Consultancy service for Production of She Leads (SLs)- Pan African Program Learning Publication 82 views1 applications

1. Introduction

The principles of political empowerment and participation for children and young people are enshrined in numerous international human rights frameworks and standards and are applicable from birth as outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). They are also protected by other human rights instruments including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Other important international agreements include the UN General Assembly 2003 and 2011 resolutions on women’s political participation (A/ RES/58/142 and A/RES/66/130) and UN Security Council Resolutions on Women and Youth, Peace and Security. In addition, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Sustainable Development Goals within Agenda 2030 promote the political empowerment of young people, particularly young women.

Alongside the international framework, regional frameworks and instruments have been adopted to advance girls’ and women’s rights, promote gender equality and enhance youth participation in policymaking processes. The African Union (AU) adopted Agenda 2063, which calls for a more inclusive society where all citizens are actively involved in decision-making across all aspects of life. It emphasizes that no child, woman, or man should be left behind or excluded based on gender, political affiliation, religion, ethnic background, locality, age, or other factors. The agenda further pledges to build an African population of empowered women and youth by 2063, where gender parity in control and representation will be the norm in all AU Organs and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The importance of including young people in national and regional governance processes is also enshrined in other policies such as The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa. (Maputo Protocol), the African Youth Charter (2006), the appointment of the first African Union Youth Envoy (2018), the African Union strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (2018-2028) and the African Plan of Action on Youth Empowerment (2019).

Leveraging these frameworks, the She Leads Pan-African Programme is committed to amplifying the voices and leadership of girls and young women in decision-making processes, particularly at the regional and continental levels, ensuring that they are not only represented but are active agents of change in the achievement of gender equality and sustainable development.

1.1. She Leads Pan-African Programme

She Leads Program is an initiative of Plan International Netherlands (PIN), Defence for Children – ECPAT the Netherlands (DCI-ECPAT), African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), and Terre des Hommes the Netherlands (TdH). The overall strategic objective of the SHE LEADS programme is “Increased sustained influence of girls and young women/GYW on gender norms and in decision-making in formal and informal institutions” and the overall vision/impact being “Government and societal groups address concerns of GYW in their laws, policies, norms & practices”. It is a five-year project funded by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. The project is implemented in 7 African Countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Mali). It also has two regional components (Pan African and Mena Regions) and global components at the Netherlands level.

As per the Theory of Change, the Program has three major outcome areas as follows:

Outcome 1: African leaders, (influential, religious and traditional figures, celebrities, African online influencers) and the media are playing active role in creating positive culture for girl’s activism

Traditional, religious, political, influential and public leaders will be engaged and supported to learn, appreciate position and GYW potential in leading and influencing change. Men and boys will be invited and supported to unlearn harmful/retrogressive gender norms. Journalists and media houses will be engaged and influenced to amplify voices of young girls in Africa, including playing a proactive role to expose injustices in Africa region. Girls will be mentored to use the power within them, and their collective power to demystify gender stereotypes and recreate a transformative culture which embodies girls agency. The partnership, joint learning and mutual accountability will be instrumental in challenging discriminatory gender norms and blooming transformative institutional and community culture.

Three intermediate outcomes are identified as key conditions for achieving the outcome:

• Influential African leaders publicly support positive gender roles and advance girls and young women agency.
• Media (mainstream and digital) outings in the she leads countries, profile and amplify voices of African girls and young women.
• Partnership between influential, political, religious and traditional leaders with feminists, girls and young women, and media is strengthened to advance girls and young women rights.

Outcome 2: GYW collective action in regional spaces is nurtured and enhanced through the collaboration with and support of women’s rights and children’s rights organization at regional level

In order for continental GYW to be recognized for collaboration by regional women’s rights organizations, the programme will facilitate the formation of a strong, diverse GYW regional movements that can add value to WROs. Similarly, there will be opportunities for GYW organizations and networks to be more visible in regional spaces. These will call for increased participation and leadership of GYW in sub/regional youth groups and networks at AU, ECOWAS and EAC levels. Furthermore, the GYW-led organization will have to be organized, coordinated and networking. Also, the Regional WR organizations will be influenced by data and evidence to show the power and potential of GYW-led groups in activism and advocacy. Meanwhile, the GYW-led groups and WROs will link with the countries’ GYW-led groups to foster collective actions and activism.

