terms of reference consultancy: gender-sensitive study...
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TERMS OF REFERENCE
Consultancy: Gender-sensitive Study on Urban Child Labour in
Istanbul
I. Background on Save the Children’s Position on Child Labour
Save the Children (SC) works to ensure that every child survives, learns and is protected. We believe
that every girl and boy has the right to thrive and develop to their fullest potential, where they can
learn, play, be healthy active citizens and be protected from any type of violence, such as economic
exploitation and harmful work – including Worst Forms of Child Labour (WFCL). SC is committed to
seek sustainable solutions to such child rights issues in line with Article 32 of the UN Convention on
the Rights of the Child, ILO Convention 182 on the elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour,
and ILO Convention 138 on the Minimum Age of Employment. SC supports implementation of
international standards into national policies through a best interests of the child lens, with due respect
to the principles of meaningful child participation and do-no-harm.
SC’s strategy and approach to child labour identifies and serves the most marginalized girls and boys,
with consideration to structural inequalities within societies based on such as gender, ethnicity and
social status. In terms of gender, the perception of the respective roles of women and girls and men
and boys impacts on issues such as school drop-outs and child labour. The burden of domestic work
and child care for the younger siblings often falls on girls with the consequence that girls are more
likely to do domestic chores in their own home. Estimates show that more boys are involving harmful
work than girls, especially in the types of work that present physical hazards, while more girls often
work in hidden occupations like domestic work both inside and out of their home which make them
more vulnerable to sexual exploitation and slavery.
Addressing and combatting child labour – including WFCL – requires holistic and integrated
approaches, including strengthening household livelihoods, community-based child protection systems
and social cohesion for the most marginalized communities. Accordingly, SC Turkey implements an
integrated livelihood, psychosocial and child protection project in Istanbul targeting both refugee and
host communities, together with a local partner organisation. The project makes available Employability
and Entrepreneurial Pathways to youth, structured psychosocial and resilience-building activities as well
as activities to enhance awareness, resilience and social connectedness among girls, boys, women and
men. To effectively identify and respond to child protection concerns, referral mechanisms will be
established to ensure that youth from most vulnerable households, where girls and boys are engaged
in child labour or at high-risk of becoming involved in harmful work, have access to the livelihood
component. To promote success in narrowing gender gap in access to livelihoods opportunities among
Syrian and host communities, this project specifically seeks to look at this issue from a gender
perspective and design the implementation in an inclusive way by considering needs in a gender-
sensitive manner.
II. Purpose of the gender-sensitive study on child labour
SC is seeking skilled researchers or consultancy firm (“Applicant”) to conduct the below
study of highest possible quality, and welcomes multi-disciplinarily approaches and
skillsets including in research and social work, with specialism in child labour.
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The purpose of this child/youth participatory and gender-sensitive research on urban child labor in
Istanbul aims to better understand needs, risks and resources in order to inform appropriate measures
for prevention and response to child labour in Istanbul. The outcomes of the study will define SC and
our partners’ strategic approach, interventions and dialogue with community-based mechanisms for
the targeted districts with a focus on child labour. It will also inform the more general strategic
approach, interventions and dialogue with local and national duty bearers, to promote longer-term and
sustainable solutions to the issue of child labour in Istanbul.
The study is expected to identify:
The main push and pull (risk) factors risks in relation to child labour generally and WFCL in
particular, affecting refugee and most marginalised host communities in the targeted area. The
main protective factors at individual, family, community and systems level which enable girls
and boys to stay out of hazardous work environments.
The perceptions among urban refugees and marginalized local populations (including girls, boys,
male/female adolescents and youth as well as male/female caregivers).
The sectors using child labour and the type of work (light or harmful) that children engage in.
The community-based child protection mechanisms exist and how they can be used to prevent
and respond to child labour (incl. WFCL), including how the community-based mechanisms
link or can be linked with elements of the formal, government-led aspects of the national child
protection system.
The governmental and non-governmental programs and services already in place to prevent
and respond to child labour.
Through this study, we will deepen our understanding for community-based and local/national child
protection processes and mechanisms (protective factors) that support protection, positive coping and
resilience of girls and boys, and that can be used to prevent and response to child labour in these urban
refugee and local communities. The study is expected to include children and their families’ own
opinions, perceptions and practices on child labour from Syrian refugee community and local
community residing in the targeted areas. The study should take into account and navigate the local
political and economic context, which is to account for a specific context facing different groups
(refugees, marginalized local population etc.) in Turkey.
