Terms of Reference

Strengthening Organizational Capacity of South Asia Governance Program (SAGP) Partner Organizations in Bangladesh

Background:

The Asia Foundation is a non-profit international development organization committed to improving lives across a dynamic and developing Asia. Headquartered in San Francisco, the Foundation works through a network of offices in 18 Asian countries and Washington, DC. The Foundation works with the government, civil society, and the private sector in Bangladesh since it first opened its Dhaka office in 1954. The organization works to tackle community challenges, build leadership capacity that reflects the country's diversity, and facilitate broad-based participation in the country's development. Programs in Bangladesh currently focus on strengthening governance, empowering women, and expanding economic opportunities.

The South Asia Governance Program (SAGP), implemented by The Asia Foundation (TAF), offers small and strategic grants to Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in five South Asian countries, namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. The SAGP coalesces and supports actions around four core themes:

• Increase public sector accountability and transparency;
• Strengthen the rule of law;
• Promote civil society participation and media in these efforts; and
• Strengthen democratic institutions and practices.

One significant aspect of SAGP's intervention is to develop capacity for partner NGOs and CSOs in Bangladesh . In line with this, TAF has already conducted an assessment of its partner organizations' capacities using USAID's Organizational Capacity Assessment (OCA) methodology. Based on the assessment results and follow-up discussions with individual partners, TAF intends to extend support to its partners in improving capacities in specific areas.

The assignment: The consultant or consulting agency is tasked with strengthening capacity-building for partner organizations of the South Asia Governance Program (SAGP) in Bangladesh, details are given under the scope of work section below. These activities will be based on the OCA result of each partner that have already been completed.

Partner organizations may have their policies, it is expected that the consultant will improve the policies considering Bangladesh country context, applicable labor law, NGO Affairs Bureau requirements, national and international standards, and other aspects related to each policy. The consultant will also provide various templates to implement the policies at the partner level.

Duration:  October 01, 2023 to December 31, 2023

Scope of work: The consultant/agency is expected to carry out capacity development support for 14 SAGP partners in the following areas:

  • Review and update following policies for nine partner organizations (five in Dhaka and four outside of Dhaka).
    • Human resource policy
    • Finance, admin, and procurement policy
    • Gender policy
    • Child protection policy
    • Protection from Sexual Harassment, Exploitation, and Abuse (PSHEA) policy
    • Anti-corruption, bribery, and fraud policy
  • Develop new policies for 14 partner organizations (nine in Dhaka and five outside of Dhaka)
    • Branding and communication policy
    • IT and cybersecurity policy

Approach and Methodology: The consultant(s) can either adopt the methodology outlined below or propose new methodologies and approaches based on their experience and expertise.

  • Conduct an inception meeting with TAF and selected partners to understand the task's context, review the Organizational Capacity Assessment (OCA), and relevant reports/policies of the partner
  • Evaluate the existing policies of partner organizations and identify specific areas that require development or improvement.
  • Facilitate an in-person joint workshop with all partners to discuss standard policy practices in the development arena.
  • Design and finalize the structure of the policies
  • Upgrade and develop policy documents for each partner based on the identified areas of improvement.
  • Organize partner-specific in-person workshops to ensure buy-in for the new or updated policies.
  • Prepare a final report summarizing the capacity building activities and outcomes.

Deliverables:

1) Inception meeting report, specific plan of action
2) Partner-specific policy improvement strategies
3) In-person joint partner workshop report
4) Upgraded/developed policies (in English) for each partner as per the scope of work
5) Partner-specific workshop report with capacity development plan
6) Final report

Confidentiality of Information
The consultant/consulting agency would not disclose any information in relation to this assignment without the prior consent of The Asia Foundation.
The final deliverables/policies will be partner organizations' property.

Qualifications for Consultants
The consultant/consulting agency should have the following qualifications and expertise:

  1. Extensive experience working with national and international development organizations in Bangladesh in regard to policy formation and development
  2. Proven track record in implementing capacity development initiatives, particularly in the specific area mentioned in the scope of work.
  3. Understanding local and international policy requirements and guidance to operate NGOs & CSOs in Bangladesh
  4. Excellent communication, interpersonal, and facilitation skills.
  5. Proficient writing skills in both English and Bangla.

Application procedures

Interested candidates must submit the following by 15 September 2023

  • Submit a CV of max of 4 pages or a Company and Team profile of 10 pages along with a cover letter of not more than 1 page detailing your experience and suitability for the assignment to country.bangladesh.jobs@asiafoundation.org. Applications that do not meet these page limits and fail to clearly address the suitability for this specific role will not be reviewed. We thank all applicants for their interest, however only those making the shortlist will be contacted.
  • A technical proposal (not exceeding 10 pages)  including planned timeline, and work plan with methodologies/approach, milestones and deliverables, and protocols for draft policies and validation.
  • Budget: A detailed estimated budget including VAT & TAX as per the government rules.