INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT SCOPE OF WORK

USAID/Liberia Civil Society Activity (CSA)

1. Background

The USAID Liberia Civil Society Activity (CSA) was launched in 2022 to support Liberian citizens and civil society organization to advocate for policy reforms, policy implementation, and service delivery improvements through multi-stakeholder coalitions that build feedback loops among the GOL, CSOs, and citizens. In Objective 1, the activity will form issue-based coalitions around three thematic windows. Composed of diverse members, coalitions will analyze the most critical issues that can lead to feasible reforms, co-create advocacy strategies, and translate them into improved policy formation and implementation. Under Objective 2, coalitions will apply citizen engagement strategies and policy dialogue platforms to integrate citizens’ voices in advocacy agendas. Coalitions will close feedback loops by disseminating results of their advocacy efforts to the broader community to encourage continued dialogue. Activities under Objectives 3 and Objective 4 will ensure that coalition members’ achievements are sustainable by building their financial resilience and adaptive capacities and linking them to a pool of Liberian private sector service providers.

The CSA project aims to build on previous advocacy collaborations by USAID, NAYMOTE AND CENTAL such as the “More for Education” campaign that helped to increase the budgetary appropriation to education fiscal years 2018/2019 and 2019/020. This is However, there are localized, county and district specific challenges to leveraging resources into improved earning outcomes at the community level. Some of the issues around governance and accountability, impacts of policies and systems, inclusive decision making, deconcentrated service delivery and access to information. The extent to which these issues affect service delivery and education outcomes can be determined through a Political Economy Analysis

involving issues-focused research involving in-depth consultations among stakeholders, including education sector experts and policy makers among others.

2. Liberia CSA’s Applied Political Economy Analysis

Political Economy Analysis (PEA) is an investigative analytical to explaining why things happen in a given development context, through improving understandings of underlying power dynamics and relationships. USAID’S PEA methodology seeks to support the development of approaches at different stages of the project implementation. The CSA project will conduct a sector-level, issue-based PEA process into each of the two thematic windows, Education and Health, to deconstruct them into specific issues, understand and identify opportunities for advocacy, and ensure alignment with the strategic areas of focus of the CSA and Government of Liberia’s development priorities. The PEA’s problem-driven analysis will ensure that interventions are centered around high-impact issues that matter to Liberians.

3. Purpose and Objective of the Position

With the support of CSA Core Partners CENTAL and NAYMOTE, and under the oversight of the CSA Technical team, the PEA Consultant will work alongside other national and international experts to conduct the Political Economy Analysis of the Education sector. He/she will identify underlying legal,

policy, regulatory and structural factors that enhance or constrains performance and service delivery to citizens and communities. He/ She will also examine the incentives and impediments for action that will enable county and district-level oversight of primary and secondary education services in Liberia. Focusing on the challenges with the timely budget/financial allocations to schools, availability of qualified teachers, and access to affordable, available, accessible, and adequate education amenities in Liberia. The consultant will identify key opportunities and most effective approaches that community groups, civil society organizations, and coalitions may take to support improved education services in Liberia.

4. Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Review the legal, regulatory, and policy framework that influence service delivery in education • Analyze the national, local and international dimensions of intra-sectoral linkages, relationships and interests that influence service delivery in education.
• Assess the administrative arrangements for the supply of human and logistical resources in support of education service delivery
• Analyze of the funding streams from, all sources, to county and district level education services. • Examine the governance and administrative structures of county and district level education services. • Review the national and local resource allocation and decision-making processes and the impacts on education services.
• Support, and coordinate with, the CSA technical team, CSA core partners and PEA team to complete the PEA for education.

5. Deliverables

• Inception report, including workplan and methodology
• The following research documents to support the CSA’s PEA process:

o How the controlling laws, regulations and policies are implemented and the impacts on local education service delivery

o State of governance and accountability system for education service delivery at county, district and facility level.

o Resource mobilization and funding mechanisms for education systems and facilities o Recommendations for advocacy pathways for citizens and CSO coalitions

• Final report including. In addition to the description of findings and PEA activities, the report should also include the following:

o Recommendations for managing the challenges and constraints to satisfactory service delivery

o Bibliography of laws/regulations/policies and research work, professional papers and other references utilized

6. Qualification and Skills

• Master’s degree in Social Science, Political Science, Economics, International Development, Education or other closely related fields, or equivalent experience.
• Demonstrated technical research competency, leadership, and administrative skills and experience conducting research. Research experience in political economy analysis will be an advantage.
• Minimum five years of research, survey and assessment experience in public sector service delivery, political economy, or related fields
• Significant work experience coordinating with diverse stakeholders in one or more of the following areas: education, health, public administration, local government officials, government ministries, agencies and commission, NGOs, INGOs, donor community, academic institutions • Proven experience in report writing
• Inter-personal skills and attention to details
• Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team
• Demonstrated ability to respond on short notice, multitask, meet deadlines consistently. • Knowledge and experience of working in an USAID assessment is preferred but not required. • Excellent communication skills and command of written and spoken English • Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel, Power point applications.

7. HOW TOAPPLY: If you are interested, please send the following to CSA by no later than June 17, 2022 to email address: LiberiaCSA@dai.com with the title (“PEA CONSULTANT – EDUCATION”) in the subject line

• Detailed CV – outlining all previous professional experience.
• A cover letter that explains 1) why you are interested in the CSA program and the role of Political Economy Analysis in Education Consultant, and 2) why you are best suited for this role. • Name of three professional and academic references.

USAID CSA values diversity and inclusion and strongly encourages women and persons from marginalized groups to apply