TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR CONDUCTING A NEEDS ASSESSMENT ON HEALTH AND LIVELIHOODS IN ISTANBUL AND ADANA

Location: Turkey – Istanbul province and Adana subregion

Reports to: Deputy CD

Duration: 30 working days

1. Background

Relief International (RI) specializes in relief and development programs that benefit people in acute distress. A registered non-profit in the US, UK, France and Belgium, our work targets those fragile countries or communities that suffer from recurrent man-made or natural crises that impede human development. The people that we serve live in seventeen countries across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia where the debilitating effects of political instability, forced displacement, and natural disasters are pervasive. Often, RI is the only organization providing healthcare, education, logistics, energy, capacity building, economic development, sanitation, and many other forms of assistance to these highly vulnerable communities.

Relief International (RI) has been working in Turkey since 2013. RI has been implementing activities in 5 provinces across Turkey, providing specialized health service delivery for refugees, focusing on mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS), physiotherapy, prosthesis & orthotics, community health and livelihoods support

According to the latest available figures from the Turkish Directorate General of Migration Management (DGMM), there are more than 4.9 million foreign nationals present in Turkish territory, 3.7 million of whom are seeking international protection. Most of those seeking international protection are Syrians (3,715,913 individuals) who are granted the temporary protection status in Turkey. In addition, international protection applicants are most frequently nationals of Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq which constitute another group of foreign nationals. According to DGMM, there were 31,334 international protection applicants present in Turkey in 20201, published annually. Moreover, according to UNHCR, there are close to 330,000 international protection status holders and asylum seekers (IOM, MPM Turkey Migrants’ Presence Monitoring Situation Report September 2021).

RI is looking for a consultant(s) to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the health and livelihoods sectors through a protection lens to understand the needs of refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented migrants (Syrian and non-Syrian) in Istanbul province and Adana subregion with a specific focus on people with disabilities (PWDs). The assessment will analyze the current needs, gaps, and barriers to access health and livelihoods services exploring at the same time the impact of COVID-19 on the target population.

1. Purpose and Objectives of the Assessment

The purpose of the assessment is to support RI in restructuring, expanding and increasing the impact of its programmes and activities in Turkey, specifically in f Istanbul province and Adana subregion.

Specifically, the assessment aims to:

1. Provide a detailed overview of the severity of humanitarian needs in the health and livelihoods sectors through a protection lens among the target population (with a focus on PWDs) in the selected areas to inform the program strategy of RI;
2. Identify variation in the needs across the areas, population groups, and vulnerability profile (including gender, age, disability) to inform prioritization and strategic planning of activities;
3. Map the stakeholders working with non-Syrian and Syrian refugees/migrants in health, protection and livelihoods sectors, and actors working with PWDs in the selected areas;
4. Analyze how the outbreak of COVID-19 impacted the access to services of refugees, especially for PWDs;

1. Scope of Work and Research Question

The consultant(s) will conduct the assessment in Istanbul province and Adana subregion, selecting the sub-districts for the data collection in collaboration with RI technical team.

The study should include/cover a detailed analysis of current gaps in accessing health and livelihoods services based on the needs of the target population, especially for people with disability.

The assessment is expected to incorporate secondary and primary quantitative and qualitative data, including Key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions.

Main research questions:

• What is the severity of humanitarian needs across the identified sectors?
• What are the most common overlapping needs for the households?
• How the findings differ among geographic areas, population group, and vulnerability profile?
• What are the key actors providing assistance to the target population in the selected areas and through what funding mechanisms?
• How COVID-19 impacted the access to services for the target population?
• What is the participants' perception of social cohesion in the target areas?

The consultant is expected to:

1. Compile and analyze the findings of the desk research, the stakeholder mapping, the quantitative and qualitative data collection
2. Draft and produce an executive summary of the study and a final document outlining process, findings and suggested actions related to the four main objectives of this consultancy.

Note: the process should be gender sensitive and a gender lens should be applied to the analysis and recommendations.

1. Key Tasks

The essential tasks to be performed by the consultant(s) include but are not limited to the following:

1. Develop a comprehensive assessment plan.
2. Develop and submit an inception report that details the process, methodologies, framework for analysis, and the different tools to be employed for the assessment. It should include a work plan including fieldwork, interview schedules and list of stakeholders to participate in the exercise.  
3. Undertake desk review of all relevant documents including Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO), Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP), UN and NGOs reporting, RI assessments, Government of Turkey (GoT) regulations on access to relevant services for the target population, and any other relevant documents. 
4. Design data collection methodology as appropriate, guided by the objectives and scope of the consultancy, including best practice approaches and relevant frameworks. Relevant RI staffs should comment on the data collection tools before finalizing and using them for actual data collection. 
5. Key stakeholder mapping, with a specific focus on associations serving People with Disabilities
6. Main previous and on-going relevant interventions in the selected geographical areas.
7. Conduct a comprehensive field-based assessment (using both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods) based on the purpose and objectives of the consultancy. 
8. Write and present a draft report, capturing key findings against the objectives of the assessment, with a summary of suggestions and technical recommendations.
9. Submit a draft report to RI  for feedback to facilitate sharing of the assessment result with a view of incorporating inputs from RI in the final draft
10. Provide an executive summary that captures methodology, main findings and recommendations of the assessment.
11. Compile and submit a final assessment report to RI

1. Target Population of the Assessment

The assessment should explore the needs and challenges of the following target groups:

• Non-Syrian refugees, migrants and asylum seeker, Syrian refugees living in the Istanbul province and Adana subregion
• People with disabilities
• Local organizations assisting refugees and people with disabilities in the geographical areas target of the assessment
• Relevant local and national authorities and stakeholders

1. Timeframe

The total duration of assignment shall not take more than 30 working days including inception report preparation, field assessment and report write-up, which counts from the date of signing of the agreement.

