Background to the Rooted in Trust 2.0 Project

Rooted in Trust 2.0 (RiT2.0) is a 1.5 year (August 1, 2021 – January 31, 2023) project funded by the USAID – Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) and managed by Internews. RiT2.0 is a pandemic information response project that aims to counter the unprecedented scale and speed of the spread of rumors and misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccines in Afghanistan, Brazil, DRC, Iraq, Colombia, Haiti, Lebanon, Madagascar, Mali, Sudan, South Sudan, Yemen, and Zimbabwe.

The overall goal of the project has been to contribute to healthy information ecosystems by addressing COVID-19 and vaccine information voids and people’s information needs so that they can make an informed decision about their health and well-being. The project aimed at achieving this by increasing the flow of accurate, timely, trusted, and contextualized information between local media, public health and humanitarian agencies, and communities affected by both COVID-19 and humanitarian crises at the global level – as well as in BHA priority countries.

According the project Theory of Change, IF accurate, timely, trusted, and contextualized information from local media, public health and humanitarian agencies reaches communities affected by both COVID- 19 and humanitarian crises, AND IF communities are better equipped to recognize mis- and disinformation regarding COVID-19 and associated treatments and preventions, THEN healthier information ecosystems at both the global and local levels will be established, AND THEN awareness of and trust around COVID- 19 vaccines and the wider public health response will be built, AND THEN communities will be better equipped to make well informed health decisions for themselves and their families. The project assumes that Global access to effective COVID-19 vaccines among vulnerable populations will increase over time through the expansion of COVAX interventions and/or humanitarian programming.

Purpose of the evaluation

The primary objective of this evaluation is to generate a clear evidence base that demonstrates the impact of the RiT2.0 project to its target audience, in line with its Theory of Change.  The secondary objective of this evaluation is to generate a clear set of documented lessons concerning the effectiveness of the different project strategies (highlighted above) and the level of coherence and efficiency in the project’s coordination and management structure, including its approach to monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning.

The selected consultancy firm will be expected to conform to the OECD Development Assistance Committee’s (DAC) Quality Standards for Development Evaluation. It is proposed that the End Term Evaluation will largely focus on evaluating the project’s relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and the sustainability of its achievements and results.

Deliverables

• Inception Report: This should include a detailed approach and methodology to the evaluation, revised evaluation questions, evaluation workplan, data collection tools (quantitative and qualitative) actor by actor, sampling consideration, data collection plan including the logistics arrangements and outline of report structure.
• Power point Presentation: Presentation of the evaluation findings. This will be presented to the RiT2.0 staffs, implementation partners and Internews humanitarian for validation of the findings.
• Final Report: 25–30-pages final report (excluding annexes written in simple English. The report should contain a concise Executive Summary of core findings and recommendations, the latter being specific and action-oriented, and tailored to all relevant stakeholders. Reports should also include a methodology section, making explicit any limits to the evaluation. Where appropriate, reports will include illustrative graphics and charts summarizing project data. Annexes should include the terms of reference, workplan, a list of people and organizations interviewed; a list of documentation and materials reviewed; and data collection instruments used.
• Raw Data: Raw data collected during the evaluation.

Timeframe and Budget

This is a provisional timetable to be agreed with the selected consultancy firm.

Activity	Deadline	Responsible
Terms of Reference advertised	Mar 03rd	Internews
Expression of Interest submission to Internews	Mar 31st	Consultants
Applicants shortlisted	Apr 07th	Internews
Interview process	Apr 14th	Internews + Consultants
Consultancy firm selected	Apr 21st	Internews
Inception meeting	Apr 24th	Internews + Consultants
Literature documents shared	Apr 28th	Internews
Draft inception report submitted	May 05th	Consultants
Inception report agreed and finalized	May 12th	Consultants
Data collection, analysis, and interpretation	May 26th	Consultants
Share draft evaluation report	June 07th	Consultants
Validation meeting (virtual)	June 12th	Internews + Consultants +Partners
Review feedback from Internews	Jun 16th	Consultants
Share final evaluation report	Jun 20th	Consultants

It is envisaged that this work will take approximately 40 – 50 days. The available budget for this consultancy is USD $40,000 (All inclusive –covers both professional fees and logistical costs).

Profile of the Consultant

Applicants must be registered as a legal company. Proposal should include a copy of registration certificate and tax number. We are looking for a consultant team comprising those who are independent of Internews, its implementing partners and USAID-BHA, i.e., not an employee. The successful applicant will have one or more members who meet the following criteria:

Essential:

• Substantial experience in conducting impact evaluations of humanitarian programmes, media, and advocacy.
• Experience in undertaking assessment using quantitative and qualitative methodologies, including methodologies such as outcome harvesting, contribution tracing, or similar.
• Experience working in an international development context.
• Understanding of participatory evaluation approaches
• Ability to systematically analyze and present complex data and information.
• Demonstrated commitment to safeguarding in evaluation and research contexts.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills
• Excellent written and spoken English.
• Should have knowledge and skills to translate data from Arabic, Spanish, and French
• Ability and commitment to deliver the expected results within the agreed period.
• Able to travel to Zimbabwe, Brazil, and Lebanon

Desirable:

• Good understanding of COVID-19 context
• Knowledge of USAID-BHA evaluation priorities and expectations
• The team should have knowledge and skills to translate data from Arabic, Spanish, and French

Application process and timelines

If you would like to submit an Expression of Interest in response to this consultancy opportunity, please submit the following to [email protected] copying [email protected]  by 17:00 EST on March 31^st  2023

• A maximum two-page cover letter outlining your interest in this consultancy and your qualifications against the essential and desirable criteria, combined with a maximum five-page proposed methodology and approach for the consultancy.
• A detailed budget presented in US$ (the available evaluation budget is $40,000), and an approximate timeline, clearly highlighting the number of days and daily fee, as well as itemizing other costs (including international and domestic travel, communications, and any costs incurred in the evaluation) necessary in order to fulfill this consultancy.
• CVs of all proposed team members
• Two examples of reports of previous impact evaluations for programmes comparable to that the consultants have led on (or links to report available online)
• The names and contact details of two references.

For any questions, reach out to Donnelly Mwachi, – MEAL Advisor RiT2.0 at [email protected]