Final Evaluation of WASH-Program in Lebanon

arche noVa is hiring a consultant with the aim to conduct an evaluation of the following project funded by the German ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ): “Strengthening the resilience of communities and households through improvement of water, sanitation and sewage facilities for Syrian refugees and host communities in rural areas in Lebanon”.

1. Project Background

The influx of Syrian refugees has exacerbated Lebanon’s already stretched water systems and services, which were underfunded and underperforming even before the crisis with the last year accumulated crises increasing the pressure on the systems even further.

Lebanon is already making use of two thirds of its available water resources, and there is significant groundwater mining. Significant groundwater declines have been observed, and are expected to increase due to climate change. Previous achievements have been destabilized due to the increasing poor condition of supply infrastructure, the lack of reliable services and the fact that Lebanon’s water sources are receiving increasing loads of human and agricultural contamination making water unsafe. Of particular concern in Lebanon is the quality of drinking water and inequity of supply. Up to 90% of natural sources are affected by bacterial contamination in populated/urban areas, with 70% nationally contaminated. Host and refugee populations, rural and urban, are affected to some degree by the lack of WASH services depending on their wealth status and geographic location.

The responsible local authorities, including North Lebanon Water Establishment (NLWE) and Municipalities are under-resourced both financially and in human capital, and need a significant capital investment with capacity building to ensure effective and sustainable service provision.

arche noVa, with the financial support from BMZ and in line with the needs identified in the LCRP 2017-2020, implemented an intervention aiming at strengthening the resilience of the people to cope with the over-burdened water and sanitation system which also includes the exploitation and pollution of water resources. The dangers of lack of safe and sufficient access to water are health risks, economic burdens for private households and social tension.

2. Project Area and Specific Objective

The project has been implemented in northern Lebanon, targeting the two governorates of: North Lebanon and Akkar with the specific objective: Lebanese and Syrian families in Lebanon have improved equal access to safe drinking water and improved sewage systems. Thereby water induced diseases can be prevented and social tensions can be reduced.

3. Purpose and Scope of the Evaluation

This evaluation aims to assess the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact and sustainability of the implemented activities (definition according to DAC standards) including also specific recommendations out of the lessons learned to improve planning and implementation for better delivery of results for the most vulnerable in future arche noVa interventions, strengthen local strategy, and in-country programming, improve designing, implementation, and monitoring of future projects and accountability of arche noVa interventions. Primary user of the report will be arche noVa. The report will be shared with the donor and with the different stakeholders of the project to ensure the effective and sustainable development of their activities.

4. Evaluation Methodology

The consultant/evaluator is expected to develop a detailed methodology for this evaluation in the inception report which will be based on qualitative data collection in gaining insights from a range of stakeholders as well as on analyzing available quantitative data and other relevant documents. The evaluators should take all reasonable steps to ensure that the evaluation is designed and conducted to respect and protect the rights and welfare of people and the communities of which they are members, and to ensure that the evaluation is technically accurate, reliable, and legitimate, conducted in a transparent and impartial manner, and contributes to organizational learning and accountability.

It is expected that the evaluation will use the following methods at a minimum:

• Desk Review of key program documents: analysis of data from reports, studies, national HH surveys and administrative data from Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW), North Lebanon Water Establishment (NLWE), all program related documents (proposal, monitoring data, interim reports) and others.
• Key informant interviews with beneficiaries where applicable
  • Min 4 KII with beneficiaries/HH from output 1 (incl. min. 1 Syrian and 1 Lebanese)
  • Min. 2 KII with beneficiaries from output 2 and 3 (incl. min. 1 Syrian and 1 Lebanese)
  • 1 KII with beneficiaries from output 4
  • 1 KII with beneficiaries from output 5
  • Min. 2 KII with beneficiaries from output 6, 7, 8 (min. 1 Syrian and 1 Lebanese)
• Focus group discussions with communities where applicable
  • Min. two (2) to three (3) focus group discussions per area with communities (min. one (1) Syrian and one (1) Lebanese community per area) and two (2) focus group discussion with partner organization and one (1) focus group discussion with (technical) staff from the NLWE (if possible).
• Personal interviews with:
  • One (1) focal point from NLWE
  • One (1) project manager from partners (NGOs)

These requirements can be further elaborated in the inception report as appropriate and needed. If field visit is not possible due to security concerns, coordinate with country team for remote interviewing options.

Through the methodology it is expected to provide data on all indicators of the program under review.

The evaluator will be responsible for identifying a relevant sampling methodology, drawing a sample, and training of enumerators as required, field study with conducting interviews with KI and FGDs. The consultant will also perform data analysis based on the collected data. At the end of the analysis process a draft report will be shared with the project staff for their comments/feedback.

