Consultancy: Education Management Information Systems (EMIS) consultant

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                                                                          TERMS OF REFERENCE

Title	Education Management Information Systems (EMIS) consultant
Purpose	The purpose of this consultancy is to undertake a stock-taking and analyze EMIS systems (including learning assessment) in Eastern and Southern Africa Region (ESAR), in order to: Identify gaps and challenges, as well as best practices to promote for countries to provide timely and accurate data for gender responsive, risk informed and inclusive education management, planning, monitoring and reporting. Suggest indicative key actions in support to ESA countries to improve their EMIS systems
Section	Education Section, UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO)
Location	Remote / home-based with potential travels to Nairobi, Kenya
Duration	70 days, over 6 months
Start Date	From 1st May 2021 to 31stth October 2021.

Background and Justification

The UNICEF Eastern and Southern African Regional Office’s (ESARO) Education section provide support to the 21 countries in the region in achieving excellent programming, by:

• Generating quality evidence and building partnerships for risk-informed programming and financing to ensure that girls and boys including those with disabilities complete primary and secondary with grade level learning outcomes.

• Enhancing the capacity of COs to design, implement, monitor and evaluate gender-responsive, inclusive and risk informed education programs that ensure that girls and boys, including those with disabilities, complete early learning, primary and secondary education with grade level learning outcomes. achieve

The section is guided by the vision in the UNICEF Strategic Plan (2018-2030), Goal 2 “Every child learns”, and UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Priorities (2018-2021) “Quality education and Learning” to support the 21 Country Offices (COs) to promote basic education including early childhood education (ECE), education quality, adolescent learning and education in emergencies, as well as the inclusion of children with disabilities in education. UNICEF provides these supports through quality assurance and oversight, data management and analysis, direct technical support, as well as partnership building.

In such support, education data appear critical, both for the regional office, the country offices and the key stakeholders. A significant data source often used is the Education management information system, which finally remains the main data source for education in many countries to track and report on the progress against national, regional and international commitments, develop evidences and policies addressing educational challenges, and ensure that no one is left behind of learning. It is therefore essential for it to be comprehensive (covering all the schools and all the information required for each level of education, including administrative data from school censuses, financial data, human resources data, learning assessment data and other education items information). It is also essential for it to be accurate, reliable, timely available, and easily accessible, with a manageable platform, system or data processing software.

However, many countries seem to be far from such education information systems. In addition, the unprecedented crisis of COVID19 has disrupted data production and many countries were not able to make their EMIS operate and provide required education information to support COVID19 response. From that point, at least three questions require consideration:

1. Which EMIS System is available and in use in each of the 21 Eastern and Southern Africa countries?

2. To what extent the EMIS systems available and in use are comprehensive, accurate, reliable and provide timely available information?

3. What are the main challenges encountered by the countries with the EMIS System, and what can be done to address those challenges and to make available timely and accurate data for gender responsive, risk informed and inclusive education management, planning, monitoring and reporting?

UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office, in close collaboration with the 21 Country Offices across the region would like to invest in these issues, with the aim to identify gap, challenges and best practices in the areas of EMIS and to define support requirements to countries to strengthen their EMIS systems. To that end, UNICEF ESARO would like to hire a consultant to support this line of work and undertake a mapping of EMIS systems (including learning assessment systems) in the 21 Eastern and Southern Africa countries, in order to identify gaps and challenges, as well as best practices to promote for countries to provide timely and accurate data for gender responsive, risk informed and inclusive education management, planning, monitoring and reporting.

Scope of Work

1) Purpose of assignment

The purpose of this consultancy is to undertake a stock-taking and analyze EMIS systems (including learning assessment) in Eastern and Southern Africa Region (ESAR), in order to:
1. Identify gaps and challenges, as well as best practices to promote for countries to provide timely and accurate data for gender responsive, risk informed and inclusive education management, planning, monitoring and reporting.
2. Suggest indicative key actions in support to ESA countries to strengthen their EMIS systems.

Under the overall guidance and direction of the Regional Education Adviser (REA) and the direct supervision of ESARO Education Specialist in charge of RBM & Data, the contractor will work closely with the Country Offices and other relevant partners and counterparts in the region and countries to provide the support required.

