About Plan International

We strive to advance children’s rights and equality for girls all over the world. As an independent development and humanitarian organisation, we work alongside children, young people, our supporters and partners to tackle the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge. For over 80 years we have been building powerful partnerships for children, and we are active in over 75 countries.

 About the Commissioning Office

Plan International African Union Liaison office (the commissioning office, referred to here as AULO) formally set up an office in 2010 to engage the African Union in acknowledging the fact that the African Union can work as a positive force for recognising social, economic, political and cultural rights of Africans. Plan AULO has been carrying out advocacy activities with the African Union and its different organs in relation to protection and promotion of children rights in Africa. Specifically, Plan AULO has been engaging with the Africa Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of a Child (ACERWC) in supporting and collaborating in its efforts for promoting and protecting children’s rights in Africa. As an excellence centre for Plan International in engaging at the Pan Africa level and the African Union, and also the coordination and management office for PASAP, Plan AULO strategized itself in giving support to other offices and partners.

Project Background            

The Second Phase of Pan African state Accountability Project (PASAP II) is a multi-partner, multi-level Pan-African project that runs from July 2019-June 2024. The first phase of the project ran through January 2015 to June 2018 and with an extension period that ran from July 2018-June 2019. The project aims to make a sustainable impact on the realization of children’s rights across Africa by targeting State mechanisms, mainly within the continental and sub-continental levels of decision making, particularly within the organs of the AU & Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The project operates by engaging civil society actors, improving their ability to hold States accountable for upholding child rights and to effectively engage in child rights monitoring and advocacy based on evidence and research. 

Africa has made significant progress in the promotion and protection of children’s rights and gender equality over the last many years. The continent has put in place legal and policy frameworks to further strengthen Africa’s commitment to protect and promote the rights of boys and girls. However, a lot of challenge remains in the protection and promotion children’s rights in Africa, specifically ensuring the rights of girls.

The premise is that the African child rights landscape can be further strengthened if civil society organisations for and of children and youth at continental, regional and national levels are supported to enhance their institutional and technical capacities, legitimacy and representativeness.  As well as if given a platform to coordinate amongst themselves for advocating for realization of children’s rights and to monitor the implementation of child rights instruments by African states. Through the support of civil society organizations and networks working on child rights, PASAP thrives to ensure that member states are accountable to the various regional and continental legal instruments that they have signed to in the promotion and protection of child rights in Africa. Engaging with the African Union and its principal human rights institutions (ACERWC and ACHPR) is, therefore, crucial for the advancement of accountability for the implementation of the rights of children. As the principal custodian of the children’s Charter, engagement with the ACERWC and its mandate to monitor member States implementation of the Charter provides an important entry point for civil society to influence decision making pertaining to children’s rights in their respective countries. PASAP Phase 2 builds mainly on the experiences and lessons learnt of PASAP phase 1 implemented since 2015 with more or less the same project goals and outcomes. Learning from Phase 1 of the project, it was apparent that more coordination and networking should be made to advance child rights in Africa and support CSOs to advance their influencing in a systematic and strategic manner was incorporated in the development of the project for Phase 2. However, some of the activities planned during PASAP phase 2 are similar to those implemented during phase 1 (ex. child rights monitoring mainly using ACERWC). A number of key lessons from the first phase of the project have been identified; and considerable efforts has already been made to factor those into the design of PASAP Phase 2. Plan African Union Liaison Office, as the body responsible for the overall coordination of the PASAP, has driven the project with assistance from Plan’s regional office of Eastern and Southern Africa (RESA), and Western and Central Africa (WACA); and in partnership with eight Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) across the continent.

You can get the full deatils of the TOR from the below link 

Baseline Study Terms of Reference - For PASAP Project.docx

Expected Qualifications     

The consultant team should consist of at least 2 persons representing the following skills:

• Post graduate or PHD in Social science fields, development and other related fields and must have extensive experience in research.  
• Proven experience in carrying out development research, including baseline studies
• Proficiency in qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection
• Proven experience with data analysis, statistical methodology and analysis tools
• Thematic expertise working with child rights mechanisms, policy monitoring and advocacy, and civil society organisations
• Experience with gender-inclusive data collection, as well as awareness on child protection methodologies
• Demonstrated technical expertise, methodology and tools in measuring and evaluating advocacy results, including for geographically dispersed programs
• Familiar with participatory and partnership approaches, including empowerment of civil society.
• Advanced knowledge of English. Knowledge of French language would be an asset.
• Previous work in the field of pan-African advocacy and experience with AU mechanisms is an asset