Foreign economic-aid-related services

Tender description

Maintains will be a research programme that will develop an improved evidence base on how education, health, social protection, nutrition, and water and sanitation services can adapt and expand in response to shocks such as floods, droughts, cyclones and disease outbreaks. Research will be conducted in up to 6 DFID country offices where there is demand for learning about how to strengthen essential service programmes in response to shocks. Potential focal countries identified to date include Kenya, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Research activities will be designed jointly with country offices to ensure maximum benefit for DFID programmes. At least 1 of the country studies will be a robust impact evaluation. In July 2017, DFID approved an investment of up to 15 00 000 GBP over the next 4 years (2017-2021) to fund new, operationally-relevant research on how education, health, social protection, nutrition, and water and sanitation services can adapt and expand in response to shocks such as floods, droughts, cyclones and disease outbreaks. Research uptake will mean more evidence based — and therefore effective — development initiatives by DFID, other donors, and partners in a range of DFID priority countries. DFID is seeking a single supplier or a consortium (referred to as a Research Programme Consortium — RPC) to deliver the programme. Success will require the lead Supplier to actively engage with DFID country programme teams, commission new evidence to be taken up in operations, and provide support to country offices to use the findings from the research in their programmes. It will also require close engagement with the soon to be established London Centre for Global Disaster Protection. The overall objective of the programme is to deliver new, operationally-relevant evidence on understanding how natural disasters impact on basic services in developing countries, and the best response to it, that supports more evidence based — and therefore effective — development initiatives by DFID and its partners in a range of DFID priority countries. The overall programme will have 3 components: 1) What Works to deliver essential services that respond and flex in response to natural disasters in Developing Countries? High quality, policy relevant new evidence and methodological advances produced on: a. How programmes and systems be designed so that they are not only resilient to disasters, but can also expand and adapt their provision of essential services in response to shocks?; b. How feasible is a shock-responsive approach in different contexts?. 2) Integrating learning back into programmes and systems in DFID focal countries. 3) Promoting research uptake across the international community. Further information is available on the DFID Supplier portal including a draft ToR and Business Case.