UNFPA Sudan is currently implementing its sixth Country Programme starting 2013 through 2016. The CP has been developed on the basis of a comprehensive Country Population Analysis (CPA) in 2012 which addresses the national needs and priorities within the mandate and comparative advantage of UNFPA’s strategic plan 2008 - 2011 and its extension 2012-2013. It encompasses and covers the 4 outcomes namely: 1) increased access to and utilization of quality maternal and neo-born health services; 2) Increased access to and utilization of quality family planning services; 3) Gender equality and reproductive rights advanced; 4) Population dynamics and incorporation of their linkages into national development plans and strategies. The same document, together with others commissioned by partner UN agencies, constituted the framework for developing the UNDAF.

The CP implementation uses a tiered approach (National, State and Community) with specific set of strategies/interventions for each layer. The programme consists of six outputs (integrated) on RH, FP, HIV/AIDS, Gender, Data Production and Population Dynamics and covers nine states (five of which are in Darfur region) in humanitarian and development contexts. The CP introduced -and for the first time- the notion of direct service delivery to communities in the selected states. To that end, one locality from each state has been identified for implementation of pilot interventions mainly advocacy and awareness promotion for demand creation. Replication to other localities is subject to resource availability and the success achieved.

Estimated resources for the four years’ cycle are $ 91 million, 78% of which are resources (non-core) to be mobilized through different co-financing modalities. The CP is managed by: the main office in Khartoum, sub-offices in three Darfur states and UNFPA presence in 5 states through one technical officer and administrative/finance personnel accommodated by the States’ Ministries of Health.

2. Purpose

The purpose of this evaluation is to conduct an end of programme cycle evaluation to assess the achievement of the 6th country programme, the factors that facilitated or hindered achievements, and to compile lessons learned in respect of each of the programme stages to inform development of the next country programme cycle (7th country programme). The specific objectives of the independent evaluation of the UNFPA 6th country programme for Sudan are to:

1. Examine the soundness of the programme in terms of addressing national needs and gaps vis-a-vis the UNFPA mandate and comparative advantage;
2. Draw key lessons from past and current cooperation and provide actionable and strategic recommendations for future programming;
3. Assess the extent to which the programme has contributed to the on-going humanitarian and development efforts and provide an analysis of how UNFPA Sudan has positioned itself within the development community and national partners with a view to adding value to the country development results

3. Scope

Time Period: The CPE will cover activities implemented from 2013 to March 2015.

Geographic coverage: All the nine states (namely Gedarif, Kassala, White Nile, Blue Nile and the five Darfur states) will be targeted, as well as ministries/institutions of the federal government (national level) involved in the CP implementation..

Programme aspects: The CPE will cover 4 outcomes and 6 outputs of the CPD 2013-2016. The focus will be on both developmental and humanitarian programmes.

4. Evaluation Methodology

Data collection

The evaluation will consider both secondary and primary sources for data collection. Secondary sources are desk review primarily focusing on programme annual reviews, progress and monitoring frameworks/reports as well as facility records/registers. Thematic evaluations reports and findings of assessments conducted during the current CP shall also be considered. As for the primary sources, semi-structured interviews with key informants at national and state levels as well as focus group discussions with beneficiaries and field visits observations shall be conducted as appropriate.

Validation mechanisms

To ensure the validity of the data collected, the Evaluation Team will use a variety of methods. Besides a systematic triangulation of data sources and data collection methods and tools, the validation of data will be sought through regular exchanges with the CO programme managers; technical officers at national and field levels and members of the evaluation reference group.

Stakeholders’ participation

The Evaluation Team will consider the participation of partners and stakeholders in the evaluation process. This includes direct and indirect partners (government, NGOs and CBOs) and the programme beneficiaries at national and sub-national levels. This inclusive approach is important to generate diverse views on the programme performance and expected outcomes.

