Environmental Situation Analysis of SCA’s Health Programme in Afghanistan
Swedish Committee of Afghanistan (SCA) is a Swedish membership non-governmental development organization that has been operating in Afghanistan for almost thirty years. The mission of SCA is to empower poor women, children and men through combining service provision, capacity development and advocacy in the implementation of development programmes predominantly in rural areas. In Afghanistan, SCA runs four large programmes in the fields of Health, Education, Rural Development and Rehabilitation of People with Disability in 17 of the country’s 34 provinces. There are support units for all programme activities relating to quality assurance, civil society, human rights & gender and information.
1.2 Health Programme
SCA’s Health Programme delivers basic health care in four provinces (Laghman, Sar-e Pul, Samangan, and Wardak) according to the Afghan government’s Basic Package of Health Services (BPHS). In Laghman and Wardak provinces SCA has recently started managing services in the provincial hospitals to provide the Essential Package of Hospital Services (EPHS). In addition to this, SCA provides supplementary services for maternal and child health care, community capacity building and health education and awareness raising. SCA’s Health Programme has a budget of around $6,800,000 in 2012 and employs approximately 1,400 staff
1.3 Context of the Analysis
In 2009, SCA conducted an external environmental situation analysis (ESA) of all its operations in Afghanistan, with the purpose of providing ‘a baseline for the future operational priorities to be set in terms of enforcing environmental sustainability in all SCA programmes.’ For reasons of limited time and the inaccessibility of many health clinics at the time, SCA’s Health Programme was not covered by this ESA.
The 2009 situation analysis made key recommendations regarding both the practicalities of programme implementation, as well as the orientation of policy and SCA’s environmental strategy, which was in the process then of being developed. The strategy (2010-2012) establishes four objectives (regarding organizational capacity development, organizational learning on environmental practices, increased environmental awareness amongst SCA stakeholders, and decreased negative impact on the environment as a direct result of SCA activities) for all SCA operations which are intended to contribute to the overall development objective of achieving:
An enhanced positive and reduced negative impact of SCA interventions on the Environment, with a long-term strive [sic] to achieve environmental sustainability in all interventions.
This environmental situation analysis (ESA) of SCA’s Health Programme is intended to supplement and complete the work carried out in the 2009 analysis and, in particular, to provide practical recommendations to the Health Programme for minimizing its negative impact on the environment and for developing measures which contribute to environmental sustainability in SCA-run health facilities, the local community and the wider natural environment.
2. Purpose and objectives
The ESA’s purpose is to assess the environmental impact, positive and negative, of SCA’s health programme, as well as to provide an agenda of practical recommendations for the following:
- improving / ensuring the environmental sustainability of SCA ‘s health programme;
- further developing SCA’s policy and strategy throughout the organization concerning environmental issues;
- developing strategies and project activities with community stakeholders which promote environmental awareness and also, more practically, environmental sustainability
The ESA’s specific objectives are:
- To identify and assess the negative impact on the Environment of SCA’s Health Programme, including both the direct impact of SCA health facilities on the immediate Environment and their contribution to climate change in the wider global Environment;
- To identify areas of good environmental practice in SCA’s Health Programme that may be extended and developed further in the Programme and SCA operations more generally;
- To identify and assess the impact, negative and positive of SCA’s Health Programme on the life of SCA’s target groups, including SCA’s health care users, SCA’s staff and health workers, as well as the communities in which SCA’ health facilities are located.
- To assess the extent to which environmental impact and potential environmental sustainability are taken into account by SCA’s Health Programme in planning, monitoring and evaluation, and the extent to which these concerns are incorporated into the Programme’s strategy, policy and methodological principles;
- To provide detailed recommendations for both the immediate short-term and also the longer-term:
o Of a practical nature, regarding methods, tools, and target groups, which the Health Programme can incorporate in the planning and implementation of its activities to enhance its environmental sensitivity and sustainability, while ensuring that its rights-based approach is also strengthened;
o Of a more strategic and policy-oriented nature, to be applied within the Programme or throughout SCA more generally, which will enhance SCA’s ability to promote the Environment within a rights-based perspective.
