Save the Children - USA
Consultant: Climate Resilient WASH guidance for multi-sectoral food & nutrition security programs
Technical Scope of Work
BACKGROUND
Climate change can seriously harm the natural environment, negatively impact crop production and food security and human health and nutrition. Climate change also makes natural disasters (such as storms, droughts, landslides, and floods)[1] more common and more dangerous. These climate trends threaten development gains in the world’s poorest countries, including advances in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
Practices, Research & Operations in WASH (PRO-WASH) is an initiative funded by USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) and led by Save the Children. PRO-WASH aims to provide support to implementing partners in order to strengthen the quality of WASH interventions through capacity strengthening, knowledge-sharing and applied WASH research opportunities. PRO-WASH’s approach to providing support is driven by a commitment to empower BHA partners to become technical leaders in WASH, particularly for vulnerable and food insecure communities. In an effort to provide USAID/BHA implementing partners with more guidance on how to integrate climate considerations into program design, implementation and monitoring activities, PRO-WASH aims to complete the following activities through this consultancy:
- Complete a global desk review and Key Informant Interviews with BHA implementing partners and USAID mission staff to document how climate trends are affecting BHA-funded Resilience Food Security Activities (RFSAs) and their stakeholders and inhibiting achievement/sustainment of WASH objectives. Specific objectives of the desk review and KIIs include:
a. Define “climate-resilience” as it pertains to the WASH sector (with a focus on multi-sectoral food and nutrition security programs)
b. Summarize the common and specific WASH-related climate impacts on BHA-funded programs and their stakeholders, (and related WASH activities)
c. Identify existing WASH-related climate-resilient (or simply resilient) activities and indicators designed to mitigate and/or adapt to existing or emerging climate trends
- Develop a guidance document to assist BHA implementing partners to incorporate climate resilience activities and measurements into project design and Collaboration Learning and Adaptation (CLA) efforts of their projects to improve quality and sustainability. Specifically, the guidance document aims to:
a. Provide strategic guidance for identifying and prioritizing relevant climate-resilient WASH activities for BHA-implementing partners
b. Provide a compendium of illustrative climate-related activities and indicators for programs to use as reference during program design and implementation
c. Launch the final guide at an online webinar, small group discussion or meeting.
This activity will showcase the quick guide and provide examples from RFSAs (from the key-informant interviews).
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE
The term of this consultancy is from May 16 2022 – October 31, 2022. Changes may occur related to the implementation process of the project, and the start date is dependent on when the consultant passes a required background check.
OVERVIEW OF SCOPE OF WORK AND SPECIFIC TASKS
PRO-WASH is currently conducting a survey of BHA-partners working on Resilience Food Security Activities (RFSAs) to better understand how climate is impacting their programs and partners and what information and resources they need to consider climate in program design, implementation and monitoring activities. Survey results will be used to identify potential key informants for this activity. The consultant will be provided with results from this survey along with a USAID-approved outline of the proposed technical guide that the consultant will develop. PRO-WASH can also provide access to RFSA quarterly and annual reports and related tools and resources on the following topics to help inform the planned desk review:
· USAID/PRO-WASH WASH technical guides on WASH infrastructure and water quality
· USAID/PRO-WASH technical brief: Climate Change, Risk, and Resilience
· in WASH and Agriculture Projects
· Global Water Partnership WASH Climate Resilient Development Strategic Framework and technical briefs
· USAID Climate Strategy (2021 draft)
Activity 1: Global Desk Review and Key Informant Interviews
The vendor will lead a global desk review to:
· Define “climate-resilience” as it pertains to the WASH sector (with a focus on multi-sectoral food and nutrition security programs) and making reference to the latest IPCC report
· Summarize the common and specific WASH-related climate impacts on BHA-funded RFSA programs and their stakeholders, and related WASH activities.
· Identify existing WASH-related climate-resilient (or simply resilient) activities and indicators designed to mitigate and/or adapt to existing or emerging climate trends
Building on the online partner survey PRO-WASH recently conducted on how climate is impacting RFSAs and what they are doing to adapt and measure climate impacts, the consultant will draft key information interview (KII) questionnaires and conduct 10-12 key informant interviews (a combination of French and English) with program and USAID mission staff supporting USAID/BHA-funded food and nutrition security programs to better understand the extent of their climate-related WASH programming and needs.
a. Consult with PRO-WASH on the scope of work and draft an inception report – 2 days
b. Complete a global desk/literature review, incorporating PRO WASH survey results from the recently conducted online survey – 12 days
c. Develop KII tools for program stakeholders and USAID missions staff and incorporate review comments from PRO WASH and BHA – 3 days
d. Conduct global key informant interviews, code, and analyze results – 13 days
e. Draft and finalize summary report (5-7 pages) and presentation on findings from literature review and key informant interviews – 5 days
Activity 2: Drafting and finalization of a Climate-Resilient WASH programming quick guide for USAID Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance implementing partners
Informed by the global desk review and initial key informant interviews, the consultant will lead the development of a Climate Resilient WASH quick guide resource that will provide guidance to USAID/BHA implementing partners on how to integrate climate-resilient science and principles into RFSA program design and Collaboration, learning and adaptation (CLA) activities. The consultant will respond to technical review feedback from PRO-WASH steering committee members, BHA technical staff and other stakeholders to finalize the quick guide.
