Background and Context
Across the African region, Sonke Gender Justice has considerably succeeded in shaping emerging laws and policies, not only in South Africa but the whole region. As such over the past ten years Sonke has acquired vast experience challenging on rigid gender norms and Violence Against Children (VAC). In the African region, VAC is increasing, including sexual violence and corporal punishment, among others. In Tanzania, the 2016 report on the state of human rights by the Legal and Human Rights Centre indicated that most cases they handled were related to sexual violence against children. In Uganda, despite a 2008 government directive banning corporal punishment, VAC is still widespread and occurs in a range of settings including the home and school environment.
However, it is important to note that many East and Southern African countries are currently reforming legislation related to children and families, creating key opportunities and a firm foundation to prohibit VAC including eliminating the use of corporal punishment in all settings and changing the lives of children. In addition, while the age limit for legal marriage in Tanzania was set at 18, sexual violence against children remains high with 27% of girls and 12% of boys reporting sexual violence. An important opportunity for deepening Sonke’s work emerged from a five-year National Plan of Action (NPA) to end violence against women and children (VAW/C). The plan represents a strategic shift in thinking about how Tanzania will address the problem of preventing violence against children.
The adoption of commitments to end all VAC, including specifically corporal punishment, in Africa’s Agenda for Children 2040 and the global 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, provides additional and immediate contexts for focussing attention on fulfilling this most fundamental obligation under human rights law. Instead of focusing on interventions that are issue based, Tanzania now focuses on building systems that both prevent VAW/C in all its forms and respond to the needs of victims/survivors. Sonke has also produced a scorecard on policies that engage men in positive parenting, and this has been used as a benchmark to track improvements in the policy environment in the region. The NPA additionally brings a new emphasis on working with boys and men to prevent VAW/C. The role of boys and men is clear in the NPA by:
1) strengthening of capacity of boys and girls to contribute to their own protection;
2) engaging parents on positive parenting skills and;
3) addressing harmful social norms.
Rigid gender norms still equate masculinity with dominance and use of violence and locate women and children in subordinate positions to men. Sonke’s child rights-focused partner organisations in Uganda and Tanzania have successfully adapted the MenCare campaign in promoting positive and gender equitable parenting. This has been another opportunity to build on and strengthen work in both countries. In the past three years in Uganda, StraightTalk Foundation, and selected partners from the MenEngage Uganda, have focused on the media campaign element of MenCare while in Tanzania, Children’s Dignity Forum has hosted community dialogues and campaigns on MenCare and ending child marriages. Regionally, the Oak Foundation grant has contributed significantly to putting MenCare on the map in East Africa.
The Scorecard on Engaging Men and Boys in positive parenting, and the Policy Brief on progress to prohibit corporal punishment have also created benchmarks for organisations to depart from for further advocacy work. The Oak Foundation support has also catalysed other programmes like the Prevention+ programme in Uganda and the MenCare East and Southern Africa programme with Save the Children. In responding to these challenges, Sonke and child rights actors in Uganda and Tanzania used the opportunity that the MenEngage Africa Alliance offers to strengthen the capacity of key child rights actors.
Project Overview
Through this project, individuals (parents, children, and policy makers) and communities (including families, institutions, child rights actors and other stakeholders) would have benefitted from education and advocacy efforts that challenge negative social norms. The project aimed to develop a more conducive policy environment, to support more gender equitable relations and improved child development and rights. A measure of success in changing people’s lives are the amplified voices of gender and child rights activists calling for action and accountability towards gender norms transformation, and increasing number of opinion holders and other leaders speaking out against all forms of abuse and implementing decisions that support social justice and gender equality, especially towards engaging men and boys more effectively in this work.
The project strengthened strategic partnerships and collaboration between national and regional child rights organisations and Sonke and MenEngage members to conduct meaningful joint activities in Tanzania and Uganda. This project is unique as it questions social norms to promote non-violent, gender equal parenting and children’s rights and development in general, and to increase the involvement of men in their children’s lives. As such, there is an expectation of increased reporting by families on the positive impacts of shared, quality parenting, reduced violation of children’s rights, and increased meaningful participation of children and youth in the gender agenda.
