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Tenders are invited for Consultancy - Development of Guideline for Safe Programming in Partnerships. Closing Date: 18 Mar 2026 Background: Mercy Corps Safe, Diverse and Inclusive (SDI) commitment is a shared pledge to promote safety, diversity and inclusion across its programs and operations. The commitment urges the integration of an essential lens for the delivery of safe and inclusive programs, and it promotes and nurtures an inclusive culture and operating environment that upholds safety, diversity and accountability to both staff members and those in the communities that we serve particularly those most marginalized. For there to be a thriving SDI ecosystem that contributes to inclusive and resilient communities, Mercy Corps envisions accountable leadership and governance, inclusive teams and operations, equitable partnerships, and safe and inclusive programs. Each of these initiatives is crucial, and it is important to build a wide and coherent understanding of how each of these initiatives can be sustainably implemented and embedded within existing practice. To take action on this, the East & Southern Africa Region has identified the need to explore Safe and Inclusive Programs as an area of focus for the ACT for Impact grant. To affirm this prioritization, rapid consultations were held with some countries in the region to understand the gaps and learning needs around safe programming, and there was an inclination towards providing clarity on how to practically implement safe and inclusive programs through partnerships. The ESA region represents the largest portfolio within Mercy Corps, reaching thousands of community members through integrated humanitarian and development programming. However, despite this scale of engagement, many countries in the region continue to experience compounding natural and human-made crises, including in Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya and Ethiopia. These overlapping shocks underscore the critical importance of working in close partnership with local community-based, civil society, and private-sector led organizations as core actors in program implementation that go beyond technical or benefit-focused approaches. Instead, they should aim for meaningful and sustainable collaboration that is inclusive, participatory, responsive to diverse community needs, and intentionally assesses and mitigates risks of harm, exploitation, and abuse. Local partners bring essential contextual knowledge, trusted community relationships, and adaptive capacity that is vital for timely, effect, and conflict-sensitive responses in complex operating environments. The region is therefore committed to systematically embedding safe programming components including GESI, Safeguarding, Protection, and Community Accountability and Reporting mechanisms (CARM) - throughout the partnership management process, from partner identification and capacity strengthening to joint implementation, monitoring, and learning. By doing so, Mercy Corps aims to strengthen inclusive partnerships across the region that are not only operationally effective but also accountable, ethical, and protective of communities and staff. This approach is firmly grounded in Mercy Corps ten-year Pathway to Possibility (P2P) global strategy and its institutional commitment to Safe, Diverse, and Inclusive (SDI) programming across its strategic outcomes. Purpose / Project Description: Recognizing the wide and varied nature of partnerships across the region, the grant will specifically prioritize partnerships within Market Systems Development programming. In crisis-affected and fragile contexts, MSD partnerships with private-sector actors, community-based organizations, and other local system-influencers enable more adaptive, locally owned solutions that remain sustainable beyond project timeframes. This project will therefore focus on developing a practical guideline to integrate safe programming into private sector actors partnership involved in implementing MSD-based programs. The proposed guideline will operationalize the regions SDI commitments, strengthen the application of technical expertise, and enable standardized, high-quality integration of safe programming elements across current and future partnerships, starting from program design up to the achievement of meaningful partnerships, community reach, and sustainable outcomes. The guideline is intended to serve as a standard reference document for all ESA countries when planning partnerships with private sector actors specifically in MSD programs. The development of the guideline will involve co-creation with a sample of implementing partners working in fragile markets and contexts across the above-mentioned countries, to ensure the document is relevant and feasible for both Mercy Corps programming and partner implementation. The guideline will support partners to jointly identify gaps and contribute towards strengthening their systems and mechanisms through adoption of inclusive and safe practices across the program cycle of MSD initiatives. While country contexts may vary, affecting the details and timing of the process, the project will adopt a consistent, multi-functional engagement approach across the region. In each country, Directors of Programs (DoPs) will provide overall leadership and ensure alignment with country programming. Furthermore, the team leaders who manage partnerships as well as the public-private partnership advisors or managers will play a central role in providing contextual insights for the guideline as they will be the lead implementers of the document. These teams will be engaged from the onset of the process, contributing to the co-creation, validation, and refinement of the guideline. Consultant Objectives: The consultant will be responsible for achieving the following key objectives: Assessing current definitions, team and partners understanding about safe programming broadly, and safe programming practice in partnerships. This will mainly focus on MSD programming, with the intention to explore the best sector practice around working with private sector actors working in fragile markets and contexts Conduct and internal and external literature review of existing safe programming guidance (GESI, Safeguarding, Protection, CARM) related to partnership management from similar organizations, private-sector actors, including recruitment, contracting, due diligence, and capacity-strengthening processes Facilitate consultations with implementing partners to explore how they integrate safe programming in partnerships, including how they identify and analyze protection and safeguarding risks through a GESI lens and how this analysis informs their safe programming practices Facilitate a session to share the lesson and learning and usage of the guideline. This mainly aims to explore opportunities for integration with the New Program Management Policy and its guidance on partnership management Consultant Activities and Deliverables The consultancy will be implemented in two phases, corresponding with the project structure. Phase 1: Safe Programming in partnership Assessment Activities Inception: Conduct an initial literature review of key documents (e.g. policies, partnership contracts, due diligence reports, recruitment templates). Tool Development: Design and finalize data collection tools (e.g. desk review checklist, session plan and agenda for consultation workshops with IPs, Key Informant Interview guides). Data Collection: Conduct the agreed upon number of KIIs with regional, global and country leadership and technical teams and conduct consultation workshops with selected IPs Data Analysis & Reporting: Analyze collected data and draft a comprehensive Safe Programming in partnership Report. Validation Workshop: facilitate a virtual sense-making workshop with relevant units in MC, as well as leadership at country, regional, and global levels Deliverables 1. Inception Report with a preliminary literature review and detailed work plan (estimated 10-15 pages). 2. Finalized Data Collection Tools. 3. Draft Safe Programming Assessment Report (including executive summary, methodology, findings, best practices, gap analysis, and preliminary recommendations) estimated 25-30 pages. 4. Prepare presentation for validation workshop, estimated 15-20 slides. 5. Final Safe Programming in partnership Report, incorporating feedback from the virtual validation workshop, estimated 25-30 pages. Timeline - March 26- May 15 Phase- 2: Guideline Development Activities Guideline Drafting: Develop a draft "Regional Safe Programming in partnership guideline document. Guidance Development: Outline clear guiding principles and a plan for socializing the framework across country offices. Technical and leadership team review: obtain and consolidate technical and leadership feedback on draft guideline Launch Support: Develop presentation materials and co lead-the facilitation on a launching webinar for the final Guideline Deliverables 6. Draft Regional Safe Programming Guideline document**.** 7. Guiding Principles and Socialization Plan. 8. Presentation materials and workshop report from validation sessions. 9. Final Regional Safe Programming in partnerships guideline, associated launch materials 10. A concluding consultancy report summarizing the process, outcomes, and any further recommendations, estimated 10-15 pages. Timeline- May 15- June 27, 2026 Timeframe/ Schedule: 40 working days distributed throughout March 2026 June 2026. The Consultant will report to: Regional Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Advisor The Consultant will work closely with: Core project team, including the Regional Safeguarding Advisor, Global senior protection advisor, Senior Global Advisor, Community Accountability, and Country teams. Mercy Corps will be responsible Tender Link : https://reliefweb.int/job/4201004/consultancy-development-guideline-safe-programming-partnerships
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