Gender And Social Inclusion Consultant(s) for Platforms for Dialogue (P4D)

Introduction
Bangladesh has made remarkable progress in economic and social development since independence in 1971. Now it recognises the need to strengthen governance systems, to decentralise, and to increase citizens’ participation so as to promote both further inclusiveness in Bangladesh’s growth and to consolidate the democratic process. Platforms for Dialogue (P4D), is a three year programme established in partnership between the Cabinet Division and the European Union Delegation (EUD) and implemented by the British Council in support of the EU’s Roadmap for Engagement with Civil Society in its development partner countries. Details of P4D can be found at:

https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/sites/devco/files/aap-financing-bangladesh-part2-annex1-20151214_en.pdf

Requirement

P4D seeks a highly skilled and motivated professional consultant(s) to develop the project’s Strategy on Gender and Social Inclusion (GSI).  The strategy will outline how P4D can ensure that the project’s work is inclusive of women and socially excluded groups. This is a short-term consultancy to produce a GSI strategy for P4D. The consultant(s) is expected to show a detailed knowledge of Bangladesh and its gender and social inclusion policies and practice. Following this work, the consultant(s) may be requested over the duration of the programme to provide additional support and advice on GSI.

Purpose

P4D’s GSI Strategy will provide both: an in-depth understanding of the context; and guide P4D on how to take account of GSI in all aspects of its work.

Background
P4D is an EU funded programme agreed with the Cabinet Division of the Government of Bangladesh. It is managed by the British Council in support of the EU’s Roadmap for Engagement with Civil Society in its development partner countries. P4D has an implementation value of EUR 12,650 million.  Its overall objective is to strengthen democratic ownership and accountability mechanisms in Bangladesh.  The specific objective is to promote a more enabling environment for the effective engagement and participation of citizens and civil society in decision making and oversight.

To achieve these objectives, P4D is organised around three converging Result Areas:

  • Result Area 1: "CSOs’ ability to influence government policy and practice raised through better accountability to and more effective representation of citizens’ interests".
  • Result Area 2:" Accountability and responsiveness of government officials raised through enhanced capacity building of decision makers and engagement with CSOs".
  • Result Area 3: "New tools and policy platforms for more effective dialogue between citizens and government are developed and utilised".

P4D defines “civil society” broadly, to mean the whole of society outside of government, rather than just a body of civil society organisations. P4D will use a model of multi-actor partnerships and a network of information hubs to engage communities across Bangladesh in 21 Districts.

P4D will use a range of techniques to support the Government in its delivery of the policy commitments set out in the 7th Five Year Plan.  In its work, P4D will promote a collaborative dialogue, multi-stakeholder consultation, and institutional and capacity building of citizens, civil society actors and government officials, including training in strategic communication.

P4D will work mostly at the local level with key players in government and civil society in its broadest sense. The aim is to identify practical solutions to locally identified issues, a process which, at later stage, can be scaled up to regional and national levels.

P4D will document and record the discussions in order to identify the ways citizens can solve their problems through collaborative dialogue and engagement with Government. At the same time, P4D will work with senior civil servants to strengthen Government’s ability to engage more fully with civil society.

Key tasks for the GSI consultant
The GSI consultant(s) will:

  • Define gender and social inclusion, identifying socially excluded groups in the context of P4D. 
  • Undertake an in-depth GSI analysis to reveal the challenges and difficulties that GSI groups, as civil society actors, face in engaging in dialogue with Government.
  • Outline strategies with action plans to ensure effective participation by GSI groups in P4D project activities.    
  • Support P4D’s Research, Evaluation and Learning team in the production of indicators in the Results Framework on the cross-cutting issues of gender and social inclusion.
  • Liaise with P4D’s Political Economy Analysis consultant, as appropriate, to ensure that the GSI analysis is considered the PEA findings.
  • Ensure the quality of the draft GSI strategy by an independent peer reviewer identified by P4D.

Inputs / Level of Effort:
A maximum of 45 person days on the specific tasks with precise timings to be agreed with the P4D Team Leader and the Research, Evaluation and Learning Lead.

Deliverables and timeframe:

  • A draft report on Gender, Social Inclusion issues relevant to P4D by 31 July 2017,  including:
    • Gender and Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan; and
    • Development of relevant indicators with P4D’s REL team.
  • A final report by 14 August 2017

Consultant specifications:

  • Recognized for conducting recent, independent gender and social inclusion and other relevant studies in Bangladesh
  • The consultant(s) should deploy a team of national and international experts to deliver the GSI strategy in a way that ensures both the local context is fully understood and standards of international best practice are maintained
  • Experience working with and knowledge of both government and civil society in Bangladesh
  • Experience working with donor funded, international development projects, including the EU
  • Understanding of civil society in Bangladesh
  • Understanding of national and local government in Bangladesh
  • Ability to manage all operational and logistical aspects of the GSI
  • Experience of managing teams of national and international researchers
  • Familiarity with gender analysis tools and methodologies
  • Good analytical abilities and strong report writing skills
  • At least 10 years’ experience of working on gender and/or social inclusion issues in Bangladesh;
  • Master’s degree in social science / studies, research or relevant subject
  • Strong analytical, strategic thinking and demonstrated research skills
  • Strong communication skills, ability to liaise with various stakeholders, including government officials.
  • Fluency in written and spoken Bangla and English
  • Availability: June – August 2017

Contractual arrangement:
This work will be contracted by the British Council through a consultancy contract. The ToR is subject to update and modifications as per project need.

Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted and called for interview. We will only shortlist applications submitted technical and financial proposal along with the CVs of the team members. No hard copies of the application will be accepted.

To apply, please send the above mentioned documents with a covering letter to the following email address dhaka.recruitment@britishcouncil.org coping Christopher.Marshall@britishcouncil.org . Please mark in the subject line “application for Gender and Social Inclusion”

Closing date: 26 June 2017

The British Council is committed to a policy of equal opportunity and we are keen to reflect diversity at every level within the organisation. We welcome applications from all sections of the community.

The British Council believes that all children have potential and that every child matters - everywhere in the world. The British Council affirms the position that all children have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse as set out in article 19, UNCRC, 1989.