The activities that were conducted describe a collaboration between Sonke with Promundo, in terms of IMAGES dissemination and development of country-based State of the Fathers reports in Uganda and Tanzania. More men and boys were engaged in preventing sexual violence against children due to this project. This individual behaviour change happened slowly, and therefore the optimal environment for this change to happen was established by the project embedding the various elements of research, intervention, and advocacy in larger institutions. The partnership with Promundo was built on existing and previous partnerships, not least Sonke’s co-coordination position of the MenCare Global Fatherhood Campaign. As partners Promundo’s strength in producing and disseminating advocacy relevant research, as well as translating findings into programming and policy-relevant messaging, and that Sonke has a good track record and strength in supporting country partners, strengthening networks and engaging in national level advocacy.
Furthermore, in Uganda, the Oak supported work happened in conjunction with a set of concurrent projects that Sonke and partners are supporting. These were:
a) the Prevention+ national violence prevention program that was implemented by Reproductive Health Uganda, which was also in collaboration with Promundo and
b) the MenCare Fatherhood Campaign program which was implemented by Save the Children in Uganda.
There also were pre-existing relationships with BRAC, Raising Voices and the Centre for Domestic Violence Prevention (CEDOVIP). All these partners, together with Promundo and existing country partners, were involved in the advocacy based on IMAGES findings, and the development of the State of Uganda’s Fathers Report. Strengthening engagement with these partners was done through technical support provided by Sonke and Promundo, where partners had budget allocated to working with men and boys. This project also provided an opportunity to engage with the national coalition that has driven the VAC survey, working on a national action plan to end violence against children, and thereby ensured that IMAGES findings and technical knowledge on engaging men and boys was included in the plan’s development.
In Tanzania, this process of developing a plan, that include a focus on engaging men and boys has already been achieved, and the plan was influenced by UNICEF drawing on Sonke’s work in the region. The focus for the work in Tanzania ensured that the plan was implemented with appropriate and adequate budget, as results above stated. Towards this we continued to work with our local partners CDF and Save the Children, as well as with Promundo and its country partners, and again the coalition and team that had been driving the development of the plan with support from UNICEF.
Expected Results
The strategic goal of Mainstreaming the engagement of men and boys for violence prevention was to strengthen child protection policy advocacy, program development and implementation on Tanzania and Uganda with evidence on the engagement of men and boys in preventing sexual violence against children. To achieve this the following objectives were identified:
| Outcome 1 | Outcome 2 | Outcome 3 |
|---|---|---|
| International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES Survey) findings are integrated into program development and policy advocacy in target countries with linkages relating to preventing Violence Against Children. | Develop and disseminate the first State of Ugandan Fathers and State of Tanzanian Fathers reports | Provide technical support to Oak Foundation in-country selected organizations in programming to engage men and boys to prevent and respond to child sexual abuse and broader violence against children |
| Intermediate outcome 1.1 Civil society organizations and government departments work towards preventing violence against children and are more familiar with the concept of engaging men and boys for violence prevention, and integrate IMAGES findings of each country to inform their work on MenCare program development. | Intermediate Outcome 2.1 The State of Ugandan Fathers report has been disseminated and is available to policymakers. | Intermediate Outcome 3.1 Oak Foundation in-country partners, also member organizations of the MenEngage in the focus countries have capacity to integrate and implement gender transformative work that includes a strong focus on engaging men and boys for the protection of children from all forms of violence |
| Intermediate Outcome 1.2 Pre-existing and new MenCare violence prevention programs show increased use of IMAGES findings | Intermediate Outcome 2.2 The State of Tanzanian Fathers report has been disseminated and is available to policymakers. | Intermediate Outcome 3.2 Strengthened strategic work partnerships and collaboration between child rights actors/coalitions in the focus countries, MenEngage in-country networks and Sonke |
| Intermediate Outcome 1.3 In each country the official national action plan to prevent violence against children includes information from IMAGES findings and goals that involve the engagement of men and boys in violence prevention, and local partners lobby for sufficient governmental budget allocation | Intermediate Outcome 3.3 New materials and tools developed and existing ones revised and disseminated to support the integration of men and boys to address Violence Against Children and prevent Gender-Based Violence. | |
| Intermediate Outcome 3.4 Increased integration of the role of men and boys in existing and future campaigns to address VAC and child sexual exploitation in each of the project focus countries |
Purpose of this Consultancy
The purpose of this end of term evaluation is to determine the extent to which the project has achieved its stated outcomes and to provide deeper insight about the mechanisms/factors that have enhanced or constrained project results. The evaluation is being commissioned by Sonke Gender Justice, and the project is funded by Oak Foundation. The evaluation results will be shared with Oak Foundation plus additional stakeholders and will be used to determine the efficacy of their investment in Sonke’s efforts. Evaluation findings will also inform and shape future programming including the development of funding proposals, as well as facilitate internal reflection and learning to strengthen our collective work across the continent. Outcomes may also be shared with key stakeholders and other potential funders.