According to the abovementioned, the pathways of change for the Outcome 2 are:

1. Strong, diverse GYW-led regional social movements
2. GYW-led organizations and networks more visible in regional spaces and processes
3. Regional women’s rights organizations are influenced by data and evidence to support GYW activism and advocacy
4. GYW-led organizations are organized, coordinated and networking to influence regional spaces and processes
5. Increased participation and leadership of GYW in regional youth groups and networks
6. Regional GYW-led groups and networks and women’s rights organizations link up with national GYW-led groups to foster collective action and activism

Outcome 3: Intergovernmental Pan African Institutions (AU, ACHPR, ACERWC, African Conference of Minister of Gender & Women Affairs, AU Department of Gender, AU Office of the Youth Envoy) and the RECs (EAC and ECOWAS), will adopt concrete measures to increase meaningful participation of GYW and improve member states’ accountability towards GYW rights

By connecting different existing networks of youth and girls advocates and leaders operating at regional level, a stronger, more representative, voice of girls and youth will emerge. Simultaneously, by investing in the quality and availability of good data and evidence on the power of girls and youth leadership and representation, the issue of girls and youth participation in regional governance will gain more (political) attention and salience within the AU. If these two conditions are fulfilled, main actors within the AU, ACERWC, ACHPR, the AU Office of the Youth Envoy and the AU Women, Gender and Development Directorate, will be enabled to more effectively strengthen laws, policies and agendas that advance girls’ voice and leadership and hold Member States accountable in advancing girls, adolescent girls and young women’s rights.

These institutions will be supported to strengthen mechanisms to include girls, boys, young women and men into the regional policy-making processes and structures. At the same time, based on their joint leadership and increased capacity, these human rights organs and key agencies will forge a coalition of member states willing to support meaningful participation of GYW. In addition, important donors to the AU will step forward to support the efforts towards enhancing meaningful participation of GYW. The combined pressure emanating from an (internal) coalition of AU member states and from donors, will in the end result in improved capacity and concrete measures in institutionalizing girls and youth participation within regional decision-making processes. Once these measures are in place, meaningful youth participation will be enabled.

According to the abovementioned, key elements of the pathway of change for the third outcome are:

• GYW have the capacity and space to jointly influence regional policy processes
• Pan African institutions hold Member States to account to advance girls and young women’s rights and voices in key national decisions and policy processes
• Evidence generated on the power and value added of harnessing girls’ and young women’s leadership and representation in political processes
• Bilateral and multilateral donors activated by actors of She leads, engage with the AU institutions and Member States to influence meaningful participation of GYW
• Key AU member states are influenced and capacitated to come together to be champions of change on enhancing spaces for GYW voice and participation

1.2. She Leads Pan-Africa Programme regional level partners

• Plan International African Union Liaison Office (AULO). A pan-African office that advocates for policies and fair practices that reflect, respond to, promote and protect children’s rights in Africa and equality for girls. The office engages with key African human rights bodies such as the ACERWC and the ACHPR, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) particularly East African Community (EAC), Southern African Development Community (SADC) to strengthen and protect girls’ rights across Africa. It also works with several departments and divisions of the African Union and with like-minded civil society organizations.
• African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) is a pan-African, feminist and membership-based network based in Nairobi with over 800 members across 50 African countries. FEMNET envisions an African society where gender equality is achieved and women and girls enjoy all their rights and live-in dignity. FEMNET exists to facilitate and coordinate the sharing of experiences, ideas, information, and strategies for human rights promotion among African women’s organizations through networking, communication, capacity-building and advocacy at the regional and international levels. Since inception in 1988, FEMNET has strategically positioned herself as a convenor, Organizer and facilitator on dialogues around critical issues including women’s involvement in governance and leadership, promoting women’s economic justice, advocating for women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights, ending gender-based violence and strengthening the women’s movement in Africa. FEMNET will be the lead agency for the She Leads regional advocacy in Africa.
• Terre des Hommes Netherlands. In Africa, Tdh is operating in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania. At Africa Union (AU), the organization engages with the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC), African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR), and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), while at the sub-regional level, it engages with Regional Economic Communities, particularly the East Africa Community (EAC), including the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA). TdH-NL further mobilizes and strengthens the capacity of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to be able to engage with the AU and the EAC.
• ECPAT International. In Africa, through human rights mechanisms such as the ACERWC and the ACHPR, ECPAT advocates for change with governments and the international community, and works to better understand the problem through research and prioritize the needs of child victims and survivors.
• DCI Regional Desk for Africa: A network of national DCI sections in 12 countries in Africa, including Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ghana, was launched in 2019. The DCI Regional Desk Africa is hosted by DCI-Sierra Leone. Regionally, the Africa Desk works at developing a joint strategy on national level Socio-Legal Defence Centres, and strategic data collection at the regional level for coordinated regional level evidence-based advocacy and follow up on emblematic national cases through international accountability mechanisms (UNCRC Optional Protocol 3, ACERWC, ECOWAS).

