Terms of Reference for Mid-Term Evaluation
Creating Access to Safe Housing (CASH)

1. Background and Project Context
Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI) is an INGO, founded in 1976, devoted to building simple, decent, and affordable housing. In 2018, Habitat launched “Global Impact 2025” (GI25). The initiative seeks to transform Habitat’s global operations to align with the ambition of its strategic plan, “to materially reduce the housing deficit.” The past three years have established a foundation for that growth: introducing the ministry’s first international theory of change; building the capacity for new revenue streams; and co-creating new models for more integrated operations across the Habitat network. Within the Africa region, HFHI recently finalized the Africa Strategy Framework, which is now being cascaded down for national level alignment.

Habitat for Humanity Zambia (HFHZ) as an Affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International network, is a non-governmental organization that has existed in Zambia since 1984. HFHZ’s mandate is to fulfil a vision where everyone has a decent place to live. Since its establishment, HFHZ has served the most disadvantaged, vulnerable households and communities through the provision and promotion of decent housing, water, and sanitation, savings and financial literacy, and advocacy on land and housing rights with an emphasis on gender equality, ensuring that no one is left behind.

Habitat for Humanity Zambia, in partnership with 2 Financial Service Providers, ZNBS and FINCA, is implementing a project called Creating Access to Safe Housing (CASH): Building Financial Inclusion and Resilience for Women in Zambia. The project implementation period is from 1 August 2023 to 31 July 2027. The project aims to aim to reduce poverty, promote gender equality, and promote inclusive, safe, resilient settlements by economically empowering low-income women through greater control of financial resources and safe shelter in Kabwe and Lusaka districts. The project will do this by enabling 60,000 households to have access to housing finance loans to reduce poverty and improve resilience.

Habitat for Humanity Zambia is seeking to recruit an experienced consultant to design, plan, and conduct a rigorous mid-term evaluation of the project.

1.1 Project overview

Project Title
Creating Access to Safe Housing (CASH): Building Financial Inclusion and Resilience for Women in Zambia
Project Summary
Habitat for Humanity Great Britain (Habitat GB), Habitat for Humanity Zambia (Habitat Zambia) and Habitat for Humanity international’s Terwilliger Centre for Innovation in Shelter (Habitat TCIS) will spearhead the implementation of a 4-year project Creating Access to Safe Housing (CASH): Building Financial Inclusion and Resilience for Women in Zambia. This project will have the objective of achieving women’s poverty reduction and resilience through the availability and use of demand-driven, trusted financial services throughout Lusaka and Central Provinces in Zambia.

This project adopts an integrated approach that focuses on both the supply and demand side of housing microfinance. On the supply side, the project has partnered with Financial Service Providers (FSPs) to develop client-centric housing finance products that are suitable for predominantly low-income women. It is anticipated that a total of 36,000 housing loans will be distributed by these partners during this project. Digitalisation is a strong component of the project, and the FSPs and beneficiaries will be integrated onto a digital platform to facilitate the smooth rollout and management of the housing finance products.
Project Objective
The objective of the project is to reduce women’s poverty and resilience through the availability and use of demand-driven, trusted financial services.  It seeks to reduce poverty, promote gender equality, and promote inclusive, safe, resilient settlements by economically empowering low-income women through greater control of financial resources and safe shelter.
Project Outcomes
Supply Pathway Outcomes

1.     Increased capacity of two partner FSPs to offer housing finance for low-income women.

2.     Increased number of FSPs developing and rolling out quality housing finance loans for low-income women through systems change.

Demand Pathway outcomes

3.     Increased number of low-income women and men with better financial management and formal credit records

4.     Increased number of low-income women and men directly accessing and using housing finance to secure tenure, access homes, and improve the quality of homes.
Project Outputs
Supply Pathway

1.     Women-focused housing microfinance products developed at two partner financial institutions and integrated into their core operating plans and business models.

2.     Digitize access and management of housing loans for 2 FSPs.

3.     Digitize access and management of housing loans for 2 FSPs.

4.     36,000 housing loans disbursed by 2 FSPs by 2027

5.     New engagements formed with three FSPs and the Association of FSPs

6.     Advocacy campaign implemented – key stakeholders mobilized and convened, and advocacy champions identified in different organisations.

