SECTION C SOW INSPIRE.pdf

SECTION C—STATEMENT OF WORK

C.1 Objective/Goal

The objective of the USAID/Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) INSPIRE – Human Rights activity is to empower citizens and government institutions to improve the overall human rights protections, provided services, and employment prospects for BiH’s most vulnerable persons.

C.2 Scope of the activity

The Contractor must provide technical assistance and support to disadvantaged and vulnerable persons through the following five project components:

Component 1 The Contractor must award and manage grants to civil society and organizations that work to improve the BiH government’s counter-trafficking response.

Component 2 The contractor must strengthen the current system of services provided through the seven service centers resulting in a fiscally sustainable model. The resulting model must be replicable by other communities to provide support to disabled children and their families. The contractor must work in supporting deinstitutionalization by strengthening the current system of services provided by the community-based living model established by local NGO Sumero, resulting in a fiscally sustainable model. The resulting model must be replicable by other communities to provide support to deinstitutionalization efforts.

Component 3 The contractor must build the capacity and commitment of at least 10 municipal governments (5 in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 5 in the Republika Srpka) to help create a sustainable scheme that fosters formal employment opportunities for vulnerable women and members of disadvantaged groups.

Component 4 (Optional) The contractor must award and manage grants to local partners to develop awareness campaigns on human rights issues of the LGBTQI community.

Component 5 The contractor must provide training on an ad hoc basis to the grantees. While these trainings are intended for the organizations receiving funds under component four, they may be used for ad hoc training to organizations under components one and two.

C.3 Background and Links to USAID/BiH development objectives

INSPIRE is a follow-on to USAID’s Marginalized Populations Support Program (2015-2021) which assists local organizations that advocate for the rights, empowerment and dignity of underrepresented groups of BiH society, and builds the capacity of local NGOs and BiH institutions to do so. While we’ve seen major results from this program such as increasing local support for the development of more service centers to support disabled individuals and their families, for rural women to be able to open small businesses, as well as the capacity of the

Sarajevo Open Center being built to the point where they were able to interact successfully with municipal and civic leaders to host the first PRIDE march in BiH, significant needs still exist.

According to USAID’s MEASURE report on the “Status of Marginalized Populations and Local

Organizations in BiH”, the overall impression of government representatives and international and local organizations that work with marginalized populations is that their status has improved slightly in the last five years, but even this careful optimism is not matched by the perceptions of the public and members of these populations themselves. In many international reports (including the State Department Report on Human Right 2018), BiH is reported to have ratified key international human rights instruments and created various laws on discrimination, and yet implementation remains inconsistent. Minority groups like the Roma continue to be a vulnerable and discriminated group; members of the LGBTQI community continue to face discrimination and violence.

Also, BiH is not progressing in the deinstitutionalization of persons from closed institutions and families with disabled persons still fall short in their economic, social, and cultural rights.

Additionally, as noted in USAID’s aforementioned report, despite the Law on Gender Equality, women in BiH continue to be underrepresented in politics, the labor market and public life.

Women’s activity and employment rates remain significantly lower than for men, which perpetuate women’s dependent status. This issue was also echoed on BiH’s Journey to Self-Reliance

Roadmap, as BiH scored a 0.56 on the Economic Gender Gap indicator, which is below the average. This activity aligns with the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP)

Initiative’s second pillar , which is for promoting women’s entrepreneurship and providing women with access to capital, markets, technical assistance and networks. Additionally, human trafficking in Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to be a major affront to human rights. According to the U.S.

State Departments TIP Report, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a Tier 2 watch list designated country.

The report maintains that the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so.

Addressing human trafficking is a major concern for USAID BiH, due to the fact that countering trafficking in persons is a key proponent for the U.S. government to continue assistance to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This proposed activity directly contributes to Project Sub-Purpose 1.2.3, Individuals and CSO’s representing underrepresented groups constructively engaged in civic/political issues. It may also contribute to Project 1.1, Sub-Purpose 1.1.2, Strengthen government’s capacity to address human rights issues.

