Terms of Reference for Consultancy to Support Project Proposal Writing

TERMS OF REFERENCE CONSULTANCY TO SUPPORT PROJECT PROPOSAL WRITING

Background

CARE International is a global humanitarian and development cooperation organization with physical presence in 109 countries worldwide in fiscal year 2023. CARE’s vision is to seek a world of hope, inclusion, and social justice where poverty has been overcome and all people live in dignity and security. In July 2020, the CARE vision 2030 was developed and approved by the CARE International Board. This vision outlines a shared future with the main ambitions of the common impact that CARE intends to be achieved, the organizational identity it needs to embrace, and the resources needed to achieve this vision. Our reach and impact is attained by prioritising programs and investments in line with this strategy and focusing related collective resources, capacities, and experience to Women Economic Justice (WEJ), Right to Health, Right to food, water, and nutrition, Gender equality, Climate Justice and Humanitarian action.

CARE Rwanda has played various roles in supporting and advancing the common cause. In alignment with the above CI vision 2030, CARE Rwanda revised its program strategy in June 2021 developing the 2022-2025 strategy. Aligning its work to the global CARE orientation while keeping and reaffirming its relevance in Rwandan context in conformity with Vision 2050 this new orientation will guide the Country Office (CO) prospects till 2025. The strategy considers the rapid socio-economic development of Rwanda and CARE’s experience for more than 40 years in Rwanda. In the current program strategy, CARE focuses on achieving gender justice for vulnerable women and girls (aged 10–59 years) with a particular focus on two program domains. These are:

1. Women’s economic and climate justice
2. Gender justice and right to health

To support implementation of this CO program strategy, CARE Rwanda will be enabled by managing growth based on making the most strategic decisions about new or adapted programs/approaches, new targets, and new donors; and to invest time and resources in CARE and local partner staff to continually improve the quality of CARE’s proposals, programs, and donor relations.

Resource mobilisation remains the critical function in the country office to operationalize the new program strategy, as most donors decide to fund development in Rwanda through diversified alternatives. The purpose of this consultancy is to recruit an experienced consultant or a consultancy firm on a retainer basis to support the CO proposal development process. This will be aligned with the new CO direction and the CARE global strategy.

Overall, proposals will be focusing on the following areas:

Women’s economic and climate justice: This pillar focuses on two global strategic focus areas.

•  Women Economic Justice: Enabling women gain equitable access to and control over, economic resources and opportunities while also focusing on changes to discriminatory social norms and economic structures, laws, policies, and practices that marginalize women.
• Climate Justice: Strengthened resilience and adaptive capacities of women and girls to respond to the effects of climate emergency.

Gender justice and right to health: The second pillar also includes two global strategies.

Gender Justice: Our gender perspective centres on improving the rights of women, adolescent girls, and marginalized groups through:

• Eliminating gender-based violence.
• Increasing women’s and girl’s voice and leadership
• Equal access to quality education

Right to health: This strategic focus area builds on resilient, sustainable, equitable, and accountable health systems that can respond to shocks and crises that provide sustainable access to quality health services for all.

Objective of the consultancy

CARE Rwanda is seeking services of an experienced/competent resource mobilization consultant who would be ready to work on retainer basis to support country office resource mobilization endeavours/efforts. This will be aligned with the CO direction and the CARE global strategy.

Expected key deliverables.

Specific deliverables are to be commensurate with the assignment and number of workdays estimated in accordance with the required workload. The absolute deadline for different deliverables must be observed while others might change depending on when the funding opportunity comes through. The consultant will be invoicing the number of days worked for which will be approved by the assigned CARE focal point prior to working on each deliverable.

Role of CARE

• Assume all the responsibilities pertaining to hiring of the consultant(s)
• Where applicable ensure that all necessary documents and information are available to the consultant
• Assume all the responsibilities regarding inviting people to attend design workshops.
• Facilitate initial connections of the consultant with different institutions (at optimum level)
• Technical review of the draft papers, report and final signing off
• Provide any other technical or operational support to the consultant(s) as needed.

Assignment Duration

The retention period is two years (starting from 1^st November 2024 to 31^st October 2026) with specific workdays to be determined on assignment basis. The agreement is renewable based on performance review that will be detailed in the framework agreement.

Supervision and working conditions.

The consultant or consultant firm will be reporting to a designated focal person that will be determined during the beginning of the assignment.

Required Skills and Competencies for the Consultant(s)

• Proven experience in facilitating similar processes, including proposal design workshops, with traceable strong record in writing winning proposals.
• Strong understanding of gender power dynamics in both development and humanitarian settings, including understanding of both adult and youth programming
• Practical experience in resource mobilization
• Strong ability to conceptualize and design new interventions (innovation)
• Strong skills in results-based management, outcome mapping, and theories of change development
• Be familiar with CARE Rwanda programming area i.e Women economic and climate justice and gender justice and right to health.
• Experience of using statistical packages as well as qualitative research methods to inform design of infographics and fact sheets.
• Ability to facilitate and lead a team with or without physical presence (remote management of a team)
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
• Interpersonal relations
• Experience & high degree of competency in using Windows-based computer programs

How to apply

Interested candidates should submit their expression of interest including their track record (CVs) and consultancy daily rate by email to RWA.Procurement@care.org with mention of “Consultancy to support Project Proposal Writing” in the subject line, by September 16^th, 2024, at 5pm, Rwanda time.

The application file should contain the following documents:

• A technical proposal, with a clear timeframe and a description of the proposed methodology detailing how the deliverables will be achieved, and the team credentials for similar assignments.
• Detailed Curriculum Vitae of the proposed team to carry out the assignment with clear roles and functions.
• A financial offer (daily rate)
• Evidence of the consultant’s experience in doing similar assignments: Copies of similar assignments (with evidence for good completion of the previous similar assignments);
• Submit at least 3 references with their contacts and addresses.
• Bank account information including the scanned copy of blank check or document from the bank confirming bank account information (name, account number, swift code, …)
• Consultant firm profile; VAT registration certificate; RRA tax clearance certificate; RSSB tax clearance certificate (when applicable). For applicants without registration in Rwanda, submit the above requirements from the country of registration as applicable.

All applications will be evaluated Evaluations based on the criteria shared below