Baseline Assessment for Project GET (Girls’ Education Transformation)

1. Background and Context

The Empathy for Life Integrated Development Association (ELiDA) is a non-profit, gender-focused, women-led civil society organization that has worked for nearly two decades to address the multidimensional political, social, and economic challenges facing women, girls, and youth in Ethiopia. With a Board and Management team that is 80 percent female, ELiDA has built extensive experience implementing programs in women’s economic empowerment; gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response; child protection; girls’ education; and peace-building across Addis Ababa, Amhara, and Afar, in partnership with donors including FCDO/UK Aid, AFD (through CARE), UNOCHA, UN Women, USAID, UNDP, UNHCR, and the Malala Fund.

With support from the Malala Fund under the ECN 9 grant window, ELiDA is implementing Project GET (Girls’ Education Transformation) across six woredas of the Amhara Region: Tehuledere and Dessie Zuria in South Wollo Zone; Dewa Cheffa and Artuma Fursi in the Oromo Special Zone; and Eferata Gidem and Shewa Robit in North Shewa Zone. The project responds to a context in which conflict, displacement, and entrenched social norms continue to expose adolescent girls to gender-based violence, disrupted schooling, and diminished protection an estimated 46 percent of female students in the target areas report having experienced sexual harassment, and completion rates for upper-secondary girls are as low as 17 percent.

Project GET pursues two mutually reinforcing objectives:egional education budgets.

• Objective 2: Strengthen the practical implementation of Recovery, Reconstruction and Resilience (RRR) frameworks and school preparedness measures, including the functioning of woreda-level RRR-
• Objective 1: Support the endorsement and localized implementation of the Safe Schools Declaration in the Amhara Region, including the integration of Protection Standard Operating Procedures into Regional Education Sector Development Plans and the establishment of a dedicated safety-financing set-aside within rGBV coordination committees, the training of teachers and duty-bearers, and the mobilization of girl-led monitoring and advocacy structures.

Together, these objectives are intended to benefit approximately 31,000 adolescent girls directly and over 375,000 adolescent girls indirectly, through systemic policy and financing change across the region.

ELiDA’s logframe establishes a series of outcome and output indicators spanning policy adoption, budget allocation, coordination-committee functionality, teacher and duty-bearer capacity, and girls’ knowledge, safety, and school-retention outcomes. Before implementation activities can be meaningfully tracked, ELiDA requires a robust, evidence-based baseline against which subsequent monitoring, the mid-term review, and the end-line evaluation can be measured. It is against this backdrop that ELiDA is commissioning a baseline assessment for Project GET, the terms of which are set out below.

2. Purpose and Objectives of the Baseline Assessment

The overarching purpose of this assignment is to establish credible, disaggregated baseline values for the indicators contained in the Project GET logical framework, providing ELiDA, the Malala Fund, and project stakeholders with a reliable reference point against which the project’s two goals, four outcomes, and associated outputs can be measured over the life of the grant. The two goals to which the project ultimately seeks to contribute are: (i) improved access, safety, and retention of adolescent girls in secondary education in conflict-affected areas of the Amhara Region; and (ii) enhanced institutional excellence and strategic sustainability for ELiDA as an organization.

The assessment is not intended to evaluate performance, since implementation activities are only beginning; rather, it is intended to document the situation of target schools, communities, duty-bearers, and the organization itself prior to the roll-out of project interventions. Specifically, the assessment is expected to establish baseline values for each of the four logframe outcomes:

• Quantify and document credible, disaggregated baseline values for all indicators associated with Project GET’s two overarching goals, four core outcomes, and corresponding outputs to create a reliable foundation for tracking implementation progress.
• Determine and set precise, disaggregated baseline values for every individual quantitative and qualitative indicator across the logframe to provide definitive reference points for measuring future project progress.
• Assess the operational status of the Regional Safe Schools Technical Working Group, existing Safe Schools Declaration implementation frameworks, and institutional barriers affecting adolescent girls’ safety and retention in conflict-affected areas.
• Evaluate woreda-level RRR-GBV coordination mechanisms and determine the availability and adequacy of local and regional budget lines dedicated to school safety and gender-based violence response.
• Measure baseline capacities of teachers and duty-bearers regarding GBV response pathways, the operational readiness of school safety plans, and the active functionality of girls’ clubs and community dialogue platforms.

