Consultancy for Gender and Protection Analysis to be conducted in Bonthe, Sierra Leone

Summary: Gender and Protection Analysis focus on identifying and understanding the different roles, activities, needs and vulnerabilities and capacities of women, girls, men and boys in Bonthe district, Sierra Leone.

Duration: 2 months upon contract signature. *Timeline subject to revision depending on access to areas of intervention and methodology applied.

Background/Context:

Action Against Hunger in Sierra Leone is currently implementing a Multi-sectorial Community led approach to improve Nutrition in Bonthe district, Sierra Leone (MCA-Nut). The project targets 3 Chiefdoms in Bonthe district: Jong, Kpanda Kemoh and Yawbeko.

The principal objective of the project is to contribute to the reduction of undernutrition in children under 5 years, and reduce the chronic malnutrition of children under 5 years, pregnant, adolescents, and lactating mothers in the target areas.

Across the programs, a range of strategies will be deployed for integrated service delivery across the sectors: Nutrition and Health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Food Security and Livelihoods and Mental Health, Psychosocial Support and Protection at the community and health facility levels. The Integrated programs will be implemented while recognizing gender integration mainstreamed in all sectors as a critical component to overcoming barriers women face in adopting optimal nutrition behaviors and reaching their full potential. The program will address barriers the population face in adopting optimal nutrition behaviors, therefore the program will strive to understand the specific roots and socio cultural determinants of undernutrition in Bonthe district, as well as the involvement of community structures in identification and referrals of cases of undernutrition at community level. This includes identifying key factors that affect care practices including maternal infant and young child feeding, sanitation and hygiene practices and psychosocial care among others.

The operational chiefdoms for this intervention include Jong, Kpanda Kemo and Yawbeko chiefdoms and the potential partners to include Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS); District Heath Management Team (DHMT); Ministry of Social Welfare Gender and children’s affairs; Bonthe district Council and the project communities.

Action Against Hunger vulnerability analysis based on secondary data shows that Bonthe district is the most affected in terms of multidimensional vulnerability in addition to being one of the most underserved areas in Sierra Leone. According to the 2021 Sierra Leone National Smart Survey (SLNSS), the level of stunting in Bonthe is of 23.3 % (95% C.I.: 18.3-29.0), compared to 26.2% (95% C.I.: 26.0 – 27.5) at the national level. The food insecure population has increased to 73% in the year 2022. Regarding protection and gender concerns, women and girls are amongst the most at-risk population categories, with high rates of gender-based violence (GBV) and teenage pregnancies. In 2018, 40% of maternal mortality in Sierra Leone was among teenagers. In 2020, 28% of teenage girls had begun childbearing according to a CUAMM survey. In 2019, President Julius Maada Bio declared rape and sexual violence a national emergency in the country. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of reported cases has increased. The lack of identification and access to treatment, as well as the underreporting, compromising, slow judicial system and unwillingness to prosecute GBV perpetrators are greatly undermining the fight against gender-based violence.

The Focus Group Discussion, held during Action Against Hunger’s assessment in April 2022, shows that there is wide spread gender inequality in the communities, yet the respondents demonstrated awareness on gender related issues. The discussion shows social and gender norms are prevalence, which reveal high level of discrimination based on sex, and has led to exclusion of some sexes from actively participating in the socio-economic and political agenda of their communities. Also, widespread GBV among women and men came out clearly.

Most of the communities in Bonthe district largely depend on agriculture, with women playing a major role (75% of the labour force along the food value chain) but remain amongst the most vulnerable to poverty and under-employment.

In order to strengthen the quality of the multisectoral response led by ACF via IA funding, a multisectoral gender and protection analysis (Nutrition and Health, FSL, WASH, MHPSS) will be conducted in order to adapt the project activities. This analysis will highlight the specific problems related to gender and protection risks in the intervention area, to strengthen gender and protection interventions

Objectives of the Analysis:

The objective is to identify the vulnerabilities of the population:

– Analyze pre-existing and current power dynamics and gender roles including access to and control of resources, different constraints and risks, gender diversity and diversity of capacities faced by the women, men, boys and girls.

– Analyze the population’s representations of existing protection risks and the strategies adopted by vulnerable people to reduce the risks of protection incidents.

– Understand existing types of violence, their root causes and causal agents, who is most at risk of experiencing them and for what reasons.

