External Consultant - Housing, Land and Property External Assessments

External Consultant-Housing, Land and Property External Assessment

1. Organizational Background

Heartland Alliance International (HAI) is the youngest and fastest growing part of Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights, a family of organizations that has been leading anti-poverty and social justice work in Chicago for more than 125 years. HAI is comprised of country offices around the world implementing programs on a broad range of human rights issues globally, as well as the Chicago-based Marjorie Kovler Center for the Treatment of Survivors of Torture, which serves individuals from more than 50 countries. HAI has significant expertise in the fields of trauma-informed mental health care and access to justice for survivors of rights abuses. It is also an industry leader in access to high-quality and stigma-free health care. Across all of its programs, HAI promotes progressive, innovative approaches to human rights protections and gender equality.

2. Project Background

With generous support from the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL), HAI launched the Marla Ruzicka War Victims Fund project in consortium with Handicap International (Humanity and Inclusion), War Child UK, the Iraqi Association of Disability Organizations (IADO) and Al Taqwa organization. The goal of this two-year project is to help the survivors of war to rehabilitate their physical and mental health, compensate the loss or damage of their property and restore their rights violated as a result of the war. The project activities focus on providing direct specialized services to women, men, girls and boys and people with disabilities who are survivors of war, including mental health and psychosocial support and legal services, as well as advocating with the local and central government to streamline its compensation system to support victims of war and uphold their social reintegration. The three strategic objectives of the project are:

*Strategic Objective 1 (SO1): Iraqi war victims are able to access improved and equitable government systems for compensation*

*Strategic Objective 2 (SO2): The quality and accessibility of integrated specialized services for victims of conflict is improved*

Strategic Objective 3 (SO3): Children affected by conflict have their rights protected and upheld

Under SO1, HAI seeks to strengthen the government compensation system for war-related damage or loss of private housing, land and property so as to respond to the compensation claims filed by war victims in an equitable and efficient manner. HAI will propose a monitoring and accountability mechanism for the government compensation system and will advocate with central and local compensation authorities to address any recommendations stemming from the monitoring and accountability findings. This work will be complemented with direct legal services to individuals claiming compensation for lost or damaged land or property. These activities will be implemented in Baghdad, Anbar and Ninewa.

Under SO2, HAI will establish two trauma rehabilitation and treatment centers (TRTC) – one in Baghdad, and one in Basra – which will provide a package of specialized services to war victims, including mental health, psychosocial support, case management and legal assistance to war victims. The centers are expected to start functioning in late spring 2020. In addition to in-house specialized services, HAI and the consortium partners will conduct outreach activities and run mobile psychosocial support and legal services to the most vulnerable and marginalized populations in Baghdad and Basra. Under the same objective, the Consortium partner Handicap International and IADO will work closely with War Child UK to empower young people and persons with disability to access employment opportunities. This will be done through organized apprenticeships and advocacy with public and private employers.

Under SO3, HAI will work in partnership with War Child UK to deliver specialized psychosocial support (PSS) to children affected by conflict through mobile PSS teams in Anbar, Baghdad and Basra, complemented with in-house PSS services to children at the TRTCs in Baghdad and Basra. War Child UK will also carry out case management for war-affected children and will work with local stakeholders to support family tracing and reunification, access to basic services and referrals, while HAI will deliver legal aid to children who have come in conflict with the law as a result of their vulnerable situation.

1. Assessment Rationale

HAI seeks a Contractor to conduct an assessment in the Housing, Land and Property (HLP) compensation system from a procedural point of view in order to identify major bottlenecks that prevent war victims, especially marginalized populations, to access compensation. HAI and the Contractor will collaboratively design the assessment methodology to investigate research questions that include but are not limited to:

1. How are individual HLP compensation claims received and tracked throughout the compensation system/process? Are claimants able to access the status of their compensation claims?
2. Once submitted, do central and provincial compensation authorities coordinate with each other on cases and follow-up actions? What are the procedures in the government agency? Are these procedures adhered to by individual government workers?
3. Is there a mechanism in place for claimants to report government agency’s discriminatory treatment of marginalized population such as people with disability and women during the compensation process (before the final ruling is made)?
4. What transparency and accountability mechanisms, other than complaints or appeal mechanisms, do the Central and provincial compensation committees use to prevent inefficiency, corruption and discrimination?

