Terms of Reference (Tor) Assessment of Inclusion of Women, Youth, and Persons With Disabilities in District Planning, Implementation, and Monitoring Frameworks (Fiscal Year 2024-2025,2024-2023 and 2022-2023).

C C O A I B

Conseil de Concertation des Organisations

 d’Appui aux Initiatives de Base

Personnalité juridique : A.M. № 103/11 du 07/09/2004

B.P.1993 KIGALI – RWANDA ; Tél. mobile (+250) 788302065

Kigali, Gasabo District, Remera Sector, Rukiri I Cell, Amajyambere Village

International Airport Road KN 5RD (Gishushu), Building №18

E- mail: info@ccoaib.rw;

Sites Internets: www.ccoaib.rw et www.urubuga.org

Terms of Reference (ToR): Recruitment of Individual Consultant(s) or Consultancy Firm(s)

1. Profile of CCOAIB

The Conseil de Concertation des Organisations d’Appui aux Initiatives de Base (CCOAIB) is a national umbrella organization established in 1987 to strengthen the capacity and coordination of civil society organizations engaged in development. Legally recognized under Law No. 103/11 of 07 September 2004, CCOAIB currently brings together 42 national NGOs operating across all 30 districts of Rwanda. More than 70% of its members work directly in agriculture, rural livelihoods, climate resilience, and community-based development, with a strong emphasis on smallholder farmers, women, youth, and persons with disabilities.

With over four decades, CCOAIB plays a strategic role in monitoring decentralization processes, promoting citizen participation, and influencing public policy related to agriculture, governance, climate change, and access to finance. The organization is widely recognized for its evidence-based advocacy approach, combining applied research, social accountability tools, and structured policy engagement to amplify citizen voice and improve public service delivery.

CCOAIB’s organizational initiatives focus on strengthening the coherence, inclusiveness, and accountability of decentralized governance systems by combining applied research, structured citizen engagement, social accountability tools, and policy dialogue. These initiatives are designed to support national priorities articulated in Rwanda’s decentralization framework, the National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), and sectoral policies, while ensuring that historically underrepresented groups are meaningfully reflected in local development decision-making.

2. Background and Rationale 

Rwanda’s decentralized governance framework relies on District Development Strategies (DDS), Imihigo performance contracts, and District Action Plans to translate national policies into local-level implementation. Ensuring coherence among these instruments is critical for effective service delivery, accountability, and responsiveness to citizen priorities—particularly in agriculture and inclusive governance. Evidence from civil society monitoring, governance scorecards, and citizen feedback indicates persistent misalignment between DDS and Imihigo, as well as limited inclusion of women, youth, and persons with disabilities in district planning and performance management processes. To address these gaps, CCOAIB is implementing a two structured intervention under the two project : Strengthening Local Voice and Accountability in Rwanda’s Agricultural Governance (Twiyubakire-Engage) project and “Promoting Inclusive Governance in Rwanda through Equitable Participation of Women, Youth, and People with Disabilities project.” The intervention is divided into two complementary but distinct consultancy Lots, each with a clear analytical and operational focus.

LOT 2: Assessment of Inclusion of Women, Youth, and Persons with Disabilities in District Planning, Implementation, and Monitoring Frameworks (fiscal year 2024-2025,2024-2023 and 2022-2023).

i. Description of the Consultancy Assignment (Lot 2)

Under Lot 2, CCOAIB seeks a consultant or consultancy firm to assess the extent to which women, youth, and persons with disabilities (PwDs)are meaningfully included in district planning, implementation, and monitoring instruments. The assignment will focus on Nyamagabe and Nyamasheke Districts, aligned with Expected Outcome One of the project titled: “Promoting Inclusive Governance in Rwanda through Equitable Participation of Women, Youth, and People with Disabilities.”

