Consultancies: Community-based adaptation program baseline, environmental impact assessment and gender analysis

Background

Timor-Leste is extremely vulnerable to climate change impacts including changing rainfall patterns and temperatures, and increased hazard events such as flooding, landslides and strong winds, as well as ocean acidification and sea level rise.

CARE, WaterAid and partners have received funding for 2.5 years from AusAID as part of the AusAID Community-Based Climate Change Action Grants for the implementation of Mudansa Klimatica iha Ambiente Seguru (MAKA’AS), Climate Change in a Secure Environment. The grant commenced in July 2012.

The MAKA’AS project aims to build the adaptive capacity of women and men in vulnerable households living in six sucos in Liquiça District, with the goal of increasing their resilience to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. The sucos, with a population of 19,816, are located in two highly degraded watersheds in Liquiça District. Through building the adaptive capacity of women and men, the MAKA’AS project will contribute to the evidence base for gender-sensitive, environmentally sustainable Community-based Adaptation to climate change (CBA) in Timor-Leste. The project will be implemented by a consortium which will be led by CARE, together with WaterAid and local partners.

The expected outcomes are improved water management and water resource protection, improved land management practices and an enhanced understanding of participatory approaches to climate change adaptation (CCA) that are effective at a community level. The project will contribute to improved water access in the target area through integrated water resources management and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) activities through application of appropriate technology and bioengineering solutions to reduce environmental degradation and manage wastewater and rainwater run-off. This in turn will enable the implementation of integrated land management strategies focusing on soil replenishment activities and the establishment of permanent gardens through Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT). These activities will be carried out in partnership with the Liquiça District Administration and other relevant government bodies including Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and the National Water Control and Quality Department (NWCQD).

At the end of the project target communities will have year round access to water supply, appropriate management of waste and rainwater run-off and climate resilient land management practices will be implemented. This will contribute to the increased water source yield for drinking, viability and sustainability of agricultural livelihoods and ultimately household food security, whilst ensuring environmental preservation and protection. The empowerment of women and approaches that target the most vulnerable will be integrated across all activities, and consortium partners will work to integrate gender-sensitive, community priorities into local policies and planning for climate change in Liquiça District.

Objectives of the assignment

The overall objective of this assignment is to deliver a comprehensive information set including a baseline report that provides relevant and clear data to measure the impact of the project, a gender and power analysis and strategy, and environmental impact assessment (appropriate to the scope and budget of the project) against which project effectiveness and impact can be monitored and measured.

The specific objectives of the baseline are to:

• Provide data on the current situation for women and men in target communities, in line with the indicators identified in the project M&E framework;
• Undertake analysis of data to assist in confirming target sucos and beneficiaries and validate and review M&E indicators as required;
• Provide clear and relevant baseline data as part of a longitudinal study, by which project progress, effectiveness, quality and impact can be analysed and measured;
• Provide information that will guide the revision of activities and implementation;
• Provide data that is comparable to other districts and assists CARE in their capacity building work with government.

The specific objective of the environmental impact assessment is to:

• Ensure that actual or potential environmental impacts relating to the program, whether direct or indirect, positive or negative impacts, are assessed and managed to avoid or mitigate negative impacts and promote positive impacts in line with Australian Commonwealth guidelines.

The specific objectives of the gender and power analysis are to:

• Analyse the situation and explore underlying causes of gender inequity and inequality among women, men, girls and boys in Liquiça District, Timor-Leste;
• Build capacity of CARE Timor-Leste’s staff, in particular MAKA’AS field staff on gender analysis methodologies and tools;
• Provide a strategy for the project with practical recommendations to establish mechanisms for ensuring gender is effectively integrated for the MAKA’AS program.