C.4. Technical Components of Work Requirements

C.4.1 Component 1 Support Efforts to Reduce Human Trafficking

The Contractor must award and manage grants to civil society organizations aimed at increasing the direct assistance to victims of trafficking in BiH, advocating for improvements of legislation and policies in line with international standards and monitoring of implementation of TIP legislation. In addition, the recipients of these grants should actively coordinate efforts with government’s counter-trafficking institutions, including Regional Monitoring Teams and the office of the State Coordinator for Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings in BiH. These efforts will contribute to BiH’s response to problem of trafficking in persons in BiH. USAID anticipates that the contractor will award approximately 1 to 3 grants annually.

C.4.2 Component 2: Strengthen the current model of the service centers for children with disabilities and their families, incorporating a to become sustainable

Task 1.

The contractor must work to strengthen the current model (see Annex 1) to move the seven existing service centers for families of children with disabilities to be locally financially sustainable. This model must be replicable by communities and/or governments in BiH to support various social services. This includes utilizing sources of sustainable support from the BiH government, private sector, and from local philanthropic donors while reducing international donor support to zero.

Technical Design: Using existing data the contractor must analyze the services being offered, the cost associated with them and the operation of the centers and create a detailed plan for sustainability. The key goal is to scale down USAID support for these centers to the point that they become self-sustained while, if possible, continuing to provide the same services.

The contractor is responsible for implementing this plan with the seven service centers. This must include significant technical assistance, capacity building, and the refinement and/or creation of operational and financial systems to support sustainability.

Grants Administration: The Contractor must award and manage grants to the existing seven centers on behalf of USAID/BiH. It is expected to award grants annually to the six NGOs managing the seven service centers in alignment with the goals stated under C.4.1. As the service centers take on more financial responsibility, the amount of the grants must decrease each year per the chart below:

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5

$350,000 $300,000 $250,000 $150,000 $100,000

Task 2

The contractor must support deinstitutionalization by strengthening and making sustainable the community based living model established by local NGO Sumero. (see Annex 2 for Sumero information). This model must be replicable by communities and/or governments in BiH to support community based living services. This includes utilizing sources of sustainable support from the

BiH government, private sector, and from local philanthropic donors while reducing international donor support to zero.

Technical Design: Using existing data, the contractor must analyze the services being offered, the cost associated with them and the operation of the community based living program, and create a detailed plan for sustainability. The key goal is to scale down USAID support for these centers to the point that they become self sustained while, if possible, continuing to provide the same services.

The contractor is responsible for implementing this plan with the community-based living program. This will include significant technical assistance, capacity building, and the refinement and/or creation of operational and financial systems to support sustainability

Grants Administration: The Contractor must award and manage grants to the existing project on behalf of USAID/BiH. It is expected to award grants annually to the NGO Sumero in alignment with the goals stated under C.4.2. As the community-based living program takes on more financial responsibility, the amount of the grants must decrease each year per the chart below:

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5

$0 $100,000 $100,000 $50,000 $0

Under both tasks, the contractor must work to build the capacity of the organizations to network and advocate for the needs of their respective organizations, clients, and communities.

C.4.3 Component 3: The contractor must build the capacity and commitment of at least 10 municipal governments( 5 in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 5 in the Republika

Srpka) to create a sustainable scheme that fosters formal employment opportunities for vulnerable women and members of disadvantaged groups.

Capacity Building: The contractor, with USAID’s input, must develop the application criteria for which interested municipalities will apply for funding. For those municipalities selected, the contractor must build the capacity of the respective employment departments and private businesses to foster employment opportunities for vulnerable women (including those who are victims of gender based violence) and members of disadvantaged groups. This activity aims to employ two principles for catalyzing self-reliance: Private Sector Engagement and Redefining our

Relationships with Partner Government. This activity increases support for developing a model of human rights services delivery that engages the private sector and BiH government at all levels so that interventions become sustainable beyond U.S. government support and funding. According to

BiH’s Journey to Self-Reliance Roadmap, BiH scored above the average on the Government

Effectiveness indicator, showing that government institutions in BiH are able to effectively render basic human services to BiH’s most vulnerable.

Secure Financial Support from Government: The contractor must secure at least a 50% cost share from the municipal government.

Grants Administration: The Contractor must award and manage grants to the municipalities on behalf of USAID/BiH.

Development of Private Sector Engagement Strategy: The contractor must develop a strategy and plan to increase private sector support for these initiatives. Private sector engagement leads to greater ownership, technically and financially.

C.4.4 Component 4 (Optional): Public Awareness of Human Rights Issues

The Contractor must award and manage grants to local partners to develop awareness campaigns on human rights issues of the LGBTQI community and on other key issues plaguing vulnerable populations such as disenfranchised minorities. In regards to the LGBTQI community, this includes working with the relevant institutions to support and affirm the human rights of this community. This also includes creating awareness campaigns through various means (including social media, traditional media, academia, etc.) to educate the general public about human rights issues facing the LGBTQI community.

Grant Management: The contractor must award and manage grants to local organizations on behalf of USAID/BiH in support of the topics listed above. Three types of grants to local organizations are anticipated under this activity – unsolicited, topic specific, and directed grants.

USAID anticipates that the contractor will award approximately 3 to 5 grants annually.

C.4.5 Component 5: Tailored Trainings

The contractor must provide selective training on an ad hoc basis to the grantees under components four. Likely topics include financial sustainability, advocacy, outreach, and training of partner

NGOS on new local laws (in cases where the laws have changed). While these trainings are intended for the organizations receiving funds under component four, they may be used for ad hoc training to organizations under components one and two.

The Contractor must provide targeted training assistance to non-governmental organizations, including associations, civil society organizations. The Contractor must include in these training activities USAID local partners to enhance their performance and management capacity in the areas relevant to this activity.

C.5 Organizational Performance Index (OPI). For all tasks above: For each of the awards it manages, and as additionally directed by USAID, the contractor must perform an OPI of grantees. This tool will be used as a baseline and markers for progress related to capacity building.

OPIs assess technical capacity in eight domains, including: 1) Achieving Results, 2) Meeting

Standards, 3) Delivering services, 4) Enhancing reach, 5) Mobilizing resources, 6) increasing capital, 7) Engaging Stakeholders, and 8) Learning. OPI reports include concrete action plans to measure the organizational, management, human resource, and financial performance of local organizations and institutions. The plan will be agreed upon by USAID and the local organization and implemented by the Contractor.

C.6 Expected results

By the end of the contract (including options), the activity must achieve the following results:

• The current 7 service centers which provide services that assist children with disabilities and their families will be sustainable at the local level, or have a plan in place for sustainability, and become a model for other municipalities to copy.

• A system of deinstitutionalization, like Sumero’s, will be refined and expanded.

This includes enhancing the organization’s technical expertise for advocacy and capacity building. The model will have been adopted and implemented by at least

10 more communities.

• Up to 10 municipal governments will be aided to create a sustainable scheme that fosters formal employment opportunities for vulnerable women and members of other disadvantaged groups. This will consist of 5 municipalities in the

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 5 in the Republika Srpska.

• Capacity of supported non-governmental organizations, including associations, civil society organizations will have been increased through targeted training on topics of financial sustainability, advocacy, and outreach.

• If this component 4.4 is activated, 3-5 grants will be given to local organizations annually on behalf of USAID/BiH working on issues related to the LGBTQI community.

• 1-3 grants will be given on behalf of USAID/BiH to work to combat trafficking. USAID expects that on average approximately $400,000 per year will be awarded.

The contractor must know and understand USAID monitoring and evaluation guidelines. The contractor must work closely with the USAID Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, as well as each Project Team, to develop indicators for and with awardees and ensure awardees to collect and report data as necessary. The contractor must assist the COR, the M&E Specialist, and the

Project Teams in identifying where the objectives of each award align with the Mission’s

Performance Management Plan (PMP).

The Contractor must also propose indicators and results to measure their own progress on implementation of this activity.

Please see attached Annex to the Statement of Work for Service Centers

[END OF SECTION C]