technical knowledge of protection rights issues and global protection standards - Demonstrated experience in pedagogical skills and learning principles - Previous experience working on projects that require a highly iterative and consultative process, with the capacity to incorporate multiple levels of feedback and perspectives in final products in developing guidance and training documents - Flexible work attitude, with the ability to follow direction and work independently across a virtual work environment - Fluent in English (verbal and written)

Payment Rate and Schedule:

The scope of work is expected to run on a part-time basis from September 2023 until the end of October2023. As full compensation for the services rendered, IRC shall pay the Consultant agreed upon daily rate within 30 days upon approval of the final version of the deliverables.

Requirements:

All expressions of interest should include:

- A short technical proposal and the technical approach on how to conduct the assignment and deliverables (Detailed curriculum vitae - Examples of previous work provided via links or attachments (1-3 examples, if available) - Financial Proposal (inclusive of daily rate)

How to apply:

Applications for this consultancy should be emailed to [email protected] no later than 15 September 2023 with “Expression of Interest for PCM MEL Consultant” in the subject line.