National Consultant to Conduct the End-of-Project Evaluation of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Project

This consultancy will support the final evaluation of the project “Women lead and benefit from sustainable and inclusive peace and security” implemented from 2022 - 2026. The project aimed to reach 27,000 direct beneficiaries and 2,160,000 indirect beneficiaries across 15 conflict prone districts across 6 regions of Uganda as below:

• Northern Region: Lira, Dokolo, Kitgum;
• West Nile: Adjumani, Yumbe, Terego;
• Eastern: Mbale, Kapelebyong;
• Karamoja Region: Moroto, Kotido, Napak;
• Western Region: Kasese, Kabarole, Kyegegwa;
• Central Region: Wakiso.

The evaluation will assess the achievement of the project’s goal which was to ensure that Uganda has inclusive and accountable governance systems and women are empowered, engaged, and enjoy human rights, peace, justice, and security. The project outcomes include: 1) By 2026, Women participation in enhancing social cohesion and reducing interethnic conflicts increased; 2) Increased participation of women in reduction of violent extremism; 3) By 2026, Women, including young women participate in preventing and mitigating natural and human made disasters; 4)Systems and structures for the implementation and coordination of the Third National Action Plan Women Peace and Security (NAP III WPS) strengthened.

The project design was informed by the following Theory of Change.

If (1) women increasingly participate in enhancing social cohesion, reducing interethnic conflicts and election related violence; (2) If there is increased participation of women in reducing violent extremism; (3) If more women participate in preventing and mitigating natural and human made disasters; and (4) If coordination systems and structures for both state and non-state actors are strengthened, then (5) women will enjoy inclusive human rights, peace, justice, and security because (6) evidence shows that women are key drivers of peace and security and including them in peace processes has proven to lead to more lasting peace and stable societies.

The WPS Project, which is in its final year of implementation, has been implemented through Responsible Parties Women’s International Peace Center (WIPC), Coalition for Action on 1325 (COACT) and the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development (MGLSD). In line with the project requirements and the UN Women evaluation policy, an end of project evaluation is to be conducted to assess the performance of the project. The purpose of this independent end term evaluation is to assess the project’s achievements against the set objectives, identify and document lessons learnt (including design, lessons and best practices that can be up-scaled or replicated), and assess how the project contributed to gender equality and the advancement of the Women Peace and Security agenda in Uganda and in particular the targeted districts.

Purpose of the evaluation:

The UN Women Evaluation Policy is the main guiding document that sets forth the principles and organizational framework for evaluation planning, conduct and follow-up in UN Women. These principles are aligned with the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) Norms and Standards for Evaluation in the UN System . The key principles for gender-responsive evaluation at UN Women are: 1) National ownership and leadership; 2) UN system coordination and coherence with regard to gender equality and the empowerment of women; 3) Innovation; 4) Fair power relations and empowerment; 5) Participation and inclusion; 6) Independence and impartiality; 7) Transparency; 8) Quality and credibility; 9) Intentionality and use of evaluation; and 10) Adherence to UNEG ethical guidelines in data collection.

It is a priority for UN Women that this endline project evaluation will be gender-responsive and will actively support the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment, with emphasis on UN Women’s key areas central to increasing women’s participation in advancing the women peace and security agenda.

The primary intended users of this evaluation are:

• Staff in target Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, District Local Government and CSOs;
• Target beneficiary communities/groups including grassroot women rights organizations;
• Staff of implementing partners;
• UN Agencies technical working groups;
• Development partners.

Primary intended uses of this evaluation are:

• Learning and improved decision-making to support the implementation of the NAP III WPS;

• Provide accountability for the development effectiveness of the project to the donor and other stakeholders;

• Inform capacity development and mobilization of national stakeholders to advance the WPS agenda;

• Provide lessons learned and recommendations to inform future resource mobilization and project design.

Evaluation objectives, criteria and key questions:

The objectives of the evaluation are to:

• Assess the relevance of the project and its approach in line with local, national, and international priorities on WPS;

• Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of the program approach for achievement of results, as defined in the logical framework, including the Program Theory of Change;

• Analyze how the human rights approach and gender equality principles were integrated in the design and implementation of the project;

• Identify and validate lessons learned and good practices that support gender equality and human rights in relation to UN Women’s mandate;

• Provide actionable recommendations with respect to the WPS agenda and overall approach to implementation of the NAP III WPS.

The evaluation will seek to answer the following key evaluation questions aligned to the UN Evaluation Group (UNEG) evaluation criteria as well as standards based on Human Rights and Gender Equality. Criterion Questions Relevance and coherence Was the project design, including the choice of interventions and selection of implementing partners appropriate to address the identified needs of beneficiaries? Did the design and partner selection align to UN Women’s comparative advantage? To what extent was the intervention aligned with country priorities for gender equality and the promotion of the active participation of women in peace, security, and recovery in Uganda, at regional and global level? What was the level of engagement between the Partners and key Stakeholders at all levels and the ability to leverage the partnership process to inform the advocacy strategy? How well did the project design consider learning from previous evaluations / reviews of WPS? Effectiveness and sustainability To what extent did the project achieve planned outputs and contribute to expected outcomes? What unexpected outcomes (positive and negative) have been achieved? What were the main enabling and hindering factors to achieving planned outcomes and what actions need to be taken to overcome any barriers that limit required progress? Did the partners responsible for implementation have access to the necessary skills, knowledge and capacities needed to deliver the project and ensure sustainability of efforts and benefits? What local accountability and oversight systems have been established to support the continuation of activities? Efficiency How effectively did UN Women’s management structure, including financial and risk management, support efficient project implementation and address delays through corrective actions? To what extent were planned output results delivered on time and within budget? Were the results appropriate to the resources used? Human Rights and Gender Equality How did the project integrate gender equality, human rights and development effectiveness principles: Participation/empowerment; Inclusion/non-discrimination; National accountability / transparency in its design and implementation? To which extent the project reached the most vulnerable groups considering the current context in the country (ex. People with disability, women affected by conflict and among others)?

