TERMS OF REFERENCE:
CONSULTANCY SERVICE FOR A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL BASELINE STUDY UNDER A WASH BEHAVIOUR CHANGE PROGRAMME IN MADHYA PRADESH, INDIA
by
Deutsche Welthungerhilfe e.V.
1. INTRODUCTION
Viva con Agua (VcA) is an international community campaigning for Water for All with support from its 10000+ volunteers. Through its non-profit foundation and numerous social businesses, the community works to provide access to clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene to vulnerable communities across the world. VcA has developed Universal Languages of Sports, Music, and Arts for Behaviour Change (UL4BC) approach to activate and inspire people to be an agent of social change. For the past 10 years UL4BC programmes are being implemented in various countries of Africa and Asia, including in India, with exceptional on-ground results.
Welthungerhilfe (WHH) is one of Germany's largest private aid agencies. In South Asia, over the past 60 years, WHH has supported over 1500 rural development projects through local partner organizations contributing towards combating poverty, hunger, and malnutrition. Our approach is to work as partners and support local organizations in improving the living conditions of vulnerable people sustainably.
This RFP is for a Viva con Agua and Welthungerhilfe co-funded WASH Programme, called Universal Languages for Behaviour Change (UL4BC), which is being implemented in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh. This is a systems-oriented and innovative Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) programme that integrates sport, art, and music to activate the social and emotional drivers of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) behaviours.
UL4BC Phase I (2022–2025) demonstrated promising results in strengthening behavioural internalisation, peer diffusion through school children, and emerging community demand for improved WASH services. However, systematic comparative evidence against conventional IEC approaches remains limited. Phase II, therefore, prioritises rigorous evaluation using a quasi-experimental design to assess UL4BC’s added value in strengthening behavioural and governance outcomes within public WASH systems.
Through this ToR, Welthungerhilfe seeks an expert research agency that has prior experience in baseline evaluation, including quasi-experimental evaluation, WASH behaviour-change research, and government engagement. The quasi-experimental baseline study will establish pre-intervention behavioural, psychosocial, and governance conditions across treatment and comparison villages to enable robust measurement of UL4BC’s effects during subsequent endline and follow-up studies.The baseline evaluation is primarily for learning, establish a rigorous baseline for subsequent quasi-experimental impact evaluation, generate policy-related evidence on the effectiveness of UL4BC and to inform programme adaptation during Phase II implementation. The study will support UL4BC’s strategic shift toward institutional anchoring and government financing uptake by generating rigorous, comparative evidence to justify such investments.
2. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:
The study will generate robust evidence on baseline conditions in UL4BC intervention and matched comparison villages. It should align with Phase-II outcomes: institutional uptake of the UL4BC methodology, evidence on its added effectiveness versus standard IEC approaches, and readiness for integration into public WASH financing.
In particular, the study should:
2.1. Measure key behavioural practices (e.g. sanitation use, handwashing with soap, safe water storage/use) in schools and households. Where feasible, indicators should align with established WASH monitoring frameworks such as the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) and relevant indicators under Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM-G) and Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).
Both self-reported behaviours and structured observations (e.g., presence of soap and water at handwashing stations, toilet functionality and use) should be captured to triangulate behavioural practices.
HOW TO APPLY –
- Time-Period for the contract – 3 to 4 months
- A technical proposal specifying the overall approach to the execution of the contract; the services to be provided; the experience of the applicant in similar assignments and their proposed team with time commitment.
- A financial offer including each service’s per-unit cost and the daily rate of each proposed human resource.
- Proposals should detail relevant past projects (with references) and CVs of key personnel. At least one team member should have subject-matter expertise in behaviour-change models (to ensure depth in normative/emotional analysis) and one in quantitative impact evaluation design.
- The actual scope of work and deliverables will be finalized after the interview with the agency/expert.
- Evaluation –Proposals will be evaluated based on technical quality and financial offer using a weighted scoring system.
Technical Evaluation (70%)
- Technical proposals will be assessed based on the following criteria:
- Understanding of the assignment and evaluation objectives15%
- Soundness and appropriateness of the proposed evaluation methodology25%
- Experience of the firm in conducting similar evaluations (particularly WASH or behaviour-change programmes)10%
- Qualifications and experience of the proposed team members10%
- Quality assurance mechanisms and feasibility of the proposed work plan10%
Financial Evaluation (30%)
The financial proposal will be evaluated based on cost competitiveness and value for money.
The contract will be awarded to the bidder with the highest combined technical and financial score.
Please note – The committee may ask for a more detailed presentation from the shortlisted candidates before awarding the contract. The presentation is in no way binding on the contracting authority. Applicants will be informed of their selection & non-selection, but scores and other details of the evaluation committee will remain confidential.
For detailed information, please check the complete version of the RFP attached below.