Feasibility study: Development of a cash transfer program and alternatives for survivors of violence

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1 Feasibility study: Development of a cash transfer program and alternatives for survivors of violence Terms of Reference Reports to: Location: Pacific Women Support Unit Gender Specialist Homebase, with travel to selected Pacific island countries Timeframe: Late November 2017 March 2018 Duration: ARF Classification: Up to 60 combined team consultancy days (including travel days) To be nominated for each team member as part of the proposal Program Background Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development (Pacific Women) was announced by the Australian Government at the Pacific Island Forum Leaders meeting in August It commits up to $320 million over 10 years in 14 Pacific Islands Forum member countries. The program aims to improve opportunities for the political, economic and social advancement of Pacific women. Pacific Women will support countries to meet the commitments they made in the 2012 Pacific Leaders Gender Equality Declaration (PLGED). The intended outcomes sought by Pacific Women include: 1. Women, and women s interests, are increasingly and effectively represented and visible through leadership at all levels of decision-making. 2. Women have expanded economic opportunities to earn an income and accumulate economic assets. 3. Violence against women is reduced and survivors of violence have access to support services and to justice. 4. Women in the Pacific will have a stronger sense of their own agency, supported by a changing legal and social environment and through increased access to the services they need. Pacific Women is implemented by Australia s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and works with a wide range of implementing partners, including the 14 partner governments, multilateral organisations, international and national NGOs, civil society organisations, and DFAT country posts. The Pacific Women Support Unit provides the program with logistical, technical and administrative support and is located in Suva, Fiji, with a sub-office in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (PNG). Study Background Pacific Island Countries experience high levels of violence against women (VAW), regardless of variations between countries and when compared to global averages. 1 Research conducted at the national level in 11 Pacific countries shows that reported lifetime prevalence rates of intimate partner physical and sexual violence against women range from 25 per cent (Palau) to 68 per cent (Kiribati). Patterns and types of violence against women differ considerably between countries and sub-regions. In Tonga, rates of non-partner violence are higher (68 per cent) than intimate partner rates (40 per 1 UNFPA Family Health and Safety Studies. Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 1

2 cent). 2 Further to this, girls are often subjected to multiple forms of violence that can be further exacerbated by cultural practices and social norms. 3 4 Research also indicates high rates of child violence and sexual abuse in Pacific countries. This can have profound emotional, physical and social development impacts and lead to an inter-generational cycle of violence, normalising the prevalence of violence and negatively impacting the sustainability of efforts to eliminate violence against women (EVAW). 5 Violence against women, and intimidation of violence, is an abuse of women s human rights. It limits women s participation in social, political and economic life. This significantly impacts on development outcomes and affects families and communities. It places significant strain on healthcare, social services, policing, and justice systems. For example, the children of women who experience violence have increased levels of child mortality and emotional and behavioural problems and they are more likely to become perpetrators of violence. 6 Due to the high prevalence of violence against women, most EVAW interventions in Pacific countries have focused on responding to the need for crisis and support services, addressing legal and policy barriers, and rolling out a range of advocacy activities that address broader gender inequality and rights issues that seek to reduce violence against women. Assistance has been provided to government and non-government partners to support a range of response efforts, with service provision focusing on: technical support to develop EVAW guidelines, referral systems, case management and training in counselling; funding for safe houses, shelters, crisis centres and legal assistance for survivors of violence; establishing family support centres in hospitals and safe spaces for survivors of violence in police stations; establishing 24-hour help lines, crisis information and referral phone services; establishing one-stop-shop clinics and outreach services for survivors of violence; establishing rapid response teams and community alert systems; and strengthening and activating local committees to support action on EVAW. 7 Women s crisis centres, family support centres in or near hospitals, and non-government partners that deliver these services provide a limited amount of financial support in the form of pre-purchased groceries, food vouchers, plane tickets, transportation to a safe place, rent contribution for temporary accommodation, and school fees. This type of support may be based on the recommendation of counsellors and provide temporary relief. There are no programs that provide cash directly to victims or provide longer term support and there are no large-scale financial assistance or economic empowerment initiatives that focus directly on supporting women who have experienced violence over the long term. The Pacific Women Roadmap 8 emphasises the need to fill gaps in services and to meet the needs of different groups of survivors of violence against women. It highlights the potential to use women s crisis centres and family support centres as models to leverage government commitment for broader replication in other countries and to support integrated referral pathways and approaches to service provision. 2 Asia Development Bank, Cultural practices include, for example, bride price, sorcery and reconciliation. 4 DFAT, SPC, Scriver S, Duvvury N, Ashe S, Raghavendra S, and O Donovan D, et al, November 2015, Conceptualising Violence: A Holistic Approach to Understanding Violence Against Women and Girls, Working Paper, accessed August DFAT, Ending Violence Against Women Roadmap Synthesis Report, March Pacific Women Support Unit, May 2017, Pacific Women Roadmap, DFAT/ Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 2

