Relief International
Terms of Reference (TOR)
Need Assessment for Education in Emergency (EiE)
Location of the Assessment: North Darfur and Blue Nile States
Date of assessment: from 1 November 2022 to 20 November 2022
1. Introduction and Background
The Federal Republic of Sudan has grappled with multiple challenges in the recent decades. Cycles of insecurity have led to mass population displacements and affected the establishment and running of vital services within the economic, health, food security, education, and other social sectors. In these circumstances, children are the most vulnerable and most affected, limiting their access to fundamental rights and basic needs, including access to education services. Sudan has however marked improvements on efforts to increase access to education post the country’s conflict era.
Considering the barriers to education existing before the conflict including but not limited to extending access to remote areas, high levels of poverty, and socio-cultural dimensions, the efforts to enhance access to education for Out of School Children (OOSC) continues to have remarkable progress. Sudan has made significant improvements in basic education over the last decade. Between 2008 and 2018, the total number of schools (public and private) increased by 2,800, allowing one million more children to access education. The number of students completing primary education and proceeding to secondary school increased from 251 to 336 thousand annually during the same time. However, despite the progress, around 3 million children in Sudan remain out of school, despite an increase in the number of schools and enrolled students over the past decade. Political instability and the pandemic have resulted in extended school closures that have disrupted the education of over 8 million Sudanese children since 2019, decimating years of progress.
Moreover, following the pandemic, prolonged school closures and unequal mitigation strategies have negatively impacted 8.1 million children (aged 5 – 18) enrolled in school, as well as worsening the situation for 3.6 million children out of school, especially those living through conflicts and crises. The girl child is especially vulnerable – evidence suggests that COVID-19’s associated economic crises exacerbated gender inequalities in Sudan, and even more so among adolescent girls. The primary driver of dropout for girls has been economic- compounded by pregnancy, early marriage and FGM[1]. According to UNOCHA Humanitarian Needs Overview, more than 4.8 million children in Sudan need life-sustaining humanitarian support, 2.3 million of them being children under the age of 18 years. In respect to the education sector, there are 1.7 million children and adolescents who are in need of basic education services[2]. By the end of 2018, an estimated 4.2 million school-aged children (6-16 years) were estimated to be missing the opportunity for education and were already out of school, many of whom live in the most vulnerable or conflict-affected communities. In 2020, the education of 9.6 million additional children was affected by COVID-19 when all schools were closed in March, with most schools not reopening until early 2021. The learning losses from this prolonged school closure will be felt for many years to come, and some children may not return to school at all unless there is an increased commitment to support Education in Emergencies and the overall wellbeing of school-aged children.
The Joint Education Needs Assessment (JENA, 2021) found that there is a significant need to invest in school infrastructure, including water and sanitation facilities. Of the schools assessed, 52 per cent require major rehabilitation and 22 per cent of classrooms are damaged. Additionally, 46 per cent of schools have no access to clean water for drinking or hand washing and, across the schools assessed, the average user to latrine ratio was 132:1. While lack of adequate school infrastructure and insufficient investment in education are long-standing issues, the situation is further exacerbated year-by-year due to the escalation of conflict in some areas compounded by annual floods, both of which damage school infrastructure and render children out of school.
2. Affected population
The population groups most in need of humanitarian assistance to continue their education include IDPs, refugees and returnees, host community members facing severe food insecurity, nomadic populations, children with disabilities and, in some communities, girls.
