Consultant at Save the Children Nigeria

Save the Children is the leading independent organization for children in need, with programs in over 120 countries. We save children’s lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. Save the Children is working in Nigeria because one in five children in Nigeria dies before their fifth birthday. About 40% of children miss out on school and have to work to survive while nearly 2 million children have lost one or both parents to an AIDS-related disease.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Consultant on Political Economy Analysis and Stakeholder Analysis (Federal and CDGP Focal States)

Job ID: 200000HT
Location: Abuja
Employee Status: Fixed Term
Type of Contract: Individual Consultant
Duration: 25 working days
Reporting to: Senior Policy and Advocacy Specialist

Purpose

• The purpose of the PEA is to identify political economy factors (formal and informal) that  contribute to or constitute barrier to effective implementation of social protection in CDGP focal states and at federal level and how can CDGP programme effectively to advocate and provide value added support to key stakeholders towards effective implementation of social protection

Context
The Federal Government of Nigeria has committed to implementing Social Protection (SP) initiatives as an instrument for poverty reduction.  One major intervention is the World Bank supported National Social Safety Net Programme (NASSP), a flagship programme under the Social Investment Programme. This programme will receive $1.3 billion from the Government of Nigeria as well as $500 million support from the World Bank. The programme is intended to benefit 1,000,000 poor and vulnerable households per year across all the 36 states starting with 30% of poorest LGAs, then 50% and the last 20%.

Additionally, the Federal Government is embarking on a process to build a comprehensive social protection system through inclusion of $2.5 billion per year in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and the development of social investment programmes. In addition, a Social Protection Policy was approved recently in July 2017 to strengthen the delivery and impact of interventions on poverty reduction. The federal government through NASSCO is building a national social register and 380 LGAs in 33 states have so far been captured in the register.

Following the conclusion of the 2019 general election, the appointment of portfolio Ministers by the President created new dynamics in the political context of the Nation. The President made two major moves by merging the Federal Ministries of Finance and Budget and National planning and created a new ministry called the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affair, Disaster Management and Social development. While the full remit of this new ministry is still unclear to most sector stakeholders, it is positioned to become a major player in humanitarian and development sector.

In order to support the development of an effective and sustainable social protection system in Nigeria, NASSCO (the implementing body of NASSP) and Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP) jointly commissioned a political economy analysis in June 2018 to better understand the contextual and institutional dynamics around social protection system development at the national and state levels in Nigeria.

It also seeks to understand how best to contribute to positive change in the sector, including integrating local and global best practices and ensuring a nutrition-sensitive approach.  Additional key stakeholders also supported this objective including DFID, the World Bank, and UNICEF. In view of the recent events like the general elections and major changes in the social protection institutional architecture, it is important to conduct a PEA to understand the rapidly changing dynamic in the polity, particularly the changes that affect the social protection sector.

The need to understand factors and actors in the social protection sector is critical due to major changes resulting from the President’s creation of a new ministry to oversee the national social investment programmes. It is important to note that this PEA is designed to update the existing PEA conducted before the election.

Objectives
The objective of the PEA is to answer the question:

• What political economy factors (formal and informal) contribute to or constitute barrier to effective implementation of social protection in CDGP focal states and at federal level and how can CDGP programme effectively to advocate and provide value-added support to key stakeholders towards effective implementation of social protection

Scope of Work

• The analysis will be cover federal and CDGP focal states.
• Identify key stakeholders including potential and vibrant civil society and media partners’ networks and forums working on governance processes and or social protection in CDGP focal states and national level.
• Map the elements of the social protection system in Nigeria, including national and state objectives, strategies, policies, programmes and financing arrangements to provide a common, comprehensive view of the social protection landscape in Kaduna and Kano states only
• Provide better understanding of the actors and factors that govern the social protection sector in CDGP focal states and at the national level, including the socio-cultural features, informal and formal ways of working / thinking
• Identify key relationships, incentives, drivers and blockages that can influence reducing poverty through provision of inclusive social protection programmes.
• Enumerate potential opportunities and key entry points on governance processes including any existing donor or partners’ coordination platforms working on governance processes based on current or likely future events in social protection sector
• Set out the institutional arrangements for implementation of the social protection policy, including mandates and practices as they relate to policy, planning, delivery, monitoring, coordination and budgetary processes.
• Make recommendations in line with the above analysis.