3. ESA scope and methodology
3.1 Scope
The ESA will include consideration of all areas of SCA’s Health Programme, including programme management situated in SCA’s Kabul Management Office (KMO), specific health projects (BPHS, EPHS, maternal and child health care, community capacity building and Learning for Healthy Living), including a current construction project to build health clinics in Sar-e Pul and Samangan.
Consideration should be given to the following aspects of the Health Programme:
- practical activities of health care delivery and project implementation;
- inclusion of environmental issues in informational aspects of the Health Programme, including its educational and awareness-raising work, advocacy and cooperation with partners and institutional stakeholders;
- management and administration practices including routine work in KMO and logistical support, such as procurement, transport, and storage of medical supplies;
- planning, monitoring and evaluation of the Health Programme and its projects;
- integration of the above with the SCA Environmental Strategy and other organizational policy guidelines concerning the Environment.
The ESA will take start in SCA’s KMO (Kabul), and will then take in field visits to two field offices (Samangan and Laghman), in order to gain a practical understanding of the Health Programme’s operations in these three locations. The field work will cover all types /kinds of health programme facilities including Basic Health Centers, Comprehensive Health Centers, Hospitals, Midwifery Schools and Project Offices, the details of which will be decided upon jointly by the consultant and SCA’s Health Programme Management Unit.
3.2 Methodology
The ESA will combine a comprehensive desk study of all relevant documentation with consultations with Health Programme staff and other senior management staff from SCA’s Project Implementation Department (PID) and Policy and Quality Assurance Department (PQA), project management staff in the field, SCA health workers, as well as health users and members of the communities where the Health Programme works.
Consultations will take place by means of a range of qualitative methods and tools, which will be chosen and designed by the consultant. These might include semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, workshops, “walk rounds” of health facilities and the community, etc.
The desk study will include, SCA policy and strategic documents, health project and strategic documents, field reports, evaluations, etc.
On completion of all consultations, the consultant will deliver a presentation at KMO to SCA staff and stakeholders of her/his initial findings, conclusions and recommendations.
The consultant will be responsible for the detailed design of the methodology, which will be developed in close cooperation with SCA at the start of the ESA assignment.
3.3 Scheduling
The evaluation will take place between March - May 2012, according to the following schedule:
- Preparation / desk study 3 days
- Interviews and consultations, Kabul 3 days
- Field Trip Samangan (incl. travel) 6 days
- Field trip Laghman (incl. travel) 5 days
- Feedback presentation (Kabul) 1 day
- Analysis and report writing 5 days
Total 23 days
4. ESA Implementation and Management
4.1 Consultant
The evaluation will be carried out by an external national or international consultant, an expert in environmental sustainability, with specific knowledge of health programmes, and significant experience in conducting environmental impact assessments, project evaluations or similar. The consultant will be responsible for conducting all aspects of the ESA and delivering the stated outputs.
4.2 SCA Inputs and oversight
Overall management of the evaluation will be the responsibility of SCA’s Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Unit, while a panel/reference group consisting of SCA’s Head of Health, the Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, the Deputy Director of Programme Implementation and a representative of SCA’s Stockholm Management Office will select the ESA consultant and review and approve the ESA report.
The parties should jointly discuss and decide upon the mission and the definite work plan, which has to be accepted by SCA before the work continues. The consultant shall present the programme, approach and key questions (revised work plan) to the reference group in the form of an inception report, to be submitted within 5 days of starting the assignment.
SCA’s Health Programme Management Unit shall provide the consultant with assistance in arranging meetings and analysis events. SCA will also organize and cover the costs of all travel in Afghanistan, to and within the field, as well as provide accommodation in Kabul and the field in SCA’s guest houses.
