Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA

Participatory Evaluation of
Promoting Gender Equality in Political Decision Making in Vietnam

Terms of Reference

BACKGROUND: Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA (hereafter APHEDA) was established in 1984 and is the global justice organisation of the Australian trade union movement. APHEDA’s international program has developed from a rights-based approach, that focuses on self-reliance and resilience empowering communities to solve their own problems. Our work aims to achieve this by supporting educational and training projects for workers and communities. APHEDA is currently involved with 40 projects involving 30 project partners in 15 countries, supporting many different communities in Southeast Asia, the Pacific, the Middle East, Southern Africa and the Caribbean. The projects are supported by many individual union members throughout Australia, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) which manages Australian overseas development assistance. 

APHEDA has been working in Vietnam since 1985 and has a registered in range of areas including health, the environment, gender equality and labour rights. It has received the Order of Friendship from the President of Vietnam for its outstanding contribution to the country’s development. APHEDA’s campaigning work in S.E.Asia over the past decade to ban asbestos is an excellent example of its work to build transnational campaigning movements based on global solidarity and social justice.

Irish Aid supports programmes in Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Myanmar through its Embassy in Hanoi. In Vietnam, the programme’s key areas of focus are development of ethnic minorities and support to institutional exchanges and skills development within Vietnamese institutions. Regional priorities focus on reducing malnutrition and risks presented by unexploded ordnance, as well as support to build the capacity and impact of civil society and state agencies. The Embassy supports countries to learn lessons from each other, as well as exchange at sub-national level and between government and civil society partners, in order to maximise innovation and impact.

PURPOSE OF THIS EVALUATION: Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA seeks to assess The Project’s activities, outputs and impact during the current phase (Oct 2017 to Aug 2021) to evaluate its contribution to the stated goals as outlined in The Project’s design documents.

Results from the evaluation will inform future programming and contribute to ongoing strengthening of Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA’s global program. In particular, the evaluation will inform a program design intended for 2022-2025 to further increase the involvement of Vietnamese women in Vietnam’s political decision making.

OVERVIEW OF PROJECTS WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THIS EVALUATION: APHEDA, in partnership with Irish Aid, Vietnam Women’s Union, National Assembly, People’s Committees has been implementing the project on “Promoting Gender Equality in Political Decision Making in Vietnam” (hereafter The Project) in three provinces of Haiduong, Backan and Phu Yen and across the country as part of a four-year project commencing in 2017.

This follows success in an earlier phase, commencing in 2011, focusing on capacity building of women candidates for election in the provinces of Hai Duong and Bac Kan. Of the 300 women candidates who received capacity building training and stood for commune elections, 203 were elected (68%) and of these 61% were standing for the first time (APHEDA evaluation report, 2014). The strong lobby and advocacy from organisations like the Women’s Union helped to get more women elected. A major achievement of the project was seen in Bac Kan province, where the number of women elected is much higher (40%) compared to other provinces following the 2016 election, thanks to the project partly contributed.

Overall Goal: This project will contribute to increasing gender equality in political decision making, so that the voice of women can be taken into consideration in the formulation and execution of provincial and commune policies directly, and national policies indirectly. By empowering current women deputies in the three levels of government, and facilitating more women to take part in the next round of elections, there will be greater opportunities for women to exercise their rights as citizens.

• Specific goal 1:Build the capacity of 655 women deputies so that they can be better representatives of their electorate.
• Specific Goal 2: The Annual Plans of the People’s Committee at all levels will include gender equality issues
• Specific goal 3:Facilitate an increase in the number of women candidates and deputies in the commune, district and province levels so that there is a bigger pool of candidates to choose from.

EVALUATION SCOPE:

• Describe and assess the activities, outputs and outcomes against the stated plans of The Project design.
• Describe the changing situation of Vietnamese women in political decision making and the contribution of The Project to any observed changes.
• Assess the suitability, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability of The Project.
• Assess the application of APHEDA policy and procedures around child protection, counter-terrorism, fraud and sexual exploitation through the project and its partners.
• Outline emerging concerns in women’s participation in political decision making and possible interventions, to inform future project designs.
• Draw lessons from the partnership and implementation, and provide recommendations for strengthening impact in future collaborations.

KEY EVALUATION QUESTIONS

• To what extent has APHEDA and its partners achieved their project objectives in last five years?
• To what extent, and how, did the project’s key activities and objectives contributed to the impact goal.
• What changes if any have occurred in Vietnam in the area of women’s participation in political decision making and to what extent has The Project contributed to these.
• Describe areas where the projects may better collaborate and/or utilise resources for significant impact.
• Cross cutting Issues: were the following aspects of the project sufficient and adequate and what lessons could be learned for future projects in terms of:
  
  • Gender equality
  • Disability inclusion
  • Child Protection
  • Environmental safeguard
  • Sustainability

EXPECTED OUTPUTS

• A detailed methodology, work plan, schedule and budget agreed with Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA prior to commencing work.
• A draft evaluation report, one week after the end of the field research.
• Copies of all data collected and any related analyses.
• A final report (as outlined below).
• A detailed acquittal (timesheet, receipts and summary of expenses).

The final report should be in both English and Vietnamese and include the following:

• an executive summary (maximum 3 pages)
• a critical description of methods used (and potential limitations) (maximum 2 pages)
• findings and discussion organised under and responding directly to the key evaluation questions (maximum 20 pages)
• conclusions responding directly to and organised under the evaluation criteria (maximum 5 pages)
• recommendations (maximum 2 pages)

SELECTION CRITERIA:  The consultant should meet the following selection criteria:

• Understanding of political processes and context of Vietnam.
• Knowledge and understanding of the activities of the National Assembly and People’s Council’s.
• Substantive experience in women’s empowerment and gender in development.
• Demonstrated experience with a range of evaluation methodologies.
• Strong capacities in inclusion, rights and protection for women, children and people with disabilities.
• Ability to synthesis and communicate complex development project lessons, in English and in Vietnamese, in writing.

TIMELINE: Due to COVID 19 and the rapidly changing operating environment, a schedule will be developed in consultation with the preferred applicant. However, it is expected that a final report, meeting the terms of reference, can be produced by August 31^st 2021.

LOGISTICS: It is expected that the majority of work will be conducted through document review and online consultations (Zoom etc.)  APHEDA will facilitate the consultants’ access to project documentation, staff and partners. If possible, APHEDA will also facilitate access to in-person meetings and travel based on agreement between APHEDA, the consultant and the partners that it is safe to do so.

BUDGET: The budget for the evaluation is US$2,000

Applications should include:

• CV of evaluator/s. For teams, a list of each team member, a full CV and a clear outline of their role within the evaluation and their level of effort, and corresponding remuneration.
• A brief evaluation plan to include (no more than 2 pages):
  
  • Proposed methodology, scope and evaluation questions
  • Planning/timetable
  • Budget

Application Process: Interested candidates, who meet the above qualifications, should send CV and cover letter to email: [email protected] latest by 25^th July 2021

 

Organization: APHEDA
Location:
Application deadline: 2021-07-25
Send application to: [email protected]