Development of the Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting Curriculum

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Part 1. Background

The Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare has the mandate to ensure gender equality, poverty eradication and socio-economic development of targeted groups. The key strategy to achieve its goal is through gender mainstreaming and Gender-responsive planning and budgeting. Gender-responsive planning and budgeting is a process that responds to the different needs and interests of women, men, girls and boys and results in a gender-responsive budget. The GRPB process involves an analysis of the government budget to ensure that budget priorities; expenditures and revenue estimates address the different needs of women and men, girls and boys to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The development of the training Curriculum/ Module on GRPB intends to improve capacity of government Offices, Ministries and Agencies (OMAs) to use scarce national resources within the context of particular mandates of OMAs in gender-responsive planning and budgetary progressions. This is to ensure that budgets address the needs of women and girls, men and boys equally and contribute to the acceleration of efforts to achieve gender equality for socio-economic development. The development of the GRPB Curriculum/ Module is rooted in the realisation that the quest to improve socio-economic growth is intimately linked to the concrete attainment of gender equality through the allocation of adequate budgetary resources. Therefore, Curriculum/ Module is meant to strengthen the capacity of OMAs and motivate them to implement Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting initiatives within their respective mandates.

Given this influence, training civil servants on GRPB as part of their work will not only contribute towards capacity building for gender-equitable planning and budgeting but also shape their attitudes and perceptions towards gender equality.

It is against this background that the MGEPESW with support from (UNDP and UNFPA) is seeking the services of a consultancy firm or individuals to undertake the development of a Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting Curriculum/ Module for Offices, Ministries and Agencies (OMAs) and Institutions of Higher Learning (IHLs).

Part 2. OBJECTIVES

The main aim of the assignment is to develop the Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting training Curriculum/ Module that will be used to strengthen the capacity of officials within OMAs to implement a gender perspective in the national plans and budgeting processes. Furthermore, this curriculum aims to strengthen capacity in the application of gender analysis, planning and budgeting for OMAs, including members of parliament (to assist in the processes of law-making, representation and oversight functions) and students at IHLs.

The specific objectives of this review are to:

1. Review existing draft GRB Module chapters/Units and align to the Namibia Institute of Public Administration and Management (NIPAM) curriculum guidelines for effective implementation/ facilitation.
2. Develop the Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting Module that consist of  1) the GRB Curriculum; 2) GRB Facilitator’s Guide; 3) GRB Learner’s Guide
3. Assess the extent of the GRPB module/ curriculum and its alignment to National Gender Policy 2021-2022, highlighting and incorporating critical areas.
4. Align all Units to the key notions of Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting and highlight major advantages and benefits of integrating a gender perspective in national and regional programmes and budgets.
5. Highlight Units to the main components of GRPB work and give an overview of the key steps of the gender budget analysis and processes.
6. Incorporate findings from the National Budget Analysis (due for completion on 30 August 2021) as case study references in the curriculum
7. Develop an abridged version of the GRB Module for Members of Parliaments
8. Develop the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) plan (pre and post-tests) to be used for the assessment of the Curriculum/ Module.

Part 3. MAIN TASKS OF THE CONSULTANCY

The consultant will be responsible for the following tasks:

1. Review the existing draft GRPB Module chapters/Units for key content gaps, fidelity to NIPAM/NQA curriculum guidelines and standards and propose a detailed work plan to complete the curriculum
2. Develop the Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting (GRPB) Curriculum/ Module consisting of  1) the GRPB Curriculum; comprised of a Facilitator’s Guide and Learner’s Guide
3. Assess the extent of content and align to National Gender Policy 2010-2021
4. Compile a consolidated GRPB Curriculum/ Module report.
5. Development of the M&E plan  (pre-post-test) for the assessment of the Curriculum/ Module
6. Facilitate a multi-sectoral stakeholder consultation/ validation of the Curriculum/ Module

Part 4. TIMEFRAME

The consultant is expected to conduct Curriculum/Module development and review within 90 working days from the signing of the contract, excluding weekends and public holidays. This will take place over the course of five (5) months.