The PEA will have three key sections as follows:

• Analysis of the foundational factors, institutional factors, current issues, and stakeholders
• Discussion of “how change could happen” in this context, given the above analysis
• Recommendations for how Save the Children can support this change effectively

Methodology
The exact methodology and process for the work will be suggested by the bidding consultant(s). However, it is anticipated that it will involve the following general steps:

• Phase 1: Inception: ensuring a shared understanding of the ToR, agreeing an overall approach, work-plan, prioritisation of system performance criteria and assessment tools
• Phase 2: Desk-based assessment including populating the agreed assessment tools to the extent possible from available materials
• Phase 3: In-country kick-off meeting, bi-lateral meetings, further completion of assessment tools, and sharing initial findings
• Phase 4:   Report drafting, validation and finalisation
• Phase 5:  Dissemination

Key Activities
Management and Implementation Arrangements:

• The consultant will work in close collaboration and will be managed directly  bythe Senior Policy and Advocacy Advisor
• Backstopping technical support will be provided by the Senior Social Protection Specialist and MEAL Manager advocacy SCUK

Deliverables and Timelines:

• This assignment will be a total of 25 man-days, approximately 18 days for data gathering at national and CDGP focal states; 7 days for workshop and report writing.

The information below provides details of key tasks, deliverables and timelines for this assignment:

Tasks:

• Conducting brief meetings with CDGP National Team and State Team Leads
• Knowledge gap analysis
• Plan and visit CDGP focal  states and federal
• Hold validation workshop with government stakeholders
• Submit and share final report to CDGP

Expected Output / Deliverable – Days:

• Expectations from TOR understood clearly; PEA tool assessment – 1 day
• Determine gaps in knowledge of PE at federal and Zamfara state – 1 day
• States and federal sites visited – 16 days
• Outcome of report presented and validated – 1 day
• Final report submitted – – 6 days

Payment Schedule:

• Payment shall be made based on the payment schedule captured in the table below. The total amounts to be paid will be based on rates approved and agreed between CDGP and the consultant engaged for this assignment.

Payment:

• 25% payment following submission of inception report  and assessment tools
• 50% payment following submission of Draft Report including preliminary findings
• 25% payment following submission of final report

Required Skill and Experience

• Advanced university degree in Economics, Social Policy, Public Policy, International Development or other relevant discipline;
• Previous experience of working with government budgets and public administration systems;
• Experience of working with high level government and donor officials;
• Experience facilitating policy dialogue amongst multiple stakeholder groups;
• At least 10 years’ experience working in the development sector including experience conducting research and working knowledge of social protection systems in Sub-Saharan Africa;
• Previous proven experience in political economy and stakeholder analysis with experience in conducting very similar assignments on social accountability in engaging with civil society and government; (this should be submitted with the proposal);
• A deep understanding of Nigerian state and national policy and budget processes;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English required.

Tender Document
All interested consultants / teams are requested to submit a short proposal providing details on the following:

• Evidence of the consultant’s understanding of the TOR and suitability to deliver this consultancy
• Proposed methodology & timelines
• Detailed budget
• Two previous, similar reports conducted by the consultant

NB: All cost for proposal preparation and negotiating a contract, including travel cannot be reimbursed as a direct cost of the assignment.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Deadline: 5th February, 2021.

Application Specifications
Candidates interested in this assignment should submit a “Detailed Proposal”. This should include but not limited to the following:

• Details on understanding of the ToR, scope of work, draft methodology to be used and key selection criteria
• Understanding of the subject area and the recent development on the topic in Nigeria
• Demonstrating your approach to delivering the study that has national representation and credibility with details on how you propose to effectively execute this at national and state levels.
• Timeline, with specific dates from commencement to final submission of deliverable
• Detailed budget breakdown with work-plan based on expected daily rates and all likely expenses with clear distinction on cost of delivery at the national and state level.
• CV of the researcher
• Cover letter
• Names, Organisations, and Contact details of three Referees whom we may contact
• Sample of previous work

Application Information

• Application is welcome from Country based Political Economy and Stakeholder Analysis specialist who have access to civil society, media and government institutions in Nigeria. The Specialist will be expected to partner with local structures to carry out the assignment.
• Save the Children is looking for researchers with expertise in PEA and Stakeholder analysis and generating recommendations of relevance to policy-makers and practitioners.
• Women are strongly encouraged to apply.
• We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.
• All representatives are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our global anti-harassment policy.
• Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.