Note: SC is conducting several studies in Istanbul at the moment, with the focus on children’s psychosocial
wellbeing and resilience; protection risk and gaps facing refugee communities and general needs among girls
and boys. The targeted districts for some of these studies may overlap with this study. The consultant is therefore
expected to proactively and constructively coordinate with staff involved in these studies (including other
consultants) to prevent overlap, ensure complementarity and safeguard the best interests of the children we
engage with.
Assessment target areas: The gender-sensitive study on child labour will focus on Istanbul,
narrowed down to 2 specific districts, selected with attention to potential planned project areas of SC.
The location will be in one of the areas surrounded by Sultangazi,Şişli and Fatih districts. 2 specific
districts will be chosen in these mentioned areas and will be informed before the kick off meeting.
Audience for gender-sensitive study on urban child labour: The primary audience is staff and
consultants of SC and its current and potential partners. A secondary audience is the community of
service providers for refugee and most vulnerable host-community girls and boys and their family,
including the members of the Child Protection Sub-Working Groups as well as the Child Labour
Technical Group.
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III. Research questions
The gender-sensitive study on child labour is expected to assess the following questions, with gender
sensitivity. Please note that additional questions that are deemed relevant may be added by the
Applicant and presented in the inception report.
Understanding the child labour risks faced by girls and boys:
What are the parental, familial, cultural, sectoral and institutional push and pull factors that
trigger child labour for urban Syrian refugees and marginalized local population?
What are the “characteristics” of the groups of girls and boys most at-risk of child labour in
terms of resources, capacities, vulnerabilities and threat? What factors increase and/or
compound these different groups’ vulnerabilities to protection risks with specific focus on child
labour in the targeted area?
o Such factors include – but are not limited to – sex, age, disability, language, poverty,
sexual orientation, stigmatisation, discrimination, household composition, and legal,
social and economic status.
What signs of distress and changes in behaviour are displayed among girls and boys involved in
Child Labour?
What factors increase the risk of child labour, and how do they affect girls and boys differently?
Who has or does not have access to existing protection mechanisms focusing on child labour?
Understanding the perceptions among urban refugees and marginalized host
communities
What are girls’ and boys’ main hopes, worries for themselves in general and their perceptions
on child labour (listening children’s voices)
What are parents and caregiver’s main hopes and worries for their daughters and sons? What
is their standpoint on child labour? (perception)
Who are the people that matter in raising a child and what are their different roles and
responsibilities? (gender dynamics in home)?
What role does gender-norms play in livelihood strategies and outcomes that lead to the
decision on who will work? What other factors impact on the choices parents and caregivers
make for their children (e.g. school drop-out, child labour – gender focus is important)?
What advice and ideas do children and families have for prevention and response activities to
child labour with girls, boys, women and men in their community?
What advice do community members (e.g. local leaders, service providers, mukhtars, teachers,
school principals etc.) have for prevention and response activities to child labour with girls,
boys, women and men in their community?
Understanding the sectors in which child labour and WFCL is prevalent
Which sectors/sub-sectors are using child labour mostly?
What types of work do child labourers do? (unpaid, paid, physical, hazardous etc.) (gender
specific)
What role does gender-norms play in the “selection of children” and “selection of work”?
Why are children recruited instead of adults?
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Understanding community-based child protection mechanisms
What are the protective factors in the communities to prevent and respond to child labour?
More specifically, what community-based child protection mechanisms exist and how are they
can be used to prevent and respond to child labour (incl. WFCL)?
o For instance, can children safely report and seek support in incidents of SEA?
What are the resources and capacities at family and community level which should be built
on to strengthen protection, resilience and self-reliance among the most marginalized girls
and boys?
How are the community-based mechanisms link or can be linked with elements of the formal,
government-led aspects of the national child protection system?
Understanding governmental and non-governmental programs and services to prevent
and respond to child labour
What are the programs and services already in place to prevent and respond to child labour
for the most marginalised groups and Syrian refugees at community and district level? Are the
criteria for services relevant to the groups?
What are some good/best practices programming and influencing efforts for prevention and
response to child labour?
Understanding SC Turkey and partners’ strategic approaches
What are the most important protective factors leading to positive coping and resilience of
girls and boys, that SC Turkey and its partners should build on, in order to prevent and
response to child labour in these urban refugee and local communities?
What strategic approach, interventions and dialogue with community-based mechanisms
should SC Turkey and its partners pursue, in order to promote longer-term and sustainable
protection solutions for girls and boys at-risk or victims/survivors of child labour (including
WFCL)?
