External Evaluation Consultancy Palestine Humanitarian Response

SOS Children's Villages International

The evaluation will be guided by internationally recognised criteria, in particular the OECD-DAC criteria for evaluating humanitarian action (relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, sustainability, coverage, and connectedness), complemented by reference to ALNAP guidance (Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action), the Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability (CHS), and relevant IASC quality standards (Inter-Agency Standing Committee). The methodology shall integrate remote key informant interviews, desk review, and field visits, with clear triangulation across sources.

The evaluator shall develop a full evaluation matrix in the Inception Report. The following areas are considered priority lines of enquiry.

3.1 Programmatic Performance and Quality

• The extent to which Child Protection interventions are delivered in line with the Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action;
• Whether safeguarding, Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA), and feedback and complaints mechanisms are functional and aligned with sector standards;
• The clarity, transparency, and consistency of participant selection and targeting, including the effectiveness of communication with affected populations;
• The coherence of the M&E system across projects, the harmonisation of tools, the quality of data generated, and the extent to which findings inform decision-making;
• The likelihood of achieving stated objectives and outcomes;
• The adequacy of capacity, roles, responsibilities, and resources to deliver quality programming across sectors including operational and programmatic cost efficiency.
• The quality of remote and in-person monitoring, adaptive management, and progress reporting;
• The design, delivery, and impact of capacity-building initiatives, and their relevance to the needs of the Member Association;
• The quality and value of SOS CV Palestine s participation in cluster coordination platforms, and its effectiveness in representing SOS CVI.

3.2 Strategic Options for Scale-Up in Gaza and the West Bank

• Opportunities, risks, and feasibility of scaling up key interventions in Gaza and the West Bank, including implementation through partners, consortia, and localised delivery models;
• Operational, financial, human resource, and governance prerequisites for accelerated scale-up, including security management;
• Critical assumptions, constraints, and mitigation measures associated with each scale-up option identified;
• Sequencing, costing, and expected results of recommended scale-up pathways.
• 2 -3 scenarios that can lead to concrete humanitarian operational scale up plans and delivery modalities building on the existing program and capacity.
• Gaza program governance: decision making and accountability across MA (PAL NO-Gaza team)- CVI, - PSAs, clarity of the operating structure needed.

3.3 Procurement and Operations

• The effectiveness of collaboration with implementing partners, and its alignment with harmonised approaches, local legislation, internal SOPs, and efforts to avoid duplication;
• The compliance, appropriateness, and participant acceptance of Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) interventions relative to sector standards and SOPs;
• The efficiency of resource coordination across programme components and donor streams;
• Compliance of financial and procurement practices with internal and external standards including approvals, CBO selection and due diligence, timeliness and accuracy of accounting for fixed assets, running costs, services, and personnel salaries, allocation to the correct accounts and projects, the currency of inventory lists, and the availability of supporting documentation;
• The status of markets, inputs, and cash flows, as well as access to critical services and humanitarian supply chain arrangements in Gaza, including benchmarking against other humanitarian actors.

4. Methodology and Approach

The evaluation shall adopt a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative techniques, delivered through a hybrid model that pairs remote desk review with in-person data collection in Gaza and the West Bank, as access permits. The final methodology shall be defined in the Inception Report and validated by the Humanitarian Action Team (HAT).

At a minimum, the methodology shall include:

• A comprehensive desk review of project documentation (qualitative and quantitative), SOS CVI strategies, and relevant policies;
• A review of sector-specific standards, tools, and standard operating procedures (SOPs), including those issued by the Child Protection Working Group (CPWG), the Cash Working Group (CWG), the Education Cluster, and the Health Cluster;
• Participatory methods including Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and interviews to capture the perspectives of specific groups such as caregivers and persons with disabilities (PwDs), complementing household surveys where those groups may be underrepresented;
• Structured or semi-structured Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with local authorities, humanitarian actors, cluster and coordination representatives, and SOS CVI national and international staff;
• A field validation exercise to verify preliminary findings with stakeholders during the field phase;
• Spot checks of selected high-value procurement transactions to assess compliance, transparency, and value for money.

All data shall be disaggregated by sex and, where possible, by age and vulnerability status. The evaluation shall adopt a gender-responsive approach, ensuring that the different needs of women, men, girls, boys, and vulnerable groups are reflected throughout. Quantitative analysis shall apply appropriate statistical measures (e.g. mean, median, frequency distributions) to identify trends and correlations; qualitative data shall be analysed using content analysis or comparable approaches. Data collection tools shall be pre-tested and available in both Arabic and English.

The evaluation must adhere to the highest ethical and professional standards, ensuring transparency, objectivity, and accountability throughout. The rights, dignity, and safety of all participants must be respected at all times; confidentiality must be guaranteed; and no respondent shall be exposed to risk or harm as a result of their participation. All activities shall be conducted in a manner that fosters a safe and inclusive environment in which participants feel comfortable sharing their perspectives.