Terms of Reference – Digital Skills and Online Freelancing Jobs Implementing Partner. LEAP Project – Refugee Contexts in Northern Kenya 143 views

LEAP Project – Refugee Contexts in Northern Kenya

Digital Skills and Online Freelancing Jobs Implementing Partner

1. Introduction

World University Service of Canada (WUSC) is a Canadian non-profit organization with a mission to enhance education, economic opportunities, and empowerment for youth. We work with a diverse network of students, volunteers, institutions, governments, and businesses. Together, we foster youth-centered solutions to overcome inequality and exclusion.

WUSC has been awarded a grant of $12.4 million from Global Affairs Canada to implement the “Learning through Education and Access to Skills for Employment” Project (the LEAP Project). The ultimate outcome of this project is to increase the empowerment of adolescent girls and young women in Kalobeyei Settlement, Kakuma Refugee Camp, and the surrounding host communities in Turkana County. The project will enhance education opportunities for adolescent girls and will also provide access to gender responsive and market-based skills training in Kalobeyei and Kakuma Refugee Camp for young women. This is through two key interventions:

● Improving learning outcomes at primary and secondary school level

● Increasing equitable participation in the formal and informal workforce.

2. Background of the LEAP Project

The project’s expected outputs, and immediate, intermediate, and ultimate outcomes are presented in a Logic Model which is annexed to this Terms of Reference. The LEAP Project is designed to address gender, social, cultural, and economic barriers that its targeted beneficiaries face in accessing education and making life decisions. The ultimate outcome of the project is enhanced empowerment of adolescent girls and female youth in the targeted regions of Kalobeyei Settlement, Kakuma Refugee Camp, and surrounding host communities. The project specifically targets two of the most critical moments in a girls’ educational journey: when they are most at-risk of dropping out of the education system (late primary and the transition to secondary); and the transition from basic education to post-secondary education or employment.

The project seeks to improve learning outcomes for adolescent girls and female youth, as well as to enhance equitable participation in the formal and informal workforce for young women. The LEAP Project responds to specific barriers and educational needs identified by adolescent girls, female youth, community members, and education stakeholders through gender analyses, and aims to address the root causes of inequality by challenging and helping to transform structural barriers and entrenched social norms, attitudes, and power relations that impact girls’ ability to access and benefit from education and skills training opportunities. The LEAP Project will implement a range of interventions including teacher training, remedial education classes, cash transfers, educational technologies, media campaigns, community outreach, Guidance Teacher training, mentorship programs, market-based skills training, and training in digital skills in order to prepare young women to participate in the gig economy.

3. Purpose and Objectives of the Digital Skills & Online Jobs Implementing Partner

The digital skills and online jobs training is an integral component in the LEAP program; with the objective of supporting at least 475 young women in Kalobeyei, Kakuma, and surrounding host communities to obtain training in digital skills and subsequently obtain online freelance work. WUSC is seeking to identify an experienced, skilled, and results-oriented partner organisation to co-develop a business model; tailor-make a training curriculum; select trainees; and provide training, mentorship and linkages to the online jobs market. The partner organisation will develop a cost effective model, support WUSC in planning for a digital hub in Kakuma, build the capacity of hub staff, and pilot sustainable strategies that can become long-term investments in overcoming the gender digital divide.

The LEAP project aims to increase the equitable participation of young women in the formal and informal workforce, particularly in high-growth and profitable sectors. Through initial analyses and scoping studies, WUSC identified that online work, such as remote data entry, data processing, and editing, was a promising new area for refugees who may face other types of restrictions on business ownership or formal employment. The proposed partner should have a strong understanding of the legal context of refugee employment in Kenya, as well as a deep understanding of gender dynamics in the refugee and host communities of Kakuma and Kalobeyei.

