Final Evaluation of “CEDAW Implementation in Jerusalem proje...

We kindly invite you to submit your proposal for carrying out the services based on the attached TOR no later than Thursday, 18 December 2023 on the following email address: [email protected]

You offer should include:

• Technical offer should be in English and include:

-  The proposed methodology, evaluation plan, team composition and timeframe.

- A sample of a similar assignment in a relevant field.

- A CV detailing relevant skills and experience of the consultant and her/his team of no more than 3 pages, including contactable referees.

• The financial proposal covers all major anticipated costs in EURO as follows:
• Company registration (for firms only).
• Excluding VAT for registered Companies (as the project is VAT exempted).
• Including income tax for individual consultants.
• Valid deduction at source certificate (for firms and individual consultants), Kindly provide us with a deduction at source certificate. In case of unavailability, 10% will be deducted from the total contract amount for income tax.

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 Terms of Reference

Final Evaluation of the EU Funded Project

ENI/2019/410-209

 “CEDAW Implementation in Jerusalem”

November 2023

1. Background and Introduction:

The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy-MIFTAH is a non-governmental, non-partisan organization that was established in Jerusalem in December 1998. MIFTAH seeks to promote the principles of democracy and good governance within various components of the Palestinian society; it further seeks to engage local and international public opinion and official circles on the Palestinian cause. To that end, MIFTAH adopts the mechanisms of an active and in-depth dialogue, the free flow of information and ideas, as well as local and international networking.

MIFTAH implemented the EU-funded project “Implementing CEDAW in Jerusalem” from 1 June 2020 until 31 December 2023. The overall objective of this Action is to enhance the protection of Palestinian women’s rights living under occupation in east Jerusalem. This comes within the framework of the limited implementation of CEDAW in Jerusalem, and lack of protection measures for Palestinian women living in Jerusalem where ambiguity prevails in concern to the responsible party to ensure the implementation of CEDAW. This compromises on protection of women and girls and enjoyment of basic rights in Jerusalem. The implementation of CEDAW was envisioned to take place through enabling members of the coalition “Non-Governmental Women Coalition for the Implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)” (referred to as “The Coalition” from now on) in Jerusalem to efficiently and effectively document and present evidence of human rights violations in relation to CEDAW implementation. These documentations as well as other collected data was used in advocacy efforts with the view of promoting accountability to women’s rights under occupation in line with the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and CEDAW General Recommendation 30 on women in armed conflict. For the purpose of this Action, MIFTAH partnered with an Arab civil society organization based in Israel (Kayan- Feminist Organization) that supported MIFTAH in leading the capacity-building program for the members of the Coalition and development of the advocacy strategy.

Within this context, the designed project proceeded in two pathways; the first focusing on advancing the monitoring role of member organizations within The Coalition to effectively and collectively monitor, document, and report human rights violations in Jerusalem in reference to CEDAW (SO1), and the second focusing on enhancing accountability measures on the international level towards women’s access to their rights in Jerusalem (SO2). This took place through the development of a “Shadow Report to the Periodic State Report of Israel” to shed light on the gaps in the implementation of CEDAW in Jerusalem for Palestinian women, followed by advocacy efforts aimed at holding Israel accountable to its violations of CEDAW that will ultimately ensure protection for women and girls in Jerusalem and the advancement of Women, Peace, and Security Agenda in the occupied city.

The target groups of the project included 5-6 representatives from five women and human rights organizations members in the Coalition working on five rights enshrined in CEDAW:

• General Union of Palestinian Women – Jerusalem Branch- Rights to Political Participation
• Juzoor for Health and Social Development- Health Rights
• Women Center for Legal Aid and Counseling- Family Rights
• Women Studies Center- Right to Education
• Sunflower Association for Human and Environment Protection- Economic Rights

2. Evaluation Objectives:

MIFTAH is looking for a consultant to conduct the final external evaluation for this project to assess whether its objectives and targeted results have been achieved. The evaluation will focus on the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency impact and sustainability of the project. More specifically, the evaluation will provide the following:

• Assessment of the design, implementation process and achievements of the project.
• Assessment of the management and coordination of the project.
• Documentation of lessons learnt in terms of methodology and project implementation.
• Assessment of the completed activities and how they are related to the objectives of the project.
• Provide suggestions, conclusions, and recommendations for future actions.

