TOR for Consultancy Service to Undertake Participatory Gender Safety Audit in Selected IDPs Sites Within South Wollo, Amhara Regional State

Terms of Reference (TOR) for Consultancy Service to Undertake Participatory Gender Safety Audit in Selected IDPs Sites within South Wollo, Amhara Regional State

About Finnish Refugee Council (FRC)

Finnish Refugee Council (FRC) is an international non-governmental organization operating in Ethiopia following its legal registration with the Federal Agency for Civil Society Organizations as a Foreign Organization with Registry Number 4184. 

FRC advocates for the rights of refugees displaced populations and migrants and supports their new beginnings. FRC’s assistance mainly focuses on ensuring coping, resilience, and long-term self-reliance of refugee and displaced populations as well as host communities through education and capacity-building interventions. In Ethiopia, FRC’s work includes extending protective services to communities affected by internal displacement through post-conflict emergency response interventions which prioritize the most vulnerable members of societies mainly women, girls, and People with Disabilities (PWD), and community-based structures. 

Background 

Currently, FRC is working in partnership with Action for the Needy in Ethiopia (ANE) to implement emergency response intervention under the project title ‘Multi-sector Humanitarian Response to IDPs crisis in Northern Ethiopia’, funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland’s Humanitarian Department (KEO-70). The project is implemented in the South Wollo Zone, Amhara Regional State in supporting the Internally Displaced Population (IDPs), returnees, and host communities affected by the conflict in Northern Ethiopia, between 1 April 2022 – 31 March 2023. The project intends to ensure access to basic services mainly Non-Food Items (NFIs), emergency shelter, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). Furthermore, ensuring protection including prevention and response to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and other security risks faced by the IDPs/ returnees constitutes one of the key components of the project which gives special emphasis to women, girls, and vulnerable groups including PWD. 

FRC will be undertaking a Participatory Gender Safety Audit within the specific project sites in South Wollo Zone with the view to identifying the GBV risks of the IDPs to strengthen context-specific mitigation and response interventions. 

We are looking for a qualified consultant/company who meets the criteria outlined below to undertake the Audit.  

Purpose of the Consultancy  

• Identify and document the specific GBV and other gender-related security risks and concerns of IDPs /Returnees including women, girls, and categories of vulnerable persons including PWD within the four intervention sites 
• Identify current GBV actors/service providers in the project area and assess their capacity for responding to GBV risks 
• Identify community-based mechanisms for GBV mitigation and response and their opportunities and challenges 
• Assess the adequacy of the existing coordinated GBV response from multiple sectors to the identified needs of IDPs/Returnees
• Identify and document referral pathways for supporting GBV victims 
• Provide recommendations for strengthening mitigation and response to the identified GBV risks in the sites, both through the current project and beyond.

Scope of the Work 

The Participatory Gender Safety Audit will be undertaken in multiple IDP sites in the specific intervention Woredas and will use the tools and processes specified within the IASC (Inter-Agency Standing Committee) GBV Guidelines and those developed by other agencies to look into the key areas of safety and security concern. 

The Audit report is time-sensitive and is expected to be completed within the specified schedule. Furthermore, it is imperative that the process is participatory and involves sufficient representation of the affected population, ensuring the active participation of women, girls, PWD, and other vulnerable groups. At the same time, it is important to ensure the presence of relevant stakeholders both from the community and other government sector departments. In addition, other organizations implementing interventions in the project sites will be brought on board at different stages to get their input. 

Specific Tasks 

The consultancy will cover the following key tasks:   

• Develop/adapt participatory Gender Safety Audit Tools and process 
• Assess, identify and review previously conducted Gender Safety Audit reports 
• Work with FRC and ANE designated team (Addis and Dessie) on internalization of PGSA tools and process  
• Implement the Gender Safety Audit in the selected IDP sites within the project Woredas in a participatory manner that involves all relevant stakeholders 
• Compile and submit draft PGSA report to FRC and ANE team for feedback 
• Conduct validation workshop to share the findings to representatives of affected people and relevant stakeholders and gather feedback 
• Develop a prioritized action plan for addressing the identified risks through the participation of relevant stakeholders  
• Provide recommendations to address the identified GBV risks 
• Submit final report which includes recommendations and an action plan for addressing the identified risks 

Deliverables 

• Concept note describing the consultant’s conceptualization of the assignment and the methodology for data collection and analysis and reporting structure 
• Detailed work plan for the consultancy period, including separate fieldwork schedule, developed in consultation with FRC and ANE team 
• Draft Participatory Gender Safety Audit report 
• Validation workshop to present the findings to FRC, ANE, and all relevant stakeholders
• The final report which incorporates comments and feedback from all relevant parties 

Time Frame of the Consultancy

Participatory Gender Safety Audit will be conducted during the period between 18 July and 30 August 2022 for a maximum of 20 working days in the selected field sites within the four implementation Woredas (Worobabu, Hayik, Kuta Ber, and Telehudere).

Qualifications and Competencies 

The consultant/s is expected to have the following qualities:

• Master’s Degree in Gender Studies, Sociology, Anthropology, or other relevant Social Science fields 
• At least 5 years of work or consultancy experience in undertaking protection, gender, and GBV-related analysis in the context of international development and humanitarian organizations in emergencies, displacement post-conflict situations
• Specific experience in undertaking Gender Safety Audit 
• Working knowledge of national and local level humanitarian and protection coordination platforms 
• Sound experience in using participatory methods  
• Strong qualities and communication skills for interacting with women, girls, and other vulnerable groups who have gone through traumatic experiences 
• Strong analytical and report writing skills 
• Knowledge and experience of Mental Health and Psycho-social Support (MHPSS) approaches are an added advantage