5. Evaluation Deliverables

The evaluation team will submit the following deliverables:

Design report — a design report (a maximum of 30 pages) will be prepared by the evaluators before going into the evaluation exercise. It is intended to reflect why and how each evaluation question will be answered by way of: proposed methods, sources of data, and data collection procedures. The report should include a proposed schedule of tasks, activities and deliverables. The report enables the Evaluation Reference Group (ERG) and Evaluation Manager to have common understanding about the evaluation objective, expected results and methodology as well as spelling out the division of labor among the Evaluation Team.

Draft final evaluation report — the draft report should be submitted within four weeks after submission of the inception report. The Evaluation Management Committee (EMC), ERG and UNFPA CO staff will review the draft report to ensure that the evaluation meets the required quality standards as per UNFPA evaluation guidelines.

Dissemination workshop — an evaluation brief on key findings, conclusion and recommendations shall be presented to stakeholders and partners in a one day workshop to be arranged by the UNFPA Sudan CO.

Final report (50 – 70 pages); the final evaluation report (electronic version) is required one week following the dissemination workshop and approval of the draft report by the ERG.

All deliverables will be drafted in English. The power point presentation for the dissemination seminar will be translated into Arabic language. Final CPE (electronic version) will be disseminated to all partners after submission by the evaluation team.

6.  Evaluation Team

The Evaluation Team will consist of 3 technical experts as described below:

Evaluation Team Leader (International), with overall responsibility of providing guidance and leadership in: preparation of evaluation design, schedule and methodology, inception, draft and final reports as well as brief summary for presentation to the dissemination workshop. Due to lack of appropriate national expertise in the area of Population and Development (PD), the team leader is also requested to collect, analyze data and report on UNFPA support to the PD under two Country Programme Outputs (Population Dynamics and Data Generation).

Reproductive health expert (consultant) will provide expertise in reproductive and maternal health (including family planning, emergency obstetric and newborn care). He/she will be responsible for collection and compilation of data pertaining to RH/FP and HIV/AIDS from both primary and secondary sources. She/he will be responsible for drafting key parts of the design report and of the final evaluation report, including (but not limited to) sections relating to reproductive health and rights.

Gender expert (consultant) to support the team leader and provide expertise on gender equality issues (women and adolescents reproductive rights, prevention of discrimination and violence against women, etc.). Besides her/his technical expertise, the gender expert should have a good knowledge of the context and be fluent in Arabic. She/he will take part in the data collection and analysis work during the design and field phases. She/he will act as a facilitator for the organization and implementation of the field work. She/he will also assist other evaluation team members in the analysis of the documentation in Arabic. She/he will be responsible for drafting key parts of the design report and the final evaluation report, including (but not limited to) sections relating to the national context and gender equality.

Roles and responsibilities of the thematic consultants

• Prepare the design report in accordance with the UNFPA standards
• Evaluate the UNFPA’s contribution to the relevant thematic areas of the country programme
• Participate in debriefing meetings
• Deliver quality reports on time

 Competencies for the thematic consultants

• Excellent analytical, writing and communication skills
• Ability to work with a multi-disciplinary team of experts
• Excellent problem identification and solving skills

Qualifications and experience of thematic consultants

Two thematic consultants one for Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS and another one for Gender and Gender-Based Violence. Each should be an expert in the relevant thematic area.

Education:   Advanced university degree in Public Health for the RH/HIV-AIDS consultancy and; advanced university degree in Gender studies or social sciences for the Gender consultancy

Experience: Minimum 5 years of experience in conducting evaluations in the relevant thematic area

Languages: Excellent written and spoken English Language skills. Knowledge of Arabic is an asset

Interested applicants should indicate the thematic area of interest

UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, teamwork, respect for diversity, integrity and a healthy balance of work and life.  We are committed to maintaining our balanced gender distribution and therefore encourage women to apply. Notice: There is no application, processing or other fee at any stage of the application process.  UNFPA does not solicit or screen for information in respect of HIV or AIDS and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status