3. Evaluation Outputs:

Outputs to be delivered by the evaluator are as follows:

• A concise and comprehensive evaluation report in English providing answers to questions specified in section 4.
• Conclusions and recommendations, based on a complete analysis of the project’s implementation, results, and impact.
• A presentation of the draft evaluation results to MIFTAH, including the European Commission delegation in Jerusalem

4. Evaluation Questions:

Through the final external evaluation, MIFTAH seeks to evaluate/assess the project, answering, among others, the following questions:

Relevance: The extent to which the objectives of the project are consistent with the needs in the project document and those of the stakeholders.

The analysis of relevance should focus on the following questions related to the project design:  

• The extent to which stated objectives correctly address the identified problems and needs of women in Jerusalem.
• The quality of key stakeholder and target group identification (Coalition members and partner organization).

Effectiveness: How far the project outcomes were attained, and the project specific objective(s) achieved. 

The analysis of effectiveness should focus on the following issues:

• The extent to which the results of the project have been achieved, as perceived by all key stakeholders and with reference to the agreed outcome indicators and other relevant information.
• The effectiveness of operational procedures and whether these are in line with the project needs.
• Effectiveness of Coalition member organizations. Was the role of the five organizations beneficial towards the objectives of this intervention? Did they add value to the project?

Efficiency: How well the various activities transformed the available resources into the intended outcomes/outputs, in terms of quantity, quality and timeliness. Comparison should be made against what was planned in the approved proposal and implementation plan.  

The assessment of efficiency will therefore focus on:

• The quality of day-to-day management.
• Operational work planning and implementation (input delivery, activity management, delivery of outputs and respect of deadlines).
• Whether management of risk has been adequate, i.e. whether flexibility has been demonstrated in response to changes in circumstances; The degree of flexibility and adaptability of MIFTAH and Coalition member organizations to facilitate rapid responses to changes in circumstances.
• Did the coordination and synergy between MIFTAH, Kayan and Coalition members contribute to achieving results?

Impact: The evaluator will determine which impact (positive/negative) was achieved by the stakeholders on advancing women rights in Jerusalem.

The assessment of impact will therefore focus on:

• What were the sustainable results of the project?
• What was the impact of the project on the human rights of women in Jerusalem, Coalition members?
• Are there unintended impacts?
• What were the main project challenges and what kind of mechanisms were used to overcome them?
• Are there any gaps that the project has left that would need to be filled in with future interventions?

5. Evaluation Methodology:

The evaluation will be carried out using the participatory approach, seeking the views and assessments of all the parties, including MIFTAH, Kayan, Coalition members that were part of the project, stakeholders, project participants. This includes interviews with MIFTAH team in Ramallah.

Thus, the evaluation should comprise the following:

• Review all the project documents, including the proposal, progress reports, meetings reports, studies, and the evaluation reports of trainings, among others.
• Review project publications.
• Conduct field visits and interviews with Coalition members in Jerusalem.
• Conduct individual interviews with selected Coalition members to come up with success stories.

6. Analysis and Assessment:

The detailed evaluation of the project should be guided by the data and information gathered from project sources, internal information from project partners and key stakeholders. The evaluator must support findings and recommendations by an explanation of the degree to which these are based on opinion, analysis, and objectively verifiable evidence. Where opinion is the main source, the degree of consensus and the steps taken to test the opinion should be given.

7. Evaluation Team:

The evaluator or a team leader should be a specialist in monitoring and evaluation with no prior involvement in the project, with the following qualifications: 

• Post graduate degree in human rights, social sciences, development, management or similar field.
• At least 10 years of experience in conducting project evaluations, having evaluated EU projects is a requisite.
• Relevant technical expertise and experience in similar projects, including experience in evaluating community involvement.
• Experience in knowledge management and learning in a non-government organization or similar.
• Good communication skills.
• Excellent analytical and report-writing skills.
• Good understanding of women rights situation in Jerusalem.
• Can assemble a team in Jerusalem.
• Fluency in English and Arabic.

8. Review Period and Timeline:

The evaluation is planned to begin no later than 26 December 2023 and deliverables to be submitted to MIFTAH by 10 February 2024.