1.3. Rational of the learning publication

In most cases, girls and young women continued to be excluded and marginalized in Africa. Because they have continued to consume policies, practices and decisions which have been made for them without them. Sustaining influence of GYW in both formal and informal institutions is a critical step in ensuring that decisions, practices and policies speaks to the needs and aspirations of GYW in Africa. It is situated at the intersection of child rights, gender equality and civic space.

Plan AULO envisages to achieve this goal by working through three interrelated domains: Central to the She Leads programme is the enhancement of collective action of girls and young women within a gender-responsive civil society (civil society domain), supported by increased acceptance of positive social gender norms (socio-cultural domain) and by enabling meaningful participation of girls and young women in decision-making by AUC and RECs (institutional domain).

Learning in the context of the She Leads programme extends beyond just research, documentation, or a specific phase in the PME cycle. The consortium aims to firmly embed learning in its regular planning, monitoring and evaluation cycle. The Outcome Harvesting process during the Annual Monitoring meeting of the consortium Programme organizations sets the stage for addressing the learning agenda questions.

Learning also includes continuous reflection on what works, the creation of a ‘learning culture’ to promote exchange. The She Leads Pan African Program consortium organizations, partner CSOs use a variety of learning methods and actions to collect, analyze and value information on the key learning questions. These include expert meetings, research, literature review, Outcome Harvesting sessions, Consortium Programme Team (Annual Outcome Harvesting and planning) meetings, mid-term review, reflections and exchanges with partner CSOs and other expert organizations, as well as meetings and surveys with girl and young women advisory boards.

While learning in the She Leads programme is continuously fostered through various methods, such as Outcome Harvesting during the annual meetings and ongoing reflections with partner CSOs and advisory boards, the need for a dedicated learning publication arises. The publication will serve as a comprehensive and structured document that synthesizes these reflections and learning outcomes, providing a formal platform to share insights across the programme, partners, and stakeholders. This ensures that key learnings, achievements of the She Leads Pan-African programme implementation and successful practices are not only documented but also accessible and actionable for broader audiences, ultimately contributing to the scaling and sustainability of the programme’s impact.”

2. Objectives

As it is mentioned above in the rational of the learning aspect in the She Leads program as a whole the overall objective of the production of the learning publication of the She Leads Pan Africa program is to document and clearly indicate what has been gained as a result of the five years program implementation, to properly document all the sign of changes throughout the project implementation period per pathway, to document testimonies of GYW engaged in the project through video recordings. And it is also documenting the learnings that has been achieved and gained for the last four and half years as a result of the contribution of the She Leads Pan African program including challenges, gaps and opportunities encountered during program implementation to also use it as an input for future program design and learning. The specific objectives of the learning publication will be as follows:

2.1 Specific Objective of the learning publication:

1. To summarize and come up with the very significant learnings of the She Leads Pan African Program in amplifying girls and young women’s voice and representation in key decision-making platforms at continental level to be shared with the wider She Leads community as part of the global learning initiatives that are scheduled for this year.
2. To document the programs, sign of changes, testimonies and stories of changes from the GYW in the 7 She Leads implementing countries, so as to use it as an input for future programming.
3. To capture key successes, milestones and measurable outcomes of the She Leads Pan African Program and document effective advocacy strategies applied at continental level that contributed to the programs goal.
4. To showcase achievements, opportunities and challenges of the She Leads Pan-African program and highlight impactful partnership and synergy with the 7 She Leads country Programs.

3. Expected Outcomes

The expected outcomes of the learning publication and document are as follows:

1. A well-organized learning document with the detailed record of the achievements and lessons learned from the involvement of girls and young women in decision-making processes at the continental level. This can respond to what happened prior to the GYW advocates accessing the regional space? (the preparations in their own country, their links to GYW groups, the elaboration of their advocacy messages and the support provided by the She Leads network in the country). And what happened to the GYW advocates after their advocacy in the regional space (how was it reported in national media, how did national/local governments respond, what happened with the GYW advocates back home, etc.)
2. She Leads program sign of changes, achievements and stories of change from GYW of the 7 country programs documented and made accessible. This can be through Instagram interviews with GYW advocates, mini documentaries, TedX talks by young advocates.
3. key successes, milestones and measurable outcomes of the She Leads Pan African Program and effective advocacy strategies documented.
4. Drawing from the insights and lessons learned, the publication and documentaries where appropriate will include actionable recommendations for the future design and implementation of similar programs, aimed at enhancing the empowerment and participation of girls and young women.

