VAW/CAW SITUATION ANALYSIS AND ECOSYSTEM MAPPING IN THE GREATER HORN OF AFRICA

Location: Djibouti, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, and Uganda

Organization: Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) Network

Deadline: 31^st August 2026

Job Description

1. Assignment Summary

2. Introduction

The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a civil society coalition bringing together grassroots women’s rights organizations from Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, and Uganda. SIHA was established in 1995 by women’s rights activists to strengthen the capacity of women’s rights organizations in the Horn of Africa. SIHA operates as a regional platform that mobilizes activists, marginalized groups, and civil society to advocate for women’s rights, gender equality, and social justice. More information about SIHA is available at www.sihanet.org.

3. Project Background and Context

The GHoA is characterized by protracted conflict, militarization, political repression, weak rule of law, shrinking civic space, and limited political commitment to gender equality. These conditions have resulted in widespread and persistent VAW, weak enforcement of protective laws, entrenched impunity, and under-resourced survivor response systems. Across the region, patriarchal norms and unequal power relations are reinforced by conflict, repression, and climate-related shocks, which act as mutually reinforcing risk multipliers. Displacement, food insecurity, and competition over resources significantly increase women’s and girls’ exposure to violence while simultaneously constraining access to justice, health, and protection services.

FEMFOCUS is a five-year regional programme designed to strengthen the capacities of local women’s rights organizations (WROs), women human rights defenders (WHRDs), and other in-country civil society organizations with demonstrated engagement in preventing and responding to violence against women and girls (hereinafter: in-country partners), enabling them to provide services and engage in dialogue relevant to the objectives of the programme.

The project is premised on the logic that if WROs and WHRDs operating in high-risk contexts have access to financing for survivor centered services AND receive sustained capacity strengthening tailored to their operational realities, THEN they will be able to deliver safer, higher-quality VAW/CVAW response services, protect themselves and survivors, document violations, and engage more effectively with accountability and dialogue processes, because locally led actors are best positioned to respond to violence, adapt to rapidly changing contexts, and sustain long-term engagement when institutional, technical, and financial barriers are addressed simultaneously.

Based on this logic, the project interventions are focused on two mutually reinforcing pillars:

• Financing: Support for survivor-centered services (legal aid, psychosocial support, emergency assistance, health referrals), WHRD protection measures (digital and physical security, relocation, legal and medical support), and coalition-based advocacy and dialogue.
• Capacity strengthening: Ongoing accompaniment on financial management, compliance, monitoring and reporting; technical support on protection pathways, documentation, and accountability; and development of participatory tools and manuals grounded in local practice.

As part of the programme’s inception phase, the regional situation analysis and ecosystem mapping will test and substantiate the assumptions underpinning the programme Theory of Change against the current operating context across the six programme countries. The findings will inform the refinement of the overall and country-specific Theories of Change, implementation strategy, partner selection approach, and programme priorities, as required by the Inception Report, to ensure the programme remains responsive to evolving contextual, protection, and operational realities

4. Objectives of the Situation Analysis and Ecosystem Mapping

The regional situation analysis and ecosystem mapping will generate the contextual evidence required to inform the implementation of the FEMFOCUS programme during its inception phase. The assessment will provide SIHA with an up-to-date understanding of country-specific needs, identify strategic entry points for intervention, and prioritize investments where they are most needed. The findings will inform programme design, implementation, monitoring, adaptive management, advocacy, partnership development, and resource mobilization throughout the five-year implementation period. Furthermore, the ecosystem mapping will strengthen coordination among stakeholders by identifying existing capacities, gaps, opportunities for collaboration, and potential areas for collective action to advance women’s rights and improve survivor-centered GBV/CAW prevention and response across the Greater Horn of Africa. 

Specific Objectives:

• Assess the VAW/CAW context by analyzing prevalence and patterns, including concealed patterns, whether resourced or under-resourced, with significant impact on women and girls; drivers; emerging trends; and intersectional dimensions of VAW/CAW, including the influence of conflict, displacement, climate-related shocks, and shrinking civic space.
• Examine the protection environment for Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) by identifying the nature, patterns, and drivers of threats, risks, and protection needs, as well as existing protection mechanisms and gaps.
• Map the VAW/CAW ecosystem by identifying and profiling key stakeholders, including government institutions, local women’s rights organizations, civil society organizations, UN agencies, humanitarian and development actors, donors, and community-based structures, together with their thematic focus, geographical coverage, and comparative advantages.
• Identify and profile potential in-country partners, including local women’s rights organizations (WROs), women-led organizations (WLOs), women human rights defenders (WHRDs), and other relevant civil society actors, to inform subsequent partner selection and engagement under the FEMFOCUS programme.
• Assess the availability, accessibility, quality, and coordination of VAW/CAW prevention and response services, including legal aid, psychosocial support, health services, shelter, referral pathways, and survivor-centered protection mechanisms, and identify critical service gaps.
• Analyze the policy, legal, and institutional framework governing VAW/CAW prevention and response, including national legislation, policies, implementation mechanisms, accountability systems, and alignment with regional and international human rights commitments.
• Assess the funding landscape and resource allocation for VAW/CAW prevention, response, documentation, women’s rights organizations, and WHRD protection by identifying key donors, financing mechanisms, funding trends, and investment gaps, mostly resourced and under-resourced gaps.
• Identify opportunities, challenges, and strategic entry points to strengthen locally led GBV prevention and response, women’s movement-building, policy advocacy, and protection of WHRDs.
• Develop country-specific evidence products, including stakeholder databases, ecosystem maps, country context analysis reports, updated country profiles, and consultation reports, to establish evidence and inform programme implementation, monitoring, adaptive management, and future evaluations.
• Generate recommendations for tailoring financing modalities, capacity-strengthening approaches, risk mitigation measures, and adaptive programming to diverse country contexts.

5. Scope of the Assessment

The situation analysis and ecosystem mapping will be conducted in the six project countries, mainly Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Uganda to generate a comprehensive understanding of VAW/CAW landscape and the enabling environment for local women’s rights organizations (WROs) and Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) required to inform programme implementation during the inception phase. The assessment will generate country-specific and regional evidence to inform the programme implementation, partnership development, adaptive management, and learning of the FEMFOCUS project. The assessment will cover the following areas:

• VAW/CAW Context Analysis: Including the prevalence, patterns, forms, and trends; key structural, social, political, economic, cultural conditions, and conflict-related drivers of VAW/CAW; the gendered impacts of armed conflict, displacement, humanitarian crises, climate change, and economic insecurity; emerging protection risks and vulnerabilities affecting women and girls, including marginalized and high-risk populations and existing data gaps and evidence needs related to VAW.
• Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs): The assessment will examine the operating environment for WHRDs, including Patterns of threats, reprisals, violence, criminalization, surveillance, and intimidation faced by WHRDs; protection risks associated with civic space restrictions and political repression; existing protection mechanisms, emergency support systems, and referral pathways; priority protection needs and opportunities to strengthening the safety, resilience, and wellbeing of WHRDs.
• VAW/CAW Prevention and Response Ecosystem Mapping: The ecosystem mapping will identify and profile key actors engaged in VAW/CAW prevention, response, protection, and women’s rights, including: Government ministries, institutions, and statutory bodies; local Women’s Rights Organizations (WROs), feminist movements, and Women Human Rights Defenders’ networks; National and international NGOs; Local Community-based organizations and survivor-led initiatives; UN agencies, humanitarian actors, and development partners; Donors and funding mechanisms supporting GBV and women’s rights programming. For each stakeholder, the assessment should document: Areas of thematic expertise; Geographic coverage; Target populations; Types of services provided; Coordination and partnership arrangements; comparative advantages, existing roles, and opportunities for collaboration.
• Service Availability and Referral Systems: The assessment will analyze the availability, accessibility, quality, and effectiveness of VAW/CAW prevention and response services, including Legal aid and justice services; Psychosocial support and mental health services; Clinical management of rape and health services; safe shelters and emergency assistance; protection services and referral mechanisms; community-based prevention initiatives. The analysis should identify service gaps, barriers to access, quality concerns, and opportunities for strengthening survivor-centered programming.
• Policy, Legal and Institutional Environment: The assessment will review: National legal and policy frameworks relating to VAW/CAW, women’s rights, and WHRD protection; institutional mandates and coordination mechanisms; National Action Plans and implementation arrangements; alignment with regional and international human rights commitments; and existing accountability mechanisms and implementation challenges.
• Funding and Resource Landscape: The study will assess the financing environment for VAW/CAW prevention and response by examining major donors and funding streams; current investment priorities; funding available to WROs and WHRDs; resource gaps (resourced and under-resourced) and sustainability challenges; and opportunities to strengthen locally led financing.
• Coordination and Partnership Analysis: The assessment will examine existing coordination structures and multi-stakeholder platforms at national and sub-national levels, including: GBV coordination mechanisms; women’s rights and feminist networks; humanitarian coordination structures; government-led coordination forums; cross-border and regional collaboration mechanisms; and similar projects being implemented. The analysis should identify strengths, gaps, ensure synergies and overlaps, and opportunities to improve collaboration among GBV stakeholders.
• Cross-cutting Contextual and Operational Risks: The assessment should identify contextual, political, security, operational, legal, financial, and protection risks that may influence programme implementation across each country and provide recommendations for adaptive implementation and risk mitigation during the inception phase.