More specifically, the evaluation is expected to provide the following:
- Accurate and independent information on the implementation of the project and its results
- Analysis of the likely sustainability of project achievements
- Analysis of the effectiveness of different project components and contextual factors influencing results
- Provide lessons learnt and recommendations for revision to programme implementation and innovation
Evaluation Scope
The scope of the evaluation is limited to the activities funded by Oak Foundation. It covers the period from project inception 01 September 2017 up to 30 June 2021. The geographical area is limited to the focal MenCare countries receiving sub-grants which are Uganda and Tanzania.
Evaluation Criteria & Questions
The following evaluation criteria and questions provide guidance on the exercise and should be considered by the external evaluator to frame data collection, analysis and interpretation. Across all evaluation criteria, the evaluator should also consider the following cross-cutting issues:
- Relevance
- To what extent were the project objectives consistent with country needs taking into consideration gaps in policies and their implementation?
- To what extent did the project meet the expectations of its key target groups?
- Impact
- How has the project succeeded in achieving its overall objective? This will take into consideration intended and unintended results; including, but not limited to, the following:
- Policy advocacy in relevant countries
- Individuals (i.e. parents, children, and policymakers) and communities (i.e. families, institutions, child rights actors, and other stakeholders) benefit from education and advocacy efforts
- Changes in civil society organisations’ and government departments’ levels of familiarity with engaging men and boys for violence prevention, as well as with how to use relevant research findings and reports
- Changes in pre-existing and new MenCare violence prevention programmes around relevant research findings and reports
- Changes to, and subsequent reach of, relevant National Action Plans
- Dissemination of research and reports in relevant countries
- Provision of technical support to organisations implementing MenCare programmes
- Strengthening partner systems – i.e. increased design and implementation capacity of organisation benefitting from technical support
- Effectiveness
- How and why has the project been able/unable to achieve its results? Key issues to consider under “effectiveness” include, but are not limited to, the following:
- The extent to which the project has achieved its objectives and results
- Whether collaborations were effective to contribute successful or unsuccessful results.
- Whether the results-based framework indicators demonstrate that the intended changes have and are taking place
- Assessments on the quality and quantity of the produced results in accordance with the plans and how the results are applied by the intended stakeholders, i.e. government, civil society, MenCare organisations, policymakers.
- What were the major factors contributing towards achieving these results?
- Whether the results areas and components of the project remain relevant and useful, and whether the project adjusted its priorities to remain so
- How were risks dealt with and were there processes that were followed to minimise risks in programme implementation?
- The extent to which gender equality, reduction of inequalities, and promotion of human rights have been achieved during the implementation of the project
- Whether gender criteria have been considered in the selection of activities and whether gender disaggregated data is produced
- How the communications activities within the project have been handled, and how effective they have been
- Efficiency
- How efficient was the project in terms of quantity, quality, and timeliness? Comparison should be made against what was planned, taking into consideration the following:
- Whether the activities transformed the available resources into the intended outputs/results, in terms of quantity and time
- Was the quality of the project met?
- What was the cost efficiency to quality ratio?
- Were changes made to the programme design (objectives/collaborations etc.) and what were the effects of these changes towards programme implementation efficiency?
- Sustainability
- What is the degree to which the benefits produced by the project will continue after the external support has come to an end? This should take into consideration the following:
- Which project components have potential for impact and sustainability beyond the project period?
- Are skills gained being used/likely to continue being used after the project ends?
- Whether the activities conducted were sufficient to ensure sustainability
- Programme management and administrative arrangements (including governance)
- This should consider whether the management of the project and administrative arrangements set up were sufficient to ensure good governance for the project. It should take into consideration the following:
- The quality of the day-to-day management of the project
- The responsiveness of management to the issues raised by stakeholders and staff regarding the project
- Whether the project was adequately and appropriately staffed
- The quality of the work planning, monitoring, and reporting, taking into consideration annual and quarterly plans, meeting minutes, resource and personnel management, and financial management
Methodology
The evaluation must make use of mixed methods and should, in as far as possible, adopt a participatory approach that engages key relevant stakeholders to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the achievement of results. The evaluation must provide evidence-based information that is credible, reliable, and useful. Validation of results must be done through multiple sources to ensure impartiality and balanced feedback. Following a briefing meeting with Sonke, the evaluator will submit a detailed evaluation plan that outlines the methodology to be utilized in answering questions about how and why the project has/has not achieved its results as outlined in the previous section. The methodology must include a document review, inception workshop, reflection, and feedback sessions with key stakeholders.
