Consultancy Service for Review of the Ministry of Gender Children and Social Welfare Strategic Plan 2021-2025 Phase I: and Development of a new Strategic Plan 2026-2031 Phase II 120 views

REVIEW OF THE MINISTRY OF GENDER, CHILDREN AND SOCIAL WELFARE STRATEGIC PLAN 2021-2025 PHASE I:  AND DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW STRATEGIC PLAN 2026-2031 Phase II:

Introduction 

The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Welfare (MoGCSW) Strategic Plan 2021–2025 was developed with the assistance of a consultant, in line with the Ministry’s core mandate of gender and women’s empowerment, child protection, and social protection. The Strategic Plan provided the overarching strategic direction guiding the Ministry’s operations, programming priorities, learning agenda, and resource allocation over the five years. It further defined the Ministry’s scope, institutional arrangements, areas of comparative advantage, and professional approach to programme delivery. 

The Strategic Plan was aligned with relevant national and international instruments and protocols, including The Gambia’s National Development Plan (NDP 2018-2021) and the long-term development aspirations articulated in Vision 2050. It served as the principal framework through which the Ministry contributed to national objectives on poverty reduction, human capital development, social inclusion, and social justice. The Plan emphasized systems-based and coordinated approaches to gender equality, child protection, and social protection; strengthened government leadership and coordination across sectors and administrative levels; and promoted partnerships with development partners, civil society organizations, and communities. It also supported advocacy for gender-sensitive planning, gender-responsive budgeting, and increased public investment in programmes targeting women, children, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups. Throughout the implementation period, the Plan guided the Ministry’s institutional transformation and engagement in policy formulation, service delivery, and coordination of social protection and welfare interventions. 

Following five years of implementation, the Strategic Plan expired on 31 December 2025. Notwithstanding its full implementation, the Plan has not been subjected to a formal review or evaluation during the 2021–2025 period. The Gambia experienced significant policy, institutional, and socio-economic changes, including the transition to a new National Development Plan (RF-NDP 2023-2027) cycle, ongoing public-sector and governance reforms, fiscal constraints, climate-related and socio-economic shocks, and an increasing demand for more adaptive, inclusive, and shock-responsive social protection systems. These developments, along with implementation experience, underscore the need for a comprehensive, structured review of the Strategic Plan and the development of a succession plan. 

Accordingly, before developing a new Strategic Plan, it is critical to undertake a comprehensive review of the MoGCSW Strategic Plan 2021–2025 and transition into the development of a new Strategic Plan. The purpose of this Terms of Reference is to guide that review and development, which will assess the impact, relevance, effectiveness, coherence, efficiency, and alignment of the Strategy with national development frameworks, including the RF-NDP (2023-2027) and relevant sectoral policies such as the National Gender Policy (2025-2034), and the National Children Policy (2025-2030). The review will identify key achievements, gaps, implementation challenges, and lessons learned, and generate evidence-based recommendations to strengthen strategic focus, institutional capacity, coordination, accountability, and results delivery. The findings will provide a robust foundation for the formulation of the Ministry’s next strategic cycle and enhance its contribution to inclusive, resilient, and sustainable national development. 

Purpose 

The purpose of this consultancy is to conduct a comprehensive review of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare (MoGCSW) Strategic Plan 2021-2025 and to use the findings, lessons learned, and recommendations from the review to inform and support the development of a new Strategic Plan for the period 2026-2031. The findings of the review will be used to strengthen policy coherence, improve programme design and implementation modalities, and provide a solid analytical foundation for the development of the Ministry’s next Strategic Plan (2026-2031). The review will also support the Ministry’s efforts to align with national development priorities, improve results delivery, and optimize resource use for gender equality, child protection, social protection, and the inclusion of other vulnerable groups. 

Overall Objective 

To review the implementation and performance of the MoGCSW Strategic Plan 2021–2025 and to support the development of a revised Strategic Plan (2026–2031) that is responsive, results-oriented, and aligned with the Ministry’s mandate, national and international frameworks.

Specific Objectives 

The specific objectives of the review are to: 

1. Assess progress and results achieved: examine the extent to which the Strategic Plan’s stated objectives, targets, and expected results were achieved over the 2021-2025 period, including an assessment of key outputs, outcomes, and notable achievements. 
2. Assess the Strategic Plan’s relevance and effectiveness in guiding the Ministry’s mandate, addressing national priorities and the needs of women, children, persons with disability and other vulnerable groups, and providing a framework for policy, coordination, and cross-sectoral collaboration. 
3. Analyse the adequacy of institutional arrangements, governance structures, implementation modalities, coordination mechanisms, and capacity (human, technical, and financial) for effective delivery of the Strategic Plan. 
4. Identify key programmatic, operational, and systemic challenges encountered during implementation, including issues related to financing, partnerships, monitoring and evaluation, data availability, and accountability mechanisms. 
5. Capture key lessons, innovations, and good practices emerging from the implementation of the Strategic Plan that can inform future programming and institutional reforms. 
6. Develop strategic and operational recommendations to inform the design of the Ministry’s next Strategic Plan (2026-2031) with a focus on strengthening strategic prioritization, implementation effectiveness, coordination, resilience, and results-based management. 
7. Support the development of the MoGCSW Strategic Plan 2026–2031, building on the findings and recommendations of the review to ensure a coherent transition to the next strategic cycle.

Scope of the Consultancy 

As the Ministry evolves into a fully established institution, reviewing its strategic direction is essential to maintaining relevance, influence, and sustainability in gender programming, child protection, and social welfare services. Given the expiry of the Strategic Plan 2021-2025, the consultancy will cover two interlinked phases in a period of three 3months:

Phase I: Review of the Strategic Plan 2021-2025

The consultant(s) will undertake a comprehensive strategic-level review, which will include:

• Review of progress, results, and achievements against the Strategic Plan’s objectives, targets, and indicators.
• Assessment of the relevance and effectiveness of the Strategic Plan in relation to the Ministry’s mandate, national priorities, and the evolving socio-economic context.
• Analysis of institutional and governance arrangements, coordination mechanisms, and implementation modalities.
• Undertake stakeholder analysis to determine impact, influence and relevance to develop the right stakeholder engagement strategies at national and regional levels.
• Review of monitoring, evaluation, and reporting systems used during implementation.
• Identification of operational and programmatic challenges, constraints, and risks.
• Conduct of a SWOT and PESTLE analysis to assess the Ministry’s current strategic, institutional, and operational context.
• Documentation of lessons learned, including innovations and approaches that contributed to positive outcomes and strategic enablers for sustainability.

Phase II: Development of the Strategic Plan 2026-2031

Building on the findings of the review, the consultant(s) will:

• Facilitate strategic consultations with key stakeholders, including government institutions, development partners, civil society organizations, and representatives of women, children, adolescents, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups.
• Support the formulation of a new Strategic Plan 2026-2031, including vision, goal, strategic pillars, priorities, implementation arrangements, results framework, and indicative costing.
• Ensure that the new Strategic Plan is aligned with the RF-NDP (2021-2027), relevant sectoral policies, and international commitments, and is responsive to emerging issues and future risks.

Key Deliverables

The consultant will be expected to produce the following deliverables, with due attention to inclusive stakeholder engagement and the perspectives of women, children, adolescents, and other vulnerable groups:

Inception Report- in 2 weeks

• A detailed methodology for conducting the review, including the analytical framework, data collection methods, and quality assurance mechanisms.
• A work plan outlining activities, timelines, and stakeholder engagement strategies.
• Identification of key stakeholders to be consulted, including Ministry departments, local government authorities, civil society organizations, development partners, and representatives of children, adolescents, women and vulnerable populations (e.g., persons with disabilities and the elderly).