The five Darfur states in addition to South and West Kordofan are currently hosting the highest numbers of school aged IDP children, with West Darfur and South Kordofan seeing a sharp escalation of conflict over 2021, which has impacted education infrastructure and children’s access to education. Many of these children have endured protracted conflict, multiple displacements and continue to be exposed to ongoing clashes. Conflict-affected children need psychosocial support, a safe, protective, and stable learning environment, and the normality of a school routine. However, due to large influxes of IDPs and frequent displacements in some localities, many of the learning spaces are extremely overcrowded and are not adequately functioning. Children in these areas also have reduced access to learning supplies, seating and latrines, and the pupil to teacher ratio is often over a hundred to one
Approximately 7 out of 10 primary-school-aged and nine out of 10 secondary-school-aged refugee children are not receiving any formal education, with refugees from South Sudan particularly affected. About 70 per cent of refugees are living outside of camps and do not have adequate access to life-sustaining goods and services. Refugees from Eritrea, Ethiopia and South Sudan face additional barriers to accessing education due to the language of instruction differing from that of their countries of origin, making it challenging for them to integrate into the Sudanese national education system. Additionally, families of refugee children are often unable to cover school fees and associated costs. Many refugee children work outside the home to supplement the family’s income.
There are currently 3.2 million school-aged children (ages 6-18) who are experiencing crisis, emergency, or catastrophic levels of food insecurity. Most of these children are not attending school; those who are, are at a high risk of dropping out or having their educational attainment curtailed if they are not adequately supported through a full package of educational interventions, including school feeding. These risks are expected to be further exacerbated in 2022 due to long periods of school closures during 2020 and into 2021, as well as increased food insecurity due to Sudan’s economic crisis.
Nomadic and pastoral children face significant challenges accessing education as they are unable to attend a static school during the usual daytime hours. Additionally, the high costs of schooling, limited educational facilities within a safe walking distance and the perception that education is not useful, particularly for girls, all present barriers to nomadic and pastoral children fulfilling their right to education. More than three quarters of nomadic children were out of school prior to school closures (compared to 27 per cent across all population groups). There is a need to ensure that existing accelerated learning programmes can adequately accommodate nomadic children, many of whom have never attended school. Although there is limited data available on children with disabilities, it is estimated that 15 per cent of children have at least one disability, which translates to approximately 2.3 million school-aged children (ages 6-18) living with disability.
Children with disabilities are often out of school and require specialized support to access, and then remain, in education. For these children, school environments can offer an additional layer of protection and help them access specialized community support services. Overall, there is a high degree of gender parity across Sudan in terms of access to education. However, in some states, most notably West Darfur and West Kordofan, girls’ primary school enrollment is significantly lower than boys (22 and 20 percentage points lower in those two states respectively). The gender gap becomes even wider at secondary school level, and particularly so for rural areas where only 20 per cent of secondary school aged girls attend school. In some states, such as South Kordofan, where male child labour (including mining) is prevalent, boys are more at risk of dropping out of school than girls.
Education is a fundamental right, yet in times of conflict and disaster, access to education is disrupted, and schools are looted and vandalized, denying millions of girls and boys the opportunity to have a safe environment for education. Education is an urgent priority in emergencies because it saves lives and provides a safe space for children, where they are protected from physical harm, early marriages, prostitution, child labor, and being recruited as child soldiers.
Against this backdrop, Relief International is requesting GSO to support with fund and technical support in the identification of a consultant, who will conduct an EiE need assessment in North Darfur and Blue Nile States, in Sudan.
3. Purpose of the Assessment
i) Main Objective/purpose
The main objective of the assessment is to generate baseline data on the status of quality education in emergency delivery in Sudan. The purpose of the assessment is to identify barriers at the demand side (normative, economic, physical barriers to enrolment of girls and boys) and at the supply side (capacities of schools to deliver quality education in a conducive learning environment; capacities of the education system to respond to demand). This will act as a baseline through which interventions towards enhancing education outcomes in Sudan will be assessed especially focusing on: community participation, access and learning environment, provision of education services to OOSC, teachers and other education personnel capacity building and well-being. The assessment will also provide a general representation of the scenario on education in emergency outcomes across Sudan through which relevant engagements for policy reviews, coordination, teacher capacity enhancement and other related interventions on education will be based.
ii) Specific Objective/purpose
The purpose of the need assessment is to:
· understand the education system and policies in the emergency context of Sudan;
· examine the enabling and inhibiting factors for education service delivery in Sudan with reference to the two target locations;
· identify cultural, physical, and economic barriers to enrolment of girls and boys, using a gender and age lens and highlighting protection risks;
· assess the gaps, needs, and proposed workable strategies to guide effective EiE interventions; and
· Identify priority focus (immediate, intermediate, and long term) and see where RI can add value in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education of Sudan, the education, protection and other relevant clusters, and key stakeholders such as UNICEF.