4.3 Expected outputs
- A) Inception report outlining the programme of work, the approach to be taken and key questions (revised work plan), to be submitted within 5 days of starting the assignment;
- B) Presentation of preliminary findings of the ESA to SCA staff at KMO on finishing the field work;
- C) Draft final ESA report with executive summary in English (to a maximum 20 pages excluding annexes) within two weeks after the feedback presentation in Kabul giving recommendations of both a practical nature for promoting the Environment in the planning and implementation of all SCA Health Programme’s activities, and also of a more strategic and policy-oriented nature, to be applied within the Health Programme or throughout SCA more generally, which will enhance SCA’s ability to promote the Environment within a rights-based perspective.
- D) Within two weeks from receipt of draft the SCA will provide the consultant with feed back on the draft ESA.
- E) Final ESA report incorporating or responding to collected feedback from SCA, to be delivered no later than seven days after receiving SCA feedback.
4.3 Profile required of the evaluation consultant
- Relevant academic qualifications to minimum of BSc/BA level;
- Extensive experience in designing and implementing environment studies, environmental impact assessments and / or evaluations of environmental projects in developing countries;
- Specific knowledge and / or experience of health projects and delivery of health care services in developing countries
- Knowledge of rights-based approaches in development;
- Practiced in the use of participatory methods for conducting research, planning and evaluations;
- Highly proficient in written and spoken English. Proficiency in Dari and / or Pasto an asset;
- Background knowledge of the political and cultural situation in Afghanistan, as well as experience of working in conflict or post-conflict areas desirable;
- Strong communication skills, with the ability to communicate detailed concepts clearly and concisely both in writing and verbally.
5. How to Apply
Interested consultants are invited to apply with an offer which includes the following:
§ CV of the consultant, showing relevant experience and background for the assignment;
§ An indicative work plan with proposed dates;
§ A description of the methodology to be applied;
§ A financial offer including the consultant’s daily fee and any travel and related costs to Afghanistan. Accommodation, food as well as travel within Afghanistan will be arranged and paid for by SCA,
The full documentation, – excluding CVs – is not to exceed three pages.
Offers are to be submitted electronically to the following email address: evaluations@sca.org.af The final date for submission offers is 16.00 Afghan time (12.30 CET), 29 March 2012. Please put the word Environment in the subject line.
For further information please contact Zemarai Saqeb at: zemarai.saqeb@sca.org.af.
The assignment is subject to a tender procedure according to SCA’s standard procurement regulations. SCA reserves the right not to accept any of the tenders submitted. In addition SCA reserves the right to take references on the proposed candidate.
Tenders shall remain valid for a period of 60 days.
1.2 Health Programme
SCA’s Health Programme delivers basic health care in four provinces (Laghman, Sar-e Pul, Samangan, and Wardak) according to the Afghan government’s Basic Package of Health Services (BPHS). In Laghman and Wardak provinces SCA has recently started managing services in the provincial hospitals to provide the Essential Package of Hospital Services (EPHS). In addition to this, SCA provides supplementary services for maternal and child health care, community capacity building and health education and awareness raising. SCA’s Health Programme has a budget of around $6,800,000 in 2012 and employs approximately 1,400 staff
1.3 Context of the Analysis
In 2009, SCA conducted an external environmental situation analysis (ESA) of all its operations in Afghanistan, with the purpose of providing ‘a baseline for the future operational priorities to be set in terms of enforcing environmental sustainability in all SCA programmes.’ For reasons of limited time and the inaccessibility of many health clinics at the time, SCA’s Health Programme was not covered by this ESA.
The 2009 situation analysis made key recommendations regarding both the practicalities of programme implementation, as well as the orientation of policy and SCA’s environmental strategy, which was in the process then of being developed. The strategy (2010-2012) establishes four objectives (regarding organizational capacity development, organizational learning on environmental practices, increased environmental awareness amongst SCA stakeholders, and decreased negative impact on the environment as a direct result of SCA activities) for all SCA operations which are intended to contribute to the overall development objective of achieving:
An enhanced positive and reduced negative impact of SCA interventions on the Environment, with a long-term strive [sic] to achieve environmental sustainability in all interventions.
This environmental situation analysis (ESA) of SCA’s Health Programme is intended to supplement and complete the work carried out in the 2009 analysis and, in particular, to provide practical recommendations to the Health Programme for minimizing its negative impact on the environment and for developing measures which contribute to environmental sustainability in SCA-run health facilities, the local community and the wider natural environment.
