TACKLING FORCED AND CHILD LABOUR IN GHANIAN COCOA AND GOLDMINING ~ ‘YE NE MMOFRA NO NTI’ PROJECT
1. Background
The Rainforest Alliance (RA) is an international nonprofit organization that works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour. Our alliance spans 70 countries and includes farmers and forest communities, companies, governments, civil society and millions of individuals. Together we work to protect forests and biodiversity, act on climate, promote rights and improve the livelihoods of rural people. As an international nonprofit organization with more than 30 years of experience in sustainability transformation, we understand that the social and economic well-being of rural communities is tightly connected to ecosystem health. This knowledge has shaped our rigorous programs to advance sustainable land use and commodity production.
In line with this vision, RA is implementing a three-year project Tackling Forced and Child Labour in Ghanaian Cocoa and Goldmining Landscapes, (‘Ye Ne Mmofra No Nti’).
Cocoa and gold mining are both hugely significant to the Ghanaian economy, however, both sectors are linked to issues such as forced labour, child labour and the worst forms of child labour (WFCL), despite considerable efforts made in recent years by the Ghanaian government and other relevant stakeholders to address them.
The project uses a Rights-Based and Landscape approach that tackles forced labour, child labour and worst forms of child labour in both the cocoa and gold sectors to prevent movement from one sector to the other. The project also addresses cross-cutting and other human right issues such as gender inequality, gender-based discrimination, work place violence and harassment amongst others. It is a three-year project currently being implemented by The Rainforest Alliance and its partners, with funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). The project aims to achieve its goal through 1) strengthening government institutions to identify, monitor, prevent, and address forced and child labour and human trafficking; 2) improving capacity of organizations and supply chain actors in cocoa and gold mining sectors that implement Human Right Due Diligence and best practices; 3) building capacity of community-based organizations and community monitors to enable them to advocate for and demand accountability from government and cocoa/goldmining companies on their commitments. It at the same time aims to build the socio-economic resilience of vulnerable people to make them resilient in the face of recruitment into forced labour and child labour.
The Project Objectives, Target Groups and Expected Outcome are as follows:
1. Purpose and scope of the evaluation
This is an end-term evaluation for a three-year forced and child labour focused project funded by NORAD.
Purpose: the evaluation will provide information on the nature, extent, potential and real impact, and sustainability of the project including the contribution to capacity development, institutional strengthening, and contribution towards the achievement of relevant sustainable development goals.
The evaluation will assess the project design, scope, implementation strategy and the capacity to achieve the project objectives. It will collate and analyse lessons learnt, challenges faced and best practices obtained during implementation which will inform future planning of similar projects. The extent to which the project and its outcomes have been gender-sensitive and have been able to address specific challenges and extent of participation of and needs of women, girls, men and boys must be evaluated. The emphasis on learning lessons will highlight what has and what has not worked as a guide for future planning by government, companies and project partners. It will assess the performance of the project against planned results.
The results of the evaluation will generate knowledge from the implementation of the project, reflect on challenges and lessons learnt and make recommendations for use by potential future projects and key stakeholders (such as selected government agencies, various implementing partners, selected community-based organisations, cocoa sector companies, farmer cooperatives, and goldmining associations).
This evaluation will be based in Ghana within the project districts, namely: Atwima Mponua, Atewa East, Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai, Wassa Amenfi West and their associated communities. Additionally, project interventions extend beyond these four primary districts to include pilot districts namely; Bekwai Municipal, Bia West, and Upper Denkyira West and their associated pilot communities. Furthermore, the evaluation will encompass national and international engagements of project implementing partners, sub-contractors, and farmer groups (some of whom have been given a ToT beyond the pilot communities).
