Result of Service

The consultant will deliver activity reports informing on the advancement on its work assignments. By the end of assignment the consultant will be responsible to deliver the following: a) Work Plan and Inception Report. b) Draft final evaluation Report. c) Final Evaluation Report. d) Presentation of the results of the evaluation

Work Location

Remote

Expected duration

CONSULTANCY DURATION The duration of the consultancy will be initially for 16 weeks during the months of November 2026 to February 2027 (TBC).

Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant will be reporting to and be managed by the Programme Planning and Evaluation Unit (PPEU) of the Programme Planning and Operations Division (PPOD) of ECLAC. The consultant will use the following data collection methods to assess the impact of the work of the project. a) Perform desk review and secondary data collection analysis: of the programme of work of ECLAC, DA project criteria, the project document, annual reports of advance, workshops and meetings reports and evaluation surveys, other project documentation such as project methodology, country reports, consolidated report, webpage, etc. b) Create and administers self-administered surveys: Surveys to beneficiaries in the different participating countries covered by the project, and to co-operating agencies and stakeholders within the United Nations and the countries participating in the project should be considered if applicable and relevant. c) Conduct semi-structured interviews and focus groups: to validate and triangulate information and findings from the surveys and the document reviews, a limited number of interviews (structured, semistructured, in-depth, key informant, focus group, fields visits if applicable, etc.) may be carried out via tele- or video-conference with project partners to capture the perspectives of managers, beneficiaries, participating ministries, departments and agencies, etc. The consultant will prepare all deliverables as described in Output/Work Assignments Methodological triangulation is an underlying principle of the approach chosen. Suitable frameworks for analysis and evaluation are to be elaborated – based on the questions to be answered. The experts will identify and set out the methods and frameworks as part of the inception report. The evaluation will place an important emphasis in identifying lessons learned and good practices that derive from the implementation of the project, its sustainability and the potential of replicating them in other countries. The lessons learned and good practices in actual project implementation will in turn be used as tools for the future planning and implementation of projects. GUIDING PRINCIPLES The evaluation will seek to be independent, credible and useful and adhere to the highest possible professional standards. It will be consultative and engage the participation of a broad range of stakeholders. The unit of analysis is the project itself, including its design, implementation and effects. The evaluation will be undertaken in accordance with the provisions contained in the Project Document. The evaluation will be conducted in line with the norms, standards and ethical principles of the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG). It is expected that ECLAC's guiding principles to the evaluation process are applied. In particular, special consideration will be taken to assess the extent to which ECLAC's activities and outputs respected and promoted human rights. This includes a consideration of whether ECLAC interventions treated beneficiaries as equals, safeguarded and promoted the rights of minorities, and helped to empower civil society. The evaluation will also examine the extent to which gender concerns were incorporated into the project – whether project design and implementation incorporated the needs and priorities of women, whether women were treated as equal players, and whether it served to promote women's empowerment. Other concerns to be integrated into the evaluations are disability inclusion, and environmental issues. Moreover, the evaluation process itself, including the design, data collection, and dissemination of the evaluation report, will be carried out in alignment with these principles. The evaluation will also include an assessment of the project's contribution to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Evaluators are also expected to respect UNEG's ethical principles as per its "Ethical Guidelines for Evaluation". INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS The consultant is obliged to cede to ECLAC all authors rights, patents and any other intellectual property rights for all the work, reports, final products and materials resulting from the design and implementation of this consultancy, in the cases where these rights are applicable. The consultant will not be allowed to use, nor provide or disseminate part of these products and reports or its total to third parties without previously obtaining a written permission from ECLAC.

Qualifications/special skills

Education Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in political science, public policy, development studies, economics, business administration, or a related social or economic science is required. At least seven years of progressively responsible relevant experience in programme/project evaluation are required. At least two years of experience in areas related to public policies, social policies, health policies or related areas is highly desirable. Experience in at least three evaluations with international (development) organizations is required. Experience in Regional Commissions and United Nations projects, especially Development Account projects is highly desirable. Proven competency in quantitative and qualitative research methods, particularly self-administered surveys, document analysis, and informal and semi-structured interviews are required. Working experience in Latin America and the Caribbean is desirable.

Languages

Proficiency in English and Spanish is required.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

Evaluator - Evaluation of the Development Account Project 2326Q “RESILIENT HEALTH SYSTEMS WITH UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN”