Country: Switzerland
Closing date: 06 Feb 2020
Purpose of Project and Background
The following are the Terms of Reference for the facilitation of the 2 Global IFRC shelter courses and the piloting of the new shelter course for Asia Pacific region heavily based on the course “Shelter & settlements in emergencies, natural disasters” which focus on shelter operations in response to natural disasters.
For the IFRC Global Shelter courses, the consultancy will be for the preparation, delivery and evaluation of the 21st and 22nd editions of the course “Humanitarian Shelter Coordination” and the 22nd and 23rd editions of the course “Shelter & settlements in emergencies, natural disasters”. Both courses are composed of an online module and a residential component. The 5-week tutored online module is followed by a 6-day face-to-face workshop that participants will attend in locations to be determined, depending on the course and cohort. The distance learning captures most of the theory needed to attend the courses such as Humanitarian Reform and the Global Shelter Cluster approach to cluster coordination, Sphere standards and Shelter after Disaster guidance on provision of assistance. It also serves as filter to ensure that participants who come to the face-to-face workshops have the minimum knowledge required to achieve the expected results. While the distance learning part deals with the theoretical content, the residential component focuses on its practical aspects. In partnership with Oxford Brookes University both courses are certified Masters-level credit-rated courses. These are competency based, assessed courses worth 10 Masters level credits (a complete Masters in the UK is worth 180 credits) that can be transferred to the Masters in Development and Emergency Practice (DEP) from Oxford Brookes University or other similar postgraduate qualifications.
For the Regional shelter (surge) course in Asia Pacific, the curriculum was developed during 2019 taking as reference the global shelter course to the specific context of Asia Pacific but it was also aligned with other existing shelter courses at Africa and America regions. Now it is needed to pilot it and finalise all course documentation (course outline, agenda, sessions and evaluation) based on the results of the pilot.
Alignment to the IFRC’s objectives and strategy
(IFRC’s Strategy 2020)
This project aligns with strategic aim 2 of IFRC Strategy 2020, to save lives, protect livelihoods, and strengthen recovery from disasters and crisis. It will build a pool of trained humanitarian shelter professionals that will increase the emergency shelter surge capacity to respond to/coordinate Humanitarian crises by the Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies, the IFRC Secretariat, UNHCR and other shelter partner organizations.
Project objectives
To build the capacity of humanitarian actors to deliver a professional assistance in shelter interventions in response to a crisis.
The course “Humanitarian Shelter Coordination” aims to equip participants with the skills required to coordinate a shelter response in a humanitarian crisis caused by a natural disaster, a conflict or a combination of both. It will provide participants with an overview of the humanitarian reform process and the transformative agenda, the interagency cluster approach, the role of the Shelter Cluster and the principles and practice of humanitarian shelter coordination.
The course “Shelter & Settlements in Emergencies, Natural Disasters” aims to equip participants
with the skills required to plan a shelter response in a humanitarian crisis after natural disasters. It will provide participants with an overview of shelter and settlement in emergencies, their relevance in humanitarian programmes and an understanding of the principles and practice of the humanitarian shelter response.
The pilot of the Regional shelter (surge) course in Asia Pacific aims to finalise the process for having a consistent course with the existing at global level but also with other shelter courses developed in other regions (specially the one done in the Americas and Africa last year). This will enable to build the shelter technical competencies of people in a consistent way around the world. The aim is also to align the courses with the surge optimization process that focus on build capacities and capitalise resources on/from region as much as possible although at the same time keeping the global capacity available as much as needed to response to emergencies; “as local as possible as global as necessary”.
Desired outcomes
Global shelter courses:
Through the facilitation of the course “Humanitarian Shelter Coordination”, participants will receive
the required support to be able to acquire strategic and practical knowledge of shelter coordination
policies, methods, tools and procedures in the humanitarian response system and are prepared to apply these in the context of a humanitarian crisis.
