CALL FOR INTEREST – CONSULTANCY SERVICES

Date: 12 Feb 2024

**Project: “**InnovLog by hulo”, funded by the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) of the U.S. Government

Title: External Independent Project Evaluator

Reference: ACF-HULO-TOR-2024-001

This Call for Interest is open to all eligible Consultants, in accordance with ACF’s procedures and principles.

I. Introduction

The Humanitarian Logistics Cooperative, also known as “hulo”, is the first humanitarian European Cooperative Society (SCE) created in June 2021. 13 organisations are now members of this cooperative: ACTED, Action contre la Faim (ACF), Bioport, French Red Cross (FRC), Fleet Forum, Handicap International / Humanity & Inclusion (HI), INTERSOS, Médecins du Monde (MDM), Oxfam Intermón, Plan International, Première Urgence International (PUI), Solidarités International (SI) and Welt Hunger Hilfe (WHH).

Its objective is to increase the impact of humanitarian aid by strengthening links and solidarity between humanitarian logistics actors and improving performance through the pooling of logistics and supply chain resources and expertise. Hulo’s “Joint Initiatives” are already underway in 5 areas of intervention (Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, DRC, Lebanon, and the Syrian crisis) and include on the ground: Joint Procurement Initiatives, shared human resources, a digital solution for pooling resources, Joint Transport Initiatives and Joint Environmental Initiatives. At global level (i.e., across Headquarters of hulo member organisations), the hulo activities focus on Joint Procurement Initiatives. These initiatives save time and money, improve the quality of goods and services provided, and therefore provide more effective assistance to those who need it most.

II. The evaluation

1.The Purpose

Each new system or action creates new consequences – both planned and unintended – in its operating environment. Positive or negative, these side effects need to be anticipated, evaluated, analysed, and then amplified if they are positive, or mitigated if they are negative. Hulo will evaluate the effectiveness and relevance of the Joint Procurement Initiatives, Joint Environmental Initiatives and of the Shared Resources Web Platform activities in relation to the activities’ goals, purposes, results, and targets. The consequences of the activities on local markets will be also evaluated.

The main objective of this evaluation is to provide hulo and BHA with an assessment of the project, its design, implementation, and results. The aim is to determine the relevance and fulfilment of objectives, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, coherence, and sustainability of the project. The evaluation should provide information that is evidence-based, credible and useful, enabling the incorporation of lessons learned into the future decision-making processes of hulo and the donor. Specifically, this evaluation will:

• Assess the extent to which the project met planned outcomes for and the relevance and efficiency of the selected methodologies to achieve these outcomes.
• Do Joint Procurement Initiatives (JPI) support localisation, produce time and financial savings for participants?
• Do Joint Environmental Initiatives (JEI) decrease the environmental footprint of participants and support reverse logistics on the field?
• Highlight lessons learnt, best practices and recommendations for improvements to feedback into current and future hulo programming in the same sectoral areas and using similar approaches to meeting their objective.

1. Proposed Evaluation Questions

The evaluation design is expected to focus on key evaluation questions. The selected consultant will have access to hulo’s Performance & Impact Measurement Framework (PIMF) and to the evaluation questions’ database used during hulo’s yearly internal field evaluation. Consultants are also expected to recommend and adopt additional questions that best fit with design of the project and scope of the evaluation. Additional evaluation questions should therefore be included in the proposed ToRs and will weigh during the selection process. The criteria must be applied thoughtfully in order to support a useful and high-quality evaluation. They need to be contextualized, meaning understood within the context of the individual evaluation, the intervention being evaluated, and the stakeholders involved. The evaluation questions (what you are trying to discover) and what you intend to do with the answers should inform how the criteria are specifically interpreted and analysed. The time and resources devoted to the evaluative analysis of each criterion may vary depending on the evaluation’s objective. Data availability, resource constraints, timeline, and methodological considerations can also influence how a particular criterion is addressed (and whether it is appropriate to do so).

2.A Relevance

The relevance is the extent to which the intervention objectives and design respond to beneficiaries’, global, country, and partner/institution needs, policies, and priorities, and continue to do so if circumstances change.

The following questions should be answered:

• To what extent the JPIs’ objectives and design meet hulo participants’ in-country needs and priorities?
• Do hulo activities support local market development?
• How do Joint Initiatives contribute to greater accountability for humanitarian activities?

2.B Coherence

The coherence is the compatibility of the intervention with other interventions in a country, sector or institution. The extent to which other interventions (particularly policies) support or undermine the intervention, and vice versa.

The following questions should be answered:

• Is hulo’s JI Package compatible with other logistics pooling and coordination mechanisms in a country where other humanitarian stakeholders (like the Logistics Cluster, ESUPS, or Logistics Working group) are present? Under which circumstances?

2.C Effectiveness

Effectiveness is the extent to which the intervention achieved, or is expected to achieve, its objectives, and its results, including any differential results across groups. Analysis of effectiveness involves taking account of the relative importance of the objectives or results.

The following questions should be answered:

• To what extent Joint Procurement Initiatives (JPIs) and Joint Environmental Initiatives (JEIs) activities have adequately assisted the hulo participants?
• Do hulo JPIs amplify Supply Chain & Logistics effectiveness for its participants?