The consultancy will examine existing Imihigo, District Action Plans, and implementation reports to assess how inclusivity considerations are reflected in priorities, targeting mechanisms, budget responsiveness, and reporting practices. The assignment will generate actionable evidence to strengthen the capacity of CSOs and self-representing groups—including the National Women Council (NWC), National Youth Council (NYC), and organizations of persons with disabilities—to monitor citizen participation and engage effectively in decentralized governance processes.

ii. Objective of the Consultancy (Lot 2)

Overall Objective : To assess and strengthen the inclusion of women, youth, and persons with disabilities in district planning, implementation, and monitoring frameworks in support of inclusive and equitable decentralized governance.

Specific Objectives :

• To review district planning and performance instruments with an inclusion lens;
• To assess how gender, youth, and disability priorities are reflected in planning, budgeting, and implementation;
• To identify structural and practical gaps affecting equitable participation and benefit;
• To generate evidence to support advocacy and capacity strengthening of CSOs and self-representing groups

iii.  Scope of Work (Lot 2)

The scope of work includes:

• Review of Imihigo, District Action Plans, and implementation reports in Nyamagabe and Nyamasheke;
• Assessment of inclusion of women, youth, and PwDs across planning and implementation cycles ;
• Analysis of representation, targeting mechanisms, and budget responsiveness;
• Integration of findings into advocacy and learning outputs aligned with project objectives.

iv. Responsibilities and Key Tasks (Lot 2)

The consultant will be responsible for:

• Accessing and reviewing relevant district planning and implementation documents;
• Analyzing the extent to which women, youth, and PwDs are explicitly considered;
• Identifying gaps in participation, accountability, and benefit-sharing;
• Producing a concise inclusivity assessment report with practical recommendations;
• Supporting CSOs and self-representing groups with evidence for engagement and advocacy.

3. Timeframe

The assignment shall be completed within three (3) weeks (16 days) from the date of contract signing. A detailed implementation schedule will be agreed upon during the inception phase.

4. Consultant Profile

The consultant or consultancy firm must demonstrate:

• Advanced academic qualifications in governance, development studies, public policy, agriculture, or related fields;
• Proven experience in analyzing decentralized planning instruments (DDS, Imihigo, action plans);
• Demonstrated expertise in gender, youth, and disability inclusion analysis;
• Strong experience in designing practical monitoring and accountability tools;
• Excellent analytical, facilitation, and reporting skills;
• Strong contextual knowledge of Rwanda’s decentralization framework.

5. Application Modalities

Applicants must be capable of implementing both Lot 1 and Lot 2. They shall submit one consolidated Technical Proposal, demonstrating their capacity, methodology, work plan, and relevant experience for both Lots, and one consolidated Financial Proposal, clearly highlighting a separate cost breakdown for Lot 1 and Lot 2 within the same submission.

6. Application process

Interested applicants (individuals or firms) who meet the requirements outlined in these Terms of Reference shall submit: An Expression of Interest letter; a Detailed Curriculum Vitae (CV); A Technical Proposal including a detailed methodology, work plan, and demonstration of relevant experience; and a Financial Proposal. Three copies of the Technical Proposal (1 original and 2 copies) and three copies of the Financial Proposal (1 original and 2 copies) must be submitted in separate sealed envelopes, both placed in one outer envelope.

Applications shall be delivered to the CCOAIB office located at: Gasabo District, Remera Sector, Rukiri I Cell, along the International Airport Road (KN 5 Rd, Gishushu), Building No. 18, no later than 23 January 2026 at 3:00 PM Kigali time.

Applicants must also provide an updated profile of the consultant or consultancy firm, highlighting relevant experience and suitability for the assignment, accompanied by the following legal and statutory documents:

• Rwanda Development Board (RDB) Registration Certificate;
• EBM Compliance Certificates; Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) Tax Clearance Certificate;
• Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB) Clearance Certificate (for consultancy firms); and
• Copies of relevant academic degrees and professional qualifications for all consultant/team members, and at least three certificates of good completion of similar assignments.

7 .Selection Process

To select the best consultant/firm, the quality-based Selection (QBS) method will be used.

Done at Kigali, on 13 January 2026.

NGENDANDUMWE Jean Claude

Executive Secretary of CCOAIB