- Demonstrate a depth of knowledge of the main foundations, principles, processes, and
- complexity of humanitarian shelter coordination.
- Develop an inter-agency shelter response and advocacy strategy, using current humanitarian shelter and settlements standards, principles, and approaches.
- Effectively participate in shelter coordination teams at the country level, utilizing the most current knowledge, tools, and good practices at the forefront of the discipline.
- Apply leadership and coordination skills effectively and appropriately to a professional standard for different audiences in the field of humanitarian practice.
- Through the facilitation of the course “Shelter & settlements in emergencies, natural disasters”, participants will receive the required support to be able to acquire strategic and practical knowledge of shelter and settlements policies, methods, tools and procedures in the humanitarian response system and are prepared to practice these in a sustainable manner from relief to recovery.
- Demonstrate a depth of knowledge of the main principles, standards, approaches, and the
- complexity of programming aspects in shelter and settlements in relief.
- Analyse alternative approaches to different aspects of shelter and settlements response using current humanitarian standards and principles.
- Synthesise an operational shelter response based on the main principles, standards,
- approaches, and programming aspects in shelter and settlements in relief.
- Evaluate with critical awareness successful scenarios in implementing programmes for shelter and settlements in relief, utilizing knowledge from the forefront of the discipline.
Ability to apply communication skills effectively and appropriately to a professional standard for different audiences in the field of humanitarian practice.
Regional shelter curriculum:Throughout the piloting and the final consolidation of the new curriculum of the Shelter & Settlements course in Asia Pacific region, a consistent set of training curriculums will exist at global and regional level (also within different regions) to secure a reliable core learning outcome on the Shelter and Settlement sector with a special focus on designing emergency operation in response to a natural disaster. The curriculum is defined in a way that it will develop student’s technical competencies (at least at the minimum level required) to be deployed as shelter surge, regardless of the course that they take.
Consultancy outputs
Global shelter courses:
Facilitation of the online tutored component of both shelter courses “**Humanitarian Shelter**
Coordination” and “Shelter and Settlements in Emergencies, Natural Disasters”. This will involve in
both cases the introduction of different modules and supporting participant learning experience
throughout the course, clarify questions from participants and provide additional materials or advice in the completion of the required activities. The Shelter Sr Officer, focus on Americas, Asia Pacific & Europe regions and Sr Officer, Shelter cluster coordination will provide back-up support.
Correct and grade the assignments to be submitted by participants at the end of each module of the online component and provide final recommendation on participant’s qualification to access the
residential component of both courses.
Evaluation of the online components, including the submission of a brief report with general statistics on participants’ submissions, suggestions on ways to improve assignments and on the management of the learning process through the modules.
Support the preparation and facilitation of the face to face component for both cohorts of the
course “Shelter and Settlements in Emergencies, Natural Disasters”. This will involve any needed
preparation work prior to deliver it and the co-facilitation of the six-day workshop working closely
with other facilitators, resource people and course manager. This include the revision or
development of course documentation, and supporting the facilitation of different sessions as
lectures, discussions, case studies and simulation exercises.
Evaluation of student participation (including the marking of participants’ assignments during the
workshop) and the face to face workshop itself with the support of other facilitators, resource
people and course manager.
Regional shelter curriculum:
Support the preparation and facilitation of the face to face workshop of the Shelter course for Asia
Pacific region. This will involve any needed preparation work prior to deliver it and the facilitation of
the six-day workshop working closely with other facilitators, resource people and course manager.
This include the revision or development of course documentation as needed, and supporting the
facilitation of different sessions as lectures, discussions, case studies and simulation exercises.
Evaluation of student participation (including the marking of participants’ assignments during the
workshop) and the face to face workshop itself with the support of other facilitators, resource people and course manager.
Based on the evaluation of the course, adjust as needed any of the related documentation (learning workplan, content guide including relevant learning resources, all sessions - including session plan, exercises and student evaluation form/matrix, etc) to define the final version of the shelter curriculumfor Asia Pacific region.