2.D Impact

The impact is the extent to which the intervention has generated or is expected to generate significant positive or negative, intended, or unintended, higher-level effects. Impact addresses the ultimate significance and potentially transformative effects of the intervention. It seeks to identify social, environmental, and economic effects of the intervention that are longer term or broader in scope than those already captured under the effectiveness criterion. Beyond the immediate results, this criterion seeks to capture the indirect, secondary, and potential consequences of the intervention.

The following questions should be answered:

• What are the significant positive or negative, intended, or unintended effects, and lessons learnt generated by the intervention during and after the project?
• Do hulo Joint Initiatives decrease the Supply Chain & Logistics costs and environmental footprint for its participants?

3. Data Collection Methodology and Management

The Evaluator will adopt a mixed methodological approach to conduct the proposed evaluation survey, consisting of both quantitative and qualitative data collection, which are systematically integrated. Quantitative evaluation will be done using data collected in the business intelligence database, and a literature review of articles available on humanitarian supply chain logistics used for project design.

Qualitative evaluation will be done via a review of online questionnaires, one-on-one interviews (virtual and physical), with both relevant field and management personnel, as well as Joint Initiatives participants, vendors, and other relevant stakeholders.

Qualitative methods could face some limitations in case of country security context degradation which would make travel too risky. If this situation happens hulo will switch to online or hybrid interviews as much as possible, which has already been done due to the COVID pandemic.

Responsible Data management and compliance to hulo’s data management policy:

The Evaluator is committed to have responsible data management throughout all the data cycle and provide a data management plan that involves:

• The purpose of the data.
• The methods used to collect the data.
• The collection of informed consent.
• The partners participating to the project and susceptible to access the data.
• The training of the team and relation with the community.
• The risks associated with the data.
• The data sharing, storage and deleting strategy.

4. Application

The Evaluator will adopt a mixed methodological approach to conduct the proposed evaluation survey, consisting of both quantitative and qualitative data collection, which are systematically integrated. The qualitative study should be designed to explore issues identified in the quantitative results and answer evaluation questions that are beyond the scope of the quantitative survey. The design and management of the evaluation will comply monitoring and evaluation with USAID’s monitoring and evaluation guidelines.

5. Evaluation Work Plan and timeline

The evaluation survey is expected to take place within a three-month period, starting around May 2024 approximately. The Evaluator is required to initiate and develop a complete work plan for the survey. This will include activity/key deliverables, dates, location, focal person from the Evaluator team with names and roles in the survey.

The evaluator(s) is expected to complete the assignment within approximately 20 working days. Work may begin in May 2024 (with the evaluation kick-off meeting) and should conclude in July 2024 (with the final report). An initial summative inception report should be submitted for discussion by June 2024.

6. Budget

Budget for the proposed survey is limited and dependant to the quality of technical and financial proposal and relevant experience of the Evaluators applying for this assignment with hulo.

7. Hulo responsibilities in the evaluation

Development and validation of the final scope of work for external evaluation will be managed by Business Analytics & Research (BAR) department with the technical support from the BAR Coordinator:

• Provide access to available necessary secondary information, project literature and information used during the project life.
• Technical review and validation of the overall survey plan including specific deliverables, tools, methods analysis and reporting etc. as outlined in the sections above.
• Review and Approval for the key deliverable of the survey following the standard and quality aspects for each item as relevant.
• Where possible and necessary coordinate with beneficiaries, stakeholders and partner to support field work plan for interviews and data collection.
• Participate at various stages of the evaluation process including design, training and field data collection process.
• Payment of consultancy fee as per mode of payment outline in the signed agreement entailing the final approved technical and financial proposals.

8. Profile of the evaluator

Qualifications Skills and Attributes Required

The assignment will be contracted to consultants with experience in the substantive area of humanitarian system and knowledge of supply chain management. The external evaluator should have:

Education and Experiences:

• MEAL and/or Data Analysis Certification.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in Humanitarian Supply Chain & Logistics area.
• Relevant humanitarian field experience (at least 2 years).
• Master’s degree in Supply Chain Management, or another related field.

Competences:

• Solid understanding of governance and government structures within hulo’s operating country.
• Knowledge and experience of Supply Chain & Logistics.
• Competence in sample survey techniques.
• Excellent analytical and report writing skills.
• Good people and communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to assess complex situations in order to succinctly and clearly distil critical issues.
• Must be a self-starter and be able to work independently with excellent demonstrated teamwork, coordination and facilitation skills.
• Demonstrated knowledge of data analysis is required.
• Bilingual (English and French).

How to apply

9. Application

Proposal Requested

Interested candidate(s) are expected to submit their narrative and financial proposal via email at procurement@hulo.coop. Offers should include:

• Narrative proposal: cover letter summarizing experience in relation to this ToR, CV (of all proposed parties), writing sample from similar assignment, and two professional references with contact information.
• Financial proposal (in EURO): detailed budget, including evaluation fees (with daily fees and expenses), travel costs for one field visit (Lebanon or Burkina Faso), taxes, and all other anticipated costs.
• Technical proposal including the following but not limited to:
  • Understanding of the assignment.
• Additional questioning or evaluation avenues the evaluator believes could be of interest:
  • Proposed methodology, sampling, tools and techniques.
  • Propose clear timeline for evaluation.
  • Approach for data collection, cleaning, analysis, frequencies.
  • Propose outline of the survey report.