Ethical considerations:

ln line with international ethical standards, all those engaged in designing, conducting and managing evaluation activities will aspire to conduct high quality and ethical work guided by professional standards and ethical and moral principles. The proposal must identify actual or potential ethical issues, as well as measures and methods adopted to mitigate against these issues. All interviewees will be informed with the purpose of the evaluation and their role and what information is required specifically from them. Confidentiality of their views needs to be ensured. If interviewees will include minors, a written consent should be taken from the persons in charge of their care. All the documents, including data and fieldwork instruments, developed in the course of this consultancy are the intellectual property of arche noVa.

5. Deliverables

• Inception report: The inception report should include the proposed methodologies, a data collection and reporting plan with identified deliverables, draft data collection tools such as interview guides, questionnaire, sampling method, a timeframe with firm dates for deliverables and travel (if applicable) and logistical arrangements for the evaluation. At this stage, option for feedback loop will be open with the aim to update the progress and initial findings with recommendations of the evaluation.
• Draft report: The consultant will produce a draft report (identifying key findings based on facts, conclusions, recommendations and lessons for the current and future operations) which will be reviewed by arche noVa country team in accordance with the scope and purpose of the evaluation as depicted above. The consultant will be given the feedback after five (5) working days to incorporate into the final report.
• Final Report: A Final report highlighting key findings, conclusions, lessons learned and recommendations will have to be submitted within five (5) days of receiving the feedback from the draft report. Final evaluation report should comprise of no more than 30 pages (excluding executive summary, list of abbreviations and annexes such as copy of the ToR, cited resources, a list of those interviewed and any other relevant materials).
• Lessons Learned Workshop: The Lessons Learned Workshop will lay down the conclusions to the arche noVa team and its partners in a date to be convened.

The findings and all products arising from this evaluation will be owned by arche noVa. The evaluator will not be allowed, without prior authorization in writing, to present any of the analytical results as his/her own work or to make use of the review results for private publication purposes. All case studies, anecdotes, any rough tool used and copies of participatory tools to be submitted to the arche noVa team to ensure scientific accountability and data protection of the evaluation.

6. Responsibilities, Timeframe and Duration

Estimated duration of the evaluation: around 40 days

Duty Station: Tripoli and relevant governorates

Administrative issues: Overall, management oversight will be provided by arche noVa Lebanon. The consultant is to be based in Lebanon for the entire period of the consultancy.

The consultant is responsible to produce the following by the stated deadline:

• Desk review and submission of the inception report: max. 8 days
• Data collection and field visits: 15 days
• Draft evaluation report: 10 days
• Final report and workshop: 5-10 days

Timeline

Day 1-8

Activity:

• Desk review of key documents Initial briefing about the program;
• Draft Inception report, detailing evaluation tools, methodology and detailed evaluation schedule;
• Inception report

Responsiblity:

• arche noVa responsible for sharing all relevant documents and arranging meetings with key staff and stakeholders;
• Consultant for interview schedule and inception report production;

Day 9-23

Activity:

• Data collection and analysis;
• Field visit to 2 project areas
• arche noVa responsible for logistics and arranging meeting with beneficiaries/stakeholders

Responsiblity:

• Consultant for draft evaluation report

Day 24-33

Activity:

• Draft evaluation report which is circulated internally for comments;
• Presentation of key findings,
• Feedback on the draft evaluation report and revision

Responsiblity:

• Consultant for presentation and draft report
• arche noVa for consolidated feedback

Day 34-40

Activity:

• Final evaluation report for submission to arche noVa
• Workshop (Final presentation and Lessons learnt)

Responsiblity:

• Consultant and arche noVa

7. Evaluator & Qualifications

Individual consultants to apply. The evaluator must have experience or significant knowledge of the humanitarian response mechanisms, specifically relief and recovery interventions, and have previous experience in conducting evaluations for medium-to-large scale programs. It is preferred for the evaluator to have a good understanding of WASH based interventions. The evaluator should meet the following requirements:

Required:

• A minimum of three (3) years of demonstrable experience in leading evaluations in humanitarian programs responding to emergency and recovery programs. Previous experience in undertaking evaluations for WASH programs or similar work experience in the region -specifically in Lebanon- will be an asset;
• Previous working experience (min. 5 years) in coordination, design, implementation and monitoring of humanitarian programs;
• Qualitative and quantitative methods expertise;
• Excellent report writing and analytical skills in English; Knowledge of Arabic language will be a strong asset;
• Experience in participatory approaches to evaluations
• Excellent attention to detail and evidence of quality outputs from previous assignments;
• Strong inter-personal, teamwork and organizational skills;
• Familiarity with information technology, including proficiency in word processing, spreadsheets, and presentation software;
• Punctuality and availability to complete the work on time;
• Experience in social accountability in water sector is an asset;