Method of delivery and reasons for selecting that method
Global shelter courses:
Even if some discussions are still in place to fix the final dates this is the tentative calendar for the Global Shelter courses: The tutored on-line modules will be run in the IFRC learning platform: from 2nd March to 5th April, 2020 and from 6th July to 9th August, 2020 for the online component of two Humanitarian
Shelter Coordination courses and from 27th April to 31st May, 2020 and from 10th August to 13th
September 2020 for the online component of two Shelter & Settlements in Emergencies, NaturalDisasters courses.
In both cases, participants follow a tutored distance learning taken by participants from home. Each online component takes an estimated amount of 50 hours of student effort.
The learning process is based in the learning platform from the IFRC “Cornerstone”
(www.ifrc.org/learning)). In both cases the different modules of the online components are loaded in the platform to be completed in a sequential order. Students are encouraged to follow a suggested calendar.
However, it is up to each individual to select the speed to complete the course before the deadline.
This requires certain flexibility from the facilitators to be able to adjust to the participant needs. The new modules become available as the student completes the steps included in the learning plan. Students are not alone, as it is a tutored self-learning course. The facilitator needs to be available during the online component to accompany participants through their learning process providing guidance, recommending additional up-to-date documents and answering questions.
This method of delivery allows adequate time during the residential components of the training to focus on the practical application of the principles and policies learnt during the online components. It also serves as a filter to ensure that participants that attend the face to face workshops (residential component) have the required skills and interest, as well as the theoretical knowledge base to take full advantage of the learning during the residential module.
As per the online component, the dates for the face to face workshop of the two cohorts of the Shelter & Settlements in Emergencies, Natural Disasters courses are not fixed yet. The tentative planned dates, that can be modified for either of the two residential components, are: from 29th June to 4th July 2020 and from 26th to 31st October 2020.
The workshop sessions, exercises and case studies are designed to engage students actively and encourage reflection and deliberation. They will include the sharing of personal experiences among students as a method to advance learning.
Regional shelter curriculum:
After the development of the initial curriculum of the Shelter course for Asia Pacific regional context, a pilot training will be facilitated through a face to face workshop (final dates need to be defined but tentative dates are for May and if not it will be done in September) where similar methodologies as highlighted above for the other courses will be used.
Support to be provided to the consultant
Global shelter courses:
During the online component of the course the consultant will be briefed and will receive backstop in dealing with any questions that training participants may raise regarding the learning platform, the training content and the required assignments. The Shelter Sr Officer, focus on Americas, Asia Pacific & Europe regions and the Sr Officer, Shelter cluster coordination will be the main focal points for the consultant and available throughout the consultancy period to provide support as required.
During the residential component of the course: The consultant will receive support from the facilitators and other IFRC staff (resource people and course manager), during the delivery of his/her duty.
Regional shelter curriculum:
During the process of piloting and finalising the course documentation package based on the results of the facilitation of the pilot, the consultant will be briefed and will receive support from the Shelter & Settlements Coordinator of Asia Pacific and the Senior Shelter Officer, focal point for Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific.
Time Allocation, for budget purposes
This assignment is for a maximum of 120 working days, during the period: 1st March to 31st December
Management of consultancy
The consultancy shall be managed by the Shelter Sr Officer, focus on Americas, Asia Pacific & Europe regions and Sr Officer, Shelter cluster coordination. Both will provide the required briefing to the consultant and have once every two weeks monitoring discussions to assess progress. Other ad hoc communications with the consultant will be held as required.
How to apply:
*Interested applicants, please send your CV and a cover letter outlining your interest in this consultancy and how your experience, qualifications and skills make you an ideal candidate for the role. Please also include your asking daily fee. Applications are to be sent to* marta.pena@ifrc.organdpablo.medina@ifrc.orgby the end of Thursday, February 6th,, 2020.