Afghanistan: National Evaluation Capacity Development Consultant
Background:
UNICEF promotes transparency and accountability through demonstrating evidence-based results for children of implemented programmes through UNICEF-led clusters. Each programme is designed and implemented to achieve change in the situation of people and their behavior. Programmes should be evaluated, and their evaluations should demonstrate the extent to which their goals and objectives were achieved. Evaluation in UNICEF is aligned with its mandate and mission and the globally accepted obligations set out in the Convention of the Rights of the Child. Evaluation in UNICEF is fully aligned with the organization’s focus on equitable development and how equity has been addressed in the development and implementation of policies and programmes. In particular, evaluation measures the steps taken to identify the needs of disadvantaged and marginalized children and the extent to which interventions contributed towards meeting their needs, realizing their rights and recognizing their potential.
Afghanistan, in particular, needs a strong evaluation society that will promote the theory, practice and utilization of high quality evaluation, as the country has large scale and multi-thematic programmes implemented by various organizations to improve the living situation of people, especially children and women. At present, there are several organizations with some experience in evaluation in Afghanistan and others are emerging. Structures with experience in evaluation in the country are development partners, non-governmental organizations, line ministries that have invested in research and evaluation, and a small number of national non-profit and for-profit agencies specialized in carrying out research, monitoring and evaluation functions. Among the line ministries that UNICEF is supporting, those with research and evaluation units include:
Ministry of Education
Ministry of Public Health
Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD)
Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled (MOLSAMD)
Evaluation expertise and capacities exist in pockets in Afghanistan and have not yet been brought together and enhanced through a national evaluation network or society. However, recently some structures have begun to form, though lack of funding and support remain a challenge. In 2015, the Afghan Evaluation Society (AfES) registered as a non-governmental organization with the Ministry of Economy, given that there is no legal modality to register as a professional association in Afghanistan.
For these organizations to grow, they need support from the Government and donors to raise awareness on the importance of evaluation, increase demand for use and practice and gradually develop as a well-functioning evaluation society in Afghanistan. Moreover, since United Nations endorsed the new Sustainable Development Goals (September of 2015) towards social equity and gender equality to ensure sustainable and equitable development, the field of evaluation has become critically important in measuring intended outcomes of programmes and their sustainability. National development policies and programs should be equipped with evidence generated through credible, equity-focused and gender-responsive evaluation systems.
In collaboration with UN agencies and other partners, UNICEF supports capacity building of Afghanistan Central Statistics Organization (CSO) and relevant line ministries in improving management information system and enhancing data analysis. Availability of data and improved capacity in information management and data analysis serve as an advantage for evolving field of evaluation in Afghanistan. Along with conducting and raising awareness on equity-focused evaluations UNICEF aims to strengthen national evaluation capacity and develop policy framework. UNICEF’s Evaluation Policy provides a comprehensive framework for its evaluation activities and addresses the use and conduct of evaluations. It also addresses the development of the evaluation function within UNICEF and its role in strengthening evaluation capacity among national partners. Aligned with norms and standards defined by United Nations Evaluation Group, the policy illustrates UNICEF’s commitment to demonstrate results, transparency and accountability through an independent and credible evaluation system.
UNICEF follows its commitment to the principles of national ownership of development processes and country-led programming, and contributes to the strengthening of evaluation capacity in programme countries. In 2015, UNICEF began providing periodic support to AfES, encouraging it to register as a legal entity and providing some technical support as it establishes itself as a professional society. Within context, and with some advocacy from UNICEF, a nascent effort at coordination of national capacity development has been launched under the newly established AfES with the following primary goals:
To establish a leading platform for evaluation through capacity building, advocacy and networking
To promote theory, practice and application of high quality evaluation in Afghanistan.
These goals will be pursued by bringing together academics, policy makers and practitioners and striving to achieve the following strategic priorities.
Capacity development and professionalization of the evaluation field-to develop and adopt capacity building and skills development agenda, and set up a group dedicated to evaluation and training.
Supporting the development of evaluation practices in the development community and relevant Government Ministries.
Enhancing cooperation among evaluation organizations and coordinating their activities. The main priority under this strategy is to expand the evaluation network, reach out to evaluation organizations and encourage partnerships.
UNICEF aims to work with AfES to strengthen this emerging effort. To strengthen support to the nascent evaluation society, a consultant will be hired by UNICEF and assigned to support AfES’ institutional development through designing Afghanistan specific globally aligned evaluation guidelines, membership policy and governance structure and capacity development of a core group of evaluation professionals.
Objectives and Deliverables:
Within the overall objective of supporting institutional development and paving pathways to strengthening national evaluation culture, the followings are the key deliverables of this assignment:
A five- year strategy for AfES: A draft of five year strategy is already in place, but it should be further developed and be aligned with the Global Evaluation and SDGs agenda.
Membership policy and its related tools: A membership policy should be developed, including membership application, procedure, membership categories, payment plans, and benefits of membership.
Governance Charter/Statute: Currently, a draft of governance charter or statute is developed, but it needs to be further developed. This charter will govern the organization, define roles and responsibilities, and authorities of the Board of Directors, General Assembly, and Executive Secretariat.
Partnership strategy with UN and other development partners.
A Training of Trainers for 30-40 evaluation specialists and agency associated participants.
Qualifications, specialized experience and additional competencies:
Advanced degree international affairs, political science, sociology, humanities and other related fields.
Over 8 years of work experience in the field of evaluation and capacity building
Extensive experience in evaluation and research design and methodology
Experience in public relations, communication and advocacy
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and ability to work in multi-cultural environment
Strong writing, verbal and facilitation skills
Prior experience of developing national evaluation societies is highly desirable
Fluency in English is required
Conditions of work:
During this assignment, a consultant will be supported by UNICEF and will be provided with transport, accommodation, insurance and other logistical support.
The duration of assignment is for 20 days and payment is linked to aforementioned deliverables.
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