3 Purpose and objectives The purpose of this feasibility study is to examine the potential to develop an unconditional cash transfer pilot program that meets the immediate needs of survivors of violence in the Pacific. It is expected to consider both women who choose to stay in and women who choose to leave relationships. The study will explore the assumption that a lack of access to income and assets is a barrier to women s ability to negotiate safe relationships and that expanding women s support options will lead to better outcomes. The study will examine medium- and long-term options for women s financial security as well as opportunities to build a life post-violence and ways for survivors of violence to achieve greater economic independence. The study is expected to assist DFAT and other Pacific stakeholders to: 1. Understand the risks, challenges and obstacles faced by women in re-establishing their lives after experiencing violence; with the intention to establish proposed cash transfer programs or other interventions based on a firm understanding of the current context. 2. Understand the scope of existing support services; for example, those provided by crisis centres and their referral partners and any other available support, including; a. whether access to finance - particularly cash transfers - would improve the lives of women who are re-establishing their lives after experiencing violence, whether or not they wish to leave the relationship; and b. if cash transfers are deemed to be a relevant and appropriate complement to existing services, and whether additional support services, such as training and other livelihoods support, would be required. 3. Identify risks and issues relevant to developing a viable option for cash transfers that would be pertinent to the design of pilot initiatives in any of the study sites. 4. Examine what other services may be required by women who are survivors of violence. 9 Scope of services This study will primarily explore whether the economic empowerment of women through a cash transfer pilot program can provide women with an increased ability to make decisions about their circumstances in the aftermath of violence. The study will also examine medium- and long-term options for women s financial security as well as opportunities to build a life post-violence and ways for survivors of violence to achieve greater economic independence. The study is to be conducted in Fiji and Tonga, with the rationale that the study should draw from the countries in which DFAT currently provides support to women s crisis centres and skills development programs in the Pacific and where the government has some form of social protection program. The study should complement the existing and planned programing / mapping of community support and formal services for women experiencing violence that is taking place in the region.the study is to be comprised of the three following elements: 9 Services could include, but are not be limited to: technical and vocational skills development; financial literacy training; life skills support; and access to housing. Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 3

4 1. A literature review that synthesises lessons from VAW support services initiatives in and relevant to the Pacific, particularly cash transfer programs. It is to include issues of unintended consequences and how to apply the do no harm principle. 2. Community-level consultations that explore locally-desired and viable options for postviolence recovery, including cash transfer programs for survivors of violence. The consultations should address the potentially positive and negative implications for women and their families of receiving a cash transfer in these situations. Consultations should address what other services are needed that are not being provided. If cash transfers are considered relevant and appropriate, consultations should also explore what kind of transfer assistance would be most suitable for women in the study locations, including exploring options for a package of services to women, such as training and livelihoods support. Stakeholders should include but not necessarily be limited to women who have experienced violence and service providers, such as crisis centre staff, health workers, police, legal workers, non-governmental organisations representatives, and religious and community leaders. 3. If consultations indicate that cash transfer programs would be appropriate, then further consultations will be undertaken with a broader range of stakeholders to identify viable options for piloting a specific cash transfer program or to include this as a complementary programing option. These further consultants will also examine current policies and existing programs that could meet this need or be adapted to meet this need, including current transfer programs in Fiji and Tonga. These consultations should include government, civil society organisations, the private sector and relevant donor representatives. If existing cash transfer programs are not an option, then the research team should undertake preliminary scoping of potential arrangements for making cash transfers as well as explore other programing possibilities identified by the study. Questions the feasibility study should explore include: Community norms and behaviours In the study locations, what are community attitudes towards domestic violence? How is violence against women normally dealt with in the community, including within existing family, community and church support mechanisms? Is there an expectation that women who experience violence within their household return to that household? Are there any options, other than returning to the household where the violence occurred, which are viewed as acceptable within the community? Would communities and other stakeholders see the transfer of cash to women who have experienced violence as appropriate, especially if the transfers resulted in an increase in women choosing to escape further violence by not returning to their household? What might be the risks or negative implications of a cash transfer for women who decide to return to their household and for women who decide to leave, noting the links between women s increased access to income and increased family violence in some Pacific communities? Would grants or loans be more acceptable or carry more risk; and would this vary based on differing communal norms? Existing support services Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 4