Evaluation Design:

The evaluation is expected to be non-experimental and summative. It will employ mixed methods including desk-based review of relevant documents backed by consultation with key project stakeholders and field-based primary data collection from direct project beneficiaries. The evaluation will follow a collaborative and participatory approach, ensuring close engagement with programme beneficiaries, implementing partners, ministries, departments, agencies and local governments and other key stakeholders. The analysis of the application of human rights and gender equality principles will be an integral part of the evaluation. Integration of human rights and gender equality issues into the evaluation requires adherence to three main principles - inclusion, participation, and fair power relations.

Management and reporting arrangements:

The evaluation and quality assurance will be managed by UN Women Uganda Country Office. The consultant will report directly to the UN Women Communications, Monitoring & Evaluation Officer, who will provide overall management and supervision of this consultancy. To ensure inclusiveness and comprehensive stakeholder engagement, UN Women will also establish an Evaluation Reference Group comprising UN Women staff, duty bearers, right holders, development partners/donors, UN Country Team representatives, and civil society organizations. Members will be selected based on a stakeholder analysis.

The evaluation will be conducted in accordance with UN Women evaluation guidelines and UNEG norms and standards. Upon completion of the evaluation, UN Women has the responsibility to prepare a management response that addresses the findings and recommendations to ensure future learning and inform implementation of their relevant Programmes. For quality assurance, the evaluation report will be rated against the Global Evaluation Report Assessment & Analysis System (GERAAS).

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work:

• Conduct an initial desk review of available documents, gather and analyze project data, conceptualize the evaluation approach, consult internally on the approach, develop data collection tools, stakeholder mapping, engage reference group;
• Develop the evaluation methodology and data collection tools for review by the Evaluation reference group and incorporate changes as appropriate;
• Develop an inception report that will be reviewed by the Evaluation Reference Group;
• Review existing baseline data to determine available data against which to measure progress;
• Collect primary quantitative and qualitative data from beneficiaries and selected stakeholders;
• Conduct in-depth interviews with national UN Women staff, responsible partner organizations, donor representatives, and other stakeholders as necessary;
• Prepare the first draft of the evaluation report and submit it to the Evaluation Reference Group for comments and possible endorsement;
• Present the evaluation findings for validation with the Evaluation Reference Group;
• Incorporate feedback from the valuation Reference Group into the final report;
• Produce a final evaluation report of not more than 40 pages excluding annexes, with structure and quality as per UN Women’s evaluation handbook and GERAAS tool 14.

Deliverable Expected Completion Date Payment Schedule Approved Field workplan 21 August 2026 30% Draft Evaluation Report (with field data and Data on WPS II project Indicators) 30 October 2026 Power Point Presentation for the validation meeting with ERG members 13 November 2026 30% Final Evaluation Report 27 November 2026 40%

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel:

This is a home and field-based consultancy. The consultant is expected to undertake travel to the project locations in Lira, Dokolo, Adjumani, Yumbe, Terego, Mbale, Kapelebyong, Moroto, Kotido, Napak, Kasese, Kabarole, Kyegegwa and Wakiso for primary data collection.

Travel costs will be covered separately by UN Women based on UN Women Travel Rules and Regulations.

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

• Strong knowledge of programme formulation and implementation and Results Based Management;
• Strong understanding of various methodologies in evaluation, both qualitative and quantitative, such as surveys, record reviews, focus groups and case studies;
• Ability to synthesize programme performance data and produce analytical reports to inform strategic decision-making;
• Good Women Peace and Security programming knowledge;
• Strong analytical, interviewing skills and ability to work independently., * A master’s degree or equivalent in Gender / Women’s studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, Social Sciences, Monitoring and Evaluation or a related field is required;
• A first-level relevant university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
• Certification in project/programme management, RBM, or M&E would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in planning, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of development projects/ programmes is required;
• Experience in designing and leading baseline studies and/or evaluations including gender responsive baseline studies and/or evaluations is required;
• Experience working on GEWE programming with a specific focus on Women, Peace, and Security programming is required;
• Experience in conducting research, analysis, and interpretation, and in presenting findings on gender, human rights, conflict prevention, and peacebuilding issues is required;
• Experience with Results-Based Management (RBM) within the UN system is desirable;
• Experience working with national and sub-national government institutions, peacebuilding stakeholders, and organizations advancing women’s rights and gender equality is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in (written and spoken) English is required;
• Knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset.

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security., In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.