Monitoring and Quality Assurance- Individual Consultant

Background:

UNFPA Pakistan has been implementing the project “Sihaat Mand Khaandaan” (SMK): Healthy Families for Pakistan through Accelerated SRH and FP Services” which is designed to address the remaining challenges in the areas of SRHR, including FP and maternal health. This multi-year project is being financially supported by Government of Canada. UNFPA is working closely with the federal and provincial governments, AKFP and other implementing partners to ensure a conducive and enabling policy environment, strengthen delivery of quality, gender responsive, and inclusive FP/RH services and reduce gender and social barriers to utilization and uptake of FP/RH services by women, men, girls, and boys. Policy efforts are concentrated at the federal and provincial levels; whereas, the service delivery strengthening and social change components are concentrated in selected districts of Sindh (Matiari and Qambar Shahdadkot), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Upper Chitral and Lower Chitral), and all districts of Gilgit-Baltistan. The implementation period of the project is from 2020 to 2024.

UNFPA has a rigorous monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system that produces high quality data that informs programme improvement and decision making. Technical assistance, monitoring and quality assurance is provided to all implementing partners guided by UNFPA Policies and Procedures. To complement the existing M&E system and ensure results are achieved in this final year of SMK project implementation, there is need for dedicated monitoring and quality assurance for SMK interventions in line with the SMK Results Framework and the UNFPA M&E Framework and Operational Plan. This takes into consideration the number of IPs and the amount of implementation.

Under the SMK project, UNFPA seeks to recruit three Individual Consultants to provide proactive monitoring and conduct quality assurance of the planned interventions around community engagement, capacity building, service delivery and overall coordination with Implementing Partners and Government Departments in GB, Chitral and Sindh. The incumbents will report directly to the International Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist and will closely liaise with and receive technical guidance and support from SRH Analyst.

The Consultants will be oriented on the SMK project and the monitoring processes and tools by UNFPA so as to effectively assist in monitoring, reporting and implementation as outlined in the SMK work plan and IPs’ Work Plans.

Purpose and scope:

The overall objective of hiring Monitoring and Quality Assurance consultants is to support UNFPA team in conducting monitoring and quality assurance activities in project districts and in the field including frequent onsite visits, data collection and validation and contribute to quality implementation and produce more robust progress reports.

The consultants will monitor training and service delivery of high-quality RH and FP services in the target health facilities and communities using a gender responsive approach in line with the SMK Results Framework.

The delivery of SRH/FP services is underpinned on the availability of supplies including FP commodities. The monitoring and quality assurance consultants will also include supply chain monitoring to ensure no stock-outs or flagging out where there are overstocks of SRH and FP supplies in health facilities and community health workers, with recommendations being used to strengthen the existing LMIS. In addition, consultants will also be engaged in monitoring of community level interventions on Adolescent and Youth SRHR issues with LHWs and community based organizations which includes quality assurance of interventions as per set standards and validation of reported activities.

Description of services, activities, or outputs

• Conduct field monitoring of training and service delivery of high-quality RH and FP services in the target health facilities and communities using a gender responsive approach in all SMK intervention districts.

• Follow up on the implementation of recommendations and action points from field visits conducted by the consultant and also from joint monitoring missions. Implementation updates to be included in the monthly reports.

• Identify areas where technical support to project partners is required and assist technical team in UNFPA and IPs in developing, implementing and following up improvement plans to address the identified gaps.

• Facilitate and ensure monitoring data is discussed in appropriate forum in a timely fashion in terms of implications for programming, policy advocacy and future action. If necessary, create such discussions to fill any gap.

• Produce reports on M&E findings and prepare presentations based on M&E data as required.

• Provide the UNFPA and relevant IP with management information they may require.

• Provide support to strengthen the M&E system of SMK project, review the quality of existing data in the project supported areas, the methods of collecting it, and the degree to which it will provide good statistics to document the impact of the project interventions.

• Participate in quarterly / annual project reviews and planning workshops with IPs and assist the UNFPA team in compiling project data and preparing relevant reports.

• Assist UNFPA team in coordinating with relevant government departments and IPs across the available components of the Project to ensure effective implementation of SMK project

• Support in organizing joint monitoring missions with relevant government departments and donor.

• Performs any other tasks as required and assigned by DGHS

Duration:

10 Months - March to December 2023

Place where services are to be delivered: Hyderabad , Gilgit Baltistan and Chitral

Monitoring and progress control, including reporting requirements, periodicity format and deadline:

Expected Deliverables

• Monthly plans for the duration of the assignment

• Monthly report including field monitoring reports

• Program data analysis reports on quarterly basis

• MOVs as applicable e.g. meeting minutes

Supervisory arrangements:

The consultant will report to and work under the administrative supervision of the International Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist and in close coordination with SRH Analyst and relevant provincial team.

Expected travel:

In addition to conducting field visits in the respective provinces/ Region of assignment, the Consultants may be required to visit other parts of Pakistan in case of need.

Required expertise

qualifications and competencies, including language requirements:

Educational requirements:

Bachelor’s degree in social sciences including data science or public health.

Knowledge, Experience and other relevant skills:

• Three (3) years of experience in social sector/programme development.

• High degree of proficiency in Microsoft Office, especially Excel, Word and PowerPoint; and email applications

• Understanding of local health systems and context.

• Exposure to the mandate of UNFPA – SRHR/ FP, Gender Based Violence, will be an advantage.

• Good knowledge / experience of field monitoring tools and data analysis

• Good communication skills; Fluency in English and Urdu. Fluency in local language is an advantage.

Inputs / services to be provided by UNFPA or implementing partner (e.g., support services, office space, equipment),

if applicable: The consultant will use own computer and will have to travel to the field at least 50% of the time.

Consultant based in Hyderabad is expected to operate from DGHS office, and consultants based in GB and Chitral will be operating from AKHSP’s respective regional offices.

Other relevant information or special conditions, if any: - In the event of a substantive change to the TOR, or a change in the level of the fee, an existing individual consultant contract normally cannot be amended;

• The individual consultant contract may be terminated in accordance with the

provisions contained in the General Conditions of individual consultant contract.