2. Purpose and objectives
The ESA’s purpose is to assess the environmental impact, positive and negative, of SCA’s health programme, as well as to provide an agenda of practical recommendations for the following:
- improving / ensuring the environmental sustainability of SCA ‘s health programme;
- further developing SCA’s policy and strategy throughout the organization concerning environmental issues;
- developing strategies and project activities with community stakeholders which promote environmental awareness and also, more practically, environmental sustainability
The ESA’s specific objectives are:
- To identify and assess the negative impact on the Environment of SCA’s Health Programme, including both the direct impact of SCA health facilities on the immediate Environment and their contribution to climate change in the wider global Environment;
- To identify areas of good environmental practice in SCA’s Health Programme that may be extended and developed further in the Programme and SCA operations more generally;
- To identify and assess the impact, negative and positive of SCA’s Health Programme on the life of SCA’s target groups, including SCA’s health care users, SCA’s staff and health workers, as well as the communities in which SCA’ health facilities are located.
- To assess the extent to which environmental impact and potential environmental sustainability are taken into account by SCA’s Health Programme in planning, monitoring and evaluation, and the extent to which these concerns are incorporated into the Programme’s strategy, policy and methodological principles;
- To provide detailed recommendations for both the immediate short-term and also the longer-term:
o Of a practical nature, regarding methods, tools, and target groups, which the Health Programme can incorporate in the planning and implementation of its activities to enhance its environmental sensitivity and sustainability, while ensuring that its rights-based approach is also strengthened;
o Of a more strategic and policy-oriented nature, to be applied within the Programme or throughout SCA more generally, which will enhance SCA’s ability to promote the Environment within a rights-based perspective.
3. ESA scope and methodology
3.1 Scope
The ESA will include consideration of all areas of SCA’s Health Programme, including programme management situated in SCA’s Kabul Management Office (KMO), specific health projects (BPHS, EPHS, maternal and child health care, community capacity building and Learning for Healthy Living), including a current construction project to build health clinics in Sar-e Pul and Samangan.
Consideration should be given to the following aspects of the Health Programme:
- practical activities of health care delivery and project implementation;
- inclusion of environmental issues in informational aspects of the Health Programme, including its educational and awareness-raising work, advocacy and cooperation with partners and institutional stakeholders;
- management and administration practices including routine work in KMO and logistical support, such as procurement, transport, and storage of medical supplies;
- planning, monitoring and evaluation of the Health Programme and its projects;
- integration of the above with the SCA Environmental Strategy and other organizational policy guidelines concerning the Environment.
The ESA will take start in SCA’s KMO (Kabul), and will then take in field visits to two field offices (Samangan and Laghman), in order to gain a practical understanding of the Health Programme’s operations in these three locations. The field work will cover all types /kinds of health programme facilities including Basic Health Centers, Comprehensive Health Centers, Hospitals, Midwifery Schools and Project Offices, the details of which will be decided upon jointly by the consultant and SCA’s Health Programme Management Unit.
3.2 Methodology
The ESA will combine a comprehensive desk study of all relevant documentation with consultations with Health Programme staff and other senior management staff from SCA’s Project Implementation Department (PID) and Policy and Quality Assurance Department (PQA), project management staff in the field, SCA health workers, as well as health users and members of the communities where the Health Programme works.
Consultations will take place by means of a range of qualitative methods and tools, which will be chosen and designed by the consultant. These might include semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, workshops, “walk rounds” of health facilities and the community, etc.
The desk study will include, SCA policy and strategic documents, health project and strategic documents, field reports, evaluations, etc.
On completion of all consultations, the consultant will deliver a presentation at KMO to SCA staff and stakeholders of her/his initial findings, conclusions and recommendations.
The consultant will be responsible for the detailed design of the methodology, which will be developed in close cooperation with SCA at the start of the ESA assignment.