2) TA details/reference to AWP areas covered

• Data Systems Strengthening (EMIS system, Learning assessment data, HH Surveys with education component, etc.): identify gaps and provide support required for improved data collection and utilization

3) Major assignments/responsibilities

The overall objective of the consultancy is three-fold:
1. Undertake a mapping of EMIS systems, including learning assessments in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) countries in relation to the questions raised above
2. Identify gap and challenges, as well as best practices to be regionally promoted
3. Define and develop indicative key actions in support to ESA countries to improve their EMIS systems and provide timely and accurate data for gender responsive, risk informed and inclusive education management, planning, monitoring and reporting.

The consultant should focus at least on the following three aspects during the mapping stage:

 Platform/System used in each of the countries: What are the platforms/systems currently in use in each of ESAR countries (OpenEMIS, StatEduc, HDIS, etc…)? How are they suitable? What are the challenges (maintenance, technical capacity, etc.)? Are they different by level of education? Etc…

 Content of the questionnaires used: to what extent its capture all the information required and relevant, by level of education (pre-primary, primary, secondary, …)

 Process, Frequency, Sustainability: How data are collected and processed to provide accurate information? To what extent data are made available on a timely basis? How data collection, processing, analysis and dissemination are financed? What are the capacities available?

More specifically, the consultant will:
• Map and analyze the EMIS systems, including learning assessments in the 21 Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) countries
• Map and analyze the data platforms, systems, and software in use in the region and their suitability/challenges;
• Map and analyze the content of information collected, their relevance to national, regional and international needs, and in line with countries commitment to international agreements such as SDG4 and CESA.
• Analyze the mechanisms of data dissemination to national (including at subnational level and community levels) and international education stakeholders (including UIS);
• Analyze the national capacity (human, material and financial resources) to collect, produce and disseminate education data;
• Propose recommendations and action plan to ensure a sound, accurate, reliable and timely available education and management information systems in each of ESAR countries, including the integration of data from different data sources (classic EMIS, learning outcomes, etc.)

4) Work relationships/Reporting to:

The supervisor of this consultant will be the ESARO Education Specialist in charge of RBM & Data and the consultant will work with all members of the ESARO Education section, as well as with the Country Offices and other relevant partners and counterparts in the region and countries

5) Outputs and Payment schedule:

The consultant will be required to produce the outputs as specified below.

Desired Competencies, technical background and experience

Required
• An advanced university degree in economics, statistics, IT, mathematics, planning, or related field
• A minimum of 8 years of professional experience at the national and/or international levels in statistics and/or education management information systems
• Extensive knowledge of education management information systems
• Good knowledge of data quality assessment frameworks (DQAF), ideally education DQAF
• Excellent computer, research and data management and analysis skills
• Ability to work independently as well as part of a team
• Excellent analytical, communication, writing skills in English language.

Desired
• Experience working in a developing country context and awareness in working and interacting with government and non-government partners
• knowledge of the global development context, education systems, and education sector analysis and planning
• Familiarity with the Eastern and Southern Africa Region and their national education systems.
• Experience in and knowledge of UNICEF’s activities at the country and regional levels in education
• ability to conceptualize, plan and execute ideas
• Experience in data management and analysis and in supporting data utilization for equitable education systems programming, management and implementation
• Working experience in a UN system agency or organization.
• Knowledge of French and/or Portuguese would be considered as an asset

Requirements

• Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the contractor

Administrative Issues

The assignment will be supervised by the Education Specialist (Data and RBM) in the Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office, Education Section. The consultant will undertake missions to selected countries, if required, to provide technical support. UNICEF will cover travel cost.

The consultant is expected to be home based with potential travel in ESAR depending on COVID-19 travel restrictions in 2021 for which the UNICEF office would cover DSA and travel costs. Travel will be in economy class. If the consultant is required to quarantine while traveling, UNICEF will pay for the quarantine if not organized by the host country.

Conditions

As per UNICEF DFAM policy, payment is made against approved deliverables. No advance payment is allowed unless in exceptional circumstances against bank guarantee, subject to a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value in cases where advance purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary.

The candidate selected will be governed by and subject to UNICEF’s General Terms and Conditions for individual contracts.

How to Apply?

Interested candidates should submit:
1. Completed profile in UNICEF’s e-Recruitment system and provide Personal History Form (P11)
2. A short CV (no more than 4 pages)
3. A complete technical offer based on these TORs and including
i. An explanatory note on the understanding of the TORs
ii. A brief presentation of the methodological approach, organization and timeline of the assignment
iii. A financial proposal including all costs related to the performance of the service.