Stakeholder Consultation Report of the Review-  in 3 weeks 

• Facilitate inclusive consultations with relevant stakeholders to validate data, identify key issues, and gather perspectives on implementation challenges and successes.
• Ensure the meaningful participation of women, persons with disabilities, children and adolescents in reviewing results and achievements of the Strategic Plan, particularly in areas related to gender and women empowerment, child protection and social welfare.
• Produce a summary report capturing findings, stakeholder inputs, and key issues for analysis.

Draft Strategic Review Report- in 2 weeks

A draft report analyzing the Strategic Plan 2021-2025, covering:

• Progress against targets, results, and key achievements, with specific attention to outcomes for children, adolescents, women, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups.
• Relevance and effectiveness of the Plan as a policy and coordination framework.
• Institutional arrangements, governance structures, and M&E performance.
• Operational and programmatic challenges, constraints, and lessons learned.
• SWOT and PESTLE analysis of the Ministry’s strategic and operational context.

Validation of Draft Review Report-2 day

• Coordinate a validation workshop with key stakeholders, including Ministry leadership, development partners (including UNICEF, UNFPA etc), civil society, and representatives of vulnerable groups.
• Collect and incorporate feedback into the draft report to ensure buy-in and ownership of recommendations.

Development of the new strategy

Stakeholder Consultation for the New Strategic Plan-3 weeks

• Facilitate inclusive consultations with relevant stakeholders to inform the development of the new strategy.
• Ensure the meaningful participation of women, persons with disabilities, children and adolescents in reviewing results and achievements of the Strategic Plan, particularly in areas related to gender and women empowerment, child protection and social welfare.
• Produce a summary report of the stakeholder consultation.

Submission of Draft Strategic Plan 2026-2031- in 2 weeks

• A draft Strategic Plan informed by the review findings, including strategic framework, results matrix, implementation arrangements, and indicative costing.

National Validation of the Draft Strategic plan-1 day

• Coordinate a National validation workshop with key stakeholders, including Ministry leadership, development partners (including UNICEF, UNFPA etc), civil society, and representatives of vulnerable groups.
• Collect and incorporate feedback into the draft report to ensure buy-in and ownership of recommendations.

 Submission of Final Strategic Plan 2026-2031-in 2 weeks days

• Final Strategic Plan incorporating feedback from the Ministry and stakeholders, ready for approval and implementation.

Required, Qualification, Experience and Competencies 

The consultant is required to have the following qualification, experience and competencies 

• A master’s degree in Gender Studies, Social Sciences, Public Policy, or related field. A PhD is an added advantage 
• At least ten (10) years of experience in strategic planning and Development, policy analysis, or program evaluation. 
• Knowledge of gender, child protection, and social welfare issues in The Gambia is a great asset. 
• Proven experience in conducting similar assessments for government institutions. 
• Strong analytical, writing, and facilitation skills.

Reporting and Coordination

The consultant/team will report to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare and work in close collaboration with the Ministry’s technical team. Regular progress updates will be provided to the Ministry. 

Application Process

Interested applicants should submit: 

• A cover letter  
• A technical proposal outlining methodology of review and development process including a work plan. 
• A financial proposal detailing consultancy fees and expenses. 
• CV(s) of the consultant(s) highlighting relevant experience. 
• At least two references for similar assignments undertaken. 
• A GPPA Certificate 

Applications should be submitted to records office, Ministry of Gender Children and Social Welfare in a seal envelope with one original, two copies and a soft copy in a flash deriver not later than 28th August 2026. 

Payment Plan 

The consultancy budget will be agreed upon based on the technical and financial proposals. Payments will be made in parts upon submission and approval of the following deliverables; 

• 10% payment upon submission of an inception report. 
• 20% submission of review report

• 30% payment upon submission of draft revised strategy (reviewed document) for validation 
• 40% payment upon submission of the final strategic plan document with a user-friendly summary of the Revised Strategic Plan. 

Ethical Considerations  

The consultant/team must adhere to ethical principles, including ensuring confidentiality and professionalism during the course of the consultancy.