3.3 Scheduling
The evaluation will take place between March - May 2012, according to the following schedule:
- Preparation / desk study 3 days
- Interviews and consultations, Kabul 3 days
- Field Trip Samangan (incl. travel) 6 days
- Field trip Laghman (incl. travel) 5 days
- Feedback presentation (Kabul) 1 day
- Analysis and report writing 5 days
Total 23 days
4. ESA Implementation and Management
4.1 Consultant
The evaluation will be carried out by an external national or international consultant, an expert in environmental sustainability, with specific knowledge of health programmes, and significant experience in conducting environmental impact assessments, project evaluations or similar. The consultant will be responsible for conducting all aspects of the ESA and delivering the stated outputs.
4.2 SCA Inputs and oversight
Overall management of the evaluation will be the responsibility of SCA’s Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Unit, while a panel/reference group consisting of SCA’s Head of Health, the Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, the Deputy Director of Programme Implementation and a representative of SCA’s Stockholm Management Office will select the ESA consultant and review and approve the ESA report.
The parties should jointly discuss and decide upon the mission and the definite work plan, which has to be accepted by SCA before the work continues. The consultant shall present the programme, approach and key questions (revised work plan) to the reference group in the form of an inception report, to be submitted within 5 days of starting the assignment.
SCA’s Health Programme Management Unit shall provide the consultant with assistance in arranging meetings and analysis events. SCA will also organize and cover the costs of all travel in Afghanistan, to and within the field, as well as provide accommodation in Kabul and the field in SCA’s guest houses.
4.3 Expected outputs
- A) Inception report outlining the programme of work, the approach to be taken and key questions (revised work plan), to be submitted within 5 days of starting the assignment;
- B) Presentation of preliminary findings of the ESA to SCA staff at KMO on finishing the field work;
- C) Draft final ESA report with executive summary in English (to a maximum 20 pages excluding annexes) within two weeks after the feedback presentation in Kabul giving recommendations of both a practical nature for promoting the Environment in the planning and implementation of all SCA Health Programme’s activities, and also of a more strategic and policy-oriented nature, to be applied within the Health Programme or throughout SCA more generally, which will enhance SCA’s ability to promote the Environment within a rights-based perspective.
- D) Within two weeks from receipt of draft the SCA will provide the consultant with feed back on the draft ESA.
- E) Final ESA report incorporating or responding to collected feedback from SCA, to be delivered no later than seven days after receiving SCA feedback.
4.3 Profile required of the evaluation consultant
- Relevant academic qualifications to minimum of BSc/BA level;
- Extensive experience in designing and implementing environment studies, environmental impact assessments and / or evaluations of environmental projects in developing countries;
- Specific knowledge and / or experience of health projects and delivery of health care services in developing countries
- Knowledge of rights-based approaches in development;
- Practiced in the use of participatory methods for conducting research, planning and evaluations;
- Highly proficient in written and spoken English. Proficiency in Dari and / or Pasto an asset;
- Background knowledge of the political and cultural situation in Afghanistan, as well as experience of working in conflict or post-conflict areas desirable;
- Strong communication skills, with the ability to communicate detailed concepts clearly and concisely both in writing and verbally.
5. How to Apply
Interested consultants are invited to apply with an offer which includes the following:
§ CV of the consultant, showing relevant experience and background for the assignment;
§ An indicative work plan with proposed dates;
§ A description of the methodology to be applied;
§ A financial offer including the consultant’s daily fee and any travel and related costs to Afghanistan. Accommodation, food as well as travel within Afghanistan will be arranged and paid for by SCA,
The full documentation, – excluding CVs – is not to exceed three pages.
Offers are to be submitted electronically to the following email address: evaluations@sca.org.af The final date for submission offers is 16.00 Afghan time (12.30 CET), 29 March 2012. Please put the word Environment in the subject line.
For further information please contact Zemarai Saqeb at: zemarai.saqeb@sca.org.af.
The assignment is subject to a tender procedure according to SCA’s standard procurement regulations. SCA reserves the right not to accept any of the tenders submitted. In addition SCA reserves the right to take references on the proposed candidate.
Tenders shall remain valid for a period of 60 days.
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