Consultant for ACE Internal Midline Evaluation
Spark works with local partners to catalyze sustainable collective action and improve livelihoods in communities through a community activation process accompanied by a microgrant.

Terms of Reference
Background to the ACE Project
The Advancing Citizen Engagement project (ACE) is a partnership, signed between Spark Microgrants, the World Bank and Comic Relief in June 2021 to strengthen civic engagement in local development planning and implementation, and improve rural livelihoods, in 249 villages in four districts (Burera, Gankenke, Gichumbi and Huye) in Rwanda. The ACE project development objective (PDO) is to improve livelihoods for 17,750 households/76,000 people and capacity of communities and national and local government for citizen engagement in 249 villages in Rwanda.
This objective is being achieved through a set of activities combining sustainable livelihood grants for poor, rural villages and capacity-building for district, sector, cell and village officials and villages on inclusive, participatory planning. Experience from the village-level activities will then be translated into a national policy framework for participatory village planning, in partnership with central and local government. The Project combines grassroots and policy level activities to strengthen rural livelihoods and establish a National Framework for Participatory Village Planning that will institutionalize participatory and inclusive village development planning at the village level in Rwanda.
The Project is designed to combine Spark’s experience implementing their Facilitated Collective Action Process (FCAP) in Rwanda with existing Government institutions and capacities. The FCAP within the Spark project is a series of facilitated weekly village meetings, during which village residents analyze and agree on village development priorities, and make a simplified village development plan (VDP). The VDP includes three ‘pathways’; i) a project-funded microgrant project, ii) independent actions to be taken by villages, and iii) government-supported actions, linked to existing Government development plans and programs.

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The project is being implemented through four components:
• Component 1: Village and Local Government Capacity Building. This component builds the capacity of local government at the district, sector, and cell levels to facilitate village-driven village development processes to enhance citizen engagement and improve rural livelihoods. It also builds village capacity to engage in development planning and to manage village level subprojects.
• Component Two: MicroGrants. Component two finances priority subprojects identified in the VDPs to improve livelihoods. Each target village is provided a grant of US$8,000, disbursed over two years. The government in each of the target districts contributes five percent of the total grant amount, while village members will make contributions in-kind. MicroGrant eligibility is guaranteed for every target village provided eligibility conditions are met, including the election of a Village Leadership Committee, completion of the VDP and submission and approval of a subproject proposal.
• Component Three: National Framework for Participatory Village Planning. Component Three consolidates lessons from the pilot activities under components one and two and supports the Government of Rwanda to prepare a National Framework for Participatory Village Planning.
• Component 4: Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Knowledge Dissemination. This component includes overall project management, monitoring and evaluation, communications and knowledge dissemination.

Background to the Assignment
In March 2021, Spark conducted an internal baseline study for the ACE project to ascertain the status of the project outcome indicators pre intervention/FCAP implementation to provide a basis for comparison at midline and endline studies. Spark is planning to conduct a follow up study (midline) in February 2023 and is seeking services of highly skilled and qualified 40 consultants to conduct data collection for the study. The consultants will conduct both quantitative data collection through a structured questionnaire programmed in a Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) application and qualitative data collection through Focus Group Discussions using an interview guide.

Scope of Work
Quantitative data collection
The consultants will be employed to collect data in 140 villages spread out in 7 sectors and 4 Districts of Burera, Gicumbi, Huye and Gakenke. Each enumerator will be required to collect 7 surveys per day and cover a total of 20 households in each village. Each enumerator is expected to have a fully functional android smart phone on which the data collection tool will be installed. Below is a table representing the expected surveys in each sector
District Sector Surveys per village Number of villages to be surveyed Total surveys
Burera Rwerere 20 20 400
Burera Kinyababa 20 20 400
Gakenke Busengo 20 20 400
Gicumbi Mutete 20 20 400
Gicumbi Cyumba 20 20 400
Huye Gishamvu 20 20 400
Huye Kigoma 20 20 400
Total 140 140 2800

Qualitative data collection
Out of the 40 consultants, 32 will be selected to conduct Focus Group Discussions. A total of 16 FGDs will be conducted, 4 in each District. Each FGD will be managed by 2 consultants one working as a facilitator/moderator and the other as a note taker. These FGDs will sample 3 key project demographics (SEDOs; Women; Ubudehe Cat1) alongside an open access group. This methodology is designed to demonstrate 90% of issues.

Timelines
Expected outputs
Each of the 40 consultants is expected to have collected a total of 70 surveys by the 12th of February 2023 and for the 32 consultants that will conduct the FGDs, a transcription typed in MS word and translated in English (in soft copy) and a recorded audio file of the FGD will be expected form each pair of consultants.
Spark’s responsibility
In order to facilitate the consultants to undertake the exercise, Spark will do the following;
1. Conduct a 2 days training for the consultants covering; ACE project and FCAP approach, the data collection tools, research ethics, procedure for selection of households to be interviewed and the survey logistics.
2. Secure an introductory letter from the relevant District and Sector officials that each consultant will be expected to carry at all times while undertaking the assignment
3. Provide transportation to and from the field on a daily basis during the period of the assignment
4. Mobilization of FGD participants and bringing them into a central location where the FGDs will be conducted
5. Introducing the consultants to the village leadership and working with the leaders to help the consultants navigate the village

Application Details
Applications are welcome from individuals, who are able to demonstrate the capacity to deliver the piece of work set out above, within the Rwandan context
The following skills and experiences are essential criteria for all applicants
• A university degree in any discipline
• Previous experience in conducting household survey data collection using digital tools within Rwanda; the consultant must have worked on at least 2 data collection assignments previously.
• Experience in conducting qualitative data collection through Focus Group Discussions
• Excellent English and Kinyarwanda spoken and written skills
• Estimated start date: As soon as possible
• Application closing Date: On a rolling basis, we reserve the right to close this recruitment process at any time.
Interested individuals should submit a cover letter demonstrating how you meet the criteria above and your updated CV through this link <https://sparkmicrogrants.bamboohr.com/careers/63>
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