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Evaluation Consultant: Terminal Evaluation Go Blue Project
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Introduction
Evaluation is an integral component of programming and project cycle management within the United Nations. These Terms of Reference are for the terminal evaluation of the project Go Blue Project Result Area 2 – “Connecting People, Cities and the Ocean: Innovative Land-Sea Planning and Management for a Sustainable and Resilient Kenyan Coast” (Project ID: RSO/FED/041-624), hereafter referred to as the “Go Blue Area 2” project.
The project was funded by the European Union (EU), with a total budget of EUR 7,000,000. It was jointly implemented by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The project aimed to support the development of a sustainable blue economy in Kenya by contributing to the economic development for coastal urban citizens and the protection of coastal and marine assets. The project aligned with Kenya’s national priorities and commitments towards building a sustainable blue economy, demonstrated through the leadership in hosting the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference (2018), and Kenya’s involvement in the preparations towards the UN Oceans Conference (2020). From the EU priorities, the project is aligned well with the ambition of promoting responsible digitalization and the European Green Deal. The implementation of the project will be carried out in coordination with the Coastal Counties Economic Bloc (JKP).
The project commenced in December 2020 and was planned to end in November 2024. The project was extended until September 2025. The project has both mid-term and final evaluations in its evaluation framework in line with UN-Habitat’s and UNEP’s evaluation policies and procedures. The mid-term evaluation was conducted in April 2024
United Nations Human Settlements Programme and United Nations Environment Programme
UN-Habitat is the specialized programme for sustainable urbanization and human settlements in the United Nations system. Its mission is to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all. Pursuant to its mandate, UN-Habitat aims to achieve impact at two levels. At the operational level, it undertakes technical cooperation projects. At the normative level, it seeks to influence governments and non-governmental actors in formulating, adopting, implementing and enforcing policies, norms and standards conducive to sustainable human settlements and sustainable urbanization.
UNEP is the leading global authority on the environment. UNEP’s mission is to inspire, inform, and enable nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. UNEP is driving transformational change by drilling down on the root causes of the triple planetary crisis: the crisis of climate change, the crisis of nature, land and biodiversity loss, and the crisis of pollution and waste.
One of the key enablers of UN-Habitat’s recently approved new Strategic Plan 2026-2029 is Integrated Urban and Territorial Planning that includes the protection of ecological assets, further ensuring that cities protect, conserve, restore, and promote the ecosystems in and around them, encompassing both land and water environments.
The project “Go Blue Project Result Area 2 – Connecting People, Cities and the Ocean: Innovative Land-Sea Planning and Management for a Sustainable and Resilient Kenyan Coast” was designed to contribute to all four domains of change . The project was also meant to responded to the achievement of urban related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including SDG 11 on cities, SDG 13 on climate change, SDG 14 on oceans, SDG 1 on poverty, SDG 5 on gender, SDG 8 on economy, SDG10 on inequality and SDG 16 on institutions; and numerous New Urban Agenda (NUA) paragraphs. The project addressed UNEP Subprogamme 3 – Healthy and Productive Ecosystems – in the UNEP Medium Term Strategy 2018 – 2021.It was implemented in selected urban centres of six coastal countries of Kilifi, Kwale, Lamu, Mombasa, Taita Taveta and Tana River to enhance integrated land-sea planning and management by addressing key socio-economic and environment challenges while stimulating benefits from the blue economy.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Under the supervision of the Chief, Independent Evaluation Unit, the Consultant will perform the following key objectives of the evaluation:
(i) Assess the performance of the project in terms of its availability of outputs and achievement of outcomes.
(ii) Assess the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, coherence, sustainability and likelihood of impact of the project in applying integrated ecosystem approach to land-sea planning and management.
(iii) Assess the measurable impacts the project has generated in terms for enhancing the capacity of national and county institutions to undertake integrated, ecosystem-based land-sea planning for sustainable blue economy and coastal resilience.
(iv) Assess the extent to which effective data and knowledge-sharing mechanisms and a project data policy has been developed by the project management unit to enable open access and effective application of data and mapping resources generated by the project by national and county institutions and other stakeholders.
(v) Assess the extent to which the recommendations of the mid term evaluation were implemented and enhanced project implementation.
(vi) Assess the planning, adequacy of resources, working arrangements and how these may be impacting on the effectiveness of the project.
(vii) Assess the effectiveness of the joint working arrangements between UN-Habitat and UNEP and with partners at national, county, municipality and community levels.
(viii) Assess how cross-cutting issues such as gender equality, persons with disability, youth and human rights have been integrated in the activities of the project.
(ix) Assess how the effects of pandemics including COVID-19 and other internal factors such as changes in government and institutional reorganisation may have affected the performance of the project.
(x) Identify and validate areas of improvement, lessons learnt and make actionable recommendations to future interventions.
(xi) Assess scope for scaling up of project outputs to support county-level and national processes, such like County Integrated Development Plans (CIDPs), County Spatial Plans, national marine spatial planning to enable development of bankable projects for fundraising.
(xii) Assess whether an effective project exit strategy has been developed by the project management unit to ensure future sustainability and use of project outputs and outcomes.
Full details available on the UN website. Application deadline 29 June.
