TERMS OF REFERENCE
Final Evaluation for the Cash Transfers for Development Project
1. Background
Oxfam Great Britain in Vietnam (OGB) is implementing a pilot project that provides once-off significant cash transfer to poor households in a non-emergency context in An Loc commune of Loc Ha district (formerly Can Loc district), Ha Tinh province. The project design is based on a rationale that over the past decades, there has been a growing body of writing that questions the impact of the work done by development and humanitarian organisation. As a development actor, OGB challenges itself whether as an INGO it truly adds value it thinks it does. And is it sure that giving poor people a relatively large amount of cash will not generate sustainable positive change? By providing an amount of cash with minimum conditions and interventions, it is expected that the project will provide an appropriate answer for the question. The project was started by providing once-off cash to 550 households (422 poor households with VND6.5 million and 128 near-poor households with VND3 million payment)
in early 2007 with expected impacts that:
• Poor people increase their assets, so improve their well-being;
• Women’s control over resources and assets is increased;
• Asset inequality between households is reduced.
If successful, the project will challenge:
• The standard approach of development projects which is for professional experts to lead in identifying suitable livelihoods, rather than empowering individual households to make diverse choices;
• The high level of administrative and consultancy costs faced by international NGOs and donors due to the high number of project staff and partners involved in designing and implementing standard livelihood projects;
• Beliefs in the development community about poor people’s ability to make wise and rational use of cash.
The project is implemented by the Pro-Poor Centre (PPC) – a Ha Tinh based Vietnamese non-governmental organisation which has in-depth understanding of local context and project interventions on ground.
The project is going to its end by March 2010, as part of its monitoring and valuation process, OGB would like to seek one consultant to carry out a final evaluation for the project with requirements as follow:
2. Objective
To conduct a final evaluation for the project entitled ‘Cash Transfers for Development: an Oxfam Learning Project in Vietnam’ (hereafter called Cash Transfer Project).
3. Specific tasks
• To measure changes made by the project in terms of poor people’s assets and well-being; women’s control over resources and asset; and household asset inequality;
• To identify and document major constrains, challenges, resolutions as well as learning over the course of the project;
• To indentify factors that enables or dis-enables project rolling out, based on that examine opportunities to apply this type of project in poorest and ethnic minority areas of Vietnam or elsewhere;
• To analyse and compare effectiveness of the project in connection to other projects those are traditionally facilitated by external agencies like NGOs. Focus should be on ownership of the beneficiaries, cost effectiveness and its distinction.
• To conclude whether cash transfer as an approach a better way compared to traditional, externally led project.
• To draw recommendations in term of policy, replication in government and donor’s programmes;
• To advise following up upon project withdrawal.
4. Process and methodology
The evaluation combines both statistical data analysis and fieldwork. Secondary data includes:
• Project documents (background discussion, project proposal);
• Project agreements with Ha Tinh provincial people’s committee and the Pro-Poor centre (local NGO);
• Bi-annual and Annual progress reports written by implementing partner;
• Bi-annual records of beneficiaries’ use of cash;
• External project review report written by independent consultant in December 2008;
• Monitoring notes made by OGB staff;
• External publications on cash transfer written by other agencies (e.g. ODI).
The consultant is requested to visit project sites to conduct interviews, focus group discussions with beneficiaries, community-based groups, government authorities at different levels and local NGO partner to seek information, verify data, seek clarifications or collect case studies for evaluating purpose.
5. Output of the assignment
Output of the assignment should be documented in a report that covers above-mentioned aspects (specified in ‘Specific tasks’ section). The report should be in English, not exceeding 50 pages, and following OGB’s format.
6. Consultant qualifications
• High competency in processing of statistical data; familiar with technical software e.g. SPSS, STATA;
• At least 5 years of experience with demonstrated monitoring and evaluation knowledge, skills and experiences of rural development programme;
• In-depth knowledge of research methods with particular focus on participatory methods, including in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and product or behavior trials;
• Excellent writing and analytical skills in English;
• At least a Bachelor’s degree in development studies, economics or social sciences;
• Understanding of Cash transfer in development is an advantage.
7. Indicative timeframe
The review should be carried out in early March 2010 with an indicative timeframe as follow:
No. Activity Number of consultant-day
1. Literature review and design 3
2. Fieldwork 4
3. Data processing (statistical and qualitative) 3
4. Report writing 5
5. Report finalistion 2
Total 17
8. Contact person
Applying consultant is requested to submit a proposal that proposes methods, process, timeframe, report outline, budget projection, key research questions and CV to:
Mr Nguyen Ngoc Hung
Programme Officer
Oxfam Great Britain, 22 Le Dai Hanh, Hanoi
Tel: +84 (04) 9454362 / Fax: +84 (04) 9454365
Email: nnhung@oxfam.org.uk
Website: www.oxfam.org.uk
Applications are welcome via email (preferred) or post before 5pm, 26th Feb 2010
