Mid-term Review of the TI Vietnam Programme “Strengthening Anti- Corruption Demand from Government, Private Sector and Society, 2009-2012”

Call for consultants: Mid-term Review of the TI Vietnam Programme “Strengthening Anti- Corruption Demand from Government, Private Sector
and Society, 2009-2012”

1. Introduction
A. Programme Background:

From 2007 to early 2009 the Transparency International Secretariat in Berlin (hereafter TI–S) has developed a 3,5 years Programme entitled “Strengthening Anti-Corruption Demands from Government, Private sector and Society, 2009-2012”. The Programme has officially started in September 2009 after having secured positive signals from the Vietnamese authorities and financial support from donors in Hanoi. The total programme budget of 1,388,378 Euros for the 3.5 years is supported by four donors- DFID, IrishAid, and the Finnish and Swedish Embassies in Vietnam.

The Programme is managed by the Asia Pacific Department (APD) of the TI-S, while its execution and coordination is undertaken on the ground by Towards Transparency (TT) – TI’s National Contact in Vietnam. The programme is still new in Vietnam and is still in its exploratory stage- in trying to find ways of working that are both feasible and effective in the anti-corruption context of Vietnam. At the end of this phase of work, it is hoped that TT/TI will have established its presence in Vietnam and will have begun to bear an impact in various areas of work.

TI/TT would like now to conduct a mid-term review of its programme to inform more targeted work of the TI Vietnam’s Programme of and post 2012.

B. Programme Structure:

The Programme Purpose:
As stated in the TI-S Programme Strategy Document for Vietnam (see Annex 1), the Programme Purpose is a high level objective and is defined as below:
“To contribute to equitable sustainability and economic prosperity in Vietnam by progressively establishing a TI presence in Vietnam with a view to raising awareness on the impact that corruption and tolerance to corruption have on socio-economic development, and by helping to reduce the risks and occurrences of corrupt practices in Government, business and NGOs”.

Programme 4 main goals:
Goal 1: To support ongoing research by Vietnamese academics and specialists, and initiate complementary expert research, to further analyze the nature, extent and typology of corruption in Vietnam, and share findings with various actors in Vietnamese society (Research).
Goal 2: To support ongoing efforts made by Vietnamese institutions and society to promote lower tolerance for corruption in Vietnam and to create a stronger demand for anti-corruption reforms and greater transparency and integrity in business relations (Government, society and private sector).
Goal 3: To encourage and support existing and new audiences in government, private sector, and NGOs in engaging in the fight against corruption (Support base/coalition building).
Goal 4: To shape a supportive climate towards, and build the governance foundations and operational structures and processes for the establishment of a TI National Chapter in Vietnam (Governance foundation).

The Programme scheduling: The Programme is divided into two phases:

Phase 1: A 6 months preparatory phase (from September 2009 to February 2010) aiming to ensure that the necessary conditions for successful implementation of the Programme are created before intensive activities start in the following three years of the Programme (2010-2012).

Phase 2- The implementation phase (March 2010-December 2012): aiming to initiate and undertake activities, in close collaboration with key anti-corruption Vietnamese institutions, in the following areas:
1. Research: To increase knowledge of the nature and typology of corruption in Vietnam.
2. Support & Demand: To support anti-corruption efforts by government and create a stronger demand for anti-corruption reforms and greater transparency in business relations.
3. Outreach & Coalition: To encourage and support existing and new audiences among the public, government, private sector and NGOs in engaging the fight against corruption.
4. Participation & Sustainability: To build governance foundations and operations structure of a future TI National Chapter in Vietnam.

II. Purpose and Objectives of the Programme Review

The purpose of this Review is to provide an analytical and independent evaluation of the programme to date for TI-S and TT to better understand the programme functioning, its initial outcomes and the challenges faced in the anti corruption agenda in Vietnam. This will help to inform more targeted work in the remaining year (2012) of the Programme and more importantly, serve as important input into TI-S/TT Strategic planning of the follow-up four year phase, 2013-2016. TI-S and TT Vietnam are planning to develop a new strategic plan at the end of 2011. It is intended that the results of this Programme Review will be incorporated in this future strategic plan.

Key Objectives of this Review therefore are threefold:
1. To assess the process and the extent to which the current implementation is meeting the Programme goals and objectives;
2. To assess and document the key lessons learnt and achievements of the programme to
date with a view to provide recommendations for TI/TT for fine-tuning the programme planned activities and delivery for the remaining year 2012;
3. To recommend key Strategic directions with a detailed roadmap with a view to establish
a future TI National Chapter in Vietnam, for the period 2013-2016.

