Tenders Are Invited For Evaluation Of The IrelandS Civil Society Programme Global Citizenship Education Stream

Tenders are invited for Evaluation of the Irelands Civil Society Programme Global Citizenship Education Stream Closing Date: 25 May 2026 Type: Consultancy Background Concern Worldwide seeks to engage a consultant(s) to evaluate the Global Citizenship Education (GCE) programme funded under Irelands Civil Society Partnership for A Better World. Irelands Civil Society Partnership (ICSP) for A Better World is a five-year funding mechanism (2023 2027) that supports ten Irish civil society partners. It is a requirement of the ICSP scheme to conduct an external, independent evaluation of programmes funded under the scheme. This evaluation will satisfy this requirement for Concern Worldwide as a partner in the scheme. This evaluation will take place in the fourth year of a five-year programme and will be a cross-sectional, theory-based evaluation. It will assess the programme at a defined point in time, drawing on available evidence from 2023 to 2026 to examine causal pathways, actual and emerging outcomes. Description of the programme being evaluated The ICSP is composed of four funding streams: long-term development (LTD), chronic humanitarian crises (CHC), acute humanitarian crises stream (ACS), and global citizenship education (GCE). Additionally, there is a climate allocation integrated into the programme. Programmes funded under ICSP contribute to Irelands foreign policy priorities, particularly Irelands overseas development policy, A Better World. The Flagship Outcomes under A Better World articulate the specific outcomes ICSP aims to achieve. These Flagship Outcomes are comprised of 10 thematic and 3 process outcomes and are used in annual reporting since 2025. In relation to Global Citizenship Education, the ICSP Strategic Framework intends to Promote global citizenship education, so that Irish people are equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to be active global citizens Engage with the Irish public to build awareness and understanding of the Irish Aid programme, so they are aware of how it is addressing poverty and inequality on their behalf contributing to ICSP Thematic Outcome 10 (TO10) The Irish public is aware, understands, and takes action on global justice issues. The GCE stream of the ICSP is an all-island programme that explores the root causes of poverty, encourages critical thinking and promotes meaningful action. Through our Global Citizenship work, Concern aims to foster lifelong identification with Concern and commitment to the values at the heart of Concerns mission with programme participants. The Global Citizenship team do this through a suite of approaches which includes the Concern Post-Primary Debates, Concern Primary Debates, TY Academy, workshops (in schools and with third level, youth, adult and community), events, a civil society small grants initiative and developingeducational resources. The GCE stream has two types of targets which we report on annually to Irish Aid: The number of people that we will reach in our programme activities through direct programming. An agreed results framework with outcomes and indicators which measures the effect of the work that we do with children, young people and communities. The outcomes and indicators measure global literacy, social / environmental responsibility and capacity for transformative action of the people that we work with after their engagement with our GCE programmes. At the end of each year, we report to Irish Aid on the above metrics, as well as a programme breakdown of spending against each indicator. Purpose and objectives of the evaluation To support Concerns commitment to accountability to programme participants, institutional and public donors, through assessing the good practices, gaps and adjusting the learnings in future programmes, this independent evaluation seeks to: Assess the performance, delivery and impact of the ICSP GCE programme stream implemented by Concern Worldwide both as a standalone stream and in terms of its contribution to the overall portfolio and programme of work. Assess Concerns ICSP GCE programme stream against the thematic and process outcomes of the ICSP strategic framework and against the relevant OECD-DAC criteria and core Concern policies and approaches. Identify learning and good practice to inform the design of the successor to the next iteration of the ICSP and Concerns broader Global Citizenship work. The evaluation is expected to identify learning and good practice from design through implementation and adaptation. The evaluators are expected to provide actionable recommendations against both elements. This evaluation is structured to address the mandatory ICSP evaluation questions set out in Irish Aid guidance, with additional questions included to reflect Concerns programme priorities. Primary intended audience and use of the evaluation The primary audience of the evaluation are Concern Worldwide Global Citizenship programme teams, Global Citizenship partners of Concern Worldwide and the donor, Irish Aid. Evaluation scope The evaluation will cover the GCE stream implemented across the island of Ireland by Concern Worldwide. The time period will be from January 2023 up to the end of June 2026, noting the limitation that annual quantitative monitoring data against baseline will only be available up to the end of year 3 (2025). Evaluation criteria & questions To meet the overall purpose and objectives outlined above, the evaluators will need to provide an assessment and scoring1 against the below OECD DAC criteria and suggested evaluation questions, along with any additional questions, or sub-questions, the evaluator deems appropriate. Overall Assessment: What evidence is there that the GCE programme contributed to increased awareness, understanding, engagement, and action among the Irish public on global justice issues, in line with ICSP Thematic Outcome 10, ICSP Strategic Framework and the Irish Aid Global Citizenship Strategy (2021-2025)? To what extent is the programme being implemented as intended in the logframe/theory of change (activities, outputs, outcome pathways)? How appropriate and realistic were the underlying assumptions of the theory of change, given the evolving political, conflict, climatic, and socioeconomic contexts? What contextual or external factors (policy, sector, school environment, public discourse, partner capacity) affected the theory of change pathways? How effectively were learning and reflection processes embedded across programme management and implementation, and how did they inform adjustments to programme design or delivery? Relevance: To what extent was the GCE programme relevant to the needs, contexts, and capacities of its target audiences (learners, educators, schools, and partners), and how were these needs identified and reflected in programme design and adaptation? How well did the programme align with the aims, values, and policy context of Global Citizenship Education on the island of Ireland, including the promotion of critical engagement, global justice, and learner agency? Coherence: How well does the programme align with other policies, standards and interventions? How is the Concern GCE programme contributing to coordination activities and strategic direction of the GCE sector on the island of Ireland? How did the GCE programme engage with Concern country programmes to translate ontheground experience, learning, and participant perspectives into the GCE stream activities? Effectiveness: Assessment of achievement against the results framework, to what extent have intended outcomes been achieved? What evidence is there that an appropriate and fitforpurpose monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system was in place, effectively implemented, and used to inform strategic and operational decisions? To what extent did different programme components vary in their effectiveness in achieving reach and core GCE competencies, and what factors explain differences in performance? What innovative approaches were adopted within the programme, were they effective, and how were lessons captured and integrated into ongoing or subsequent practice? Finally, the evaluation should aim to identify any learning or evidence of practices, actions, and approaches that actively contribute to the success of the programme. These ideally can be used as examples of good practice, to surface lessons learned and contribute to actionable recommendations. Methodology The evaluation will consider quantitative monitoring data, existing documentation and provide specific evidence against each of the relevant evaluation questions. Concern will provide the evaluators with relevant information, documentation, contacts and guidance during the inception phase. This will include documentation relating to the proposal, annual reporting and results frameworks, and a mid-term review report of the Concern Global Citizenship Strategy. The methodology must be participatory and in addition to data and evidence from programme implementation, allow for the inclusion of viewpoints and perspectives from a wide range of stakeholders including: Programme participants (disaggregated to consider the views and opinions of women, people with disabilities and others in traditionally marginalised groups); Stakeholders of the GCE programme which can include teachers and volunteers Recipients of the Concern Global Citizenship Education Grant GCE peers in Ireland Concern staff In their technical proposal, the selected evaluator(s) will propose the methodology they will use for conducting the evaluation, taking into account these requirements and ensuring a comprehensive review of the ICSP GCE stream as implemented by Concern Worldwide. It is expected that, following initial discussions and a desk review of existing documentation and data, an inception report will set out the final evaluation Tender Link : https://reliefweb.int/job/4210775/evaluation-irelands-civil-society-programme-global-citizenship-education-stream