The assessment should further benchmark progress against the project’s overall target of 45,490 direct participants, of whom approximately 70 percent are girls and young women, alongside an estimated 375,000 indirect beneficiaries across the region. Where current baseline conditions suggest that a logframe target, indicator, or timeline is unrealistic or requires refinement, the assessment should present clear, evidence-based recommendations for ELiDA’s consideration.

3. Scope of the Assessment

The geographic scope of the assessment covers all six target woredas of Project GET Tehuledere and Dessie Zuria (South Wollo Zone), Dewa Cheffa and Artuma Fursi (Oromo Special Zone), and Eferata Gidem and Shewa Robit (North Shewa Zone) and will include data collection in a representative sample of the fifteen target schools identified under the project.

The thematic scope of the assessment corresponds directly to the four outcomes of the Project GET logframe, spanning: policy and institutional readiness for the Safe Schools Declaration; gender-responsive financing and woreda-level RRR-GBV coordination; school-level preparedness and community engagement; and ELiDA’s own organizational governance and accountability systems.

4. Assessment Methodology

The assessment is expected to employ a mixed-methods design combining quantitative and qualitative data collection, to ensure that both measurable indicator values and contextual, explanatory information are captured.

Quantitative component

Structured surveys will be administered to a representative sample of adolescent girls, teachers, and school administrators across the fifteen target schools, capturing indicators such as girls’ knowledge of GBV reporting mechanisms, perceptions of school safety, and teacher exposure to GBV-related training. Where feasible, the assessment should apply appropriate sampling techniques to allow for statistically meaningful comparisons at woreda level and, where possible, disaggregation by sex, age, disability status, and displacement status.

Qualitative component

The survey will be complemented by key informant interviews with regional and woreda education officials, focus group discussions with girls’ clubs and community structures, and a document review of existing regional policies, budget documents, and Safe Schools Declaration implementation records.

Tools, approval, and operational considerations

• The consultant or assessment team must develop a detailed inception report and methodology including data collection tools, sampling frame, and fieldwork plan for ELiDA’s review and approval prior to the commencement of data collection.
• All tools must align with the specific indicators in the Project GET logframe, so that subsequent monitoring and the end-line evaluation can apply consistent measurement approaches.
• Given the compressed timeframe, the team is expected to make efficient use of remote data-collection technologies (e.g., mobile- or tablet-based data capture) and to coordinate closely with ELiDA’s field staff and local partners to facilitate rapid access to schools and communities.
• The methodology must incorporate ELiDA’s Security Management Plan and safeguarding protocols, including contingency arrangements for any woredas or schools that may be temporarily inaccessible due to conflict or insecurity at the time of fieldwork.

5. Key Baseline Indicators Aligned to the Logical Framework

The assessment must generate baseline values for indicators drawn directly from ELiDA’s approved Project GET logical framework, rather than indicators developed independently by the assessment team. The table below summarizes, for each outcome, the corresponding indicative outputs and targets that the baseline assessment should use as its primary reference points; full activity-by-activity detail remains as set out in the logframe itself, which will be shared with the selected consultant as a working annex to these terms of reference.

Overall participant-level targets against which the baseline should be benchmarked include: 150 school directors and teachers trained on GBV; 1,200 girls’ club members; 43,200 participants reached through girl-led re-enrollment movements; 600 women engaged through Coffee Conversation platforms; 240 out-of-school girls and young women engaged; and 100 advocacy actions contributing to an overall target of 45,490 direct participants (approximately 31,843 girls and young women, and 13,647 other participants) and an estimated 375,000 indirect beneficiaries across the Amhara Region.

6. Deriverable and Time line

The assignment is expected to be completed within a maximum of twenty calendar days from the date of contract signing, with all deliverables submitted, reviewed, and finalized on or before 25 September 2026. Given this compressed schedule, the selected consultant or assessment team must demonstrate readiness to mobilize immediately upon contract award, including having data collection tools, enumerators, and logistics substantially prepared in advance.