Part 5. DELIVERABLES and INDICATIVE TIMELINE

All deliverables should be submitted to the Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare (MGEPESW) through the Directorate of Gender Equality.

Part 6: PAYMENT SCHEDULE

The Service Provider will be paid upon receipt of satisfactory deliverables as outlined above in meeting the assignment’s quality standards and according to the following schedule

1. First payment (10%) upon delivery and acceptance of the inception report.
2. Second payment (30%) upon delivery and acceptance of the first draft GRPB curriculum (including Facilitator’s and Learners Guides and MP Module)
3. Third payment (30%) upon delivery and acceptance of the final GRPB Curriculum and Validation report suitably incorporating all feedback received
4. Fourth payment (30%) upon delivery of the GRPB M&E Plan

Part 7. CONSULTANT’S QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

The consultant should have:

1. Master’s Degree or PhD in the field of Social Sciences in Gender, and Economics or preferably in Gender and Development studies
2. At least ten years’ experience in Curriculum development, management and administrative experience in public, private, NGO in relation to Gender and development.
3. At least ten years of work experience in Gender and policy development, training, research, Curriculum/ Module development, monitoring and evaluation particularly in the area of gender mainstreaming, gender-responsive planning and budgeting and women’s empowerment;
4. Extensive experience in Gender research, Gender Responsive Budgeting; Gender policy‐level analysis.
5. In-depth knowledge of public finance management systems, knowledge management and public sector reforms and their implications for gender equality and women’s empowerment
6. Understanding of the Namibian development issues especially in the context of gender and culture
7. Experience in Monitoring and Evaluation;
8. Ability to work in multicultural settings
9. Demonstrable computer and information technology skills, including word processing, electronic presentations, spreadsheets, email and the internet including highly proven capabilities of keeping electronic records and produce reports
10. Has own computer equipment and steady access to internet connectivity
11. Able to work under minimum supervision

Part 8: SELECTION CRITERIA

Applications will be evaluated based on a cumulative analysis:

When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the Service Provider whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

1. Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
2. Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

* Technical Criteria weighting: 70%

* Financial criteria weighting: 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 50 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation

Part 9: CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS

The Consultant or team should have in-depth and extensive experience of reviewing policies in a gender-responsive way at the highest level of participation of government institutions, civil society organisations and academia. In addition, the Consultant should have rich experience and knowledge in the production of training tool kits.

1. Strong team building, interpersonal skills and willingness to work towards local capacity building,
2. Communicating information and ideas/Knowledge Sharing;
3. Building and Managing Relationships;
4. Analytical and Strategic Thinking/Results in Orientation/Commitment to Excellence,
5. Self-management/Emotional intelligence
6. Experience in a participatory approach and social accountability work is an asset
7. Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise in Gender and development
8. Knowledge Management - Has substantive, demonstrated professional depth in the area of women's human rights and knowledgeable about grant making, Has proven ability to advocate and provide policy advice, Demonstrated ability to use knowledge management strategies to promote effective decision-making, and a coherent approach to policymaking, and intra/inter-organisational collaboration.
9. Ability to work under pressure and stressful environments
10. Building strategic alliances and partnerships
11. Organisational awareness
12. Familiarity and previous working experience in Namibia is an asset.

Part 10: APPLICATION PROCESS

The Consultant is expected to provide the following:

• Cover letter (must indicate availability to assume duty)
• Curriculum Vitae
• Brief methodology clearly describing the interpretation of these Terms of Reference and a recommended methodological approach
• Financial offer in USD expressed as lump sum for the delivery of outputs as per above description. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (consultancy fee per number of anticipated working days)
• Applications should be send to namibia-procurement@unfpa.org with the subject line “Development of GRPB Curriculum” by 17h00 Central Africa Time (CAT) on 16 July 2021.

Applications submitted without this information will not be considered. Please also note that all travel costs, including DSA, will be covered by the Contractor so these costs should not be factored into the daily rate.