Scope of work

The work will be undertaken by a team comprised of three short-term consultants together with CARE, WaterAid and partner organisation staff. The three consultants will be:

• A baseline specialist
• An environmental impact assessment specialist
• A gender specialist with expertise in the Timor-Leste context

It is expected that the team of consultants will undertake the following process. Responsibilities of the individual team members are outlined below:

Preparation prior to commencing field work:

• Mutually agree on division of responsibilities between team members;
• Review and analyse existing project documentation;
• Undertake preliminary conversations with MAKA’AS managers and other relevant CARE and WaterAid staff in Australia and Timor-Leste;
• Develop detailed work plans, methodology and tools that are in line with the needs, budget and timeline as outlined in the scope of work;
• Liaise with CARE Timor-Leste, CARE Australia and WaterAid on approaches, logistics and any necessary preparatory work.
After necessary preparatory work the consultant team will spend two weeks conducting the assessment in Timor-Leste. This will include:
• Briefings with CARE Timor-Leste and WaterAid;
• Consultations and field research with project beneficiaries (both women and men), CARE staff, WaterAid staff, partner organisation staff, government and other stakeholders;
• A presentation to CARE Timor-Leste and WaterAid staff and relevant in-country stakeholders to present key findings of the research and any immediate recommendations;
Following completion of fieldwork, the consultants will:
• Submit the first draft of the baseline report; environmental assessment and management plan and gender and power analysis report and strategy within three weeks of completion of fieldwork;
• Submit a final baseline report; environmental assessment and management plan and gender and power analysis report and strategy within two weeks of receipt of CARE comments on the draft reports.

Within this framework the expected responsibilities and expertise of individual team members are as follows:

The Baseline specialist will undertake the following tasks:

Key activities

• Develop a mixed method survey design required for undertaking a community-based adaptation baseline survey in Liquiça District. This will include reviewing the program logic, theory of change, and existing monitoring and evaluation frameworks, making recommendations on adjustment of indicators as necessary and determining the appropriate sampling methodology. The proposed study design must have sufficient rigor for ensuring the information reported is within the confidence levels required by CARE (usually 95%);
• Develop the necessary quantitative household survey questionnaires and qualitative focus group discussion and key informant interview methodology with consideration of CARE’s Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis (CVCA) tools. A sufficient pre-testing regime during training workshops with staff and enumerators will be required to verify that the questionnaire is suitable for generating the information required;
• Train enumerators comprised of MAKA’AS project staff on survey techniques and the questionnaire;
• Oversee survey implementation in the target areas;
• Develop an appropriate database and undertake analysis of the data generated;
• Provide statistically significant information regarding the indicators outlined in the program monitoring and evaluation framework in the target areas;
• Provide recommendations for future data collection and evaluation.

Key deliverables

The baseline specialist should produce two major outputs:

• A finalised model for the baseline survey indicating the sampling regime for the proposed study areas - a tested questionnaire, a database and a proposed timeline for undertaking the study;
• A final report for CARE including the below required information:
- An executive summary;
- An overview of the applied methodology;
- An overview of quantitative/qualitative data collected and analysed;
- Specific findings as they relate to the specific objectives of the program and the monitoring and evaluation framework.

Final reports provided to CARE must be in a format that meets the program and country office information needs and that is suitable for submission to donors. Report Annexes must include tools, questionnaires, training package and visual illustrations.

Note: The baseline specialist will be expected to work closely with the gender specialist to investigate whether the methodology for the gender and power analysis can be integrated as part of the mixed method survey design. This is to minimise the research burden placed on target communities. The exact methodology that will be used by the survey will be designed with input from the consultant but will build upon work already undertaken by CARE including CVCAs.

Expertise required

• Relevant university degree in social sciences, agriculture, health sciences or equivalent experience;
• Previous experience in conducting baseline assessments;
• Proven skills in data analysis and statistics;
• Proven ability to train, guide and supervise a team of field staff;
• Proven ability to design and develop data bases;
• Excellent communication & report writing skills in English.

