Request for Proposal (RFP)

Strengthening monitoring mechanism for recruitment practices in Bangladesh

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is looking for a qualified Consultant or a Consultancy Firm to conduct a review of the monitoring mechanisms with the view of “Strengthening monitoring mechanism for recruitment practices in Bangladesh” as per below Terms of Reference (ToR):

1. Background/Context of the programme:

Bangladesh has emerged as a major labour sending country with around 1 million Bangladeshi workers migrating in 2017, mostly concentrated in the Middle East and Arab countries. At the national level, there have been efforts by Government of Bangladesh (GoB) and related stakeholders to strengthen migration governance to protect the rights and promote the welfare of migrant workers. Among the efforts include Government enacting the Overseas Employment and Migrants Act 2013 and Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Policy 2016.

Although there has been much progress to improve migration governance in Bangladesh, one of the challenges that has remained is the high cost of migration and irregularities in the recruitment process. With the aim to monitor the recruitment practices, reduce the cost of migration and protect the rights and welfare of migrant workers, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment (MoEWOE) formed the Monitoring and Enforcement Wing. The MoEWOE has specific activities related to issuance and registration of license to the recruitment agents as well as monitoring their activities; particularly through the Monitoring and Enforcement (M&E) Wing. The Vigilance Task Force (VTF) as part of the M&E wing envisions to monitor the migration process and specifically recruitment procedures for labour migrants. The Task Force was formed in July 2010 and draws members from different government, civil society and private sector stakeholders. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been a member of the VTF since its inception. IOM has been working closely with the members and providing technical support to enhance coordination and effectiveness of the task force.

At present, there are around 1300 recruitment agencies in Bangladesh. However, there are several challenges in this arena and curbing unscrupulous practices by these stakeholders requires active monitoring through intensive mechanisms.  Various interventions have been commissioned by the MoEWOE for monitoring of recruitment practices. While some interventions like VTF’s investigation has been proved beneficial to curb irregular practices, there is scope to further enhance the monitoring mechanisms by adopting and replicating global best practices prevailing in the field of monitoring recruitment actors and processes. This will require a joint rapid comprehensive assessment of the monitoring mechanism of MoEWOE, identifying strengths to build upon and any possible gaps to address. 

2. IOM Project to which the Consultancy is contributing:

Bangladesh: Sustainable Reintegration and Improved Migration Governance (Prottasha), implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and funded by the European Union (EU). The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the sustainable reintegration of returnees and the Progressive achievement of Goal 10.7 to facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed policies.

The specific objectives (SO) of the project are to ensure that;

  • SO 1: Irregular migrants returning to Bangladesh are sustainably reintegrated (Reintegration component)
  • SO2: The capacities of the Government of Bangladesh and other migration actors are strengthened to manage migration at central and local levels and to ensure reintegration of irregular migrants (Migration Governance component)
  • SO3: The action will implement comprehensive behaviour change communication campaigns across target districts to improve awareness on safe migration processes, reintegration issues, orient community attitudes towards safe migration behaviours, and change aspirant migrant behaviours around using formal migration mechanisms.

3. Objectives:

IOM aims to support GoB to increase the capacity and mechanisms to effectively monitor the labour migration recruitment process through the following:

  • Conduct a joint review and assessment of the monitoring mechanism including VTF’s operation modality, the related standard operating procedures and terms of reference, identifying its various strengths and challenges; and assessing existing regional and global good practices of similar mechanisms for knowledge exchange and replication.
  • Strengthen and further develop tools such as Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) for recruitment monitoring.
  • Share assessment findings with GoB officials and relevant stakeholders, to inform activities to strengthen monitoring mechanisms for recruitment practices. Concrete recommendations will be put forward and made available for building the basis of government’s further action.

In order to effectively implement, monitor and evaluate the interventions aimed at strengthening the monitoring mechanisms of MOEWOE, additional data collection will be vital to systematically document and compare the progress before and after the proposed interventions have been implemented.  

