Consultant for final evaluation of the Solar Grandmothers in BFA Project

INTRODUCTION TO GGGI

The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization dedicated to supporting and promoting strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth in developing countries and emerging economies. To learn more please visit about GGGI web page. 

GENERAL INFORMATION

GGGI Burkina Faso is looking to recruit a consultant. This is a deliverable-based consultancy that will conduct the final evaluation of the Solar Grandmothers in BFA Project. The objectives, scope and other details related to this consultancy are provided below.

BACKGROUND

On January 1, 2022, GGGI began a 24-month project titled “Solar Grandmothers in Burkina Faso” (the “Project”) with the goal of “empowering elderly women to contribute to the reduction of the negative environmental impacts from the use of fossil fuels in Burkina Faso through the promotion of clean technologies and low-carbon energy source”. The Project was designed as part of a broader initiative, led by Burkina Faso, to train elders from west African countries (i.e., Bénin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, and Togo) on solar energy technology. The Project was funded by grant resources from the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the Barefoot College of Burkina Faso, and GGGI’s own core resources. The total project budget is EUR 387,066, including EUR 150,066 contribution from Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, EUR 207,000 contribution from the Barefoot College of Burkina Faso, and EUR 30,000 from GGGI.

Specifically, the Project aimed to increase access to sustainable energy in Burkina Faso for 250,000 people across 250 rural villages in Burkina Faso, through supporting both installation of solar systems (solar photovoltaic panels and batteries) and building capacity for the system’s operations and maintenance. The Project intended to achieve this through recruiting and training elderly rural women in the installation, operations, and management of the solar systems. The approach to train semi-literate and illiterate women – many of them grandmothers –to become solar engineers has proven successful in many developing and least developed countries. They have then returned home to install solar panels and batteries, maintain, and repair them, changing lives in their villages forever. Moreover, they have trained others in neighboring villages to do the same.

GGGI categorized the Project as having,

• Gender Equality as a principal objective of the Project, i.e., that the project directly aims at advancing gender equality and that the Project would not be implemented without the gender equality objective;
• Poverty reduction is an explicitly articulated element of the Project.

As of end September 2023, the Project is reported to have achieved the following results:

• 31 Solar grandmothers, from 30 villages, have been trained in the installation, operation, and maintenance of the most affordable solar home kits, as well as in the management of solar businesses; and
• 90 households have been provided solar home kits, from the same 30 villages.

OBJECTIVES

The Objective of the Assignment is to conduct the final evaluation of the Project. The evaluation has three objectives,

1. Assess the relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability of the Project;
2. Assess the adequacy of the monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) framework for the Project to demonstrate results (i.e., outputs, outcomes, and impact); and
3. Feed lessons from the Project into the preparation of new rural solar energy projects in Burkina Faso and other West African countries.

The final project evaluation is to be conducted between December 2023 and January2024.

SCOPE OF WORK

The evaluation will cover all results delivered under the Project, irrespective of the funding source (i.e., Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, Barefoot College of Burkina Faso, and GGGI).

The tentative list of key evaluation questions – and their alignment to the OECD DAC Criteria - are as follows:

1. Relevance and coherence

• How has the Project been aligned to the Government of Burkina Faso’s priorities related to increasing access to renewable energy, rural development, poverty reduction, and women’s empowerment, etc.?
• How has the Project complemented / duplicated national and regional programs / initiatives in Burkina Faso delivered by the Government and / or other development partners in supporting the uptake of solar home systems?
• What considerations did the Project give in identifying and prioritizing the villages and households to benefit from the solar home kits? For example, levels of poverty, levels of access to energy, level of renewable energy generation, average age of village populations.

 2. Effectiveness and efficiency

• What evidence is there that the solar home kits procured to the 30 villages under the Project have been distributed and are operational?
• What evidence is there that the training delivered under the Project has equipped the “solar grandmothers” to effectively install, operate, and maintain the solar home kits deployed?
• What evidence is there that the procurement of the solar home kits and the delivery of training has considered value for money, including the life cycle costs of the solar home kits?

3. Impact

• What evidence is there that the solar home kits procured and distributed to the 90 households have already had (or are expected to have) for livelihoods of the households in which they are installed? Specific consideration should be given to women and children.
• What evidence is there that the solar home kits procured and distributed to the 30 villages have already had (or are expected to have) for livelihoods of the village populations? Specific consideration should be given to women and children.

 4. Sustainability

• How has the project captured and disseminated the knowledge generated and lessons learned from the Project with the Government of Burkina Faso and development partners operating in Burkina Faso as a basis for scaling solar home kits in Burkina Faso?

EXPERTISE AND EXPERIENCE

• Recognized master’s degree or equivalent in sustainable development, economics, or other relevant disciplines;
• At least seven (7) years of professional experience in designing and conducting project and program evaluations in developing countries, including Least Developed Countries;
• At least three (3) years leading project and program evaluations in developing countries, including Least Developed Countries;
• At least three (3) years of experience working in Burkina Faso, with knowledge of the country’s socio‑economic development challenges;
• Working knowledge of decentralized solar energy projects, including solar photovoltaic home systems and Minigrids;
• Expertise in survey design, including proficiency in the use of open-sourced applications for survey data collection for the design and collection of survey data;
• Proficiency in analyzing and visually presenting quantitative and qualitative data collected through surveys, field and other interviews, as well as focus group discussions;
• Experience planning and facilitating focus group discussions with a diverse range of project stakeholders, from senior government officials to residents of rural communities;
• Working level spoken and written proficiency in French and English; and
• Proven capability to meet deadlines and work under pressure.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Documents to be submitted (Online application)
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• Cover letter
• Proposed one‑page work plan, indicating applicant’s understanding of the TOR; approach to the assignment; the indicative timeline to achieve deliverables. 

• Total Fees: up to USD $ 10,000 (dependent on candidate credentials)

Note: Female Candidates are strongly encouraged to apply