LINK TO RfP DETAILS: https://www.elrha.org/career/request-for-proposal-health-in-food-insecure-contexts-rapid-literature-review/
Please note that we have extended the application deadline for this consultancy to January 6 at 12:00pm GMT.
RfP BACKGROUND:
According to the Global Report on Food Crises: 2022 is “the fourth consecutive year of rising levels of acute food insecurity,” with up to 205.1 million people in 45 countries in crisis or worse (IPC/CH phase 3+) levels of food insecurity. Per the UNICEF/WHO/World Bank 2020 estimates, 6.7% (45.4 million) children are affected by wasting and 22.0% or 149.2 million children are affected by stunting globally. WFP reports that over 9 million people die from hunger every year, that is 24,000 per day. The drivers of food insecurity crises include acute and protracted conflict, economic shocks (including ongoing impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine) and the increasing effects of climate change. Food insecurity represents a significant driver of malnutrition, with the latest projections suggesting a dramatic increase in the prevalence of undernutrition worldwide (Figure 2). As of 2021, global projections suggest that none of the key nutrition targets will be met by 2030. The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, including the constraints from reduced services and inadequate diets, on child undernutrition are still yet to be fully realised. In 2021 a report by UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Group estimated that the pandemic could have resulted in a 15% increase in children affected by wasting due to reductions in household finances and disruptions in food and nutrition services.
GAP IN KNOWLEDGE:
WHO staff and colleagues from health partner agencies in 7 priority countries (Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda) in the Horn of Africa region, have identified that health needs and programming associated with the current food security crisis are not being sufficiently addressed, resulting in a skewed response that focuses primarily on food and nutrition. They have identified a need for collated evidence (conducted through a literature review) on the importance of the relationship between food insecurity/malnutrition and the risks of ill health and contracting or developing disease, and how this may contribute to increased morbidity and mortality.
INTENDED PATHWAY TO IMPACT:
The results from this evidence review will be used by WHO Focal Points (FPs) and other health actors to directly influence the health component of the food insecurity crisis in the 7 priority countries.
Clarifying the relationship between food insecurity,disease and ill health will also highlight the important role – and added value – health and health services can play in preventing and responding to food and nutrition crises and famine emergencies, and how this is a crucial element in preventing, reducing and reversing the linkages between poor nutrition, disease and death before, during and after of severe food shortages. This work will contribute towards building a stronger role for the health sector within the framework of the response to food crises. WHO, as the leading actor in the coordination of health, will work to ensure that the research findings are available and of benefit to all health partners including MoH, international and local NGOs, as well as community-based health organisations.
PURPOSE, OBJECTIVE(S) & KEY ACTIVITIES:
R2HC seeks to commission a rapid scoping review of evidence to enable health actors in food insecure areas to effectively advocate for investment in health programming, inclusion of health in multi-sectoral packages, and to push health actors to consider their role in mitigating the consequences of food insecurity crises.
OBJECTIVE:
The literature review will seek to answer the following questions:
• What scientific evidence exists around the relationship between malnutrition or food insecurity and being susceptible to contracting and/or developing relevant diseases (including those linked to animal-human interactions), the impacts on maternal and child health risks, increases in violence (including GBV), and to what extent does this result in increased morbidity/mortality?
KEY ACTIVITIES:
The key activities envisaged to complete this work are as follows:
• Consult with key health stakeholders active in the food insecurity crisis response (including WHO, MSF, UNFPA, UNICEF, Concern Worldwide, ALIMA and others) to define the boundaries of this literature review to ensure that the work and recommendations are contextually appropriate (4 person-days)
• Write a protocol for a scoping review to identify relevant grey and academic literature, and propose an analysis framework for the synthesis (3 person-days)
• Conduct the scoping review and narrative synthesis and write a report of no more than 10 pages. (10 person-days)
• Gather feedback on the report from key actors involved in consultations and from R2HCand integrate feedback (2 person-days)
• Finalise the report and create a 2-page document that will be used for advocacy purposes & a set of accessible slides for sharing with stakeholders. (2 person-days)
• Draft a paper for publication in an academic journal with the results of the scoping review (5 person-days)
*Please note that the number of days proposed above are indicative based on our previous experience, if more days are needed please justify in the applicant proposal.
DELIVERABLES REQUIRED:
Expected deliverables for this piece of work are:
• A final report of no more than 10 pages with a 2-page executive summary.
• A 2-page advocacy document tailored to the 7 priority countries – R2HC will provide the graphic design support and commission any needed infographics.
• A slide deck with well-described methods, findings and recommendations.
• A published academic paper – R2HC will cover any article processing charges, these do not need to be included in the budget.
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
The selected provider(s) is/are expected to have the following essential and desirable qualifications:
Essential
• A Doctoral degree in public health, epidemiology, library science (focus on health) or similar
• At least 5 years experience in conducting scoping reviews on health topics
• Experience in extracting lessons learned from literature to develop recommendations
• Excellent writing skills with a proven record of publication
• Experience translating research findings into easily digestible formats (eg. advocacy documents, slide-decks)
Desirable
• 3 years experience in the international development or humanitarian response space, with a focus on health and/or nutrition/food insecurity
AVAILABLE BUDGET AND EXPECTED STRUCTURE OF FINANCIAL OFFER:
We anticipate proposals with budgets of approximately £16,000, excluding applicable UK VAT but including any taxes that overseas suppliers may be liable for outside the UK.
*R2HC are proposing this budget based on our previous experience with procurements, but will consider applications with slightly higher budgets if the need for additional funds is well justified in the proposal.
Please indicate if you/your company is VAT registered and where. The budget submitted to us should be broken down by activity and with any allocations for individual team members shown clearly. We do not anticipate that the selected provider will undertake any travel for this work. Please note that payment is in arrears and linked to satisfactory completion of specific tasks (e.g. the delivery of reports) by the deadlines specified in Section 4 above (Timeline).
PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS:
Proposals should be in English and should include:
• a concise summary of team and demonstration of suitability and relevant experience as per the above (maximum three pages);
• your proposed approach to achieve the required deliverables and overall aim;
• your proposed budget broken down by activity and including allocations for individual team members.
• CVs of team members.
You may wish to include (attached as links or appendices):
• examples of relevant work and materials produced (eg. published systematic reviews, examples of advocacy briefs)
• references or testimonies from previous partners or clients.
We are looking for proposals to demonstrate a concise and clear communication style. Proposals can be submitted as word documents or pdfs.
PROPOSAL SUBMISSION
The application deadline is 12:00pm GMT on 06/01/23.
We will not be able to consider incomplete applications or applications submitted after the deadline. We would welcome applications from both individual consultants and small teams, where each member of the team has a clearly defined role related to their specific areas of expertise and there is a lead point of contact for Elrha.
Applications must include the documentation as specified in the Proposal Requirements section above. Submit proposal FAO Gillian McKay, to r2hc@elrha.org