- Background
The United Voices in Action (VIA) program is implemented by the International Research and Exchange Board (IREX). IREX brings nearly 30 years of experience in Ukraine to the program, including direct work with youth and over 1,400 local communities in 24 oblasts. The VIA program helps Ukraine’s internally displaced persons (IDPs) learn valuable conflict resolution and advocacy skills to reduce their vulnerability to exploitation and increase community cohesion. The program brings together IDPs, receiving community members, government representatives, and media figures and connects them with resources to advance local level conflict resolution, stabilization, and integration.
In our program we use the following definition of IDPs: according to the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, internally displaced persons are persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized state border.
IREX is looking for a vendor to conduct face to face (or CATI) interviews in selected 25 host communities (HC), key informant interviews of experts with IDP issues expertise.
The currency of the tender proposal is US dollar, however the payments will be made in UAH.
The bid and the final price shall not include VAT. The Vendor is obliged to supply goods or provide services without VAT, in accordance with the law of Ukraine on VAT exemption for goods supplied within the framework of international technical assistance projects in accordance with international treaties of Ukraine.
Payment for the services provided will be made in hryvnias (without VAT).
Duration of the contract to be concluded: the term of service provision: from the date of the contract conclusion to September 15, 2024.
Please note that IREX is not responsible for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of the proposal by the vendor, regardless of the outcome or method of the selection process.
Goal of the final evaluation:
To discover the impact of VIA Program in host communities, interactions between IDPs and host communities’ population. Highlight specifics and changes in IDP’s issues, attitudes, and interaction with host communities’ representatives. To discover the impact of VIA Program into its beneficiaries’ behavior.
City host Communities: Uzhhorod, Mukachevo, Cherkasy, Uman, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Kropyvnytskyi, Сhernivtsi, Lviv, Kyiv, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, Rivne, Poltava, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Bila Tserkva, Chervonohrad, Kamianets-Podilskyi, Lutsk, Kolomyia, Kam`yanske, Ivano-Frankisvsk, Obukhiv, Kryvyi Rih.
II IREX expects that the selected vendor will conduct quantitative and qualitative parts of the final evaluation:
1) Qualitative part
Objectives for qualitative part:
- Study current situation of IDPs originated after events of 2014, as well as from February 24th of 2022, in selected communities, focusing on IDPs of age 6-18 and 30+, and 60+ as a separate group.
- Study current relations between two groups of: IDPs and host community (tensions, perceived discrimination, viewing each other as partners, attitude towards IDP Councils and local authorities, advocacy issues, knowledge of ).
- Identify current level of integration of IDPs of both waves, aged 6-18 and 30+, with host communities.
- Identify pressing integration-needs of IDPs of both waves, aged 6-18 and 30+, including psychosocial support, advocacy and/or other skills training, mentoring, networking, resources, or other assistance.
- Identify the impact VIA had on IDPs and HC.
Target audience 1: IDP’s and receiving communities – participants of the VIA activities
Target audience 2: members of local government and decision makers in communities
2) Quantitative part
Objectives for quantitative part:
- Study relations between IDPs of age 30+ and host community (tensions, perceived discrimination, viewing each other as partners, Sense of Community).
- Identify the psychological state of IDPs aged 30+ and host community (using instrument of PHQ-9).
- Study integration-related needs as well as the skills training, mentoring, networking, resources, employment or other assistance needs of IDPs of age 30+
- Study educational (schooling) needs of IDPs of age 30+ with children of age 6-18.
- Identify advocacy-related needs of IDPs of age 30+, including awareness of IDPs of relevant legislative and policy changes, perceived influence on these changes, relations with key officials, awareness of relevant networks and resources, capacity to affect public opinion, and related needs for skills training, mentoring, networking, resources, or other assistance.
- Identify level of awareness about IDP Councils, SSS-activities etc.
- Identify (with help from IREX) participants of VIA activities: RDW, YH, IW, AA in order to measure the difference in experience, impressions and needs.
Target audience 1: IDPs aged 30+ in selected communities who were forced to leave their homes since 2014 and/or since 24th of February 2022.
Target audience 2: Host community members aged 30+ in selected communities.
Target audience 3: Participants of VIA’s activities (up to 3000 people).
Target audience 4: Experts in IDP-related area (representatives of local authorities) – for KIIs.
III Scope of work
IREX expects that selected vendor to conduct the following tasks:
1) Qualitative part of the final evaluation:
- Develop design and methodology for Qualitative part.
- Conduct 25 in-depth interviews with local government officials
(or NGO’s representatives)working with IDPs in target communities. One interview for each selected community.
- In cooperation with IREX, finalize the guide for conduction of in-depth interviews. IREX will share the first draft of guide for in-depth interviews in English and Ukrainian.
- Conduct fieldwork.
- Prepare narrative analytical report.
- Prepare PowerPoint Presentation with key results and recommendations.
1) Quantitative part of the final evaluation:
Finalize the Survey questionnaire with Vendor. Basic questions would be provided by IREX . Interview duration: 20-25 min.
Method of interview: Propose the most suitable data collection method (F2F/CATI/online survey).
Total sample size not less than 2, 200. At least 50% of total sample should be IDPs.
Base of IDPs contacts is not provided.
Vendor will:
- Develop design of the survey, including sampling plan (sample size, quotas, method of recruitment, distribution by communities).
- In cooperation with IREX, finalize the survey questionnaire. Survey questionnaire is provided by IREX in English
- Translate the survey questionnaire into Ukrainian.
- Conduct pre-test of interviews with a sample of potential respondents to address potential issues.
- Conduct fieldwork.
- Prepare technical report.
- Prepare analytical report.
Deliverables
- Work plan (with timelines) in English for each part of the assessment.
- Methodology and tools for desk research and survey, including detailed sampling plan, in English and Ukrainian.
- Final guide for in-depth interviews in English and Ukrainian.
- Prepare transcripts for in-depth interviews in the language of respondents.
- Narrative analytical report for conducted in-depth interviews in selected communities in English and Ukrainian.
- Piloting report (up to 1 page).
- Final survey questionnaire in English and Ukrainian.
- Final cleaned database with coded open question and codebook for survey in Excel (xls/csv) or in SPSS (sav) with labels in English and Ukrainian.
- Excel tables with basic social demographic disaggregation in English and Ukrainian. The disaggregation list will be finalized in cooperation with IREX.
- Analytical report in Ukrainian and English
- Power Point presentation highlighting key results of survey and in-depth interviews in both aggregated form and desegregated by key factors (e.g. indexes if used) in English and Ukrainian.
- Technical report for survey (including sampling procedures, fieldwork description, response rate, data quality control results, etc.) in English and Ukrainian.
Timing/duration
Work must be completed by August 7
IV. Proposal requirements
Proposal should be sent to tender-ua@irex.org no later than June 28 16:59. Questions can be asked via email kpetrenko@irex.org no later than June 30 16:00.
Elements of the proposal:
- Narrative proposal (maximum size of the narrative proposal in MS Word is 5 pages (font size 12, 1.5 line spacing) which includes:
- Methodology and design for conduction of in-depth key informant interviews;
- Methodology of quantitative survey including method of recruiting respondents and expected sample size;
- Capacity of the organization. Relevant examples of completed similar assignments performed during the last 2 years, and specifically a description of one assignment performed during the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine;
- Timeline by different activities. Timeline should include two options: no list of contact persons for in-depth interview are provided by IREX, and list of contact persons for in-depth interview are provided by IREX.
- Registration documents of the organization.
- Budget calculations by budget lines. Budget calculations to be sent in a separate MS Excel file, using recommended budget template Budget template Budget options should include two scenarios: no list of contact persons for in-depth interview are provided by IREX, and list of contact persons for in-depth interview is provided by IREX.
- Language of submission is English.
V. Selection criteria
| Evaluation Criteria | Maximum Score |
| The proposed methodology is best suitable for conduction of in-depth key informant interviews and . | 35 Points |
| Capacity of vendor. | 15 Points |
| Timeline is realistic and responds to stated deadline. | 25 Points |
| The most value for the price. | 20 Points |
| Fulfilment of the requirements of the submission. | 5 Points |
| Total Possible Points | 100 Points |