Key Activities and Time Schedule
The estimated duration of the evaluation is 2 and a half months, starting in June 2021 and ending mid-way through August 2021. The evaluator is expected to produce an Inception Report, including a detailed evaluation plan and methodology. The evaluation team is expected to present main findings and recommendations in a meeting with Sonke, with a draft report produced by the end of August. A final report will be prepared by mid-August
| ACTIVITY | TIMEFRAME |
| Preparatory meeting to discuss scope of workshop | June 2021 |
| Evaluation plan | June 2021 |
| Data analysis plan shared | June 2021 |
| Data collection | June 2021 |
| Data analysis | July 2021 |
| Data validation | July 2021 |
| Draft evaluation report | July 2021 |
| Sonke feedback into draft report | July/August 2021 |
| Submit final report by consultant | August 2021 |
| Presentation to partners & Oak Foundation | August 2021 |
Reporting
The evaluation team must submit the following deliverables:
Evaluation Plan
The evaluation plan includes key elements from the analysis of the project documents outlined for the evaluation as well as outcomes of the inception workshop. It should also show an understanding of the ToR and include a proposal for a learning and validation of findings event, as well as a detailed budget. The plan must also detail the final process, methodologies, and tools to be employed to achieve the objectives of this evaluation as well as the work plan for data collection and analysis.
Presentation of field findings, reflection, and feedback
The presentation of the findings will be shared and will be open to Sonke Gender Justice. The presentation shall include a clear table indicating the key findings and recommendations.
Draft final report
Draft final report amalgamates the desk review and the field findings. The evaluation report presents findings, conclusions, and recommendations for project revisions separately. The draft of the final report shall be prepared in July 2021. Sonke, will then submit comments on the draft report to the evaluators within one to two weeks of its receipt. Changes will be incorporated thereafter by the Mid-August 2021. The report must have the following sections:
- Executive Summary (max 2 pages)
- Preliminary pages – Acknowledgements, Acronyms, and Table of Contents
- Background Information: Brief on the project and context
- Evaluation Purpose and Objectives; study limitations
- Methodology: Design, sampling technique, and sample size
- Findings: Analysis based on objectives and interpretation. Where possible include photos that support findings
- Key accomplishments and summary of project evaluation
- Lessons learned and opportunities for improvement
- Recommendations
- Appendices: tools, ToR, list of respondents, bibliography, PowerPoint Presentation on findings etc.
Final report
The final report must be submitted by the 10th August 2021. The language of the report(s) must be in clear and concise English language. The report must not exceed 30 pages excluding annexes. All data sets must also be submitted before final payment. The final report will be submitted to Oak Foundation by the end of August 2021
Required Competencies and Expertise
The evaluation team will consist of a team of people who collectively have a good amount of experience evaluating development projects focussed on gender equality and VAC within the African region, especially in Uganda and Tanzania. Proven knowledge and expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, research report compilation and writing, and social change regarding gender equality and VAC. The team must be skilled in participatory monitoring and evaluation and they must have demonstrable analytical, writing, and communication skills. There must be a main point person for the project.
Budget
The budget for the evaluation is R100 000.
Mandate
The evaluation team is entitled and expected to discuss matters relevant to this evaluation with pertinent persons and organisations. However, it is not authorised to make any commitments on behalf of Oak Foundation or Sonke Gender Justice.
Annexes
Data Sources
Data sources will include all outputs and activities funded by Oak Foundation at Sonke for the project. This will include but is not limited to the following:
- Internal meeting minutes and reports
- Research reports and policy briefs
- Advocacy, training, and communications materials, such as pamphlets, flyers and other items
- SOF (State of Fathers) reports in relevant countries
How to Apply
Should you wish to apply, please send a detailed CV, motivation letter, and a short proposal brief (including methodology and activities proposed to achieve objectives of evaluation, tentative timeline, and financial proposal) to:
Wessel van den Berg
Research, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Unit Manager
Phone: +27 (0)82 686 7425
Email: wessel@genderjustice.org.za
Mphokuhle Mabhena
Child Rights and Positive Parenting Regional Coordinator
Phone: +27 (0)79 725 6325
Email: mpho@genderjustice.org.za