4. Scope and Methodology

The learning publication provides analysis and compilation of the learnings that has been accumulated and harvested for the last four and half years throughout the She Leads program implementation period within and among the consortium organization, partner organization, implementing CSOs and the 7 She Leads implementing countries. The publication and documentaries will make use of qualitative and quantitative tools and methodologies to gather and analyse data including FGD, interviews, survey and secondary data review of existing reports, video clips and any recordings among others.

The consultant will be responsible for designing tools necessary for the task and share this with the project manager for review and approval before undertaking the assignment.

5. Deliverables

The following deliverables are expected from the consultant;

1. An inception report detailing major components of the learning publication; detailed work plan, highlighting operational methodology, data gathering and data analysis instruments attached to the inception report;
2. Development of data collection tools and analysis including success stories, and areas for improvement based on the information collected from interviews, surveys, and focus group discussions and so on.
3. Reports from different engagements with She Leads country programs, documenting observations, insights from stakeholders, and contextual factors that contributed to or hindered program success.
4. A set of specific, actionable recommendations based on the key learnings. This could include suggestions on improving future iterations of She Leads or other similar programs in terms of design, implementation, and monitoring.
5. A first draft learning publication, including pictures and visual elements, should be submitted to the Pan African consortium partners for feedback.
6. A well-structured final document summarizing key learnings from the She Leads program over the past four and a half years, organized by themes, key outcomes, and lessons learned. The document should include both qualitative and quantitative findings.
7. Final, reviewed, and approved publication and documentaries in both soft and hard copy formats.
8. Prepare a summary document (2-4 pages) and recordings highlighting key takeaways of the learning publication.
9. Organize debriefing/validation workshop session with the She Leads Program Team and key stakeholders including girls and young women.

6. Timeframe

The development of the learning publication is expected to take place from July 1st – August 15th, 2025. The consultant shall submit the inception report within one week upon signing the agreement. The final report of the learning publication must be finalized and submitted by 15th of August, 2025.

7. Budget Indication

The consultant should indicate the estimated budget including:

• Fees;
• Tax and any other relevant cost related to and required for the proper conducting of the learning publication as per all the objectives and requirements detailed in the ToR.

8. Required Competencies

The consultant must have undertaken similar works and must have the following competencies;

• An advanced university degree in social science related to human rights, gender, or social sciences
• Track record on conducting documentation, learning publication;
• Proven experience with qualitative and quantitative data analysis;
• In-depth understanding of gender equality, girls rights advocacy and child rights context in Africa;
• Expertise in women’s and girls’ political empowerment and decision making, gender sensitive approaches;
• Fluency in spoken and written English;
• Excellent conceptual and analytical skills;
• Conduct her/himself in an ethical manner at all times.

9. Submission of the Proposal

The consultant shall submit a technical and a financial proposal, separately and the following components will be required in the proposals:

i. Technical Proposal, containing;

• The understanding of the ToR, the main goals and tasks of undertaking the learning publication
• A detailed methodology, tools and approaches on how the learning publication will be conducted
• Proposed implementation time schedule
• Organizational capacity statement, past experience and activities related to conducting learning publication
• Curriculum Vitae for all the consultants and proposed capacity of any complementary staff with a description of why experience is relevant to the task and how the proposed team complements each other as well as how they correspond to the profile
• Names, addresses, telephone numbers of three organizations that will act as professional referees
• Lists of relevant work undertaken in the last 2 years. The consultants should be ready to provide samples of previous work of similar nature.

ii. A financial proposal for the provision of the service;

• An itemized line by line budget proposal for consultancy fees. Proposed fees should clearly state professional fee and Withholding (WHT) or Value Add Tax (VAT)the net of tax and the total gross figure.
• Please note that the consultancy fee for non-residence (International Consultant) is subjected to 15% withholding tax of the service value and paid to the Ethiopian Government on behalf of the consultant. For National Consultant’s who have Tax Identification Number (TIN) and renewed business license, 2% withholding tax will be applicable. In the absence of these documents, the Consultant’s is obliged to pay 30% of withholding Tax.
• The proposal should also indicate all other expenses that will be billed as cost with supporting receipts as per Plan International’s expenses policy.
• Tax and any other relevant cost related to and required for the proper conducting of the learning publication as per the objectives and requirements detailed in the ToR
• Proposed terms and schedule of payment.