· Conduct interviews with key education partners, both national and international implementing EiE programming, educational personnel, teachers, learners and get to understand areas of opportunity and challenges they face in the delivery of quality EiE services.
· Engage Education donor group, including OCHA and other traditional donors, and position RI as a partner of choice in the education sector.
· Propose strategies and recommendation on enhancing learning outcomes among learners in Sudan
The findings of the assessment will guide the development of a workable strategy and inform project design.
4. Assessment questions
· What are the gaps and inhibiting/constraining factors for quality education service delivery in the context of Sudan?
· What are the opportunities for RI to expand its portfolio with focus on EiE
· What are the strategies and interventions proposed to meet the gaps and needs?
5. Assessment Methodology
The needs assessment will use primary and secondary data sources to gather the required information from schools, community members, line ministry offices, the Education cluster, OCHA, and key informants (i.e., local authorities, traditional leaders, youth clubs, women’s groups and other actors) operating in the education sector.
The assessment will consider methodologies including:
· Qualitative data collection methods such as FGD and KIIs to facilitate discussions with selected community members, OOS boys and girls, government line offices, and other key stakeholders in the localities. This will examine the education system and the constraints associated with the current emergency context, such as logistical, security and access considerations, including road conditions to schools.
· An extensive review of secondary sources including policy papers, line ministry reports, cluster and UN and INGO reports to gather demographic and other information.
i) Overall Assessment Approach
The overall approach requires the Assessment Team (Consultant with the support of RI) to design, plan and conduct a comprehensive assessment focusing on the gaps, needs, and context by applying a mixed-method approach. The approach will ensure a rigorous methodology that can enhance a comparative assessment to evaluate education in emergencies situations and milestones within a set timeframe. The proposed assessment will focus on preschool, basic education, vocational education, and secondary education as per the federal Ministry of Education structure. With the wide scope of the assessment, the integration of both development and emergency contexts will be considered. Key reference to existing global assessment protocols will be done to ensure the best-fit approach is adopted.
ii) Study design
The consultant will recommend a research design that will help assess the EiE context in the most effective way. This will also aim at deriving reasonable levels of certainty that the findings are representative for the target population and reasonable ability to generalise the insights into what works and why for similar contexts. The consultant will work closely with RI in refining the design and adopt key scalable and cost-effective approaches to be adopted for undertaking the assessment in Sudan. It will be critical to refer to global standards and frameworks while undertaking this assessment.
iii) Sampling framework
The assessment will explore adopting a representative sample which will be drawn to represent the National Outlook on education. Based on the assessment design this will inform the targeting approach for the representatives of the assessment. The consultant will review the context and develop a sampling frame and justification for the sample. For the secondary data, the consultant will outline a review matrix based on relevant available literature and data on education in Sudan.
Note: all tools will be developed by the consultant/firm with the support from RI and will need sign-off by the Education cluster. All tools will be tested before utilization in data collection.
iv) Safeguarding and Ethical protocols
The assessment approach must consider the safety of participants and especially children at all stages of the assessment in cases of direct contact with children. This will also incorporate meeting all the required guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic which sees a number of prevention and precautionary measures being put in place by the Government and Partners. The consultant should also demonstrate the do no harm principle and the protection of children throughout the different assessment stages, including data collection, data analysis and report writing. This includes scenarios where the consultant might be engaging with third parties in data collection.
Child safeguarding, Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment are critical, and all teams engaged will undertake a training on the components to ensure compliance during the assessment process.
v) Research ethics plan
The assessment is required to comply with international good practice concerning similar assessment ethics and protocols particularly safeguarding children, at-risk groups (including people with disabilities). The education cluster will be engaged to approve the research protocol developed by the consultant in coordination with RI.