To achieve the project’s objective with regards to decent incomes, the project will engage services of a local digital implementing partner to work with adolescent girls and young women in Kakuma, Kalobeyei and Host communities. The project targets to train 475 young women in a period of 4 years. Aligned with this purpose, WUSC and the digital skills and online jobs implementing partner will play the following roles:

4. Roles and responsibilities of digital implementing partner

The digital skills and online jobs training partner organisation will be responsible for the design, development and implementation of a cost effective, gender-responsive model for entrance into the digital gig economy. The partner organisation will work in close collaboration with the WUSC LEAP project teams based in Nairobi and Kakuma. Specifically, the mandate of the partner organisation is to:

● Review labor market assessment report and trainees needs assessment reports to inform development of the business model

§ Review trainees needs assessment and labor market reports

● Design & Co-develop Curriculum – Customized training curriculum on digital skills, online jobs, and soft skills

§ Work with designated WUSC personnel during an inception phase to design and co-develop a feasible digital skills and online jobs business model

§ Customize a gender-responsive digital skills and online jobs training curriculum to reflect trainee needs and to meet the demand of the current labor market

§ Co-develop a cost-effective and scalable digital skills and on-line jobs business model with the selected partner organization

§ Customise training curriculum – use findings from needs assessment to customised training content

● Digital hub setup

§ Collaborate with WUSC team to design and setup a digital hub

§ Provide technical advice and support in setting up a digital hub in Kakuma. This will include advice in the procurement of equipment, hub layout and selection of internet service providers. The costs of procurement will be covered under WUSC’s budget and should not be included in the financial proposal for these Terms of Reference.

● Identify and select trainees –

§ Support trainee selection process, working in collaboration with WUSC and other LEAP Project partners as needed

§ Develop recruitment and selection criteria for trainees in consultation with WUSC, and recruit trainees for the program

● Training – Young Women Empowerment

§ Train trainees using customised curriculum and support trainees to develop online profiles and bid for online jobs

§ Support trainees to connect with credible local and international online job platforms, including a minimum 3-month mentorship support to help trainees identify, bid for, and receive payment for jobs

§ Provide training and mentorship support to a minimum of 475 young women, with a target of 70% of young women earning income through online freelance work

§ Conduct gender-responsive skills training covering the areas of basic digital skills (covering those areas identified through labour market assessments), how to obtain online freelance work, entrepreneurship in the context of online work, and soft skills

● Mentorship

§ Provide mentorship for young women to help them bid and perform online jobs

§ In collaboration with the WUSC Gender and Inclusion Adviser, conduct outreach with the family members of the trainees and the broader community to garner support for women’s and girl’s use of technology and inclusion in the gig economy

● Quality control and Impact Measurement

§ Provide oversight and quality control during online job bidding and execution to ensure that trainees have adequate support

§ Collaborate with WUSC MEL team to monitor the training, mentorship and online job status, using a result-based monitoring system

§ Provide data and information required by MERL on impact assessment

● Capacity building

§ Enhance capacity of WUSC staff who manage the day-to-day operations of the digital hub to support trainees on online job bidding, quality control and execution

§ Capacity building for WUSC hub staff members and local CBO/s to ensure sustainability beyond the life of the project

● Work plan & Reports

§ Develop a detailed work plan

§ Inception report and monthly / quarterly reports

§ Provide monthly financial reports and quarterly technical reports as required

● Policy Adherence

§ Adhere to WUSC internal policies, especially the child protection and safeguarding policy, gender policy, data policy, financial policy, and communication policy

● Linkages with private and public partners –

§ Database on Partnerships established with online jobs platforms and other job providers in the private and public sectors

1. Roles and responsibilities of WUSC

2. Setup the physical infrastructure for the digital training hub in Kakuma

3. Share relevant information for the partner and support partner on-boarding

4. Hire digital hub staff to support day-to-day management of the hub; these personnel will be the primary point of contact for working in collaboration with the selected digital implementing partner

5. Work with the digital partner to develop trainee selection criteria

6. Monitor activities being implemented by the digital implementing partner

7. Initiate partnerships with relevant financial institutions and labor markets to support the work of the digital implementing partner

8. Guidelines for submission of the proposal

These guidelines shall ensure uniformity of proposals submitted by all applicants and transparency of the evaluation process.