The assessment findings will inform HAI’s HLP advocacy strategy—mainly the development of a monitoring and complaints mechanism to be embedded in the government compensation system—to inform government policies and strategies aimed at making this system more efficient and responsive to participants’ needs.

1. Assessment Design & Methodology

The design and methodology applied to this assessment should generate the highest quality and most credible evidence to answer the assessment questions listed above. The long-term strategy that will follow this assessment and will be incorporated in HAI’s advocacy goals which are:

• Assess the accessibility and responsiveness of the current procedures of the HLP compensation process
• Set up a monitoring and accountability mechanism embedded within the public HLP compensation system which will be piloted for a period of six months (quantitative information)
• Present specific recommendations to government and program stakeholders informed by the above steps
• Identify ways to support the government in the implementation of several of these recommendations

Prior to the start of data collection, the Contractor will develop and present, for HAI review and approval, a written methodology that details the assessment activities, data collection tools, and data collection and analysis plan for this assessment. The written methodology should be guided by a participatory approach to assessment, and will be comprised of a mix of quantitative and qualitative tools appropriate to the assessment’s research questions. HAI expects the methodology to include, but not be limited to, the following activities:

• Desk review of existing assessments in HLP compensation systems
• Tracking new and existing HLP compensation procedures, processes, rules, guidelines, practices and examine the cases; some of these cases may be used as case studies
• Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with individuals having applied for compensation
• Key Informant Interviews (KII) with the central and provincial compensation committees
• Survey with lawyers providing HLP services
• Consult with HAI relevant technical staff
• Claimants’ experience narratives

The assessment will cover the following geographical areas:

• Anbar (Ramadi, Falluja)
• Ninewa (Mosul, Bashiqa, if possible also Sinjar)
• Baghdad (Mahmoudiya, Central Baghdad)

The assessment tools must be designed with a focus on the following HLP compensation process steps (please refer to Annex 1: General Process Flowchart of the Property Compensation Guidelines, p.7):

• Step 1-5 – Access including for vulnerable and marginalized groups as defined by HAI’s War Victims Fund program
• Step 4-6 – Security Screening of claimants
• Step 8-10 – Coordination and communication between central and local compensation committees
• Step 1-10 – Existing complaints and appeal mechanisms and their effectiveness

The assessment timeline will be planned along the following time-periods:

• April 2020 – design and approve methodology and assessment work plan; together with HAI, organize bi-lateral meetings with relevant government stakeholders to facilitate the assessment
• May 2020 – collect data using the designed tools
• June 2020 – analyze gathered data, draft assessment report to be submitted for HAI review
• July 2020 – finalize the assessment report following consultations with relevant units in HAI and program stakeholders; debrief HAI and program stakeholders on the findings of the report

HAI’s lawyers already use some tools to track HLP cases through the compensation process and these tools can be adjusted to be used for this assessment. All the tools under this assessment will be developed in close coordination with HAI’s legal team, M&E Manager and Project Manager.

5. Assessment Deliverables

• Assessment Methodology & Work Plan: A written, draft methodology for the assessment will be submitted to HAI for review and approval no later than the 7^th day following the signing of this agreement. The methodology plan should include the assessment design, data collection plan, instruments, tools, and an operational work plan, including a timeline. The assessment plan will be discussed with HAI prior to any data collection activities. The Contractor may change the methodology but must submit any changes for approval to HAI prior to implementation.

• Assessment Data: All raw data used in the assessment analysis should be submitted no later than one week after data collection activities are completed. The Contractor will provide data in an electronic file in an easy to read format; organized and fully documented for use by those not familiar with the project or assessment.

