Consultancy-WROs’ Policy Advocacy Capacity Strengthening

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Workshop and training with women and gender advocates on policy advocacy capacity strengthening

1. Background

The intervention entitled ‘Women and Girls Rebuilding New Iraq’ implemented by Oxfam in Iraq contributes to shaping policy, decision-making mechanisms and peacebuilding processes at multiple levels with the specific objective to ensure women and girls play a significant role in the new rehabilitation and development agenda. The initiative is working with women and girls in Kirkuk and Diyala governorates, both of which have endured a protracted conflict. The project seeks to engage 9,000 vulnerable women and girls in Iraq. Part of the project also takes place at the national level involving public policy and advocacy for women and girls’ rights.

The project is implemented in cooperation with Women Rights Organizations (WROs) promoting transformative leadership in formal and informal governance structures. In particular, the project includes a Leadership Programme dedicated to strengthening the capacity of WROs to advocate and campaign for, and policy-makers to formulate and implement, gender-transformative policy.

1. Purpose

Within the Leadership Programme, this consultancy is to provide capacity strengthening for selected WROs in Federal Iraq to increase their competencies and engagement in policy advocacy. It will be carried out in a flexible approach building on the existing strengths and ongoing advocacy work of Oxfam’s partner WROs and looking into opportunities for a common campaign for more gender-transformative policy-making.

It will look in particular into three aspects:

1) policy analysis and development for gender-transformative change, looking into existing efforts;

2) advocacy strategies for policy change and accountability, and

3) collaborative action and networking to improve collective influencing on policy issues affecting women and girls.

It will contribute to strengthening WROs’ capacities to do evidence-based advocacy and lobby with government, parliamentarians, public officials and policy-makers to work toward ensuring the existing and future policies are more and more gender-transformative.

1. Scope and methodology

Scope of the capacity strengthening programme:

1. The capacity strengthening programme should build on the existing and as much as possible be an effort of facilitation rather than top-down knowledge-sharing. To that end, it is suggested to start with a workshop bringing together Oxfam’s key partner WROs involved in policy advocacy across different projects. The workshop can aim to map out and assess their current experiences, achievements, challenges and capacity gaps, and serve as the basis to inform further trainings. Questions to address in the workshop can include for instance the following: (i) What are the ways WROs are using to engage with policymakers in the country? (ii) How do WROs hold policymakers accountable for the existing policies and laws? (iii) How effective are their current approaches, what gaps and opportunities can be identified?
2. The workshop can also aim to encourage closer cooperation and collective action, from experience-sharing to alliance-building. In particular, the workshop could be the opportunity to encourage WROs to join their forces in a common advocacy strategy or campaign on gender-responsive policy-making that can be the subject of hands-on training in the subsequent steps.
3. The capacity strengthening should then include tailored training for participating WROs on Policy, Advocacy, and Influencing.
4. The development of the training outline, materials, and tools should be implemented based on assessed experiences and gaps, and according to an understanding of the Iraqi context and where the gaps and opportunities for change exist.
5. The training itself should be as practical and hands-on as possible, building on the existing and aligned with the ideas and willingness of participant WROs to join their forces in a common advocacy strategy or campaign on gender-responsive policy-making.
6. Following the training, the consultant is expected to provide coaching and mentoring with WROs to guide the development and implementation of the advocacy strategy.
7. The outcome of the capacity strengthening programme, in addition to the increased capacity of WROs and individuals, should be a tentative advocacy strategy or campaign on gender-responsive policy-making. To ensure this, the consultant will be working closely with the Oxfam teams (Gender Justice Programme and Policy, Advocacy and Communications) and the projects’ WROs partners to identify the needed outcome.
8. The capacity strengthening programme should also include in the end recommendations for follow up actions for the participants at the individual and institutional level as well as what Oxfam and other actors need to consider moving forward.

Participants:

The capacity strengthening programme includes up to 30 participants.

The project envisions continuous learning and the process of engagement with the selected participants from Kirkuk, Diyala, Anbar, Mosul and Baghdad/Erbil.

Oxfam will select the participants through 2 channels: 1) current involvement in advocacy under Oxfam projects, and 2) a call for the application currently rolled out by Oxfam in coordination with our partners. Applications will be assessed based on agreed criteria to settle for participants who demonstrate passion and dedication to the course. We anticipate having the selected applicants on board by early-June 2022.

Formats:

Training should be done based on a blend of face-to-face methods of learning (in Erbil or Sulaymaniyah for instance), as well as utilising online tools. In compliance with Oxfam’s COVID19-related protocols, face-to-face events can have a maximum number of 15 participants per event (excluding the consultant staff, Oxfam’s and partner staff).

