Vacancies

CONSULTANT VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Issued on: 22 August 2019

BACKGROUND
Tackling land issues in the stabilization process in post-conflict DRC is critical for achieving peace and social harmony as well as for creating an enabling environment for economic recovery. In Eastern DRC, there are various interventions in the land sector aiming at addressing land related issues. The Support to Land Governance for Peace, Stability and Reconstruction (PSLGPSR), implemented by UN-Habitat and funded by DFID, aimed at addressing root causes of land conflicts by improving land use and land ownership.  The programme drew lessons from the past and ongoing interventions in the land sector and focused on both land disputes and the land governance system to bring transparency and community participation into land decision-making. The primary beneficiaries of the land programme were communities in the provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri exposed to violence resulting from land disputes, returnees and those repatriated within communities as well as decision makers in the land administration system, including local community steering committees.

Focus and scope of the evaluation 
The evaluation will be utilization-focused, serving accountability, learning and decision-making purposes. It will provide a basis for accountability on how the programme achieved the intended results and determining the merits of the PSLGPSR programme, using evaluation criteria of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, changes (impact), synergies and coherence. What will be learned from the evaluation findings is expected to contribute to understanding of what worked, what did not and inform UN-Habitat’s and its partners’ future engagement in similar projects in conflict contexts by influencing strategies, exploiting opportunities, replicating and up-scaling the implementation approach used, and generating credible value for targeted beneficiaries in addressing land governance. The evaluation will also provide recommendations to inform future decision-making that will feed into UN-Habitat and DFID engagement in DRC and other similar conflict contexts.

Purpose and Objectives of the Evaluation

The purpose of the evaluation is to provide UN-Habitat and its partners with an independent and forward-looking appraisal of the PSLGPSR programme’s operational experience, achievements, opportunities and challenges, and provide recommendations on how UN-Habitat and its partners could address land issues in conflict contexts in future.  

Specific objectives of the evaluation are to:

• Assess the appropriateness, performance and achievements of land conflict mediation and community participatory land use planning (CPLUP) approaches of the programme at output and outcome levels. 

• Assess the extent to which the land programme has created ‘value-for-money’ supporting peace, social cohesion and efficient land management and if the community approach and tools used have worked well or not and built capacity in the land administration system.

• Assess the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, sustainability, impact outlook, synergy and coherence, and partnership and cooperation arrangements of the programme.

• Assess how gender and empowering of women, youth, human rights, and equity and non-discrimination of Pygmy people were addressed and mainstreamed by the programme.

• Assess to what extent the recommendations from the mid-term evaluation were implemented and determine the extent to which innovations were developed during programme implementation.

• Identify lessons and propose recommendations that can be used for further programming on land conflict in the DRC or other similar conflict contexts.

Approach of the Evaluation
The evaluation will be results-based in approach, based on the Theory of Change (TOC) of the programme and its logical framework. It will be a requirement to outline the TOC as applied for this evaluation, describing causal pathways and their cause and effect links to help understand how the programme was supposed to work, through which the desired results were to be achieved.

The evaluation will use mixed methods and techniques through qualitative data collection methods.  The robustness of the evaluation will be dependent on triangulation of a wide variety of data and information sources. Methods to be used will include review of documents relevant to the project, key informant interviews and consultations, including focus group discussions, surveys, and field visits.

The evaluation will be conducted over the period of two paid months but spread over three months from September to November 2019.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The evaluation will be conducted by an evaluation team of one (1) independent international consultant supported by a national consultant.

This consultant vacancy is for the international consultant, who will be the lead evaluator.

The lead evaluator will be responsible for meeting professional and ethical standards in conducting the evaluation and producing the expected deliverables according to the quality standards of UN-Habitat for evaluation reporting. Key evaluation deliverables include:

• Inception Report with Evaluation Work plan;
• Evaluation Report Draft;
• Final Evaluation Report.

Full details of the evaluation are provided in the attached Terms of Reference.

COMPETENCIES
Professionalism:           The Evaluator should demonstrate evaluation work experience, including triangulation and use of quantitative and qualitative methods. Have knowledge and understanding of land sector governance issues, and contextual understanding of the dynamics of land conflicts. Have good research, analytical and problem-solving skills. Have ability to present credible evaluation findings derived from evidence and putting conclusions and recommendations supported by findings.  Works with impartiality, objectivity and professional integrity of absence of bias and adheres to ethics and standards of evaluation.  Efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results. Shows persistence when faced with challenges.
Communication:           Excellent and effective written and oral communication in French and English. Ability to convince people through constructive argumentation and to present information in a concise and accurate manner. He/she should be transparent to enhance stakeholders trust and ownership in the evaluation process.
Respect for Diversity:    Respects beliefs, manners and customs of the social and cultural environment, human rights and gender equality. He/she should respect the rights of institutions and individuals to provide information in confidence.
Teamwork:                    Works collaboratively with others in the evaluation processes. Values ideas and skills of others but maintains ability to evaluate without undue influence and conducts evaluation work with impartiality.
QUALIFICATIONS

Education
Advanced academic degree in political sciences, social economy, land use planning and governance, public administration, or similar relevant fields.

Work Experience

• Extensive evaluation experience with designing and implementing evaluations, as well as using quantitative with ability to present credible findings derived from evidence and putting conclusions and recommendations supported by findings.
• Knowledge and understanding of UN-Habitat and its mandate.

• 10-15 years in results-based management working with projects/ programmes in the filed of land, legislation, governance and capacity building and other related fields.
• Advanced academic degree in political sciences, statistics, social economy, governance, planning, similar relevant fields.
• Understanding of land sector governance issues, and contextual understanding of the dynamics of land conflicts.
• Recent and relevant experience of working on post-conflict development projects and similar interventions in developing countries as well as a useful mix of experience and familiarity with public administration in Africa and other parts of the world.

Language
Fluent in French and English (Excellent communication, interviewing and report writing skills) required.

REMUNERATION

The paid months (Professional fee) for the consultancy is two (2) months. However, the evaluation will be conducted over a period of three (3) months, from September 2019 to November 2019.  Payments will be based on deliverables. The professional fee will be based on the level of evaluation expertise and experience.  DSA will be paid only when travelling outside duty station (home base) of the consultants. All travel costs will be covered by UN-Habitat.