• Draft Assessment Report: The Contractor will submit a draft report of the findings and recommendations from the assessment no later than 15 June 2020. Prior approval by HAI will be required should the Contractor want to revise this deadline. The format of the assessment report should follow the guidelines listed in Attachment B, which will be annexed to the consultancy agreement. The report must be submitted in English, electronically.

• Debriefing with HAI and program stakeholders: The Contractor will present major accomplishments and findings from the assessment to HAI and program stakeholders through electronic presentation after completion of field-based data collection. The debriefing will include a discussion of major findings and identified bottlenecks in the compensation system, as well as any recommendations HAI may have on the report substance and form. The Contractor will consider HAI project staff comments and revise the assessment report accordingly, as appropriate.

• Final Report: HAI will provide the Contractor with written comments on the Draft Assessment Report no later than 30 June 2020. The Contractor will submit a Final Assessment Report that incorporates HAI’s responses to the Draft Assessment Report no later than 15 July 2020. The format of the assessment report must follow the guidelines provided to the Contractor by HAI. The final version of the Final Assessment Report will be submitted in English, electronically no later than 20 July 2020.

These dates may be subject to negotiation should the circumstances require so.

1. Assessment Team Composition & Desired Qualifications

The Contractor will receive support from HAI’s Legal Team, Monitoring & Assessment team and Project team. The Contractor should possess the following qualifications:

• Fluency in Arabic and English is required; Kurdish is preferred
• Outstanding oral and written communication skills;
• Demonstrated experience working in the field of Housing, Land and Property compensation system in Iraq and/or in other countries affected by conflict;
• At least five years demonstrated experience in conducting research/assessments and writing reports;
• Ability to freely travel to Federal Iraq and Kurdistan Region;
• A profound knowledge and understanding of the socio-political context in the assessment geographical locations and Iraq overall;

• Demonstrated knowledge of the key human rights challenges faced by the marginalized population prioritized in the project.

• Assessment Management

HAI will provide overall supervision to the Contractor during contract period. HAI will assist the Contractor with finalizing the assessment methodology and work plan, and assist in identifying and providing key project documents for the Contractor to review during the contract period. HAI will provide overall logistical support and assistance to the Contractor, as needed and when possible. HAI’s project-based staff will be made available to the Contractor for consultations during the assessment process.

The Contractor is responsible for arranging and completing all assessment-related activities listed in the approved methodology and work plan, in coordination with HAI’s project and logistics staff. The Contractor will advise HAI prior to each of those activities. The Contractor will be responsible for completing and submitting to HAI the assessment products listed in Section E of this document. The Contractor will be responsible for procuring his/her own work/office space, computers, Internet access, printing, and photocopying throughout the assessment. The Contractor will be required to make his/her own payments for such services. The Contractor will be responsible for any expenses beyond the fee provided by the Company as determined in this document.

8. Payment Schedule

• 1^st installment: 30% upon signing this agreement.
• 2^nd installment: 30% upon completion of debriefing meeting with HAI Iraq country team under the ‘Assessment Deliverables’ section of this SOW and receipt of invoice from the Contractor.
• 3^rd installment: 40% upon review and approval by HAI of all items listed under the ‘Assessment Deliverables’ section of this SOW and receipt of invoice from the Contractor. The Contractor will provide HAI with a written invoice within 15 days prior to the end of the consulting period for services rendered.

How to apply:

To be considered for this contract, please submit the following documents to https://heartlandalliance.bamboohr.com/jobs/view.php?id=192

1. A letter of interest, indicating how your skills and experience meet the qualifications listed above;
2. A résumé or CV (no more than four pages);
3. A writing sample (no more than three pages);
4. A draft budget, including consultation fees and all other assessment-related expenses, including travel for the entire exercise.

Incomplete submission packages and submission packages that do not adhere to the page limits stated above will not be considered. Submitted packages will be considered on a rolling basis. Present employees of HAI or HAI’s implementing partners need not apply.

For any questions or need for more details about this assessment, please contact: scotorcea@heartlandalliance.org