Consultancy Services for the Development of 3 Insight Briefs under the Task Order 50 InBusiness Project

Duration: 45 working days over duration of several months (please see below for detailed timelines)

Reporting to: Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Officer

Consultations: Consortium partners, OPDs, MEs & key stakeholders

About Light for the World

Light for the World is an international disability and development NGO aiming at an inclusive society. The organization currently supports more than 133 projects and programmes in 13 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, dedicated to the restoration of eyesight, prevention of blindness, rehabilitation & inclusion of persons with disabilities and promotion of their human rights. Light for the World Kenya, through the InBusiness Initiative, works towards economic empowerment of people with disabilities with a hope to mainstream inclusion. It currently supports three projects in Kenya aiming at promoting self-reliance among people with disabilities, through education, employment or entrepreneurship.

About Task Order 50 (TO50) Project

The TO50 Inclusive Business (InBusiness) Initiative is a three-year project funded through the FCDO Disability Inclusive Development (DID) Inclusive Futures Programme. DID brings together advocates of disability inclusion with national governments and private sector actors to co-create models for sustainably engaging people with disabilities in employment, business, health and inclusive education across Africa and Asia. Learning for the wider disability inclusion sector is a central element of the DID programme. TO50 is specifically focusing on an ‘InBusiness’ model supporting micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities and their caregivers to grow, develop and sustain their businesses through business skills training, provision of assistive devices, advocating for more inclusive procurement chains and business markets and strengthening linkages between micro-entrepreneurs and procurement opportunities.

TO50 is implemented in a consortium of four partners: Light for the World is the Task order management organization and implements this inclusive model for micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities and their caregivers in 8 counties including Meru, Laikipia, Nairobi, Kisumu, Machakos, Homabay, Migori, Kakamega. Humanity & Inclusion (HI) implements the model in a refugee context in Kakuma, Sense International (SI) implements the model to persons with complex disabilities (deaf/ blind) in Bomet, Kericho, Kakamega, Homabay, Kisumu, Kitui and Mombasa while United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK) is the umbrella Organization of Persons with Disabilities (OPD) taking lead in the advocacy roles within the consortium.

The project started in 2019 to 2021 as a pilot phase, evidence on key learnings were documented and informed the current scale up project (2022 to 2024) that aims to concretize efforts and apply lessons from the first phase through a three-pronged strategy. These strategies include (a) Business development: Business growth of micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities which includes training in business, technical and advocacy skills, marketing as well compliance to standards; (b) Partnerships: Systemic change in public and private institutions to increase inclusion in the procurement chain which includes reducing barriers to micro-entrepreneurs’ participation through establishing the first Disability Inclusion Academy (DIA), increasing engagement of micro-entrepreneurs with Public and Private Institutions (PPIs), engagement with Organizations of People with Disabilities (OPDs) and advocacy efforts; and (c) Research and Learning including documentation and dissemination of evidence accrued from the project as best practice learning products. The targeted research and learning documents to be developed include but not limited to; (i) a market assessment and analysis; (ii) success/ impact stories, (ii) fact sheets, and (iii) three insight pieces pertaining to these terms of reference and detailed below.

The Purpose of the Work

The consultant is expected to develop 3 insight briefs focusing on

1. How the intersectionality of gender and disability impacts on inclusive micro-enterprise programmes
2. The value of effective OPD engagement in inclusive micro-enterprise programmes
3. The effectiveness of peer support models in inclusive micro-enterprise programmes.

The learning products will help the consortium partners to initiate policy dialogues and advocacy initiatives with/among stakeholders including the project beneficiaries, implementing partners, policymakers at county and national levels, and funding partners. Importantly, the products will help the consortium partners establish the effectiveness of the InBusiness model and, consequently, harmonise and adapt the project strategies and approaches to the local contexts. The insight briefs are intended to be presented to the the Caucus on Disability Rights Advocacy (CDRA)

The Scope of Work

1. The Insight briefs will explore the relevant learning questions outlined specific to each briefing paper but overall addressing the projects primary learning question “How can livelihood programmes better support MEs with disabilities, including women, those with complex disabilities or refugees with disabilities?”
2. Secondary information will be gathered from available project documents including quarterly and annual reports, Baseline survey and market analysis, case studies, project’s learning forums and training manuals. Also review other relevant external economic empowerment documents.
3. Primary information gathered from interviews or group discussions from a representative sample of counties and target groups (Micro-entrepreneurs from the general Kenyan context, in the refugee setting and micro-entrepreneurs with complex disabilities) and key stakeholders.
4. The consultant will carry out a synthesis of findings, make practical recommendations and formulate specific implementable actions for relevant actors/stakeholders in the sector.
5. The consultant may attend and participate in the TO50 periodic project learning forums to gather further evidence on the insight briefs.
6. Each Insight brief will be 10-15 pages long and accessible to a variety of audiences including micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities and policy makers. Therefore, consider language style and visually appealing.
7. The briefs will comply with the quality assurance guidance from the Disability Inclusive Development programme learning desk.
8. The consultant will be expected to disseminate the findings of the insight series during learning forums organized by Light for the World.
9. The briefs are required over a delivery period of 10 months. The first brief on intersectionality is expected in July 2023, the second insight brief on OPD engagement by Dec 2023 and the final insight brief by February 2024. Where applicable and in consultation with Light for the World, the consultant may be required to adjust the second and third insight questions based on emerging evidence generated by the project.

Key learning questions to be explored

Insight Brief topic 1: How the intersectionality of gender and disability impacts on inclusive micro-enterprise programmes.

• What interventions have been most successful in improving the earning potential of women micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities in the project sites including in a refugee context and women with complex and multiple disabilities?
• What are the enablers and barriers to increased earnings for women micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities in the project sites?
• How (and why) do these enablers and barriers differ from men with disabilities?
• What are business networks and public and private institutions doing to improve the business growth of women micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities?
• How can policy guidelines, business networks and public and private institutions better support women micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities in Kenya?
• How can inclusive micro-entrepreneur projects be more gender transformative?

Insight Brief topic 2: The value of effective OPD engagement in inclusive micro-enterprise programmes

• Which approaches to OPD engagement have successfully facilitated business growth for micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities in Kenya including in refugee centers and for people with complex and multiple disabilities and which approaches have been less successful?
• What approaches to OPD engagement have influenced systemic change in public and private institutions and creating inclusive procurement chains for people with disabilities in Kenya including in refugee centers and for people with complex and multiple disabilities and which approaches have been less influential?
• What are the enablers and barriers to successful OPD engagement?
• How can OPD engagement be strengthened to improve the business growth and economic wellbeing of people with disabilities in Kenya beyond the life of the project?

Insight Brief topic 3: The effectiveness of peer support models in inclusive micro-entrepreneur programmes.

• What were the roles and responsibilities of the different peer support models in the programme?
• How effective was each role in terms of supporting business growth for micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities and or influencing inclusion in public and private institutions and procurement chains?
• Do the roles duplicate or complement one another?
• What are the enablers and barriers to peer support approaches in micro-entrepreneurship programmes?
• Which peer models best supported micro-entrepreneurs, businesses, and advocacy?
• How can peer support models be strengthened to improve micro-entrepreneurship for people with disabilities?
• Are peer support model(s) sustainable beyond the life of the project?

Methodology

Development of the insight briefs will require a mix method approach and the consultant will be responsible for proposing the technical design, the methodology for data gathering and data analysis at application stage. Methodologies may include the following but we are open to creative design and therefore is not limited to:

1. Desk review of Programme/Project documents notably the TO50 Project Document, the Theory of Change, Results Framework, baseline, market analysis, training manuals, learning forums and quarterly reports and any other project related data including from external sources;
2. Key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions from a representative sample of project counties and key stakeholders including OPDs and Project partners, MEs with disabilities and especially women, disability inclusion facilitators, business development providers, local government representatives, and key contacts from Public and Private Institutions.

The Deliverables