The Environmental Impact Assessment Specialist will undertake the following tasks:

Key activities

• Review relevant project documentation and background reports (including groundwater analysis conducted under AusAID’s BESIK program, and Seeds of Life’s work in Liquiça District) to assess broader environmental impacts that may occur in the project area and whether issues have received adequate attention during program design;
• Develop assessment methodology that is appropriate to the project scale and budget, and meets the requirements of the AusAID Environment Management System and national Laws of Timor-Leste. This will identify potential environmental impacts regarding natural resource use, water quality and environmental health, and biophysical impacts related to project activities particularly construction, land use and resource use changes, and identify any cumulative impacts that may be occurring;
• Identify and assess alternatives to mitigate negative and maximise positive environmental impacts - the EIA process should seek to ensure the measures are acceptable to men and women in the community, and cost effective;
• Develop recommendations for program monitoring and evaluation of environmental impacts;
• Analyse and describe preventive measures that the project should take to reduce negative impacts of project intervention in the environment.

Key deliverables

The environmental impact assessment specialist should produce two outputs:

• A final environmental impact assessment report should be provided with the following information: a non-technical summary; administrative frameworks, laws, policies that affect the project in question; a description of the project, its goals, design and scope; surrounding areas that can be affected by the project; expected environmental impacts (including impacts on health) of the project activities; measures available to reduce negative impacts; methods and sources used, including participatory methods; uncertainties in forecasts and source material.
• A final abbreviated environmental management plan that provides the following information: identification of the key environmental issues that need to be considered the range of options that can be taken to mitigate potential environmental impacts; recommendations on simple but effective measures to reduce negative impacts and steps to be taken in implementing these; recommendations on who should be responsible for implementing and monitoring the environmental management plan; how and by whom the effectiveness of the plan could be assessed in line with current program monitoring and evaluation systems.

Expertise required

• Degree in environmental science, ecology, conservation biology or associated discipline;
• Demonstrated experience in conducting environmental impact assessments;
• Excellent communication and report writing skills in English;
• Demonstrated understanding of watershed management and principles of Disaster Risk Reduction;
• Knowledge of community-based assessment approaches including participation and gender analysis;
• Experience working in Timor-Leste and/or with AusAID’s Environment Management System would be an advantage.

The Gender specialist will undertake the following tasks:

Key activities

• Review relevant program and policy documentation including: CARE International Good Practices Framework for Gender Analysis; CARE’s Women’s Empowerment Framework; CARE International Gender Policy and CARE Australia Diversity Policy; relevant documents on gender, social and cultural practices in Timor-Leste;
• Develop draft methodology in line with CARE International Good Practices Framework for Gender Analysis and Women’s Empowerment Framework. The methodology should ensure that collected data is sex-disaggregated and include calculation of sample size and methods to be utilised for data collection. Sufficient data on gender issues should be gathered to make recommendations for the current program design. Data will be collected on topics such as: men’s and women’s status and roles in the project area, especially in activities relating to agricultural livelihoods, water and sanitation and government services; gender division of labour; decision making and participation in private and public spheres; and control over assets;
• Review planned activities and provide recommendations to ensure that women and girls benefit from the MAKA’AS project;
• Select/develop participatory data collection tools;
• Train data collection team in the use of the tools;
• Oversee data collection and undertake data analysis.

Key deliverables

The gender advisor should produce one key output:

• A gender and power analysis report which should identify current capacities and constraints to women’s, girls’, boys’ and men’s participation in the program and recommend strategies to address these during initial implementation. The report should also include a gender mainstreaming strategy for the MAKA’AS project with an appropriate mix of recommendations to address both practical gender rights and strategic gender issues. A special effort should be made to incorporate the findings of gender analysis into the current design including in the project indicators. Report Annexes must include tools, questionnaires, training package and visual illustrations.

Note: The gender specialist will be expected to work closely with the baseline specialist to investigate to what extent the methodology for the gender and power analysis can be integrated as part of the mixed method survey design. This is to minimise the research burden placed on target communities. As with all potentially sensitive information, confidentiality of data is essential. The gender specialist and team members are expected to treat the data collection and analysis with confidentiality and discretion.

Expertise required

• Graduate degree in gender studies or other relevant social sciences;
• At least five years of experience in gender related work for development projects;
• Proven experience in developing gender mainstreaming strategies for development projects;
• Excellent research, analytical and report writing skills in English;
• Demonstrated understanding of gender and power issues in Timor-Leste;
• Experience of working in Timor-Leste is desirable.