More specifically, the consultant is expected to provide the following information, according to the targeted population groups (by age, sex, disabilities, etc.) and encompassing the different technical sectors of ACF intervention (WASH, FSL, HEALTH and NUTRITION, MHPSS-P) on:

• Sexual/Gendered Division of Labor
• Household decision-making
• Control of productive assets
• Access to public spaces and services
• Claiming rights and meaningful participation in public decision-­making
• Control over one’s body
• Violence and restorative justice
• Aspirations and strategic interests

Location and scope of the Gender and Protection Analysis:

The Gender and Protection Analysis will be carried out in Bonthe district, Southern Sierra Leone. The analysis will target three chiefdoms – Jong, Kpanda Kemoh and Yawbeko) in Bonthe district.

Responsibilities of the Consultant:

The consultancy will be hired to

• Conduct Gender and Protection Analysis
• Training for project staff on how to integrate recommendations of the report in the project.

Main activities of the consultant:

• Design of the methodology, with ACF project team and technical support from Headquarters
• Planning and conducting the evaluation in the intervention area
• Recruitment and training of a team of enumerators for data collection and entry
• Collection and analysis of secondary and primary data
• Drafting of a report, including analysis, conclusions, and recommendations
• Presentation of the results during an internal session
• Training for the project team on how to integrate the recommendations into the various stages of the project

Methodology

The methodology will be developed and specified by the consultants and will cover the following:

1. Review of secondary data – desk review
2. Preparation of Context-specific work plan and revised ToR
3. development and/or adaptation of data collection tools (based on existing ACF tools)
4. Recruitment/training and supervision of emumerators
5. Field analysis in the target areas.. The survey will include both quantitative and qualitative methods including household interviews, Focus Groups Discussions and Key Informant Interviews.
6. Data analysis: the data collected from desk review, stakeholder consultation and field survey will be analyzed as per scope
7. Reporting: based on the data collected and analyzed, recommend the key gaps for intervention and propose adaptation in Action Against Hunger programme implementation methodology, as well as in ACF’s MEAL tools, when deemed relevant.
8. Debriefing with Action Against Hunger team
9. Facilitating a training of Action Against Hunger team on how to integrate the recommendations into the various stages of the project cycle.

Target of the gender and protection analysis

The gender and protection analysis will include the following people as priority groups, including the most vulnerable groups:

– Women and men

– Children, adolescents, youth, adults and the elderly

– The different ethnic and/or religious groups that exit.

– People with disabilities

– Community influencers: religious leaders, traditional healers, midwives, local and traditional authorities, teachers, health personnel, etc.

– Humanitarian, governmental and community organizations in the area, especially those involved in protection and gender.

– ACF team

Consultancy Deliverables:

1. Research proposal: Methodology, tools, literature materials proposed for the consultancy based on initial briefings, consultations and experience for approval by Action Against Hunger.
2. A comprehensive gender and protection analysis report addressing the scope highlighted above, following the structure below:
   1. Executive summary
   2. List of acronyms
   3. Introduction
   4. Methodology
   5. Findings and analysis
   6. Conclusions
   7. Recommendations and action plan
   8. Annexes
3. 1 PowerPoint presentations for the debriefing meeting(s)
4. Gender and Protection training deliverables (including a PowerPoint presentation)
5. Training report and Action Plan

Terms and Conditions:

Action Against Hunger will set up a steering committee to supervise the Gender and Protection Analysis during the consultancy period. The committee will meet based on needs to provide follow-up in the consultancy work.

Application and Qualification

Interested candidates are requested to send their Expression of Interest including CV, sample of previous work done, an estimated budget (including daily rate), technical fees to logistics department at Action Against Hunger [email protected] by 9th November, 2022. Qualified national applicants are encouraged to apply. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

• Advanced Degree, preferably with post graduate degree in social science, gender / women studies, international development, human rights, public health or related field;
• Minimum 5 years of experience working on gender issues, gender and development, gender equality, gender mainstreaming, policies analysis and capacity building;
• Demonstrated expertise in gender analysis, gender planning and mainstreaming of gender in projects and programmes;
• Considerable experience in development and use of gender analysis tools and methodologies, analysis and quality reporting;
• Project management experience;
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral;
• Good facilitation skills
• Experience and commitment to promoting gender equality within humanitarian work
• Strong analytical and research skills, including the ability to process large amounts of information, extract critical analysis and distribute it appropriately
• Experience with qualitative data analysis, with quick turnaround time for use
• Familiarity with digital data collection systems
• Experience and capacity to work in harsh conditions and insecure environments
• Experience in conflict affected areas is an asset
• Able to work independently
• Maturity, cultural sensitivity, tactfulness, diplomacy, inter-personal skills and ability to work well under pressure in a demanding environment and tight deadlines.
• Computer Skills (knowledge of Microsoft Office and Outlook is a pre-requisite).
• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• Previous experience on gender analysis particularly in the context of in Africa as well as language skills in the local language is an added value.