2. Evaluation Objectives and Questions
The end of project evaluation will assess the effectiveness of the implementation strategy and the results. This will include the implementation modalities, financial management processes, coordination, partnership arrangements including roles and responsibilities, institutional strengthening, beneficiary participation, replication, project risk analysis, sustainability and exit strategy of the programme. The evaluation will include a review of the project design and assumptions made at the beginning of the project development process. It will also cover project activities and assess the extent to which the project results have been achieved, partnerships established, capacities built and cross cutting issues of mainstreaming gender and human rights have been addressed. It will also assess whether the project implementation strategy has been optimum (efficiency) and recommend areas for improvement and learning in future interventions. This evaluation does not include an auditing of financial accounts of the project but how the project ensured there was prudent financial management to achieve value for money.
To achieve the above, the following will guide the evaluation:
5. Methodology
Qualitative and quantitative methods should be used for this evaluation. Sampling may be done to select project beneficiaries and participants, using an appropriate methodology. A survey instrument or tool that takes into account the context of project beneficiaries and participants should be developed by the selected researcher and reviewed by the project team. This tool should be based on the evaluation questions above and also be appropriate to the scope of the evaluation (size of the project, number of households, data needed, time available for the research, budget, etc.). Child and child-friendly methodologies as well as those that encourage honest, open feedback (such as double blind evaluations) are strongly encouraged.
There will be a desk review of all available documentation from the project team and partners, including donor progress reports, relevant materials available on the project (e.g., communications outputs, resources, and tools), and any internal documentation relevant to assessing progress against the project’s outcomes (e.g., meeting summaries of key working groups, minutes of partner meetings, etc.).
Interviews (field data collection) with all key project stakeholders listed in Annex A should also take place, again taking into account their context and the information required from each of them. All findings and conclusions drawn will be backed by reference to evidence (sources), clearly showing their magnitude and representativeness, to allow for triangulation of the information. It is expected that methodological challenges and potential limitations in methodology, findings and conclusions are included in the report.
6. Deliverables and timeline
The final evaluation report will be due in December 2023 (exact date to be discussed/negotiated).
Below is a full list of key deliverables and timeline.
Peer review process and supervision
The project team will be available for consultation throughout the evaluation. The team will also be available to support any connections or communications with partners as necessary. Backstopping will be provided by various experts, and country directors from partner organisations.
8. Required qualifications and credentials
The consultant or consultant firm’s team must have at least a Master’s degree in statistics, social science, gender studies, development studies or related fields.
Data collection and analysis expertise, including social, and governance data and analysis. Thus, the team/individual must have the capacity to identify data sources, assess data quality/integrity, and calculate metrics based on secondary and primary data.
Experience in conducting evaluation assessments on similar donor-funded projects and/or on similar topics (e.g. child labour) will be major advantage.
Good understanding and knowledge of the social and political context of Ghana, speak the local language, and have fluency in written and oral English
Extensive experience of the team/individual in the implementation of similar projects with strong skills in M&E and proven record of accomplishment of developing and working with TOC (Theory of Change) in similar contexts
Be committed to an objective and inclusive assessment including willingness to engage separately with marginalized or vulnerable groups to the extent necessary to properly understand their perspectives
Demonstrable experience in both quantitative and qualitative research methods
Experience with delivering high-quality products respecting budgets and deadlines.
Application procedure
A Technical proposal not more than 10 pages detailing the following;
o consultant(s) understanding and interpretation of the ToR
o consultant expertise and record of accomplishment
o proposed methodology/ approach to carry out this evaluation
o implementation plan
o Abridged CVs of proposed personnel you intend to use for this assessment
Detailed budget that indicates the professional fees and any other related costs to be incurred by the consultant(s) while conducting this assignment. The financial proposal should be calculated in US dollars ($), including all taxes and duties.
The consultancy will be awarded to the Consultant with the most economically advantageous tender – price, quality and efficiency, based on the following criteria:
The technical and financial proposal should be sent by email to Senior Project Manager ghanaoffice@ra.org with the subject line “End of term evaluation proposal for Ye Ne Mmofra No Nti Project” by 10:00 PM GMT, on 31st August 2023. Any questions and clarifications related to the assessment should be sent to the email mentioned above.