5 What support services are currently available to women who have experienced violence, including for women who choose to leave abusive relationships and for women who return to live with their partners? To what extent do women who have experienced violence feel that their immediate and longer term needs are being met by existing services and family and community support, including their experience of referral between services? What are the considerations for women in deciding whether to leave abusive relationships, including the extent to which financial constraints are a factor? Do women who leave abusive relationships: (i) seek and (ii) receive financial support from family and friends, religious and civil society organisations, or government? What are the links between community support and formal responses to survivors of violence? In what form is any financial support provided, for example as a loan or a grant; over what period; and is it provided with or without conditions? Are financial resources provided by institutions, including government or non-government organisations and are they supplemented by other related support such as training, livelihoods or job-linking services? Feasibility of a cash transfer pilot Are there existing cash transfer programs that could be adapted to target women who have experienced violence? If yes, does the government have the willingness and capacity to extend access to this new category of beneficiary? If no, what are other potential options to deliver and monitor the provision of financial support? Do any stakeholders have concerns in relation to perverse incentives? What are they and how might they be mitigated? What lessons from elsewhere could inform how such an initiative might work? What are the complexities that a follow-up design mission would have to delve deeper into? These might include benefit level, whether the cash transfer should be as an interest-free loan or a grant, duration of support, indicators of success, appropriate messaging, access for women without bank accounts, and complexities resulting from remoteness of some women within Small Island States, especially remote islands where there are few services and even more limited banking facilities. What risk management responses need to be in place? Other services What are the gaps in provision of services - such as technical and vocational skills development; financial literacy training; life skills support and access to housing - that serve to increase economic empowerment options for survivors of violence? Are there any options for economic empowerment that could be combined with education and skills building initiatives in a community? Are there services that exist or could exist for women s economic empowerment that engage both men and women? Would additional services / programing for survivors of violence be complementary to a cash transfer scheme? Is transitional, medium or long-term housing being provided for survivors? Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 5

6 Tasks To what extent is the lack of availability of medium- and long-term housing a barrier for women who try to exit violence situations? Outputs Tasks 1. Literature review Desk-based literature review of relevant documentation. See Reference Documents section below for a proposed initial reading list. Examine global lessons learned and best practices in cash transfers, women s economic empowerment (WEE), and violence against women. Examine lessons learnt from EVAW and WEE work in the Pacific. Review documents that synthesise relevant country-level violence against women analysis, including grey literature. Synthesise lessons from VAW support services initiatives in and relevant to the Pacific, particularly any cash transfer programs. To include issues on unintended consequences and how to apply the do no harm principle. This should be finalised and shared prior to in-country visits. 2. Preparation for incountry primary research 3. Undertake in-country primary research Participate in pre-mission briefing with DFAT and the Pacific Women Support Unit. Develop a methodology for in-country primary research. Obtain relevant research ethics approvals. Sub-contract local researcher partners. Carry out consultations with DFAT Post staff, who will assist with research and meeting with stakeholders. Carry out (in-person or via service provider staff) semi- structured interviews with women who have experienced domestic violence, community members, civil society organisations (including DFATsupported crisis centres), government officials and relevant development partners. Carry out consultations with identified stakeholders to create synergies for the project with other initiatives in the region. Consultations should include government, civil society organisations, and relevant donor representatives. Should consultations indicate that cash transfer programs would be appropriate, research team to undertake further consultations with a broader range of stakeholders to identify viable options for piloting a specific cash transfer program. Identify current policies and existing programs that could potentially meet or may be adapted to meet this need, including current transfer programs in the study countries. If existing cash transfer programs are not an option, the research team should undertake preliminary scoping of potential appropriate arrangements for making cash transfers in addition to exploring other programing possibilities identified by the study. Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 6

7 Outputs and Timeframes Output Description No of days (Up to) Due Date ( ) Literature Review Work plan and methodology Country visits Research Report - Draft Research Report - Final Review to include: - summary of documentation, highlighting international good practices, lessons learned, good practice initiatives, Pacific experience and lessons for the Pacific; and - a bibliography. Max. 20 pages, including annexes. To be finalised and released prior to in-country visits. Work plan to include: - number of days for respective key deliverables (up to 60 days total); - timelines; - schedule of travel / meetings; and - proposed budget. Methodology to include: - proposed methodology and approach to primary research; - draft interview / questionnaire; - list of institutions and people to be interviewed; and - proposed plan for presentation of final report and recommendations. Max. 20 pages (combined), including research / study instruments. These will be with: (i) DFAT post; (ii) government agencies; (iii) DFAT implementing partners; (iv) other stakeholders. To involve a debrief with DFAT Posts before leaving each country. DFAT may invite other key stakeholders to the debrief meeting. At the completion of each mission, research team to provide a brief written report on key findings to relevant DFAT Posts. The report should aim to address the questions specified under the Scope of Study. Submitted to the Pacific Women Support Unit and DFAT for review and comments. Final research report that incorporates feedback from the Pacific Women Support Unit and DFAT December December February March March 2018 Additional input days as/if required (including for travel) 12 Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 7