Participation of various target groups to be enhanced across the assessment process. There will be need to specific outline of marginalized groups of children (CWDs, girls, IDPs, Returnees etc.). For such the consent in the involvement in the assessment exercise to be sought for all target groups as required.
6. Risk Management and Quality Assurance
i) Risk management plan
It will be important that the consultant takes all reasonable measures to mitigate any potential risk to the delivery of the required outputs for this assessment. As part of the inception phase, a comprehensive risk management plan will need to be incorporated in the inception report.
Mainly covering the following sections.
- Anticipated risks, their likelihood, and the impact.
- Proposed contingency plans to mitigate against the risks.
- Adherence to the child protection policy, prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment and procedures that will be in place.
- Health and safety issues that may require significant duty of care precautions.
ii) Quality assurance plan
As part of the inception, share a quality assurance plan that sets out the systems and processes enhancing quality of the assessment and deliverables from start to finish of the project. This plan should include the proposed approaches to:
- Piloting of the assessment interventions;
- Training of researchers and enumerators conducting the agreed research methodology, including in research ethics and safeguarding;
- Logistical and management planning;
- Field work protocols and data verification including back-checking and quality control by supervisors.
- Data cleaning and editing before any analysis.
- Analysis and validation of results.
- Report writing and review processes.
7. Scope of work
The assessment will specifically focus on gathering basic information including:
· Accessibility of education services to communities – Examine the physical accessibility of the schools to the catchment population, and factors affecting access, including security, affordability, road conditions, and other factors, such as sex/gender and age.
· Assess the community perception toward value of education.
· Acceptability and relevance of education services (cultural/ social/ normative dimensions): understand community dynamics and perceptions in relation to education, through a gender lens (i.e., value given to education for boys and for girls; perceived quality and relevance of existing education services; social expectations towards girls and boys, etc.)
· Availability of education services – Examine the existing education services, including formal and informal education systems and their functionality in emergency contexts.
· Schools’ assessment – Assess the services being provided by the schools and the gaps, including teachers’ capacity, equipment, supplies, etc.
· Stakeholder analysis – Identify stakeholders working in education in the localities and areas of coordination; opportunities and gaps related to the provision of education services in emergency situations.
· Donor mapping – Assess existing institutional donors and others including the state and federal level ministry bureau in terms of their plan to support EiE efforts.
· Community structures – Identify existing structures led by community members that can support EiE programming.
8. Roles and responsibilities of the Technical expert:
· Design data collection tools – FGD, KII, secondary source recording tool.
· Gather the data from selected facilities, community members, and other stakeholders through a Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and Key Informant Interviews (KIIs).
· Gather and consolidate relevant secondary data from facility records, surveillance reports, and government official documents/reports.
· Consolidate and submit assessment report.
· In coordination with Relief International Sudan Programme Team, Education TAD and GSO Programme Development team, produce a framework for future EiE proposal designs.
9. Deliverables and Schedule:
The main deliverables for this EiE assessment will be outlined in two stages as follows:
i) Design phase
This will act as part of the inception phase; setting out the design of the assessment which includes the key approaches to be utilized in the assessment (literature review, methodology, design, and sampling). The associated planning, logistics, data collection tools, quality assurance, safeguarding, PSEA, child protection measures and risk management information will be outlined to ensure adequate planning and risk mitigation. This will also include a pilot phase where tools and methodologies will be tested to ensure applicability and their effectiveness in the assessment. The process will be undertaken by the consultant in close coordination with RI team. The process will be detailed within the inception report to be prepared by the consultant.
ii) Implementation phase
This will be the actual process of undertaking the EiE Assessment following through the agreed approach. The consultant will roll-out the assessment using the methodologies that will be agreed upon and approved by RI and education cluster. The process will follow the work plan in delivering key results as per the set steps of the assessment. This will also be phased to ensure constant review of the results both by the RI and education cluster as per the outlines steps of assessment delivery. This phase will also incorporate the reporting, validation, and dissemination as per the timelines stipulated in the work plan and schedule.