1. Eligible Applicants (Implementing partners)

Applicants fulfilling the following criteria shall apply:

1. Must be a legally registered company/firm operating in Kenya

2. Have a track record of conducting similar digital skills and online jobs training and employment linkages for at least 3 years

3. Have a proven track record of conducting projects valued at USD $400,000 or higher, and be willing to provide references for these projects

4. Have experience implementing gender-responsive interventions and have an understanding of gender dynamics in Kakuma and Kalobeyei

5. Have a skilled training team to design a viable business model, curriculum, recruit, train, mentor and provide successful online jobs

6. Open to adult learning methodology

7. Are flexible in training delivery (for example, able to deliver via a combination of virtual and in-person training

8. Content of the proposal

The language of the proposal is English. In addition, the applicant must submit:

1) A cover letter (maximum 1 page) with organisations letterhead expressing the willingness to participate in the project. The cover letter shall be signed by a person of the right authority in the organization.

2) Technical proposal (5-7 pages)

a. Understanding of the TOR

b. Description of the capacity and qualifications for the firm, including previous similar experiences

c. Proposed approach to implementing this initiative, including:

i. Methodology: how would your organisation propose to deliver digital skills training to young women in the project context, taking into consideration the possible impact of COVID-19 and post Covid- 19?

ii. Gender Strategy: what is your organisation’s understanding of the barriers that young refugee and host community women might face in accessing work through the digital gig economy? How will you address those barriers and mitigate gender-related risks?

iii. Quality Assurance/Monitoring: what is your organisation’s approach to monitoring and impact assessment? How would you monitoring and support trainees during their post-training mentorship?

iv. Sustainability: what is your organisation’s suggested approach to ensuring that the physical infrastructure established through this project remains a useful asset to the community after the life of the project?

d. Proposed workplan (Gantt chart)

e. Team composition and level of effort of each team member. CVs can be presented as an Annex and do not count toward the total page limit.

3) Financial proposal

a. Budget presented in Canadian dollars with itemized costs, with each distinct type of expense broken down

b. Only eligible costs according to the Global Affairs Canada Guidance on Eligible Costs for Development Initiatives shall be accepted

c. Expected payment plan and method

d. The total amount of funding available is CAD $ 350,660.76, including any applicable taxes. Any budgets exceeding this amount will be disqualified.

e. There is a separate budget for the set up of the centre kindly do not include it in your budget

4) Copies of the following documents shall be provided:

a. Registration certificate of the organization/Company

b. Copy of CR 12

c. Audit Report for the last 2 years

d. List the polices and that they currently have for ensuring safeguarding, online safety, and protection.

5) Names and contact information of three references who can be contacted regarding relevant experience and/or similar assignments undertaken

1. Evaluation process

2. There is a separate budget for the setting up of the hub, financial proposals should not include this

3. All proposals which are not submitted as required under B above will be excluded from the evaluation

4. Valid proposals will be further evaluated competitively according to the eligibility criteria and information provided

5. Applications from which the criteria match best will be shortlisted. All shortlisted applicants will later be invited for an interview and presentation of their proposal.

6. WUSC has no obligation to provide any further information to the applicants or any other 3^rd party about the evaluation process and its results other than contained in this section (Evaluation Process).

7. Timeline for RFP

Event Deadline

1 Request for Proposal published June 23, 2020
2 Submission of proposals to WUSC via email July 21, 2020
3 Evaluation and shortlisting of proposals July 22, 2020
4 Information of evaluation results to shortlisted applicants Aug 7, 2020
5 Interview and presentation by shortlisted applicants Aug 12, 2020
6 Final selection Aug 24, 2020
7 Contracting Sept 1, 2020

Questions regarding the RFP shall be sent by email to cmwaniki@wusc.ca with the subject line “Questions RFP LEAP”. Questions received by phone will not be answered.