8 Output Description No of days (Up to) Due Date ( ) TOTAL DAYS 60 Duration and Timing The consultant team will be engaged for up to a maximum of 60 consultancy days, including travel days. Work is expected to start at the end of November 2017, with all deliverables submitted by the end of March Essential criteria for the Lead Consultant Team At least 10 years experience in the areas of social protection and/or ending violence against women and women s economic empowerment. Demonstrated knowledge of social protection and ending violence against women and gender programing, preferably in the Pacific region. Demonstrated experience in participatory methodologies to support research. Research Team The role of the contractor, whether in the Pacific or elsewhere, will be to lead and coordinate the research, but to work with locally-based research partners in each target country. The proposed approach may include a consortium of organisations. Within a consortium, the lead partner may work with different organisations to undertake the research in one or more countries, but the lead contractor will be responsible for ensuring overall coherence. Proposals are required to stipulate the composition of the lead research team (up to a maximum of three people) and identify a research partner in each country. An indication of the in-country partner inputs (personnel numbers, roles and total input days) is to also be included. Tenderers should note that the successful tenderer will need to liaise with and identify options to align processes (for example, ethics approval) with a separate piece of DFAT-funded research - on the links between social assistance and gender-based violence which is being led by the University of Melbourne in Fiji Further details will be provided following selection of the preferred tenderer. If a consortium is proposed, the governance arrangements should be outlined in the proposal. List of intended users of the work Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Pacific Women Support Unit Cardno Emerging Markets (contract manager) Fiji Women s Crisis Centre (FWCC) Tonga Women s and Children s Crisis Centre (TWCCC) Tonga National Centre for Women and Children (TNCWC) Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 8

9 Other relevant stakeholders as determined by DFAT Quote Format and Selection Criteria 1. Technical Proposal Tenderers are required to submit technical proposals of up to five pages, addressing the Evaluation Criteria A-D below. Tenderers should also submit a CV of no more than three A4 pages for each Contractor Personnel nominated in the proposal, including their ARF level. The proposal should be based on the proposed tasks and timeline above, but may differ. Variances should be justified. Criterion A: Demonstrated knowledge of eliminating violence against women programing in the Pacific island region. Weighting 20% Criterion B: Demonstrated understanding of social protection and gender issues either in the Pacific or globally. Weighting 20% Criterion C: An outline of the tenderer s proposed approach to the research. A brief description of the analytical framework, methodologies, research plan and approximate timeline. A brief description of the key considerations and anticipated challenges of undertaking the research described in the terms of reference. Weighting 40% Criterion D: Experience in undertaking social research, including participatory methodologies in the Pacific islands, preferably in partnership with local research partners. Track record of work with local partners and research in the region. Team composition and proposed partnership approach indicates demonstrated understanding of Pacific contexts. If the team is not already based in Tonga and Fiji, identification of possible Pacific-based research partners. Ability to rapidly synthesise insights from diverse stakeholders and facilitate multi-stakeholder discussions Weighting 20% 2. Price Proposal Tenders are required to provide a quotation for undertaking the research. This is to be comprised of: Adviser fees, within the range specified in the Aid Adviser Remuneration Framework for the Job Level and Professional Discipline Category specified for each proposed position in the Lead Consultant Team; Contractor Management Fee, expressed as a percentage of adviser remuneration; In-country research partner personnel costs; and Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 9

10 Activity costs for Lead Consultancy and In-Country teams, including travel, accommodation and communication. Reference Documents GSDRC Helpdesk Research Report on Social Protection Programs Supporting Women Survivors of Domestic Violence ( The Cash Learning Partnership Feasibility Scoping Study on Cash Transfer Programs in the Pacific ( Briefing Paper on Needs of Survivors of Domestic Violence in Tonga World Bank Violence Against Women and Girls Research Guide: Social Protection Brief ( rotection0brief.pdf) Inter-American Development Bank Working paper on Conditional Cash Transfers for Women and Spousal Violence ( _for_women_and_spousal_violence.pdf?sequence=1) International Rescue Committee Report on Integrating cash transfers into gender-based violence programs in Jordan: Benefits, risks and challenges ( Action against Hunger External Evaluation of Combating Gender Based Violence and Enhancing Economic Empowerment of Women in Northern Uganda through Cash Transfers ( Based_Violence_and_Enhancing_Economic_Empowerment_of_Women_in_Northern_Uganda_th rough_cash_transfers_ pdf) Emergency funds: The DFID What Works reviews (part of the UK government s What Works Initiative) DFAT s Gender Equality and Women s Empowerment Strategy ( Other relevant documents synthesising relevant country-level analysis, including grey literature, on violence against women Literature on relevant regional and global lessons on cash transfers to support women who have experienced violence (for example the various case studies from Ecuador, Uganda and Mexico and the University of Toronto/University of Mexico and Lund University papers on the Oportunidades program): Peterman_Heise_IPV%20Ecuador%203%2028%2014.pdf Terms of Reference - Cash Transfer Feasibility Study 10