TERMS OF REFERENCE Position Title: Research Consultant Duty Station: Kathmandu, Nepal international travel and field visits as required Type of Appointment: Consultancy, 15 months part time Estimated start date: 1 st of February, 2015 Overview: IOM seeks to recruit a qualified consultant to support the project entitled Assessing the climate change, environmental degradation and migration nexus in South Asia, being implemented in Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal. The project aims to contribute to the existing knowledge and awareness of the impact of climate change and environmental degradation on internal and international migration in South Asia. The consultant will be responsible for drafting an assessment study, a model action plan and a regional strategy framework based on the research findings and national consultations. Background: South Asia, comprising 8 countries including Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal, is affected by a range of disasters that displace thousands of people every year. Environmental degradation and slow-onset events in the region also act as drivers for migration. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has predicted that slow-onset disasters and sudden-onset disasters will increase in severity and frequency, threatening lives and livelihoods across the region. The IPCC further notes that long-term environmental change, sea-level rise, coastal erosion, and loss of agricultural productivity will have a significant impact on migration flows. Through the project Assessing the climate change, environmental degradation and migration nexus in South Asia, IOM will support the governments of Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal to address the expected impacts of climate change and environmental degradation in South Asia. The main project activities include a related assessment study 1 based on a literature and policy review and field research in the three countries; developing national action plans and a regional strategy framework; national level consultations in Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal and a regional level dissemination meeting. The three countries have been selected for their commonalities such as high rates of urbanization, internal and international migration (though the Maldives is an exception as it witnesses net in-migration) and exposure to diverse climatic events. It is expected that the challenges and experiences of these three countries will serve as lessons for the whole of South Asia. General Functions: Under the overall guidance of the Chief of Mission, IOM Nepal and the Regional Adviser for Migration, Environment and Climate Change, based in the IOM Regional Office, under the supervision of the IOM Nepal project team and the programme associate in the Regional 1 For an example, please see IOM s study entitled Assessing the evidence: Climate change and migration in Bangladesh http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/free/environment_climate_change_bangladesh.pdf
Office, and in consultation with the lead researcher based in Dhaka, the consultant will be responsible for drafting a section on the Nepal for the assessment study, which will include field research, and a model action plan for the project Assessing the climate change, environmental degradation and migration nexus in South Asia. Specifically, the candidate will: 1. Conduct a desk review of existing studies, statistics, policies, plan of actions eg NAPA, LAPA and institutional responses related to the impact of climate change and environmental degradation on migration in Nepal 2. Support the lead researcher in the development of a research framework and methodology that will be suitable to the Nepalese context, in coordination with the IOM project team of Nepal, to analyse the impact of climate change and environmental degradation on internal, cross border and international migration. 3. Participate in the inception workshop and other meetings as required; 4. Consult with stakeholders and the PAC for the identification of locations/hot spots and selection of target communities in Nepal based on multiple factors such as exposure to hazards, local migration patterns, existence of previous adaptation / mitigation projects, as well as non-climate stressors 5. Conduct interviews with government counterparts and relevant stakeholders, including district and village level representatives in relevant government ministries/departments and development agencies that have on-going programs in the study areas/districts. 6. Collect primary disaggregated data and conduct comparative socio-economic surveys of migrant and non-migrant households in selected study sites in Nepal 7. Conduct district and village level workshops, key informant group and individual interviews, and participant observation. 8. Compile, prepare and present the case studies on Nepal which will be included in the final assessment study. Ensure the quality of research data, grounded analysis and coherence with research objectives of the project. 9. Draft a model national action plan for Nepal, based on the findings of the field research and consultations with key stakeholders, including the research and project team 10. Present the key findings of the Nepal section of the assessment study (including the field studies) during the national level consultation in Kathmandu and the regional dissemination meeting, with the support of the IOM project team 11. Revise and finalize the Nepal section and model national action plan based on inputs from the national consultations prior to the regional dissemination meeting 12. Ensure the successful completion of research-related activities in accordance with the agreed work plan, outputs and timeline against deliverables 13. Perform such other duties as may be assigned. Deliverables: Deliverable Description Due date 1. Work plan Work plan should outline the strategy of the consultant on how they will undertake the assigned tasks and how they intend on proceeding with the research 2. Nepal The methodology should be submitted March 2015 To be submitted after the completion of the 1 st week of the consultancy 2