The assignment is expected to unfold across four phases:

Key deliverables under the assignment are:

• Inception report methodology, data collection tools, sampling frame, and fieldwork plan.
• Draft baseline report presented to ELiDA for review and validated in a findings-presentation meeting.
• Final baseline report not exceeding 30 pages excluding annexes, incorporating ELiDA’s comments and presenting baseline values, methodology, limitations, and recommendations for refining logframe targets where appropriate.
• Executive summary annex a concise summary of key findings suitable for sharing with the Malala Fund.

7. Management Arrangements and Reporting Lines

The baseline assessment will be commissioned and managed by ELiDA, with the Project GET MEAL Manager serving as the primary point of contact and technical supervisor for the assignment. The consultant or assessment team will report directly to the MEAL Manager, who will coordinate the review and approval of the inception report, data collection tools, and draft and final reports, in consultation with the Project GET Team Leader and relevant technical staff.

ELiDA will facilitate introductions to regional and woreda education officials, provide access to existing project documentation and logframe materials, and support the coordination of field logistics, including liaison with local partners and community structures in the target woredas.

The consultant or assessment team is expected to maintain regular communication with the MEAL Manager throughout the assignment, including brief progress updates during the fieldwork phase and a validation meeting to present preliminary findings prior to submission of the draft report. Any significant deviations from the agreed methodology, timeline, or scope including those necessitated by security or access constraints must be communicated to ELiDA promptly, so that appropriate adjustments can be agreed in a timely manner given the short duration of the assignment.

8. Ethical Considerations and Safeguarding

Given that Project GET addresses gender-based violence and engages adolescent girls as a primary respondent group, the assessment must be conducted in strict accordance with internationally recognized ethical standards for research involving GBV survivors and minors, as well as ELiDA’s own safeguarding and PSEA (Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse) policies and the Malala Fund’s safeguarding requirements.

• The assessment team must obtain informed consent and, where applicable, parental or guardian consent and child assent prior to engaging any minor respondents and must ensure that participation is entirely voluntary and that respondents may withdraw at any stage without consequence.
• All data collection tools and processes must be designed to minimize the risk of harm or re-traumatization, avoiding the collection of individually identifiable information about GBV incidents and instead focusing on aggregate knowledge, attitudes, and institutional readiness indicators.
• The assessment team must have a clear referral protocol in place so that any respondent who discloses distress or an ongoing protection concern during data collection can be promptly and confidentially linked to appropriate support services.
• All enumerators and team members engaged in the assessment must sign ELiDA’s code of conduct and undergo a briefing on safeguarding and PSEA prior to fieldwork, and all data must be stored securely and handled in compliance with ELiDA’s data protection procedures.

The assignment should be undertaken by a small consulting team with demonstrated expertise in conducting baseline assessments or similar evaluative studies within the education, child protection, or gender-based violence sectors, preferably within conflict-affected or fragile contexts in Ethiopia.

• The lead consultant should hold a relevant qualification in a field such as social sciences, education, gender studies, public health, or monitoring and evaluation, together with a minimum of five years of practical experience designing and implementing mixed-methods research involving adolescent girls and community-level institutions.
• Given the sensitive subject matter, the assessment team must include personnel with specific experience and training in GBV-sensitive and child-safeguarding research methodologies, and the team composition should reflect appropriate gender balance to facilitate culturally appropriate engagement with adolescent girls and female community members.
• Fluency in Amharic and, where relevant, Afaan Oromo is required for enumerators engaging directly with communities, along with familiarity with the security and access dynamics of the Amhara Region.
• Prior experience working with the Malala Fund or similar donors on girls’ education programming will be considered an asset.

Budget and Payment Arrangements

The consultant or firm shall submit a detailed financial proposal covering professional fees, enumerator costs, transport and logistics across the six target woredas, data collection technology, and any other costs necessary to deliver the assignment within the twenty-day timeframe, in a format consistent with ELiDA’s procurement and Malala Fund compliance requirements.

Payment will be structured in installments linked to the achievement of key deliverables:

• An initial payment made upon signing of the contract and submission of an approved inception report; and
• The balance paid upon ELiDA’s acceptance of the final baseline report.

All costs must be reasonable, transparent, and consistent with ELiDA’s financial management and donor compliance standards and are subject to review and approval by ELiDA prior to contract signature