What strategic approach, interventions and dialogue with local and national duty bearers
should SC Turkey and its partners pursue, in order to promote longer-term and sustainable
protection solutions for girls and boys at-risk or victims/survivors of child labour (including
WFCL)?
Note: Recommendations and actions will be informed by the views of children, young people and their
families (parents and caregivers), to be gathered through safe and ethical engagement and participatory
activities.
Cross Cutting Issues:
Gender: Age and sex disaggregated data should be gathered and participatory methodologies should
be gender-sensitive.
Objectivity: The research needs to achieve a maximum level of objectivity and impartiality. Statements
need to be methodologically clearly distinguished from assessments. It is important that different
perspectives are taken into account. Results, conclusion and recommendations need to be clear.
Participation: Wide participation will be ensured through the engagements with relevant stakeholders,
including the safe and ethical participation of children and young people.
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IV. Scope of Work
a. The overall process
The Applicant will undertake the following tasks in consultation with SC and its partner organizations:
Arrange for a kick-off meeting to plan and prepare for the study.
Conduct a desk review on the context (including but not limited to key documents, references
and parallel research provided by SC and its partners).
Inform and finalize the methodology for the study, including a strategy for sampling of
respondents for quantitative and qualitative part of the research.
Design (in close collaboration with SC Turkey) standardized, conflict, cultural, age and gender-
sensitive tools for both qualitative and, quantitative data collection.
Consent form templates.
Focus Group Discussion, key informant questionnaires, in-depth interview
questionnaires, survey (structured) questionnaires and other necessary tools.
Produce and present an inception report for the assignment, including details on data collection
methodology and sampling.
Secure necessary permissions for the field work.
Go through a briefing on SC’s Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct, as well as Child
Protection identification and referrals.
Ensure any child participatory activity is safe and sensitive to the risks.
Conduct primary data collection in the selected sites, in the districts communicated by SC.
This includes gathering of qualitative data, which should be supplemented with additional
quantitative data collection in the specific project areas.
Proactively and constructively coordinate with staff involved in other ongoing SC studies
(including with other consultants) to prevent overlap, to ensure complementarity and
safeguard the best interests of the children we engage with.
Analyse, and triangulate the data collected.
Produce final reports as well as presentation slides for a final workshop, which can also be
used by SC for further external presentations.
Arrange for a workshop with SC Turkey, partners and relevant external actors to present the
final results.
V. Duration of the gender-sensitive study on child labour
The study should start as soon as possible. The draft report should be submitted within 9 weeks after
starting date, and final report 12 weeks after starting date. All in all, it is expected that the assignment
will take maximum 12 weeks.
a. Standards and Procedures
The following standards should be mainstreamed throughout the assignment:
Tools for information gathering should be sensitive to conflict, culture, age and gender. All
tools used with children, adolescents and youth should be age-appropriate in its content and
method.
Informed consent of all involved in the study is a must. Consent form templates should enable
safe and ethical referrals of individual in need for further support, and inform the respondents
of the actions to be taken in case of urgent protection risk (SC has a sample consent form
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which can be used as a base). The consent form should enable follow-up by SC and/or its
partners, to ensure that timely action will be taken and to ensure accountability.
All forms of data gathering should be conducted in a safe and ethical manner.
The principles of Gender-sensitiveness, Inclusiveness, Non-Discrimination, meaningful
Participation as well as Accountability, should be central throughout the process. For example:
The process should include ensuring adequate representation of women and men, and
provision of separate sessions for different groups as appropriate to enable their voices
to be safely heard.
A participatory, inclusive and child-centred approach should be used.
Community-based mechanisms, networks/leaders and other important stakeholders
(incl. SC’s partners) should be actively and meaningfully involved in the process.
Efforts should be made to reach the most marginalized and hard-to-reach boys, girls,
men and women.
A procedure for how to handle urgent cases and referrals should be in place before starting
any data gathering beyond desk research, and signed off by SC.
Any field visits should be conducted in pairs.
Adherence by all staff to SC’s Code of conduct, Child Safeguarding practices and confidentiality
throughout the process (including when interviewing or photographing children).
All data (hard and soft copy alike) should be safely stored and access should be limited to the
data set based on the role of the staff.
Regular briefings will take place between the consultant, SC and its partners, to reflect on any
adjustments necessary or the developments that occur in the area (i.e. safety and security
related updates, unavoidable edits within the questionnaire, reach of targets).
b. The methodology and tools
Both primary and secondary sources of information will be used to generate credible evidence, with
the main focus on primary data. Mixed methods should be employed, and data collection should enable
child/adolescent/youth participation and be conflict and gender sensitive. In terms of secondary data,
there may be a need to consult stakeholders at provincial or national level. Triangulation should be
used as a method to verify the findings. The questionnaires and tools that will be used in this study
should be built on existing questionnaires and other tools where feasible. All questionnaire and tool
drafts should be reviewed by SC staff prior to finalization and/or implementation.
