Description:
The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) has launched the Request for Proposals for landscape analysis of social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) In the context of Nutrition-Sensitive social protection in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
GAIN is currently implementing a project on enhancing the potential of social protection interventions to positively influence nutrition behaviours through social and behaviour change communication (SBCC). This project is taking place in Bangladesh and Pakistan—countries representing case studies with very different institutional arrangements and histories of social protection. A detailed synthesis of existing global and country-level evidence is needed in order to effectively design SBCC interventions that are contextually appropriate, aligned with policy priorities, and well-suited to elicit sustained and meaningful nutrition outcomes.
This project is an academic endeavour with the potential to lead to one or more peer-reviewed publications; thus, the consultant is expected to uphold high standards of academic integrity and academic rigor in the execution of this landscape assessment.
- GAIN plans to recruit a consultant to conduct a landscape analysis that
- Describes the present and historical extent of SBCC application in nutrition-sensitive social protection programmes globally; and
- Produces an objective assessment (including a ranking/prioritization based on certain criteria) of tractable entry-points for improving the nutrition impact of existing social protection programmes through SBCC in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Objectives & Tasks
The landscape assessment comprises two main objectives:
Objective1: Describe the present and historical extent of SBCC application in social protection programmes globally, and the potential of these approaches to impact nutrition
- Much evidence has accumulated regarding the value of SBCC in nutrition-sensitive social protection, and leveraging social protection systems as a driver of behaviour change is often cited as a recommendation. Despite this evidence, there has been relatively little synthesis of the theories, tools, and relative impacts of different approaches to SBCC in social protection systems.
TASKS:
- Conduct a systematic review of peer-reviewed and grey literature describing the range of approaches enabling policy environment characteristics, and intended/observed outcomes associated with embedding SBCC in social protection programmes in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)
- Summarize the SBCC theories and conceptual frameworks applied in the included literature, including the extent to which established frameworks are applied, the rationale for applying certain frameworks, and the relative utility of some frameworks over others
- Compile a database of publicly available/open-source tools, protocols, and policies related to embedding SBCC in social protection programmes
Objective 2: Produce an objective assessment (including a ranking/prioritization based on certain criteria) of tractable entry-points for improving the nutrition impact of existing social protection programmes through SBCC in Bangladesh and Pakistan
- The range of appropriate approaches for integrating SBCC into social protection mechanisms is inherently context-specific, given the unique social and policy contexts that influence the social protection landscape at 4 national and sub-national levels. Bangladesh and Pakistan have established social protection systems, but have varying approaches to nutrition and contextualized nutrition and social protection priorities. In this assessment, they aim to achieve a clearer, evidence-based understanding of how, when, and where (i.e. “entrypoints”) SBCC concepts and actions could be leveraged to improve the nutrition impact of social protection systems for nutritionally vulnerable beneficiaries.
Tasks:
- Develop an objective assessment protocol/tool that can be used for evaluating country-level entry points
- Identify country-level (national and sub-national) social protection mechanisms with relevance for food and nutrition (including cash mechanism, so that SBCC can be designed how cash would be expensed for nutritious food by the SP receivers)
- Use the objective assessment protocol to screen social protection mechanisms
- Produce a report summarizing the results of the objective assessment, highlighting areas of particular strength and weakness for each social protection mechanism with respect to influencing positive nutrition behaviours
- Produce a final table/spreadsheet of assessed social protection mechanisms for each country and their relative performance metrics
Evaluation Criteria:
- Proposals will be reviewed by the Selection Team. The following indicate a list of the significant criteria against which proposals will be assessed. This list is not exhaustive or 100% inclusive and is provided to enhance the applicants’ ability to respond with substance. Applicants are required to submit the following information, conforming to the guidelines given in this section:
- Understanding of the scope of work:
- Proposal shall demonstrate a clear understanding of the project objective and deliverables.
- Demonstrate a clear understanding of the technical requirements of this RFP:
- Providing detailed technical documentation of the proposed strategy.
- Evidence of experience delivering solutions using the proposed information technology platform.
- The creative and methodological approaches required to implement each of the parts of the scope of work.
- Comprehensiveness of work plan and reasonableness of proposed time frame:
- Proposal shall include a feasible work plan to ensure successful completion of deliverables.
- The work plan details how activities will be coordinated.
- Detailed budget and cost-effectiveness of proposed approach:
- Evidence of cost-effective approaches to undertaking the scope of work within the proposed budget.
- Proposal shall identify possible challenges and include creative approaches to addressing them.
- Management and personnel plan:
- The team members working on this project shall have the relevant qualifications and overall experience required to successfully implement the project.
- Roles and responsibilities of each team member shall be clearly defined. GAIN shall have one main contact person clearly identified in the proposal.
- A duly completed offer of services.