Relevant Experience: Collecting and writing impact stories

Job Description:

Since 2020, the project has significantly strengthened the collaboration of faith actors, duty-bearers and Civil Society Organizations towards equal rights and opportunity for all. Particularly focussing on:

a)      promoting social cohesion

b)      preventing local disputes

Through the project interventions, efforts were made to touch-base crosscutting issues including promoting role of women in leadership and decision-making processes, youth engagement and awareness about climate change related challenges faced by the communities across project implementation areas. 

1. 1.       The Scope and Purpose:

The assignment is to collect impact stories from the project targeted area, as given in table 1, to showcase impact of the project) at individual and/or socio-political levels. This will help the stakeholders including communities understand and celebrate their contributions to strengthen social cohesion, and reduce incidences of human rights violations, socio-political disputes etc. In addition, these impact stories will complement the project’s endline evaluation.

The assignment shall focus on the following elements:

• How Local Peace Structures - LPS (established under ‘JSA’ project 2020-2024) have contributed to social cohesion within their local context?
• How did project interventions have helped vulnerable group (women, youth, members from religious minority) participation in decision-making processes?
• How did lobbying and advocacy initiatives (‘Sindh Hindu Marriage Bill’ & Education quota for religious minority students in Punjab) helped improve the Conditions and positions of the targeted groups/communities?
• Role of project supported networks/groups/CSOs in uplifting the status of faith groups/communities.  

The contracting agency seeks specialised services of a consultant / consulting firm in identification and compilation impact stories (supported with photographs). The stories should be written in full detail, paying special attention to descriptions of individuals, environment and the interviewee's circumstances.

Stories should consider followings:

• Use alias/imaginary names, instead of real names of the individual(s),
• Name of village, town, community, region etc. to be used carefully and sensitively,
• Describe his/her/their social life and daily routine in detail, where appropriate,
• Describe, if he/she has experienced an act of faith-based discrimination and what helped in coping with this challenge,
• Mention of the local partner’s name and its staff working with the community, where appropriate,
• Some personal feelings/thoughts related to project interventions,
• Seek informed written consent to sharing and publishing views, photographs and recordings.

The contracting agency seeks consultant to propose methodology and plan to accomplish this assignment. However, the methodology should follow the inclusive and multi-stakeholder approach including desk review, meetings, and field visits. The consultant shall also engage men and women from different walks of life i.e., faith actors, relevant Government representatives etc.

1. 2.       Quality standards, principles, and ethical consideration

The service consultant/agency shall respect the contracting agency policies and guidelines such as Do no Harm - DNH, Data safety and ethical guidelines for the impact-stories. Data and information collected during the assignment will be used for the purpose of the assignment only and handed over to the contracting agency on completion of the assignment. Key aspects of the quality assurance regime that the consultant is required to provide in the proposal are:

• Overall quality control
• Data quality assurance
• Privacy/sensitive information protection and confidentiality.

1. 3.       Deliverables:

• Compile a booklet of at-least 10-12 impact stories (Bilingual; English and Urdu) from selective project locations of Sindh and Punjab provinces.

1. 4.       Timeframe & estimate budget:

• Preferably 30-35 days (from the time when contract is signed).

1. 5.       Qualifications and Role of the Consultant:

-      Excellent command on English and Urdu languages (story writing), and good photography

-      Strong background in capturing impact story material for publications,

-      Capacity to narrate the unbiased, objective stories,

-      Possess sound understanding of the socio-cultural demography of the project areas.

-      Proven experience of use of qualitative tools to collect data from individuals and groups.

-      Ability to analyse the information through gender, equality and inclusion lenses.

1. 6.       Role and responsibilities of the contracting agency:

• Provide relevant project documents and materials that supplement information for preparation of impact-stories,
• Facilitate partners’ staff coordination and support to identify potential stories from the field,
• Disbursement of payment/instalment as agreed,
• Review and give feedback and approval on stories booklet

1. 7.       Role and Responsibilities of the Consultant:

• The consultant will complete the assignment as per agreed timeframe.
• The consultant will share draft of impact stories for review and feedback.
• Bear the expense of boarding lodging and travel for him/herself and team throughout the assignment.

1. 8.       Mode of Payment:

Payment will be made in three (3) instalments through cross cheques or online transfer in consultaning authority bank accout.

• 1^st/50% payment will be made in advance after signing the contract.
• 2^nd/25% payment at submission of first draft by the consultant (which is accepted and reviewed by the contracting agency)
• 3^rd/25% payment at submission of final version of the booklet, and 100 copies printed.

1. 9.       Date of Submission:

• Interested individual candidates must submit their proposals no later than 15 November 2024 via email to: procurementpak.360@gmail.com. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.