Summary of FGD/KII/ HF Assessment
Sites
# FGD/ Respondents
#KII
School Assessment
TBD
TBD
TBD
Total
Data collection Plan:
Respondents
Sample per target site
Comments
1
FGD with male and female caregivers of in school children
– 1 FGD / site ( Max. 8 participants)/
2
FGD with groups of men and women caregivers of OOS children
2 FGD /site ( Max. 8 participants)/ 1 with women, 1 with men
1 FGD with Community Health Committee/ site ( Max. of 8 participants)/
TBD
3
FGD with girls and boys
4 FGD with in school children
4 FGD with OOS children (>10 years old)
Safeguarding training and measures required
3
School Assessment: KII with school Staff ( principal/ teachers)
1 KII per each school with principal and a focus group discussion with teachers
1 FGD with teachers
TBD
4
KII with Ministry of education staff
1 KII per each locality
TBD
10. Assessment Coordination and Management.
The Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Education through the education cluster will provide the overall guidance on the assessment. The day–to–day management of the assessment will be the responsibility of RI and provide the required technical back-stop and support to the design, approach, and the reporting.
The Education Cluster is a critical partner in providing guidance on education matters within Sudan both at national and sub national levels. There will be scheduled interactions with the cluster across all the phases of the assessment to ensure compliance with the key education protocols. Specifically, on the assessment methodology and protocol, the education cluster will review and provide the required approvals to enhance smooth facilitation at the national and State level.
Report requirements
All reports to be submitted in electronic form and in English and as per the formats that will be provided by RI. The assessment reporting will comprise the following;
i) Inception report: this will outline a comprehensive literature review on the education context in Sudan and comparisons with similar contexts. In addition, provide available data on EiE components (community participation, access and learning environment, teachers and other education personnel well-being needs and gaps) based on previous assessment related to the context. In addition, the inception report will provide the proposed methodology and sampling framework for the assessment based on the agreed scope.
ii) Comprehensive Assessment Report: including annexes as per the assessment scope that will be outlined by the consultant and RI.
iii) 8-pager brief report; for ease of dissemination to a wider audience within the education sector.
iv) Proposed EiE Framework; to highlight key proposed actions to be undertaken by RI and Education Stakeholders to improve EiE responses in Sudan.
11. Consultancy Selection Criteria and Application
i) Consultancy Requirements
The following will be the key qualifications for the Assessment (by individuals and/or firms);
· The successful consultant should have a background in design and implementation of Education programme. The team or individual should have Degree in Education or in Social Sciences, or in International Development. Master’s or PhD in Education will be a plus.
· The team/member to have a high level of technical knowledge and understanding of approaches to Education in Development and Emergencies and the application of the INEE Minimum Standards.
· Experience in conducting Education Assessments and specifically EiE Assessment.
· A good understanding of the Sudan context and the education guidelines in the country. Similar assessments in other humanitarian contexts globally would provide an insight to enriching the assessment.
· Good communication, data management and reporting skills.
ii) Application Requirements.
ü Provide a detailed assessment proposal outlining the most effective methodology to undertake the EiE assessment. The methodology to also outline the best sampling approach and distribution to inform the process.
ü A scope of work, outlining timelines for the assessment and coverage.
ü A financial proposal for the proposed scope of work. Detailing a budget to cover the entire exercise.
ü Samples (2-4) of previous related assignments relevant to EiE assessment. It will also be critical to outline the qualifications of the proposed technical team/s that will engage in undertaking the assessment.
ü For consultancy firms, please provide CV summaries of key team members that will be involved in the assessment, their qualifications and previous experience.
ü Ethics and Child Safeguarding approaches: applicants are required to set out their approach to ensuring complete compliance with international good practice with regards to research ethics and protocols.
[1] UNICEF Education report for Sudan (2021) http://unicef.org/sudan/education
[2] Sudan Federal Ministry of Education, Education Sector Analysis (2018)
How to apply
To apply click on the link below;
https://phg.tbe.taleo.net/phg01/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=RI&cws=4&rid=1853