Terms of reference

 Consultancy

Remote

Aga Khan Foundation Canada (AKFC) and Global Affairs Canada (GAC) have partnered on two large, complex, and ambitious grants now entering their final year of country-level programming, namely: Foundations for Health and Empowerment (F4HE) in South and Central Asia and Foundations for Education and Empowerment (F4EE) in East Africa. These two projects run from 2020-2027, with country program activities scheduled to conclude in March 2026. Endline surveys covering most components of each grant are underway and scheduled to conclude by February 2026. A summative external review is also planned for 2026.

Prior to the conclusion of these projects, and prior to the external review, AKFC seeks to undertake Project Reflections.

The purpose of this assignment is threefold:

AKFC is seeking a consultant to undertake , which should take stock of and document:

To accomplish the scope of work, the Project Reflection will comprise the following steps:

 collect and review, including core project documentation (PIP, annual reports, surveys) as well as other sources (e.g., Community of Practice documents; research; workshop syntheses). This desk review will serve to both gain familiarity with the projects as well as establish an initial framing of key approaches described in the documentation as they relate to reported results. The consultant will also develop an interview guide and a work plan and validate this guide with AKFC.

 Engage a wide range of AKDN project stakeholders to understand and document, using participatory approaches such as Focus Groups, Key Informant Interviews, Most Significant Change and/or Outcome Harvesting:

 Identify and articulate a set of leading approaches employed under each component of F4HE and F4EE that best capture how AKDN is achieving its intended results. The relationship between approaches and outcomes will be informed by relevant outcome indicator results, most significant changes and qualitative insights, best practices, innovations, potential for scale, lessons learned, among other insights captured under steps 1 and 2.

 Present findings to AKFC, and other stakeholders as determined beneficial by the AKFC lead, at each step in the process. Deliver a presentation of overall findings to a wider set of stakeholders for each project, prior to completion of the final report. This step is expected to require a more iterative approach, with several consultations with AKFC and project technical leadership overseeing F4HE and F4EE. Two draft interactions requiring review and feedback should be anticipated prior to finalization.

The consultant hired to carry out this assignment will lead the reflection process and documentation, with support of AKFC and both AKF and AKDN country unit stakeholders. The consultant would not be expected to travel, although this can be reconsidered with the consultant during the inception planning.

Reporting to the Director, Programs and Partnerships, and working closely with the Senior Manager, Programs and Partnerships, the consultant’s responsibilities and deliverables would include the following, including an estimated breakdown of days for each area:

: Desk review, document collation, and interview guide and work plan developmentWritten deliverables: Interview guide and work plan for reflection process	10
Qualitative Data Collection	35
Analysis, Validation, and ReportingWritten deliverables:F4HE Reflections Report: to cover the four components of the project.F4EE Reflections Report: to cover the three components of the project.Synthesis Summary report: from both Reflections ReportsA package and e-folder of all relevant project documents for both F4HE and F4EE, each with a cover letter, that can be shared with future project External Reviewers	20

 This is an estimated breakdown of days for each area, to be refined and agreed prior to the assignment.

Application Package and Procedures

Qualified and interested consultants are asked to submit the following:

• Technical proposal of not more than 5 pages demonstrating a thorough understanding of assignment and including the following:
  • Described approach and methodology to undertake the reflection process
  • A draft proposed timeframe detailing activities and a schedule/work plan (including a Gantt chart)
• A financial proposal with a detailed breakdown of costs for the assignment.
• A copy of a previous report of similar work undertaken, e.g. from a programmatic reflection process.

Complete applications should be submitted electronically to: [email protected] with the email subjected “Project Reflection Process”

Apply here!