Expected Outputs

The consultant(s) shall produce the following outputs:

1. Six Country Situation Analysis and Ecosystem Mapping Reports (one per programme country), comprising:
   • VAW/CAW context analysis;
   • Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) protection analysis;
   • Mapping of the VAW/CAW prevention and response ecosystem;
   • Analysis of the legal, policy and institutional environment;
   • Service availability and referral pathways;
   • Funding and resource landscape;
   • Coordination mechanisms and partnership opportunities; and
   • Context-specific recommendations for programme implementation.
2. Country Stakeholder Databases for each programme country, profiling relevant government institutions, local women’s rights organizations (WROs), local women-led organizations (WLOs), WHRD networks, civil society organizations, UN agencies, humanitarian and development actors, donors, and other key stakeholders, including their mandates, thematic areas, geographical coverage, and contact information.
3. Updated Country Profiles for each programme country summarizing the operating context, VAW/CAW trends, priority protection issues, legal and policy framework, and key contextual considerations relevant to the FEMFOCUS programme.
4. Consultation Reports documenting stakeholder consultations, key findings, emerging priorities, and validation of the assessment findings in each programme country.
5. Regional Situation Analysis and Ecosystem Mapping Synthesis Report, consolidating findings across the six programme countries and highlighting:
   • regional and cross-country trends;
   • common challenges and emerging risks;
   • opportunities for collaboration and learning;
   • strategic entry points for programme implementation; and
   • Recommendations to inform refinement of the FEMFOCUS implementation strategy during the inception phase.
6. A strategic briefing and presentation of findings to SIHA, including practical recommendations to inform refinement of the programme Theory of Change, country implementation strategies, partnership approach, and inception planning.

6. Deliverables

Note: The country’s reports should not exceed 20 pages each, excluding annexes. The Regional Synthesis Report should not exceed 30 pages, excluding annexes.

7. Selection Criteria for the Consultant

SIHA seeks to engage a qualified consulting firm, consortium, or team of consultants with demonstrated experience in conducting multi-country research, situation analyses, and ecosystem mapping on gender equality, women’s rights, and VAW/CAW. The team should combine regional expertise with strong country-level knowledge across the six programme countries.

The selected consultant(s) must demonstrate the following roles.

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in conducting multi-country research, situation analyses, ecosystem mapping, or similar analytical assignments related to gender equality, women’s rights, GBV, humanitarian action, or conflict-affected contexts.
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing mixed-methods research, including qualitative and quantitative data collection, analysis, and synthesis.
• Familiarity with the socio-political and cultural context of the Greater Horn of Africa.
• Proven knowledge and understanding of gender, conflict sensitivity, and VAW/CAW programming in the Greater Horn of Africa,
• Experience in working with international development agencies, grassroots organizations, and civil society movements
• Demonstrated experience in conducting similar multi-country project evaluations with diverse social actors and stakeholders.
• Expertise in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis
• Ability to write succinct, high-quality reports in excellent English.
• Availability to complete the assignment within the designated timeframe

Education:

• An advanced university degree (master’s or higher) in Gender Studies, Development Studies, Social Sciences, Public Policy, Human Rights, International Development, Peace and Conflict Studies, Research Methods, Monitoring and Evaluation, or another relevant discipline.

Language:

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required. Knowledge of Arabic, Amharic, Somali, or other relevant languages spoken across the programme countries is a strong asset.|

The consultant or team should demonstrate the capacity to undertake data collection in relevant local languages through qualified national researchers where required.

How to Apply

8. Application Process

Interested consultants should submit their: >> https://airtable.com/appHNyMhgTH7cHVt3/shrZUY1wGXWS6Aw5K

1. A technical proposal outlining the understanding of the assignment, methodology, work plan, and timeline (Max 10 pages).
2. A financial proposal detailing the costs associated with the End of project evaluation, including tax obligations and administrative and operational expenses. CV(s) of the consultant(s) or team members, highlighting relevant experience.
3. Two samples of previous work related to project assessment for a similar project.
4. Applications should be submitted no later than 31^st August 2026, and all queries related to the ToR should be directed to info@sihanet.org.