The Review will look into the following key questions and issues:
1. The relevance, effectiveness, and initial benefits of the Programme:

• To evaluate the relevance of the TI Vietnam Programme to the local anti- corruption context
• To evaluate the extent to which the current programme delivery and the outcomes are on track
• To evaluate how successful the Programme was in achieving its set objectives and outcome
• To evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the programme in achieving it set objectives and outcome
• To draw the lessons that can be learnt about the effectiveness and relevance of the intervention strategies used in order to achieve programme outcomes.

2. Process and internal governance capacity:

• To assess the strengths and challenges in the current programme financing; its management and coordination modality by TI-S and TT
• To assess the current internal governance issues (e.g. Programme Consultative Group, staffing structure and capacity). An important focus will be to assess organizational sustainability: how to move from current management processes originally aimed at implementing a TI Vietnam Programme towards management structures aimed at anchoring the organization in society
• To assess the proposed improvements of the Programme M & E framework as proposed by Intrac
• To identify and recommend key factors important for the better functioning of the programme in order to achieve its desired outcomes for the remaining period 2012.

3. Recommendations regarding Programme delivery of 2012 and for next TI/TT post 2012 Programme in Vietnam:

• Review of the 2012 Programme Planned activities and to provide recommendations about how to incorporate lessons learnt for fine-tuning work in the Programme’s remaining year 2012
• To recommend key strategic directions with a detailed road map, including but not limited to key areas of TI/TT future engagements in the local anti- corruption agenda, a suitable governance structure and processes to establish a TI future chapter in Vietnam, during the period of 2013-2016.

III. Methodology

The following activities should be included in the review and evaluation process:

• Overview and analysis of relevant documents (3 days)
• Discussions and interviews with the relevant staff of TI-S in Berlin, TT and representatives from Anti-corruption stakeholders from donors, government agencies, working partners, private sectors, and also consultants and media representatives in Vietnam. This also includes, if relevant, a strategic planning meeting with TT staff (10 days field work plus traveling days to/from Hanoi)
• The final Review and Evaluation Report will firstly target TI-S and TT. It will be shared with Programme donors and other interested parties. Comments on the draft report by both TI-S and TT should be collected and included before the finalization of the report. (Drafting and finalization of report: 4 days).

IV. Timeframe and Budget

Time frame of the review shall be for a maximum of 17 paid days. The starting date is ASAP. The final Methodology of the review will be discussed and agreed with the selected consultants. The report should be completed by mid November 2011.

Budget: All costs associated to travel and accommodation will be covered. Interested parties are kindly requested to present brief technical (including CVs) and budget proposals. A TI standard contract based on EU cost norms for engagement of external consultants will be applied for this assignment.

V. Deliverable and Report

The expected output of the Review will be a main report of maximum 25 pages (excluding annexes) written in English which will include:
1. An analytical description of the Programme context, a summary of key achievements, challenges and lessons learnt to date of the TI Vietnam Programme in anti-corruption agenda in Vietnam;
2. Recommendations for:
i. Improvements and fine-tuning needed for Programme planned activities and implementation in 2012; and,
ii. Key strategic directions and a detailed roadmap, including but not limited to, key areas of engagement in local anti- corruption agenda, a suitable governance structure and processes to establish a TI future chapter in Vietnam, for the period of 2013-2016.

VI. Consultant Qualifications

A team of at least two consultants (1 international and 1 local) is required. The international consultant (to be the Team leader) who is familiar with governance issues and has good knowledge of anti –corruption and understanding of how TI works. S/he should also have Programme Evaluation and Strategic Planning skills and experiences. Prior experience working in developing countries, including in Vietnam will be a plus. The team leader will be responsible for looking for the local consultant to team up with. Excellent writing skill in English is a must.

It is expected that the local consultant should have knowledge and experience in working on stakeholders’ coordination/process facilitation in governance issues in Vietnam. Interpretation and meeting facilitation skills will be important in meetings with some local stakeholders.

VII. Contact person and Deadline

Interested consultant/s will send their expression of interest with proposals to the following address:
Nguyen Thi Kieu Vien
Executive Director, Towards Transparency
Email: kieuvien@towardstransparency.vn
Deadline: 17:00 Hanoi time, 14 August 2011

VIII. References/Annexes (to be provided to final shortlisted consultants)

1. TI Vietnam Programme Document, 2009-2012
2. TI Strategy 2015
3. TI Vietnam Programme’s four Bi-annual Progress Reports and Donors Meeting minutes: September 2009-Feb 2010; March 2010- Aug. 2010; September 2010-Feb 2011; March 2011-August 2011 (forthcoming)
4. InTrac Final Report on the proposed Interim TI Vietnam Programme M & E framework , Nov. 2010
5. TI Vietnam Programme Legal Review Report;