Sources of primary and secondary data collection:
Desk/ literature review to assess what material and findings are already available to adequately
respond to the research questions.
Field Survey/Assessment forms: to enhance understanding on the characteristics of families
where child labour is prevalent. The number of people that participate in the survey should be
justified well and subject to SC’s approval. The sample size should be calculated at 95%
significance for quantitative data collection, while the sampling strategy should be specified at
the proposal.
Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with relevant stakeholders (for example municipalities, social
service centres, NGOs, schools, mukhtars, religious leaders, labourers etc.). The number of
KIIs should be justified and subject to SC’s approval. Sampling should rely on the principle of
saturation.
Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), sensitive to culture, age, gender and conflict, to be held with
girls and boys, women and men from the target communities. The goal is to gain information
on group’s characteristic and priorities and available community based mechanisms. The
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number of focus groups is not expected to be determined at the inception period, FGDs should
be conducted till data achieve data saturation.
In-depth interviews (IDIs) to be undertaken with local leaders, children, caregivers and others
as needed. Sampling should rely on the principle of saturation
Other data collection methods are welcome as long as they respect the provisions outlined in the section “Standards and Procedures” above.
A more detailed outline of the methodology and tools should be included in the Inception Report and signed off by SC before pursuing primary data collection.
c. The sampling strategy
Regarding qualitative data collection, separate FGD sessions, key informant and in-depth interviews
will be arranged for girls, boys, women, and men. The recommended age breakdown is children (9-
12), adolescents (13-17), youth (18-24), and adults/caregivers (25+). It is important that FGDs and
interviews are implemented with consideration participants’ feelings of safety and ability to express
their opinions. For the key informant interviews and in-depth interviews snow-ball technique is
acceptable. However, for the survey part of the research which will outline the basic descriptive
information on community, a representative sample technique is required.
A more detailed outline of the sampling should be included in the Inception Report and signed off by SC before
pursuing primary data collection.
d. Limitations
Any limitations to the study should be clearly explained in the reports.
e. Outputs/ deliverables
In accordance with the scope of work, the key deliverables are:
Inception report, to be presented to SC Turkey in a kick-off workshop and signed-off before
moving to field-level data collection. The Inception Report should include
o Details of the desk/literature review.
o The detailed methodology to be applied for the study, including standardized, child-
friendly and participatory tools for primary data collection.
o Suggested work plan/work flow, that outlines roles and responsibilities, milestones and
deadlines.
o Report template to be used for the full report
Tools for qualitative and quantitative data collection, which SC also will use in the event of a
future replication of the study.
Raw data collected.
Analysis of data.
A full report which is clearly structured and documenting the findings, conclusions and
recommendations.
o The final reports should consider the comments received from SC and partner
organizations. The work plan developed by the Applicant in collaboration with Save
the Children will outline mutual responsibilities and time lines for review.
Dissemination material, including a power point presentation of the findings that can be shared
with different stakeholders, including government officials and representatives of the affected
community. The consultant/firm is expected validate the findings through validation
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meetings/sessions, and present to SC Turkey and partner organization teams at the end of the
evaluation process.
Deliverables will be subject to SC’s approval before payments can proceed.
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SAMPLE TIMETABLE (APPLİCANT TO SUBMIT THEIR OWN TIMETABLE)
Activity Wk1 Wk2 Wk3 Wk4 Wk5 Wk6 Wk7 Wk8 Wk9 Wk10 Wk 11 Wk 12
Kick-off
Final project plan approved by SC
Desk Research and study plan
Desk research
Tool development &planning for field study
Data collection tools and field study plan(e.g. key informants, participants
etc.) finalized
Quantitative and qualitative data collection
Quantitative survey, FGDs, In-depth Interviews, KIIs
Data consolidation and analysis
Data consolidation &Analysis
Reporting and final presentation
Reporting Draft
report Finalize report
Finalize report
Present results
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VI. Organizational Roles and responsibilities
Save the Children’s responsibility:
SC, through its focal point (backed up by a Steering Committee led by the Manager for Program
Development and Quality), will be involved throughout the process and provide technical assistance
(i.e. provision of the necessary documents and information, review of the submissions) as well as sign-
off of critical mile stones (Kick-off meeting, Inception and Final Report). Practical/administrative
assistance will not be provided (i.e. in-country travel, accommodation).