· Complete first draft of quick guide – 7 days
· Incorporate technical review comments (2 rounds) and complete second draft of quick guide – 3 days
· Work with PRO-WASH to design and format quick guide – 2 days
· Finalize quick guide – 2 days
· Present an overview of the quick guide to BHA and implementing partners in a 1 hour public webinar, meeting or small group discussion – 1 day
BUDGET/LEVEL OF EFFORT
The supplier should propose a budget for the full scope of work in USD. It is anticipated that the amount of time needed to complete the deliverables is approximately 50 days of LOE.
Save the Children will issue payment per the proposed schedule below once the Save the Children Technical Lead approvals the deliverables. All costs associated with graphic design of the quick guide will be paid for directly by Save the Children. All costs associated with hosting the online webinar/meeting will be paid for directly by Save the Children.
DELIVERABLE AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE
Payment will be based on the completion of deliverables as listed in the estimated payment schedule below.
Deliverable / Estimated Deadline / Payment Schedule
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- Inception report to outline the timeline and plan for achieving the scope of work. Esimated deadline and payment: May 27, 2022
- Submission of final report summarizing the findings from the desk review and KIIs (after 1-2 rounds of project and donor review). Estimated deadline and payment schedule: June 30, 2022
- First draft of the quick guide submitted to PRO-WASH for review. Estimated deadline: July 22, 2022. Estimated payment schedule: September 23, 2022.
- Second draft of quick guide submitted to PRO-WASH and BHA for review, incorporating previous feedback. Estimated deadline and payment schedule: Estimated deadline and payment schedule: August 16, 2022.
- Submit draft of quick guide to PRO-WASH communications team for layout and copy editing, incorporating all previous feedback. Estimated deadline: September 10, 2022. Estimated payment schedule: September 23, 2022.
- Submission of final quick guide for publication. Estimated deadline and payment schedule: September 23, 2022.
- Present an overview of the quick guide to BHA and implementing partners in a 1 hour public webinar, meeting or small group discussion. Estimated deadline: October 12, 2022. Estimated payment schedule: October 30, 2022.
VENDOR PROFILE
Interested individuals, teams, and firms are eligible to apply. The selected vendor should possess the following educational and professional qualifications for the execution of this scope of work:
· Advanced degree in environmental health, environmental engineering, climate sciences or another related field
· Experience designing, implementing and/or evaluating multi-sectoral food and nutrition security and/or resilience programs
· Experience working USAID funded programs (Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance preferred)
· Experience in designing, implementing, and analyzing qualitative research activities
· Experience leading the development of technical reports, briefs, guides, etc.
· Strong communication, analytical and writing skills
· Fluency in written and spoken English and French. If vendor does not have professional proficiency in French, please include interpretation costs in the budget for key informant interviews (estimated at 4-6 in French).
How to apply
SUBMISSION PROCESS
Interested candidates should submit an expression of interest that details their interest in this work, a summary of their previous work and how it matches with what is being requested, their technical expertise, and their availability, CV(s), budget or daily rate quotation (if individual) and estimated number of days to complete this work, the names of at least two professional references, and a USAID Contractor Employee Biographical Data Sheet AID 1420-17 (if individual) to Stephen Sara, [email protected] . Please submit this by 5 p.m. (ET) on Friday, April 29th, 2022.
Please include links in your cover letter to examples of documents that you have completed that are similar to those requested under this scope of work. If a candidate is not fluent in French, please include the costs for interpretation from English to French in the budget.
Please note that a standard background check will be conducted prior to finalizing any contract.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
PRO-WASH will evaluate proposals based on which provides the best value, considering both technical and cost factors. Applicants should note that these criteria: (1) serve as the standard against which all proposals will be evaluated, and (2) serve to identify the significant matters which Applicants should address in their proposals. Each proposal will be evaluated on the criteria listed below and the criteria will be weighted according to the following allocations:
- Technical expertise (Maximum 35 points)
Specific criteria include the following:
a. Does the vendor have experience in working with multi-sectoral food security and nutrition programs?
b. Does the vendor have expertise in WASH, climate and/or resilience?
c. Does the vendor have experience in leading the development of technical reports, briefs, guides, etc?
- Reasonableness of the submitted budget: (Maximum 30 points)
a. Are the costs proposed reasonable and realistic?
b. Are the costs clearly explained and necessary for the completion of the deliverables?
- Past Performance: (Maximum 35 points)
a. Has the vendor completed high-quality similar work previously?
b. Do the references recommend working with the vendor?
c. Has the vendor completed similar projects within the allocated budget and timeline?
[1] See Appendix 1.