Background
Acknowledging, and in a bid to realise the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) focus on collaborative learning through Education Out Loud (EOL) components, there is need to emphasize on learning and collaborative networks taking into consideration the constantly changing environment that requires actors to be elastic, flexible and adaptive to changing circumstances within the operating environment. Zimbabwe Network of Early Childhood Development Actors (ZINECDA) in partnership with Lesotho National ECD Coalition of Lesotho (NECDOL), and the Malawi ECD Coalition are implementing a transnational project on strengthening the capacity of ECD coalitions for improved ECDE legislation, policies and measures in Southern Africa (TRANAC). TRANAC is part of the education wide development in the Horn, East and Southern Africa (HESA) which incorporates the operational components (OC) 1, 2 and 3 grantees and partners funded by GPE through Oxfam IBIS as the Grant Agent.
The ZINECDA Alliance in collaboration with Oxfam IBIS Regional Management Unit in Uganda is seeking the services of a consultant/Service Provider to design an online Knowledge and Learning hub that will act as a knowledge broker among EOL grantees and the wider public for knowledge storage, and sharing information, innovations and best practices. The hub will also foster the exchange of demand-driven regional knowledge and build capacity of members to identify, use, share, and mobilize evidence. It will also provide a rich platform from which policy advocates, researchers, individuals and organisations looking to “borrow” educational practices and policies that they can use at home, can draw from scientifically proven best practices and strategies.
Overall Purpose of the Knowledge and learning hub
The knowledge hub aims to establish and strengthen an online platform for research, knowledge generation and sharing, learning, innovation and resource mobilization for policy advocacy among education actors in the HESA region. The education sector suffers from information overload, and face challenges in terms of both volume and access to different kinds of documents, the knowledge hub seeks to bridge this gap.
Specific Objectives
- Promote and facilitate the exchange of knowledge and useful resources in the education sector including in Early Childhood Development (ECD) in the Horn, East and Southern Africa (HESA) to highlight the wealth of learning and knowledge produced by education advocates in the Africa region and beyond.
- Promote an interactive space for players in education sector (including ECD) in the Horn, East and Southern Africa region, and beyond in line with global trends in education sector and current practices.
- Provide access to education resources including ECD resources produced by and with a variety of individuals, research institutions and organizations in the regions. These resources may include publications, innovations, blogs, measurement tools, advocacy tools, events, webinars, and more.
- Assist governments, national and international organizations, the private sector, civil society organisations, students, families, and anyone interested in knowing and learning about education policy advocacy including early childhood development in the region.
Vision
A dynamic collaboration and learning platform for transformative education in Africa
Mission
To promote collaboration, learning and innovation for improved and sustained policy and community engagement to address challenges facing access to inclusive and equitable, quality education and life-long learning for all.
Expected deliverable/Output of the assignment
A fully functional on-line Knowledge and Learning Hub that will have the following among others:
• Unlimited storage of learning information or documents
• Interactive (connected to social media websites and social embedded chat widget)
• Enterprise grade security to avoid hacking
• Smart search engine
• Customisable interface
• A tool that facilitates seamless knowledge generation and storage in Africa
• Information arranged by region, countries and themes
• Support and mentorship system for the hosting organisation
• Produce manual/user manual to show how the hub can be navigated.
Functions:
An online Knowledge and Learning Hub for Horn, East and Southern Africa that will be able to stock and share:
a) Research reports
b) Policy briefs and papers
c) Case studies and best practices
d) Learning needs and capacity building strategies and plans
e) Innovations and discoveries
f) Impact/success stories
g) Peer monitoring reports
h) Budget analyses
i) Advocacy tools and kits
j) Learning Courses
k) Learning partners
l) Key education sector performance and development data
Payment Terms 25% of the total cost for development of the hub will be paid on signing the contract and submission of Inception report
65% on completing the development and Launch of the Knowledge and Learning Hub
10% after three months of launching the Knowledge and Learning Hub.
Equipment
The consultant is expected to have the necessary equipment and tools to enable them undertake
the assignment.
Management and supervision of the assignment
The assignment will be managed by TRANAC through ZINECDA and with support from HESA’s steering/coordinating committee in consultation with and advice from Oxfam IBIS Regional Management Unit in Uganda and as guided by milestones derived from the stated deliverables and the objectives. The TRANAC management team, through the COPAD officer and TRANAC Lead will be in constant communication with the consultant to track progress made on each stage, until the completion of the task. Furthermore, the themes, methods and tools for collecting data will be constantly reviewed in order to give room to refinement and adjustment if necessary.
Methodology
It is expected that the consultant will undertake this task in a participatory and consultative manner, ensuring that the key stakeholders are involved at every step of the development process. Before the start of the assignment, the consultant will be required to hold an inception meeting with the relevant stakeholders to share how they understand the assignment and how they will implement the assignment. The consultant is expected to receive feedback from this inception meeting and incorporate such feedback into the inception report and thereafter submit the report to the task manager- Zinecda.
The Knowledge and Learning Hub will be officially launched at a physical meeting in Tanzania in mid-November 2021. The consultant will be expected to present the developed hub to members of the HESA Learning Collaborative at this launch. The cost associated with this will be met separately and should not be subject of the current consultancy.
The knowledge hub will be developed and hosted from a ZINECDA web portal accessible to all TRANAC and HESA grantees and their partners. This has to be designed through consultant services needed to bring information from diverse sources into a single user interface.
Application Process
We invite interested consultants/service providers to submit the following application documents:
a) An expression of interest of no more than 10 pages, briefly addressing track record relevant to the assessment and the degree to which the consultant(s) understands the assignment. If a team of consultants is proposed, outline the anticipated roles of each team member.
b) Technical proposal for the assignment with a clear setup, user strategy, system framework, proposed host space, suggested themes and linkages with websites, social media links, timeframe and others. The proposal must also clearly outline how the TRANAC and HESA project partners will be involved in the process.
c) Financial proposal (separating consultant day rates and anticipated costs) and mentioning any other setup and recurrent costs required for the operation of the hub.
Financial proposal should be presented in USD.
d) Example(s) of previous similar works
e) Reference from previous employers and/or clients
f) Updated CV(s) of applicant(s)
g) Workplan for delivery of the assignment
Duration and timeline of the Assignment
The assignment is for 30 consultancy days from the date of signing contract to delivery of the online hub. the contract is expected to be signed with the successful consultant by 15th September 2021. The full operation of the hub being anticipated by 25th October 2021.
Qualifications and Experience
The Consultant must have the following appropriate experience and qualifications:
- A minimum of a Bachelors degree with post graduate training in IT/ computer science
- Demonstrable knowledge and work experience in web designing and hosting
- Experience of developing similar eLearning platforms and presenting complex issues in an accessible and engaging manner
- Ability to write concisely and present information clearly
- Ability to produce high-quality work within tight deadlines and with minimum supervision.
All applications should be sent to the Hub Procurement team by the 3rd September 2021 on the following email address: [email protected] copy to dsi@ xfamibis.dk
Hard copies will not be accepted.