ToR_Developing Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Platforms  for Sustained Opportunities for Nutrition Governance (SONGO)

Background of the project

Bangladesh has made remarkable progress in ensuring food and nutrition security, mainly driven by rapid economic growth and many successful social and health policies and programmes. Although an impressive progress in food production has been achieved in the recent years, food and nutrition insecurity generally remains high for a large part of the population. Stunting has fallen significantly from 60% in 1997 to 36% in 2014. Possible factors driving stunting reduction include increased access to education by girls, improved sanitation, falls in fertility rates and rising income from overseas remittances. However, Bangladesh faces challenges to sustain this progress, particularly given the high levels of vulnerability.

Further focusing on the nutrition sector, Bangladesh has given it a top priority in several policy papers, namely: the 7th Five Year Plan, the national Food Security Plan 2008-2015 and its related Country Investment Plan (CIP) 2008-2015 where a holistic approach to food security and nutrition is identified. In addition, the National Plan of Action for Nutrition (NPAN) has recently been revised with greater emphasis on a life cycle approach and integrating nutrition sensitive interventions. Furthermore the CIP2- which is currently under preparation - is integrating a food system approach which encourages further comprehensiveness. Nevertheless despite the abovementioned legal framework developments, the actual implementation is still facing challenges, which are mainly related to the need of nutrition governance with a complex multi sectoral response.

Over the last decades there has been significant donor support for a large number of food security initiatives in Bangladesh, mostly focusing on production and access (safety nets). However, nutrition governance has received little attention. There is now the need and opportunity to ensure a more comprehensive approach to nutrition going beyond narrow approaches focused only on specific nutrition interventions or increased food production.

ICCO Cooperation is implementing EU funded “Sustained Opportunities for Nutrition Governance (SONGO)” project to improve maternal and child nutrition in Kurigram and Gaibandha districts. Over the next five years, SONGO  will focus on four inter-linked outcomes; (1) establishing upazila nutrition governance, (2) improving maternal and child health, nutrition (3) improving WASH practices (4) enhancing availability and access to safe and nutritious food.

This project will specifically seek to replicate and scale-up innovative local governance models for better nutrition, which have already proved valid and successful at local level, either in Bangladesh or in other countries and which are feasible to be implemented in the Bangladeshi context. An effective Nutrition Governance mechanism is to bring all the stakeholders together and bring synergy in the effective and efficient delivery of nutrition related goods and services. The key stakeholders Government of Bangladesh (GoB) (both administrative and line agencies), Civil Society Organisations (CSO), and the private sector all have important roles to play and as such will be facilitated to form a platform for coordination. A nutrition specific and nutrition-sensitive participatory planning cycle will be introduced in line-and merged with the regular planning cycle of the local administration (to ensure institutional sustainability).This specific work package will draw upon experience in supporting subnational level nutrition governance in other countries globally, building on past experience of what has been effective in other contexts.

The organisation will provide initial guidance and facilitation of the multi-stakeholder process by preparing and implementing a number of learning events to support union staff members from two districts to develop effective union level nutrition plans, which will be aligned to, and support with the achievement of district, and eventually national level nutrition plans.

Scope of work

The general objective of the proposed trajectory is: To strengthen local governance (multiple sector involvement) for nutrition in northern districts (Kurigram and Gaibandha )of Bangladesh
Specific objectives of the proposed trajectory are:

  • Design a methodology (including tools) to facilitate multi-sectoral commitment and collaborative action to combat hunger and malnutrition at the district, sub-district/upazila and union level in Bangladesh
  • Contribute to the capacity of project staff and other key stakeholders in facilitating multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral processes for collaboration of nutrition actors at the district and union level.
  • Contribute to the capacity of District and union level implementing staff to formulate a Union Nutrition Action Plan of good quality and continue implementing after the termination of the project and to contribute to building capacity of staff in other unions.

The following (clusters of) activities are considered necessary elements in order to arrive at the overall and specific objectives: 

  • Create awareness and a common understanding among different sectors (at the district level) on (mal)nutrition and the reasons for combating malnutrition;
  • Build consensus on the roles and responsibilities of the district and union staff and the various partners involved at the district and union level;
  • Contribute to creating a commonly agreed framework for formulating union level nutrition action plans; 
  • Develop, adjust, modify, apply, and adapt tools for multi-stakeholder collaboration throughout the process;
  • Strengthen the capacity of project staff to facilitate the process of formulating, implementing, monitoring and documenting the implementation of the Union level action plans
  • Build capacity of key stakeholders at the district and union level to develop simple systems (including appropriate indicators) for monitoring progress of the implementation of the union level nutrition action plans (content and process indicators). 

Timeframe:

Taking into consideration the general elections in Bangladesh the aim should be to start the work in the beginning of December 2018. A detailed timeframe of the components together with the cost for each component needs to accompany the application.

Selection criteria:

The organisation will be selected on the assessment of Technical & Financial proposals. Technical Proposal should highlight:

  • Proven track-record and experience in setting up local-level multi-sectoral nutrition platforms;
  • Expression of interest outlining how the organization meets the selection criteria and their understanding of the TOR;
  • Dedicated team members having relevant experience with names and CVs;
  • Organizational profile containing evidence of the work done in this area, along with relevant evaluations;
  • A proposed methodology and work plan with time frame.

Remuneration schedule and payment mode:

Payment will be made in three installments based on satisfactory completion of deliverable and accepted by ICCO Cooperation:

  • 25% on the signing of agreement and agreement on work-plan
  • 40% after the finalization of strategy based on first workshops and updated work-plan
  • 35% after the completion of assignment

Note: All payments will be made through wire transfer from ICCO Netherlands Office and tax will be deducted according to Government rules.

Guideline for proposal submission:

The respective organization is requested to submit their Expression of Interest with the brief concept of production in no more than 10 pages, including the names of key person with short profile (within one page in addition) and provide a list of recent clientele, credentials and constitutional documents along with the two references of the parties.

Please send these documents to: your proposed budget and brief notes on mode of accomplishment for the assignment to: hr.bd@icco.nl . The subject line should be '' Developing Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Platforms ''. Deadline for submission of proposal is October 31, 2018.