Applicant’s responsibility:
The research will be conducted by an experienced multi-disciplinary team of researchers or consultant
firm with experience in designing and conducting complex research on child protection and child labour
with the focus on children and young people living as refugees.
Please note that the Applicant shall not have exclusive copyright of the report, the collected data or
the tools.
VII. Qualifications and Requirements
The Applicant should have the necessary expertise to carry out a gender-sensitive urban child labour
study and research of highest possible quality. The technical expertise and practical experience should
consist of one that can deliver the scope of work and deliverables, in particular, with regards to:
Technical skills: The Applicant should propose a multi-sectoral team as necessary, with
technical expertise and excellency in Sociology, Gender, Psychology, Social Work, Statistics,
Social Research and Methodology. The team should also possess and demonstrate excellent
technical skills and knowledge in terms of child labour national and international legal
frameworks, principles and guidelines.
Organisational experience: The Applicant should show evidence of previous and
successful provision of similar research services, which is relevant to this ToR. This includes
proven experience to manage a research process of equivalent size from beginning to end.
Information management: The Applicant should demonstrate proven experience in design
and management of data and information systems, and show familiarity with Monitoring,
Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning concepts.
Language Skills: The Applicant should possess advanced English and Turkish writing and
speaking skills. Fluency in Arabic is also preferred but consultant may secure interpreters in
Arabic and other relevant languages as well.
Working with children, adolescents and youth: The Applicant should have proven
experience and knowledge in the use of participatory and child/adolescent/youth-friendly tools
and methodologies.
Country experience: The Applicant must be familiar with the Turkish context and the
wider system affecting refugee children and young people in the country, including legal, child
protection, labour market, education and social service.
Legality in Turkey: The Applicant must either have a legitimate business /official premises,
and must be registered for trading and tax as appropriate OR apply as an individual but hold a
Turkish Citizenship in Turkey or work as consortium of consultants eligible to issue receipts.
Guiding Principles and Values: The Applicant must commit to adherence to SC’s Code of
conduct, Child Safeguarding practices, confidentiality and Best Interests of the Child at all
times.
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Skills and personal traits: The Applicant must demonstrate respect for diversity and the
principle of non-discrimination.
VIII. Application Requirements
The application must include the following:
An overview of the qualifications of the key individuals who will be participating in the
assignment, specification of the activities they will be carrying out, and a summary of their
relevant qualifications/experience, using the table in Annex A.
The table should include the names of all individuals who will be responsible for key
parts of the assignment. For example, you do not need to include individual names for
enumerators, etc. but please do include the names of anyone who will lead field survey,
conduct KIIs, or FGDs, conduct data consolidation and analysis, and/or write reports.
Please note that named individuals may not be replaced with others except upon
written approval by SC.
Cover letter and outline of familiarity with the topic, context and of relevant past performance
(max 5 pages). The outline should include descriptions of relevant past work, including project
scope, location, methods utilized, and results.
Complete and updated CVs of the named individuals and covering letter.
Technical Proposal (max 5 pages) articulating the proposed approach and method for the
assignment. Information regarding proposed sampling strategy, field access strategy, work plan
and a proposed timeline must be included (see sample on p. 9 for work plan/timeline). The
Technical Proposal should demonstrate the Applicant’s technical expertise in child labour.
Financial proposal including a detailed budget breakdown, including tax . This should realistically
and adequately present specific items, frequencies and costs.
An executive summary from a relevant past report, in Turkish or English.
At least two (3) professional references able to speak to the Applicant’s success in conducting
similar assignments in the past. Please include name, title, organization, location, telephone,
and email address.
The submission must be in a sealed envelope and delivered to Save the Children Istanbul
Office (Save the Children International USO Center Büyükdere caddesi No.245 Kat:10).
The application must be submitted no later than 22th August 2019, 5 pm Turkey time.
IX. Inquires
Any inquiries about the gender-sensitive study on urban child labour, or the application,
can be directed to Mehmet Karakuzulu, Procurement Officer,
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Annex A: Consultant Summary Table
Please include with your application materials a table with the following information at minimum. Columns for additional information or lines for
additional team members may be added as needed. Please indicate which of the named individuals will be the point of contact with Save the Children and will lead the assignment and holding final accountability for the quality of deliverables.
Name of Individual
Educational/
technical qualifications Summary of experience
Languages
spoken/written and
level (Rudimentary,
Proficient, Fluent, Native)
Role(s) on assignment
(Please indicate project lead) assignment
Approximate total
level of effort (number of days)
Daily rate and
total cost (incl. tax)