Title: Livelihoods Consultant
Terms of Engagement: Consultancy
Focal Points:  Program Manager, Livelihoods, and the Urban Program Coordinator
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Duration: 12 weeks

About RefugePoint

WHO WE ARE
Founded in 2005, RefugePoint partners with refugees to access life-changing solutions and transforms how the world supports them. For those who can safely remain in the country to which they have fled, we help them reach stability and work towards self-reliance so they can meet their own needs. Unfortunately, many refugees can’t go home and can’t safely stay in the country to which they have fled. We help them relocate to a safe, new country, through resettlement or other pathways so that they can begin to rebuild their lives. RefugePoint helps refugees access these solutions using three tactics: direct services, field building, and systems change. Through this three-pronged approach we provide direct services to thousands of refugees each year, strengthen the capacity of other organizations to better serve refugees, and influence global policy and practice to transform refugee response systems.

Lasting solutions work. Directly, we’ve referred over 140,000 refugees for resettlement or other pathways to a safe, third country. We’ve also equipped thousands of refugees with the tools to support themselves and their families in the country to which they’ve fled. Through innovation, collaboration, and influence, we've helped lead the sector in expanding long-lasting, refugee-centered solutions, and instigated major changes in global practice.

You will be joining a growing organization (115+ staff globally) that is spearheading new initiatives that are changing the face of humanitarian response, and we would be excited to have you as part of our team!

OUR VALUES
RefugePoint has core, cross-cutting principles and values that define our work:

• Refugee-Centered: We create space for and elevate refugee voices and leadership within the organization to guide our work.

• Anti-Racist & Anti-Colonial: Recognizing that racism, colonialism, and global white supremacy culture have caused many of the inequities driving the world’s refugee situations, we seek to integrate and center anti-racist and anti-colonialist principles in all that we do.

• Equity-Focused: We deliver services, build capacity, and influence policies and systems to strengthen equity in the humanitarian sector.

• Trauma-Informed: We integrate a trauma-informed approach and offer mental health and psycho-social support services to clients and staff.

• Evidence-Informed Practice: We use an evidence-informed approach to practice, i.e., the integration of research evidence alongside practitioner expertise and the people experiencing the practice.

• Collaborative: The urgency of need and the magnitude of the problem requires shared responsibility and shared action. We seek opportunities to engage in networks and partnerships.

1. Background and Context

Through our Urban Refugee Protection Program (URPP) in Nairobi, Kenya, we provide a holistic set of support tailored to families’ needs, such as housing support, mental health counseling, food support, school enrollment, and health care. These services help stabilize the refugee household before they can be referred for livelihood interventions. 

The Livelihoods program supports refugee empowerment through business training, grants, and mentorship. The program assesses the ability of refugees to start a business and helps them develop business plans following a 5-day training on various topics including budgeting, costing and pricing, marketing, financial management, record-keeping, and savings. With the help of RefugePoint’s Livelihoods program, refugees can access cash grants as the much-needed initial capital to start or scale up existing businesses. All grantees are offered business mentorship, and businesses that have been supported are monitored monthly. In addition, clients who might require business permits are supported in acquiring them. Clients with the requisite documents are also linked to financial institutions where they can open accounts. 

2. Objectives of the Consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to evaluate RefugePoint's Livelihoods Program and offer recommendations to strengthen its impact on RefugePoint's clients and influence livelihood programming for the broader urban refugee population. The Consultant will:

• Conduct a thorough review of the Livelihoods Program, including client identification methods, training approaches, mentorship structures, and monitoring systems;

• Review the current Business Development Skills (BDS) curriculum and update it based on identified strengths and gaps in the current program, and ensure it adapts to current and future needs;  

• Create a strategic livelihoods framework that effectively responds to emerging self-reliance needs and market opportunities and promotes socio-economic inclusion for urban refugees; 

3. Scope of Work

The scope of the work will include, but not limited to; 

• Review the existing Livelihoods process, including grant identification, training, mentorship, granting, and monitoring;

• Conduct assessments and consultations with program beneficiaries to better understand their livelihood needs;

• Analyze the current Livelihoods program, particularly the business training component, to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement;

• Review, various livelihood programs implemented by partners, identifying key learnings and best practices that can be adapted to enhance RefugePoint’s livelihoods program;

• Develop a sustainable Livelihoods program strategy that highlights gaps and proposes solutions to address them;

• Review and enhance the current Business Development Skills (BDS) training manual specifically tailored to the urban refugee context, addressing identified gaps and market needs;

• Prepare a final report with actionable recommendations for the implementation of the Livelihoods program;

• Provide capacity-building support for Livelihoods staff, offering feedback on the review process and training on new BDS content;

4. Deliverables

The consultant will provide the following:

• Initial assessment report outlining key findings and recommendations (within 4 weeks of commencement);

• A comprehensive livelihoods strategy and business skills training manual (within 8 weeks);

• Final report, including a monitoring and evaluation framework (within 12 weeks);

• Training for the Livelihoods Program staff on the new business skills training manual;
  Provide regular progress updates
   

5. Timeline

The consultancy duration will be 12 weeks from the date of engagement.

• Milestones:

  • Week 1: Desk review of the Livelihood Program;

  • Week 2-3: Client visits and consultations;

  • Week 4-5: Interim Livelihood Program Strategy Report; 

  • Week 6-7: Livelihood Program Strategy Report submission and review;

  • Week 7-8: Business Development Skills Training Manual review;

  • Week 9-10: Submission of the draft updated BDS Training Manual;

  • Week 11: Feedback and Finalisation of the updated BDS Training Manual;

  • Week 12- Training of staff and final feedback;

6. Payment and Logistics

Payment will be done as based on output delivery. As per KRA requirements, the payment will be subject to 5% Withholding Tax(WHT). The schedule below shows the required outputs.

7. Confidentiality and Ethics

The Consultant will be expected to adhere to Kenya's data protection laws. The Consultant will also sign and adhere to RefugePoint’s Code of Conduct & Confidentiality agreement. The Consultant will ensure that all information gathered during the assignment remains private and is not shared outside of the scope of this work. The consultant is expected to follow ethical guidelines regarding the treatment of beneficiaries and refugees during consultations and pay particular attention to safeguarding any beneficiaries involved directly or indirectly during the consultancy.

9. Evaluation and Monitoring
The consultant’s work will be evaluated based on the quality and timeliness of the deliverables, as well as adherence to the agreed-upon work plan. 

10. Qualifications and Experience

The successful candidate is expected to possess the following qualifications;

• Proven experience in livelihood programming, particularly in urban refugee contexts or displacement contexts;

• Strong knowledge of business development skills training approaches, including adult learning methods;

• Experience with data collection, analysis, and report writing;

• Excellent communication and facilitation skills;

• Knowledge of the Kenyan Urban refugee context is an advantage;

Interested applicants should submit a detailed proposal as per the template below;

Special Requirement
Current police clearance certificate.