End-Of-Term Performance Evaluation - Cultural Heritage Tourism in Egypt

End-of-Term Performance Evaluation - Cultural Heritage Tourism in Egypt

International Team Leader

Egypt

Overview

The QED Group, under the SIMPLE monitoring and evaluation project with USAID/Egypt, is seeking to engage the services of an international consultant specialized in monitoring and evaluation with experience to serve as leader of an evaluation team responsible for an end-of-term performance evaluation of the USAID/Egypt Sustainable Investment in Tourism in Egypt (SITE) project. The consultant will serve as team leader and evaluator for the overall evaluation reporting to the Cairo-based SIMPLE Senior Evaluation Specialist or his designate. The evaluation is expected to start in the second half of February or early March with an estimated level of effort of 60 work days, including approximately 45 work days in-country on a 6-day work week and approximately 15 days after departure from Egypt to for completion of the final report.

Project Background:

The Tourism Team of the Economic Growth Office at USAID/Egypt is planning an end-of-project performance evaluation of the Sustainable Investment in Tourism in Egypt (SITE) project. The evaluation will examine the effectiveness of two cooperative agreements, the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) and Ancient Egypt Research Associates (AERA). The evaluation will specifically focus on evaluating the interventions proposed and implemented at cultural heritage sites in Egypt by both awardees in response to the SITE Cultural Tourism Annual Program Statement (APS).

The activities implemented by ARCE which will be evaluated include: conservation; training; job creation, and site management at Pharaonic sites in Luxor (Theban Tomb 110, Dra Abu ‘l-Naga, Qurnet Maraj, Konsu Temple) and Sohag (Red Monastery) as well as multi-disciplinary capacity building courses in Cairo and Upper Egypt.

The activities implemented by AERA which will be evaluated focus on the establishment of a tourist walking trail (the “Memphis Circuit” in the remains of the Pharaonic city of Memphis. Activity components included cleaning, stabilization of elements, enhancement of local capacity, and outreach activities with stakeholder involvement throughout the process. The activity offered employment opportunities to local workers while cleaning and preparing the sites, as well as training on cultural heritage management.

The evaluation topics for activities implemented by both grantees include the physical changes at the sites, achievements in making sites more accessible to tourists, and training. Gender, sustainability and impact of temporary employment are addressed for activities implemented by both awardees.

Findings of this evaluation will assist USAID in determining the human development and economic impact the interventions have had at the selected sites, and feed into future decision-making in this sector. Findings will also help USAID determine if the interventions were effective in promoting better management of cultural heritage resources and enhancing the sites’ cultural tourism potential. USAID/Egypt will review and share the executive summary, final report and recommendations with both implementing partners, the Ministry of Antiquities, the Ministry of Tourism and the public through posting on USAID Development Education Clearinghouse (DEC) online.

Position Descriptions

The Services to Improve Performance Management, Enhance Learning and Evaluation (SIMPLE) Project of the QED Group, LLC is seeking to engage the services of a senior international consultant specialized in evaluating cultural heritage and tourism projects to serve as team leader, collaborating with the SIMPLE evaluation team, to design and conduct an end-of-term performance evaluation of USAID/Egypt’s Cultural Heritage Tourism (CHT) in Egypt project.

The consultant will serve as team leader and evaluator for the overall evaluation reporting to the locally-based SIMPLE Senior Evaluation Specialist or his designate. The senior international consultant will collaborate in designing and refining the mixed methods performance evaluation tools, analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, ensure that sound methodological and quality assurance practices are applied, incorporate generally accepted evaluation best practices, and use the evaluation’s findings to construct a comprehensive report as per USAID guidance.

The evaluation is expected to start around in the second half of February or early March with an estimated level of effort of 60 work days, including approximately 45 work days in-country on a 6-day work week and approximately 15 days after departure from Egypt to for completion of the final report.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct a desk review and provide technical guidance to the team on the mixed methods to be used in the midterm performance evaluation.
• Collaborate on the development and finalization of end-of-term performance evaluation design documents including: evaluation work plan with data collection and analysis plan, data quality assurance plans, analysis plan and other relevant design documents.
• Lead the evaluation team in the development and finalization of the midterm performance evaluation work plan including the identification of key stakeholders as well as developing and presenting data collection tools and field data collection plan to USAID for approval.
• Conduct data collection activities as per the USAID approved data collection tools and work plan.
• Lead the qualitative and quantitative analysis of all information/data collected within the USAID approved timeline.
• Supervise the work of evaluation team members throughout the contract period.
• Lead the preparation and presentation of findings, conclusions and recommendations for debriefing relevant USAID Program Office and Office of Economic Growth staff.
• Prepare the draft and final results report, expanded executive summary and, as appropriate, any statement of differences in response to comments from relevant USAID and key stakeholder reviewers.

Qualifications

• A master’s degree, PhD is preferable, in Cultural Heritage, Investment in Tourism, Economics, Social Science or equivalent.
• International expertise with extensive experience in leading evaluation teams and conducting monitoring and evaluation for donor-funded Cultural Heritage or Tourism projects. Previous USAID experience desirable.
• Minimum 10 years of experience in designing monitoring and evaluation systems, leading data collection teams, analyzing data and summarizing findings.
• Demonstrated experience analyzing mid and/or large survey data sets using SPSS, STATA, or alternative standardized software.
• Demonstrated experience preparing final results reports and PowerPoint presentations of key findings, conclusions and recommendations of field research.
• Demonstrated data visualization skills highly desirable.
• Demonstrated field experience in Cultural Heritage or Tourism Projects in Egypt or the Middle East/North Africa region highly desirable.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively in a multi-cultural environment.
• Ability to be flexible and work well under pressure, dealing with competing priorities, in a fast-paced team environment.
• Excellent English with high degree of proficiency in technical reporting writing required.

Company Profile

The QED Group, LLC, is a full-service international consulting firm determined to provide its clients with best-value services so as to increase their efficiency, learning capacity, and accountability to the public in an ever more complex and interconnected world. For more information on The QED Group LLC, please visit its website at the following hyperlink:

The USAID/Egypt Mission has contracted The QED Group LLC technical support team, referred to as SIMPLE (Services to Improve Performance Management, Enhance Learning and Evaluation), to execute a host of services to improve the efficiency of programs implemented by the Mission’s technical offices; Office of Education and Health, Office of Economic Growth and the Office of Democracy and Governance. Support services include activity/project designs, assessments, evaluations, management information and reporting. In addition, technical assistance is to be provided to the Program Office to collect and disseminate public information and enhance the quality of data.

How to Apply

Qualified candidates submit a summary of qualifications statement, resume and completed USAID 1420 Biographical Data Form through the QED website: Internet Explorer. Interested candidates may also write for more information.