4. Key Tasks of the Consultancy:

  • Review relevant documents
  • Design a practical methodology that collects data from key stakeholders such as the government and others.  In-depth Interviews, Key informant interviews and other participatory approaches may be included.
  • Compile report on findings and facilitate the organization of a sharing and validation workshop for the relevant stakeholders to share, discuss and review the assessment;
  • Brief presentation of the study during the visit.
  • Finalize the study report and submit to IOM
  • Produce a publishable article and policy brief summarizing the findings of the study

5. Methodology:

The consultant need to detail out methodology for the proposed activities however, the following can be considered: 

  1. Primary Information: Data collected through Focus Group Discussions, Key informants’ interviews and other participatory approaches. 
  1. Secondary information: Review of reports and various related documents including identifying methods for improved recruitment monitoring mechanism as well as good practices
  2. All work submitted must be in line with the programme communication guidelines including IOM spelling list: 2013, IOM House Style Manual and IOM Brand Guidelines 2018. Consultants are encouraged to request for the guidelines before they start writing the report.

6. Deliverables

The following are the expected deliverables;

  1. Inception Report containing final methodology and workplan.
  2. Draft Study Protocol with data collection tools, quality assurance and ethical issues addressed
  3. Draft report consisting of findings from the analysis
  4. Study report based on the exposure visit
  5. Final Assessment Report
  6. Publishable article and policy brief summarizing findings of the study. IOM will share the format.

7. Duration/ Timeline:

The total duration for this assignment is proposed to be approximately 5 months.

8. Method of Application:

The completed RFP should be placed in a plain, sealed envelope and clearly marked:  RT/CO-509/019: Strengthening monitoring mechanism for recruitment practices in Bangladesh to Dhaka Office by 31st October 2018 in the below address:

Procurement Department
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
House 13/A, Road 136, Gulshan-1, Dhaka 1212
Phone: +880-2-55044811 – 13;

        For any queries please write to: DhakaProttasha@iom.int and DhakaPL@iom.int or call Mr Faisal Ahmed at Mobile: 01730329972

9. Required Documents:

Consultancy Firm/Individual consultant need to submit technical and financial proposal.

Each Submission Must Include the Following:

  • Consultancy Firm/Consultant Profile: A brief summary of the organization and CV of the expert including records on past experience in similar assignments and name of the references.
  • Technical Proposal with detailed methodology, tools and work plan along with samples of previous work;
  • Financial Proposal listing all costs associated with the assignment. In particular, the financial proposal should itemize the following:
    1. Consultancy fees in local currency per day;
    2. Variable costs inclusive of transportation costs, printing of study tools; research team (if applicable); meeting/FGDs/KIIs costs
    3. Costs associated with the validation workshop (venue, food and others) held in Dhaka will be borne by IOM.
  • One or two sample reports or links of recent work completed by the Consultant/Consultancy Firm.

10. Professional and Related Experiences:

The proposed team from the consultancy firms or the consultants should have following competence.

  • Must be an expert who has completed minimum Master’s degree in Social Sciences or related field with at least five years of relevant professional experience. PhD is an added advantage;
  • Sound knowledge and demonstrated capacity in conducting assessments and scoping exercises
  • Solid understanding of migration sector of Bangladesh.
  • Demonstrated ability to draw lessons from relevant international, regional and national practices and processes;
  • Excellent presentation, oral and written communication skills;
  • Proficiency in English and good analytical, drafting skills.
  • Ability to deliver according to specified timeline while maintain quality of the output.

The Proposal should be written in English.

Any attempt for persuasion will be considered as a disqualification

ONLY SHORT LISTED CONSULTANTS/CONSULTANCY FIRMS WILL BE ASSESSED

ORGANIZATIONS WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TAX OR VAT ISSUES IF APPLICABLE.

IOM is an equal opportunity employer and women are encouraged to apply.
IOM Offices and vehicles have smoke-free work environment.