Demand Pathway

7.     60,000 individuals (54,000 women and 6,000 men) joined Savings Groups60,000 individuals (54,000 women and 6,000 men) undergo Financial Literacy training.

8.     54,000 Savings Group members (48,600 women and 5,400 men) enrolled in Pearl Systems’ digital platform.

9.     60,000 individuals (54,000 women and 6,000 men) undergo Safe Shelter training.

10.  60,000 individuals (54,000 women and 6,000 men) know the availability and usage of housing loans.
Location
Chibombo (6 – 15 miles, Mungule), Chilanga (Linda Community) and Kabwe(Makululu, Katondo, Kawama, Kaputula, Nakoli), Lusaka (Chainda, Kanyama, Chawama)
Project Period
4 years (1 August 2023 to 31 July 2027)
Beneficiaries
The estimated reach is indicated below.

• ·Core beneficiaries of this project will be 60,000 low-income individuals, made up of 54,000 women and 6,000 men.
• 2 Financial service providers

Frontline workers:

• 100 workers or volunteers who received training/support for the formation of savings groups in the 4 districts.

Secondary beneficiaries

• 3 FSPs
• 240,000 family members of the core beneficiaries will benefit from the improved financial and housing situations attained by the core beneficiaries through this project

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE MID-TERM EVALUATION AND SCOPE
The purpose of this mid-term evaluation is to assess the progress and results of the project against the project work plan and communicate the findings to key project stakeholders and partners with the aim of improving the project delivery for the remaining 2 years of the project.  The evaluation will comprehensively assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability of the project intervention for the supply and demand components of the project.

The assessment will focus on the following key objectives.

Assess progress towards project objectives and results, identify key challenges, and any factors that may have affected the project implementation.
Determine whether the financial service providers are incorporating affordable housing finance into their core services and strategy, and whether signals for sustainability of this portfolio are present.
Assess the usefulness and fit of digital channels for housing finance to intended beneficiaries.
Ascertain the extent to which the community is aware of the availability of the housing financial products at the two FSPs and the application procedures for the financial products.
Assess the efficacy of project mobilization of savings groups to bridge low-income women with housing finance.
Assess the effectiveness of project implementation modalities i.e, formation savings groups, Training, Capacity building of FSP, Product development and roll-out to low-income communities.
Generate actionable recommendations for improving project implementation during the remaining project period.

2.2 Scope of Work

The mid-term evaluation will cover the period from August 2023 to July 2025, to create an accurate and comprehensive analysis of the project implementation, generate

findings on evaluation criteria and documenting good practices and lessons learned. The evaluation will be conducted in all 10 project communities in Lusaka and Kabwe.

a) Supply-Side Interventions
Evaluation Questions:
Relevance:Are the housing loan products aligned with the needs of target beneficiaries?
Are the loan application mechanisms appropriate for the target audience?
Effectiveness:
To what extent has the project received technical and administrative support from HFH TCIS and financial regulatory bodies such as the Bank of Zambia FSD?
Was there a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities by all parties (including partners) involved?
How successful have the efforts been in designing and rolling out housing loan products?
Are resources (time, finances, collaboration) being used effectively in developing the loan products?
To what extent have FSPs applied the knowledge and skills gained from training and technical support to implement and manage the housing loan product?

Coherence:

How effectively have Financial Service Providers (FSPs) developed and rolled out housing finance products tailored to the needs of community groups?
To what extent have technical support efforts improved the ability of FSPs to serve low-income or underserved communities?
What evidence exists that FSPs are offering sustainable and affordable housing products as a result of the project?
How well are the activities of each project component aligned with the needs and capacities of the target communities and FSPs?
How seamlessly do the housing finance products developed by FSPs integrate with the digital savings platforms used by community groups?