The consultant(s) should indicate a breakdown of timeframe showing the detail work plan including:

• Inception activities (e.g. inception report, desk research)
• Check-in meeting with RI technical team
• Tools development and review
• Data collection
• Delivery of preliminary findings
• Analysis of findings, preparation of executive summary and final report

1. Methodology

The consultancy should develop the best approaches for undertaking this assessment, preferably using a protection lens and a gender sensitive approach, involving vulnerable population in the assessment (PWDs, women, elderly), while taking into consideration the following guiding principles:

• Desktop review of secondary data, including national reports, UN and NGO-led assessment, projects document and existing reports.
• Extensive mapping of stakeholders providing health, protection and livelihoods sector, and actors supporting PWDs through primary data collection.
• Appropriate sampling methodology to ensure that the selected sample represents the community and, therefore, the results can be generalized to the target population as a whole.
• Quantitative data collection through  suitable tools to collect significant sample size of information
• Key informant interviews: the consultant shall conduct in-depth interviews among key informants including local authorities, target population and caregivers, NGOs and organizations working with refugees and people with disabilities
• Diverse focus group discussions with refugee and hosting communities Any other applicable methods based on good practices

The consultant(s) shall prepare relevant tools and assessment methodologies for RI review before starting the data collection. RI will provide its recommended tools to the consultant(s) for reference and consideration.

The tentative tools for the data collection includes, but are not limited, to:

• Survey or similar suitable tool on needs and access to health, protection and livelihoods and to assess the COVID-19 impact on the target population
• Qualitative interviews with target population
• Qualitative interviews with People with Disabilities or their caregivers
• Focus Group Discussions with male and female host community, non-Syrian refugees and Syrian refugee community members
• KIIs with local organizations providing support to refugees and to PWDs specifically on health, protection and livelihoods sector in the target areas

1. Key Deliverables

The key deliverables expected are:

• Inception report including desk review and methodology before the start of the fieldwork for feedback of relevant RI staff members staffs
• Rationale for the selection of specific sub-districts in the target areas
• Stakeholder Mapping
• Data collection Tools and any other documents that is used in the course of the assessment
• Raw data set
• Preliminary findings after data collection
• Final assessment report (one electronic copy in PDF format and one in DOC format) including strong data visualization
• Debriefing meeting presentation of main finding with RI staff

1. Qualifications

The consultant(s) must demonstrate the following qualifications:

• Relevant university qualifications, preferably in a field related to development studies, health, refugees studies, and livelihoods. Master’s degree (or equivalent) preferred;
• A minimum of four years of experience with strong and demonstrable quantitative and qualitative research techniques and skills, data collection and analysis, and especially in similar assessments and surveys
• Demonstrated understanding of refugee, disability and gender issues, particularly in the Turkish context;
• Ability to work with a group of diverse stakeholders and produce results;
• Familiarity working with Humanitarian Organizations
• Political, cultural and gender awareness;
• Fluency in English language, both written and verbal;

• For consultancy companies: valid registration in Turkey and can issue financial invoices.

1. Applicant Responsibilities

The selected applicant will be responsible of:

• Selection of the sub districts for data collection in collaboration with RI.
• Access to target population for data-collection, including securing the needed permission from relevant authorities
• Hiring and supervising the data collectors.
• Securing the needed technology tools such tablets and phones.
• All the logistic support such as transportation, accommodation, printing, etc.
• Comply with Ministry of Health (MoH) safety regulations and measures related to COVID-19 prevention

1. Equipment for the Assignment

No equipment will be purchased or provided by RI. Any equipment needed to complete this assignment will be provided by the consultant(s).

1. Remuneration

Payment will be released upon RI’s acceptance of final deliverables following constant review by RI. RI will not cover extra costs for any accommodation, transportation (including transportation to and from project locations within and between cities), per diem or any other kind of allowances.

The service provider’s payment shall be based on the financial proposal developed for this consultancy.

1. Application Procedure

Interested consultants must submit their application via email to turkey.recruitment@ri.org with the subject line: Assessment Consultant

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. 

Consultants who wish to apply for this consultancy must submit an application that contains the following:

1. Resume or CVs of the study/consultancy team members with details of experience, qualifications, telephone number and names of three references.
2. A technical proposal that summarizes understanding of the ToR and the proposed methodology
3. Detailed work plan and timeline
4. Financial proposal providing relevant cost estimates for the consultancy work including VAT and taxes.
5. Samples of past work.

The deadline for submission of application is 24 October, 2021. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We might close it earlier if the right consultant is identified.