A consultant to conduct a training School Safety and Contingency Planning.

REQUEST FOR CONSULTANTS

The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is a global humanitarian organization with a mission to work with people in poverty and distress to create just and positive change. ADRA Somalia belongs to the worldwide network, comprised of more than 130 supporting and implementing country offices. ADRA Somalia is seeking to recruit a consultant to conduct a training School Safety and Contingency Planning.
Purpose and Objective of the Consultancy
Emergency situations create circumstances in which threat and loss are common. However, people and communities often have capacities to cope with the distress caused by emergencies. What is always needed is assistance to reinforce such existing capacities as protective factors and promote resilience. The planned psychosocial support intervention aims to strengthen individuals’ protective factors, minimize risks, and promote the psychosocial well-being of learners.

The following objectives are to be achieved:
i. Develop appropriate context strategies for a safe learning environment both at school and remotely.
ii. Institute measures for quality, age-appropriate acquisition of lifesaving and disaster preparedness skills and psychosocial support for wellbeing and resilience of children and their communities.
iii. Support schools to implement the safe school operations guidance with government and local partners.
iv. Enhance coordinated and informed actions of national level platform for reducing disaster risks in schools;

Rationale for School Contingency Planning
Schooling provides essential learning and when schools close, children and youth are deprived opportunities for growth and development in growing their competencies. The disadvantages are disproportionate for under-privileged learners who tend to have less access to educational opportunities beyond school. Insecure schools lead to high dropout rates since is a challenge to ensure children and youth return and stay in school when schools reopen after protracted closures due to early marriages, child labour, drug and substance abuse occasioned by frustration. Young and adolescent girls face greater vulnerabilities such as domestic/gender-based violence when not in school. In difficult economic times, boys are more likely to drop out of school to support family economic activity or take employment outside of the home thereby increasing child labour. Children and youth with disabilities, along with other marginalized populations; including children from minority groups, are neglected in the best of times and face heightened learning risks during prolonged school closures. Schools and learning centres are places for communities to address health related issues, including mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), which the most vulnerable students rely on for their wellbeing and development to learn. Against this, young people stand to be affected by trauma or mental health issues. It is therefore imperative that seamless learning is sustained to ensure that children do not lose out on essential learning times that could have an impact on their developmental milestones.

In view of this, there is need for strategies and plans for prevention of risks, hazards, disasters including infectious diseases and preparedness of learners, teachers and school communities including mechanisms to offer effective supportive case management in and out of school. The rationale for this response plan is therefore, to guide basic education in the overall readiness and response for emergencies to enable learning to continue and the education system to recover and transit smoothly post any disaster or pandemic.

Scope of Work
This contingency plan targets learners and teachers in basic education institutions with a focus to most vulnerable and poor learners including learners with special needs and disabilities. The assignment should be a highly participatory process to ensure that the tools to be developed are rooted in best practices and there is buy-in from the key partners including Education Sector stakeholders. Minimum research, analysis, extensive consultation and synthesis of existing policies and legislation.

The scope of work will specifically entail the following:
– Assessment of the physical location and infrastructural stability of the schools and constructions to withstand disasters;
– Institutional preparedness of schools in protecting education from disasters;
– Strengthen capacity of stakeholders on sustainable preparedness measures to reduce disaster risks in schools and stimulate organised actions for emergency response and recovery;
– Analyze existing guidelines, policies and legislation on school disaster risk management (DRM) and in-build the provisions into the school contingency plans;
– Full community engagement with clear communication and information channels;
– Develop a framework for school contingency plans for disaster preparedness, risk reduction response;
– Measures with regards to gender differences including for children with disabilities for continued learning;
– Sustained engagement of teachers with their classes and students to monitor progress, assign new lessons and to provide psychosocial support services as may be appropriate;
– Referral mechanisms for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) as may be appropriate;

Methodology
The ToT Training Guide will be required for facilitate simple and understandable training techniques that can easily be understood by the participants. Participatory training will be critical to stimulate learning and facilitate discussion. Relevant case analysis, lectures and presentations will be the main training methodologies. In overall, least cost but most effective approaches for delivering the assignment shall be employed. The viability of the proposed approaches and methodologies will be discussed by the project team prior to commencement of the assignment.

Expected Deliverables
All deliverables will be completed with guidance, input and feedback from the Project Manager or designate. The following outputs are expected:
i. Inception Report and detailed work plan for undertaking the assignment
ii. Debrief with MOEs/ADRA and Implementing Partners on the findings
iii. Draft and Final Training Report including the training manual
iv. Framework for school contingency plans

Further Information
– Logistics: travel logistics for the assignment shall be inclusive of the facilitated funds.
– Fees: shall be payable to the extent of the jointly agreed and costed workplan for the assignment to be delivered.
– Tax and insurance: shall be the responsibility of the contracted party as appropriate during the assignment period.
– Code of conduct: the engaged party shall be bound by the principles and conditions of ADRA’s Code of Conduct.
A contract will be signed by the engaged party prior to commencement of the assignment. The contract may detail additional terms and conditions of service, aspects on inputs and deliverables.

Qualifications and Experience
o At least Bachelor’s degree in Disaster Management/Education or relevant field;
o Demonstrated experience/knowledge in School Safely Planning/Contingency Planning/Vulnerability Capacity Assessment;
o Experience in Policy Analysis/Development;

Knowledge and Skills
₋ Demonstrated knowledge and skills in stakeholder participation techniques;
₋ Demonstrated knowledge and skills in facilitation of workshops;
₋ Demonstrated research and analytical and research skills in the field of policy development;
₋ Strong communication, documentation and presentation skills.
₋ Excellent command of written and spoken English and Somali languages;