Guidance on the scope/content of the capacity strengthening:

The content of the capacity strengthening programme should be adjusted building on the existing and following the initial assessment, and tentatively cover the following topics (the consultant is encouraged to modify/add as needed):

1. Audience/targets analysis and identifying opportunities can include:

• Identifying gaps and opportunities for advocacy and policy change, including safety and security for women’s advocacy and political engagement in a conflict/post-conflict context;
• Mapping and analysis of targets and audiences, power analysis;
• Building coalitions and alliances between, individual women rights activists, leaders, WROs;
• Networking and negotiation with decision-makers.

1. Policy, Advocacy and influencing can include:

• Difference between awareness-raising and advocacy, and increased knowledge of advocacy toolbox.
• Advocacy strategy development and implementation with clearly defined activities, approaches, and messages.
• Persuading, Influencing & Negotiation skills.
• Principles of evidence-based advocacy with a focus on gender-related issues.
• Generation and dissemination of policy and advocacy tools such as position papers, policy briefs, petitions, testimonies, and media and social media products to facilitate advocacy and lobbying at different levels[1].
• Community mobilization, outreach, and empowerment
• Monitoring and evaluations of advocacy and policy implementation processes through a gendered lens.

Sequencing:

Phase 1 (early June): Preliminary workshop (or another suitable format to be suggested by the consultant) to bring participants together, map out and share their experiences and priorities, and assessment of the participants’ capacities around policy, advocacy and influencing.

Phase 2 (mid-June-July): Training(s) on Policy, Advocacy and Influencing, and coaching/mentoring.

Phase 3 (July – August): Evaluation, documentation, and reporting.

1. Deliverables

The assignment seeks the following deliverables:

1. Inception report in English outlining the methodological approach and detailed understanding of the assignment (max. 5 pages).
2. Phase 1-Draft agenda and materials for the workshop (or other formats), reviewed by Oxfam, and rolled out by the consultant. Upon review and conclusions, the materials will be translated into Arabic.
3. Phase 1-Analytical report of the workshop with the summary of the results and the recommendations (max. 5 pages).
4. Phase 2-Tailored training plan, agenda and materials. The materials will be translated from English to Arabic. The plan will also detail how the training will be delivered through the blended approach and how the Arabic-speaking trainers will moderate the session(s).
5. Phase 3-Monitoring tool measuring the effectiveness of the capacity strengthening plan.
6. Phase 3-Final report and/or debriefing session with Oxfam.
7. Supervision and Management

Oxfam’s Project Manager (Women and Girls Rebuilding New Iraq) in coordination with the Gender Justice Programme Manager, the Gender and Policy Coordinator and the Policy, Advocacy and Communication team will provide technical and practical supervision of the assignment.

1. Logistics and Constraints

Considering the limitations of movements due to the COVID 19 pandemic and access challenges, international consultants may not be able to travel to Federal Iraq. Therefore, it is recommended to organize an in-person event(s) in Erbil or Sulaymaniyah or to form a team including Iraq-based counterparts and adopt a flexible work approach.

1. Time Frame

The consultancy is expected to be carried out as soon as possible from early June 2022 to August 2022 for 20-25 working days. The timeline will be refined based on the work plan submitted by the consultant.

1. Budget- Use the annexed template

A full financial plan should be submitted by the consultant for their fees using the template attached with a detailed breakdown of costs:

• Per cost category (e.g. daily fees, equipment, …);
• Per Phase: Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3.

Oxfam will be responsible to cover the following costs:

• Transportation & accommodation for the consultant to travel to the country (if not in-country).
• Transportation & accommodation for the consultant and participants while in the country.
• The venue, meals, and other needs for the implementation of the programme.

The consultant budget should include, but is not limited to, all projected costs for the assignment among them:

• The rates per day per individual in the teams with indicative LOE.
• The costs of translation of materials for the training (if needed).
• The costs of engaging local trainers (if needed) to support the delivery of sessions in Arabic.

1. Knowledge and Experience

The following key technical requirements will be taken into consideration when assessing consultants’ technical competencies:

• University degree in gender studies, political science, communication studies, sociology, or other relevant fields.
• Experience in advocacy strategy development, policy analysis and policy advocacy development, lobbying and influencing.
• Experience in appraising and building the capacity of local partners and specialized civil society actors especially WROs, on matters of advocacy and influencing.
• Demonstrated competencies in facilitation and participatory training. Previous experience in creating, conducting and evaluating advocacy training.
• High proficiency in understanding gender transformative and rights-based approaches.
• Experience in the context of Iraq and mentioned areas will be an asset.
• Familiarity with constraints and challenges encountered by civil society actors working on gender-transformative interventions in a conflict-prone and fragile context.
• Familiarity with issues affecting women’s participation in decision-making in a conflict-prone and fragile context.
• Full English proficiency by the lead consultant.
• Spoken Arabic in a team skill mix if not spoken by the lead consultant.