Section after two months 3. Model National Action Plan A first draft of the desk review should be submitted after four months A second draft should be submitted after 7 months, including initial results from the baseline survey. A final draft should be submitted after 11 months which will include the results of the first round of field research, data analysis, and reporting from the community level workshops for internal sharing. This final draft will be revised incorporating feedback and finalized in two months after the submission of the final draft. The final draft may be revised following the national consultation. A final draft should be submitted after 11 months for internal sharing. This draft will be revised incorporating feedback and finalized in two months after the initial submission. This draft will be presented at the national consultation. The draft will be finalized and submitted with the feedback received during the national consultation. May 2015 August 2015 December 2015 February 2016 April 2016 December 2015 February 2016 National consultations scheduled between February to March 2016 April 2016 Reporting: the consultant will report to the IOM Nepal project team and the Regional Office which will supervise and ensure that consultant adheres to the agreed TORs and deliver the study outputs Desirable Qualifications: Education and Experience a) Completed advanced University degree from an accredited academic institution preferably in Environmental studies, Social Sciences, International Development b) At least five years experience in research-oriented project management, monitoring, and reporting c) Experience analysing demographic data and leading qualitative interviews d) Capacity to collate and synthesize qualitative and quantitative data in a comprehensible manner e) Knowledge of climate change and environmentally induced migration 3
f) Knowledge of relevant policies on migration, environment, and climate change g) Experience working with governments, civil society, rural communities h) Experience in conducting vulnerability assessment i) Advanced knowledge in SLA 2, NELM 3 and ABM 4 research frameworks a strong advantage. Competencies a) Excellent communication, drafting and editing skills b) Excellent analytical and organizational skills b) Excellent monitoring, evaluation, and reporting skills c) Good computer literacy and applications proficiency d) Ability to lead a team effectively to achieve goals e) Flexible, reliable team player with proven networking and partnership building skills f) Ability to function effectively and harmoniously in a fast-paced, cross-cultural work environment g) Demonstrated gender and social inclusion awareness and gender sensitivity h) Comfortable operating at different levels i) Ability to work with minimal supervision and to meet deadlines Language(s): Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of Nepali is an advantage. Annex I: Project implementation tentative timeframe 1. Review of literature, statistics and policies Activities Conduct an in-depth review of literature, statistics (from existing projects) and policy related to the same in Bangladesh; Due Date April 2015 2. Assessment design Along with IOM project team and research team, April 2015 develop the overall study framework. This will be based on the literature and policy review and consultations/interviews with stakeholders. The consultant (methodology, target locations, sample size and sample constitution, key informants and focus group discussions questionnaires, core indicators); 3. Initial assessment, Implementation and completion of the first round July-August 2015 baseline survey of field research; 4. Data processing and Production of first draft of the Maldives section; August analysis (#1) 2015 5. In-depth assessment Implementation and completion of the second Septemberround of field research; November 2015 6. Data processing and Production of final Maldives section; December 2015 analysis (#2) 7. Drafting of the national Based on consultations with stakeholders, key Feb 2016 action plans and informant interviews and interviews with regional framework government stakeholders; strategy 8. Presentation of The national consultations will discuss the February-March 2 Sustainable Livelihood Approach 3 New Economics of Labour Migration 4 Agent Based Model 4
national action plan Bangladesh section and the national model action 2016/ April 2016 and Bangladesh section plan; the Bangladesh section will be finalized at national following this; consultations 9. Final Draft of Based on the inputs from the national April 2016 assessment study, consultations; including the three country sections (Bangladesh, the Maldives, Nepal) Regional Dissemination Meeting July 2016 Annex II: Outline of the Study Introduction Overview of the climate change, environmental degradation and migration nexus - Overview of the South Asian context, including a literature review, review of policies and institutional response Explanation of the research framework and methodology Country Sections (Bangladesh, the Maldives, Nepal) - Desk review of literature, policies, institutional response - Note on the selection of study sites - Results of the primary data collection - Results of the comparative survey between migrant and non-migrant households - Results of the community based workshops and key informant interviews - Results from the consultations with key stakeholders - Analysis, policy implications and recommendations - Toolkit: National model action plans Analysis, policy implications and recommendations for the whole region Toolkit: Regional strategy framework Bibliography 5