OVC_Evalns_SOCY-BOCY_RFI_Final_NK-rev-1.pdf

UGANDA

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION – AID-617-RFI-17-00002

OFFICE OF EDUCATION, YOUTH, AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

1.0 Description

1.1 USAID/Uganda, in support of the Education, Youth, and Child Development (EYCD) Office, is seeking information from interested parties regarding an evaluation of two Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) activities in Uganda: Better Outcomes for Children and Youth (BOCY) and Sustainable Outcomes for Children and Youth (SOCY).

1.2 THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes – it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. This request for information does not commit the U.S. Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. Further, USAID/Uganda is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Responders are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this RFI; all costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party’s expense. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the www.fbo.gov and/or www.gsa.gov. It is the potential offerors responsibility to monitor this site for the release of any synopsis. Interested parties are responsible for checking this website for further information and updates.

2.0 Background

EVALUATION OF THE BETTER OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (BOCY) AND

SUSTAINABLE OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH (SOCY) ACTIVITIES

2.1 BOCY & SOCY

USAID/Uganda’s OVC program employs an integrated approach to address multiple aspects of vulnerability common among children and their caregivers, including poverty, malnutrition, and exposure to violence. Low levels of education and high prevalence of HIV/AIDS among children themselves, as well as within their families, exacerbate these vulnerabilities. The BOCY and SOCY activities began implementation in 2015, collectively covering 30 districts across Uganda and aiming to economically empower orphaned and vulnerable children, youth, and their caregivers to access core services (Result 1); strengthen local government, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), and informal community structures to increase and improve core services for orphaned and vulnerable children, youth, and their caregivers (Result 2); and improve coordination of community-based clinical and socio-economic services for efficiency and effectiveness along the continuum of care (Result 3).

BOCY and SOCY were awarded in April 2015 and are in their second year of implementation.

Interventions within the designs of the two activities have been and will continue to be introduced at different times. While BOCY has already initiated both system and household level interventions in all of their target communities, SOCY has started with system level interventions in all communities, but will phase household level interventions into communities over the first three years. Both activities will continue to enroll new beneficiaries each year.

http://www.fbo.gov/ http://www.gsa.gov/

RFI: Evaluation of BOCY and SOCY

2.2 Purpose

The purpose of the evaluation is to provide the USAID/Uganda with rigorous evidence regarding the extent to which the BOCY and SOCY activities did or did not achieve impact on key outcome indicators and to identify factors or combinations of factors, within and outside the activities, which may explain how and/or why impact was achieved. It is anticipated that an impact evaluation will be conducted for SOCY and a performance evaluation for both SOCY and BOCY.

For SOCY, an impact evaluation will address both of these aspects. The desired approach will be a combination of a nested quasi-experimental design with qualitative comparative analysis (QCA).

Baseline data for SOCY is currently in the process of being collected and the evaluation contractor will need to incorporate existing data collection instruments and data into the design. It is expected that future data collections will be carried out by the contractor, as well as data analysis and dissemination of findings. The performance evaluation will complement these findings and may focus on questions around sustainability of processes and impact, cost effectiveness, determinants of a household’s ability to benefit from the program, gender differences and effects of the program on gender dynamics (intended or unintended), and the success and effectiveness of systems approaches and community engagement.

For BOCY, a performance evaluation will establish whether or not there is a positive change in key indicators among beneficiaries and systems targeted by BOCY over time and may additionally look at sustainability of processes and impact, cost effectiveness, determinants of a household’s ability to benefit from the program, gender differences and effects of the program on gender dynamics (intended or unintended), and the success and effectiveness of systems approaches and community engagement. The contractor will be expected to develop a rigorous performance evaluation design and survey instruments and conduct several rounds of data collection over the life of the program as well as data analysis and dissemination of findings. Data sources and methodologies may include, but are not limited to, desk reviews, qualitative and quantitative methods.

2.3 Performance Period

The anticipated period of performance is five years (2017 – 2021).

3.0 Requested Information

The objective of this Request For Information (RFI) is to gauge interest, improve USAID's knowledge of capabilities among potential offerors, and solicit information that will enable USAID to better prepare a solicitation that meets the Agency’s needs for an impact evaluation of SOCY using a combination of quasi-experimental design and qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), and a performance evaluation of both BOCY and SOCY.

4.0 Responses

4.1 Interested parties are requested to respond to this RFI as described herein below.

4.2 Responses should be in Microsoft Word compatible formats and submitted no later than close of business January 10, 2017, 16:00 hours local Uganda time. Responses are limited to 20 pages and submitted via e-mail only to KampalaUSAIDSolicita@usaid.gov. Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and MUST BE CLEARLY MARKED. To aid the Government, please segregate proprietary information. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

mailto:KampalaUSAIDSolicita@usaid.gov

RFI: Evaluation of BOCY and SOCY

4.3. Responses shall include, at a minimum, the following:

1) The name and address of the company

2) Primary point of contact, phone number, and e-mail address of the company

3) The company’s experience in designing and conducting impact and performance evaluations of international development programs in sub-Saharan Africa, ideally Uganda

4) The quantitative methods the company has used in these evaluations

5) The company’s experience in applying a QCA approach to evaluate international development programs

6) The level of the company’s knowledge and familiarity with USAID OVC programming and context in sub-Saharan Africa, ideally Uganda

7) The company’s organizational capacity to conduct a multi-year, large-scale (2,500 households or more per year) rigorous evaluation in Uganda

8) The company’s ability to quickly put in place the necessary processes and systems for data collection in Uganda, including in rural and urban sites

9) Business type (large business, small business, small disadvantaged business, 8(a)-certified small disadvantaged business, HUBZone small business, woman-owned small business, very small business, veteran-owned small business, service-disabled veteran-owned small business) based upon North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 541611 and 541990.

In responses to items three (3) through seven (7), please include documentation, examples, and/or references.

5.0 Industry Discussions

USAID representatives will NOT meet with potential interested parties. All information solicited must be submitted via email to: kampalasolicita@usaid.gov. USAID will not respond to questions regarding this announcement.

6.0 Summary

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY to identify sources that can provide the above mentioned services. The information provided in the RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. USAID has not made a commitment to procure any of the items discussed, and release of this RFI should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned.