Development of Board Governance Policy Guidelines for CSOs

Background of the Organisation

FACT is a Christian-based national organisation working in and through partnerships to improve health and reduce poverty among people affected by HIV and related issues in Zimbabwe and beyond. With support from Global Fund through UNDP, FACT was awarded funds to implement a HIV and Resilient   and Sustainable Systems for Health (RSSH) interventions in 20 of Global Fund Districts in Zimbabwe. Under this grant FACT will be implementing three interventions related to HIV and Resilient   and Sustainable Systems for Health (RSSH)  Community Systems  Strengthening Module.  Interventions are: Community Led/Based Monitoring (CLM),  Institutional Capacity building, Planning and leadership and Community Empowerment, Social Mobilisation and Advocacy. The implementation of these interventions  will be through CSOs/CBOs sub sub recipients to be selected  for  all the  designate  Global Fund supported  districts

Background to Community Systems Strengthening (CSS)

Zimbabwe’s CSO, CBOs and networks’ serving in the areas of HIV, TB and malaria exhibit leadership, governance, institutional capacity, community empowerment, social mobilisation, advocacy and monitoring skills and capacity gaps[1]. Firstly, communities exhibit weak coordinated engagement and coordinated mechanisms to consolidate treatment, prevention   and support gains made since the advent of the three diseases.  Additionally, the structures have slowly evolved. Thirdly, changes in epidemiological trends and concerted focus on biomedical responses have left out critical pockets which can benefit from social interventions[1]. Those left behind include Men having Sex with Men (MSM), Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW), female sex workers (FSW), Artisanal miners, prisoners, truck drivers and people with disabilities. Coupled with this has been significant loss of traction and relevance by CBOs, CSOs and networks to efficiently and effectively serve and reach out to the hardest to reach. Sadly, without comprehensive and sustained reach, national and global targets for HIV, TB and malaria will remain a pipe dream.

 To address the challenges highlighted above, FACT received funding from Global Fund as a Sub-recipient to implement a Community Systems Strengthening (CSS) interventions in 20 districts in Zimbabwe. FACT is implementing three CSS Module, which are:

 Module 1: Community Led/Based Monitoring (CLM),

Module 2: Institutional Capacity building, Planning and leadership

Module 3: Community Empowerment, Social Mobilisation and Advocacy.

The expected outcomes of (Module 2) Institutional Capacity building, Planning and leadership are;

Increased capacity   to   attract more   support   from funders   to respond   to the Malaria, TB and HIV   pandemic;

Increased capacity to self-mobilise, support community investment in HIV, Malaria and TB;

Better   capacity of local institutions, structures   to self-govern and   respond to local HIV, TB and Malaria infections. 

It is against this background the FACT is seeking a consultant to Develop board governance policy guidelines for six national networks that will be cascaded to affiliate members CBOs/ CSOs. The focus of the board governance policy guidelines should include topics on leadership, accountability, risk management and other related topics 

The overall objective of this consultancy is to Develop board governance policy guidelines for six national networks that will be cascaded to affiliate members CBOs/ CSOs. The focus of the board governance policy guidelines should include topics on leadership, accountability, risk management and other related topics  

Key Sub topics of the Board Governance Guidance Manual

The Board Governance Manual should cover the generic themes that are crucial for the increase of general knowledge and skill sets in the key performance area of board members in conducting their role. Therefore, the framework should include, but not limited to the following key areas:

• Difference between role of Management and Governance
• Tasks and Responsibilities of CSOs boards
• How to build effective boards
• Board Operations and Best practices
• Leadership Skills
• Transparency and Accountability
• Risk Management, etc

Detailed structure and content of the Board Governance Policy Guideline manual shall be discussed and agreed upon with contractor at the beginning of the assignment.

The main responsibilities will be to:

• Gather, Review, analyze documentation related to board member functions in the NGO/CSOs sector.
• Develop the guideline document that can be used to orient CSO/CBOs board members.
• Provide recommendations for strategies and approach to cascade policy guidance to other CSO/CBOs in Zimbabwe

Main Deliverables

The deliverables from this exercise is a Board Governance Policy Guideline document (A hard Copy & a soft copy),

FOUNDATIONAL COMPETENCIES:

• Commitment,

• Drive for Results

• Embracing Diversity

• Integrity

• Self-awareness and Self-regulation,

• Teamwork

FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCES

• Leading Vision and Change

• Coaching

• Communication

• Setting Standards, and Monitoring Work

• Strategic and Global Thinking

• Group Facilitation

• Team Leadership

Education:

• Advanced Degree in the field of Strategic Planning and Management, Management, Social Sciences, Program Management, or a closely related field.

 Experience:

• At least 5 years of experience in the leading the training and establishment of governance boards, capacity building of board of member on their governance role.
• Demonstrable experience in developing high quality training manuals specifically in the board members on governance and leadership area;
• Experience in designing and training of NGOs board of members on corporate governance;
• Knowledge of policies and legal frameworks; guiding the formation and role of board members in both CSOs and Corporate sector in Zimbabwe
• Experience in communication, documentation and in developing high quality reports;
• Sound understanding of CSO Sector in Zimbabwe;

 Language Requirements:

• Fluency in spoken and written English.

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The consultancy fee will be determined on a lump sum basis. The lump sum amount must be all-inclusive and the contract price must be fixed regardless of changes in the cost components. Payment will be made upon completion of all key deliverables.

How to apply

Technical proposal: a cover letter and updated Curriculum Vitae (2 pages maximum); a technical proposal (max. 4 pages) summarizing the Module/Manual to be used in training and work plan with the expected number of working days; and, List of evidence of similar work done and experience to undertake the assignment.

Financial proposal: – asking rate (fees) in USD per workday and estimated number of workdays required to perform the assignment. Other logistical expenditures including materials, if applicable, must be included in the budget breakdown.

Evaluation Criteria

Candidates will be evaluated using a combined scoring method with the qualifications and methodology weighted at 70% and the price offer weighted at 30%.  Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49% (out of 70%) points on the technical qualifications part will be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Criteria for evaluation of qualifications and methodology (70 points maximum):

• Relevance of education to the consultancy (10 points);
• Knowledge of gender issues in development, particularly GBV, including relevant international human rights standards a distinct advantage (30 points)
• Fluency in Shona and Ndebele as it relates to Written and Verbal Communication (5 points)
• Experience in translating materials to suit local languages (25 points)

 Criteria for financial evaluation (30 points maximum)