Sustainability:

Will partner FSPs and beneficiaries continue utilizing these loan products post-project?
Are capacity-building efforts likely to result in long-term institutional strengthening of FSPs?
How effective are the project exit strategies and approaches

Impact:

What improvements are evident in the service delivery and operational efficiency of the FSPS
To what extent are beneficiaries experiencing improved access to housing finance?
Are there any project-related intended or unintended consequences, positive and or negative?
b) Demand-Side Interventions
Evaluation Questions:

Relevance:

Are the mobilization and training strategies applied in the project appropriate for the targeted communities?
Did the project’s objectives reflect the needs of the target groups?
Was the project relevant to the identified needs of the target beneficiaries and the context?
Were the project inputs and strategy (including its assumptions and theory of change) realistic, appropriate, and adequate to achieve the results?
To what extent do achieved results (project goal, outcomes, and outputs) continue to be relevant to the needs of the target communities?
To what extent are the feedback mechanisms in place accessible and operational?
To what extent are the project’s Theory of Change assumptions true to the project design?
How do project participants and stakeholders perceive the targeting and implementation modalities to achieve the objectives
How well does the project align with government strategies/priorities?
Effectiveness:

How effective has the project been in forming savings groups and delivering housing finance training?
To what extent has the project been making progress towards the planned objectives, outcomes, and outputs?
What project deliverables have been achieved so far?
What are the major constraints (internal and External) in the project implementation so far?
Have the project approaches been executed appropriately by the specific partners?
How effective have the communication strategies been in raising awareness about the project’s product and services?
What are the key lessons learned and good practices that can be shared with other organisations?
How can these practices be replicated in the expansion project and future interventions?
Efficiency:

Have resources (funds, human resources, time, expertise, etc.) been allocated strategically to achieve the project outputs and outcomes?
Were the programme activities/operations carried out in line with the schedule of activities as defined by the programme team and work plans?
To what extent is the intervention coordinated between the project implementing partner, relevant local government offices, and other stakeholders?
Have any operational issues emerged? If so, which ones, why, and how were they resolved?
Impact:

What changes have occurred in financial literacy, savings behaviour, and housing finance access among community members?
What exactly has changed in the lives of women and the community?
Do women have greater voice and decision-making power in the family/community structures?
To what extent is the project improving the lives of secondary beneficiaries (families of the savings group members)
To what extent are the lessons learnt on the project informing future policy/processes at the district or national level at this stage
Sustainability:

Is there a clear exit strategy in place for the project or program?
How will the benefits of the project be sustained after the exit?
Are savings groups likely to sustain their activities and growth beyond the project lifecycle?
How likely is the project to achieve its objectives in the second half of the schedule, and what elements need to be considered to ensure sustainability of outcomes?
To what extent is the project integrated into the organization’s overall strategy and operations?
Cohesion:

What evidence demonstrates that the combined effect of the project components will demonstrate the intended project outcomes?
To what extent have community groups been successfully formed and sustained in terms of membership, participation, and group cohesion?
How effective are the community groups in fostering trust and collaboration for collective savings and financial decision-making?
What barriers exist to community group formation, and how have they been addressed?
To what degree does financial literacy training enable community members to engage with both digital savings platforms and housing finance products offered by the FSPs?
How accessible and user-friendly are the digital platforms for savings groups, particularly for members with varying levels of digital literacy?
To what degree has digitalization improved the transparency, efficiency, and security of savings group operations?
3. METHODOLOGY
The evaluator is expected to frame the evaluation Methodology and evaluation approach data collection approached.  Additionally, the evaluator will be expected to outline clearly the evaluation criteria using the OECD DAC Criteria

4. EXPECTED OUTPUTS FOR THE CONSULTANT
4.1 Deliverables for the consultants

An inception report, proposed methodology, and work plan
Submit a draft evaluation report
Preliminary findings to be shared with HFHZ and its project partners through a dissemination workshop
Final evaluation report (three signed hard copies)
Copy of anonymized raw data
Through the evaluation period, the evaluator will be expected to provide by weekly update of the process, from data collection to the final evaluation report.

Assignment duration.

This assignment is expected to take 40 days from the day of contracting.

Click on the link here for more details.