Call for proposals
The UNESCO Living Heritage Entity is looking for a team of experts/evaluators to carry out a renewal evaluation of the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Latin America (CRESPIAL), a UNESCO Category 2 Centre based in Cusco, Republic of Peru.
Proposals should reach UNESCO by 31 March 2020.
Context
Category 2 institutes and centres under the auspices of UNESCO are a global network of institutions of excellence in the Organization’s domains of competence. Given their expertise, these institutes and centres contribute to the implementation of UNESCO’s priorities, programmes, and global development agendas during a defined period. They foster international and regional cooperation, research, knowledge production, policy advice, and capacity enhancement. Though independent of UNESCO, category 2 institutes and centres are a privileged partner of the Organization with access to UNESCO’s logo, international and intergovernmental bodies and networks, and may leverage UNESCO’s international reach and convening powers. Category 2 institutes and centres under the auspices of UNESCO are an integral part of the Organization’s Comprehensive Partnership Strategy.
The UNESCO Strategy for Category 2 Institutes and Centres under the auspices of UNESCO provides that an agreement for the establishment of a category 2 institute or centre is typically concluded for a defined time period, not exceeding eight years. The agreement may be renewed by the Director-General, with the approval of the Executive Board, in light of an evaluation of the activities of the institute/centre and of its contribution to the strategic programme objectives of the Organization and the aforementioned Strategy.
The 33rd session of the General Conference, in its 33 C/Resolution 46, approved the establishment in the Republic of Peru of the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Latin America (hereafter, ‘the Centre’). An agreement between the Government of the Republic of Peru and UNESCO was signed accordingly. Following the first evaluation undertaken in 2014, a new agreement was signed between UNESCO and the Government of the Republic of Peru for the period of six years (2015-2021). The Government of the Republic of Peru submitted a request for renewal of the agreement. To this end, an evaluation of the Centre will be carried out.
The objectives of the Centre are to:
a) promote the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage at national and regional level, through the effective implementation and monitoring of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and other relevant international instruments in this field as well as exchange, cooperation and sharing of experiences in this field in the Region;
b) consolidate and strengthen institutional capacities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage in the Region;
c) promote respect for the purposes and the proper use of the mechanisms of the Convention as well as the substantive inclusion of communities in safeguarding.
The functions of the Centre are to:
a) encourage participating States to adopt policies, legislative and administrative provisions referred to in Article 13 of the Convention;
b) organize activities to consolidate and strengthen national capacities in the Region in the areas of identification, documentation, inventory making and safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage present in their territories in accordance with the UNESCO’s global strategy in this field;
c) organize and promote cooperation between institutions and networks of professionals in its participating States in the area of exchanging experiences, knowledge and skills in particular in relation to intangible cultural heritage practised in two or more of these States;
d) contribute to a better understanding of the Convention and its mechanisms at the local, national and regional level, promote regional activities raising awareness of the importance of intangible cultural heritage and provide tools and methodologies for inclusion of communities in safeguarding.
Purpose
The main objectives of this evaluation are to assess the Centre’s performance with respect to its objectives and functions (see above), and its contribution to UNESCO’s Approved Programme and Budget (C/5), including global strategies and action plans as well as sectoral programme priorities. The conclusions of the renewal evaluation shall be submitted to the UNESCO Intersectoral Review Committee that will make the recommendation to the Director-General as to whether an agreement with the Centre should be renewed or not. Based on this recommendation, the UNESCO Executive Board will examine the renewal request, decide on the renewal or non-renewal of the designation of the Centre as a category 2 centre under the auspices of UNESCO and authorize the Director-General to conclude an agreement with the Government of Peru.
The conclusions of the renewal evaluation shall be shared with the Government of the Republic of Peru and the Centre, and will be made available on the website of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ich.unesco.org).
Scope
The following parameters shall be considered by the independent experts contracted to undertake the renewal evaluation. The independent experts shall have had no prior affiliation with the Centre and shall draft the renewal evaluation in English or French:
1. the extent to which the Centre’s objectives as set out in the agreement signed with UNESCO were achieved;
2. the relevance of the contribution of the Centre’s programmes and activities to the achievement of UNESCO’s prevailing Approved Programme and Budget (C/5) at the time in which it was designated, including global strategies and action plans as well as sectoral programme priorities, as defined in the agreement, in particular, to the implementation of the 2003 Convention’s global capacity-building programme;
3. the relevance of the contribution of the activities of the Centre to global development agendas, notably to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the related SDGs;
4. the quality of coordination and interaction with UNESCO, both at Headquarters and in the field, as well as with National Commissions, other thematically-related category 1 and 2 institutes or centres with regard to planning and implementation of programmes;
5. the partnerships developed and maintained with government agencies, public or private partners and donors;
6. the nature and efficiency of the Centre’s governance, including organizational arrangements, management, human resources and accountability mechanisms;
7. the financial resources available for ensuring sustainable institutional capacity and viability, and,
8. the extent to which the Centre enjoys within its territory the autonomy necessary for the execution of its activities and legal capacity to contract, institute legal proceedings, and to acquire and dispose of movable and immovable property.
Methodology
The renewal evaluation of the Centre will include:
- A desk study of relevant documents, provided by the Centre and UNESCO Secretariat;
- A visit to the Centre, including interviews with the Centre’s management and staff;
- Interviews (telephone, online and/or via e-mail) with the Centre’s stakeholders, collaborators, and beneficiaries as well as UNESCO staff concerned;
- Preparation of the renewal evaluation report and the preliminary draft agreement to be concluded between UNESCO and the Government of the Republic of Peru, based on the model provided by UNESCO, in case the evaluation recommends the renewal.
Draft evaluation report
A draft report will present findings, conclusions and recommendations, with a draft executive summary. The UNESCO Culture Sector, the Government of the Republic of Peru and the Centre itself will have the opportunity to comment and give feedback to the evaluation team.
Final evaluation report
The final report (max. 20 pages, excluding annexes) should be structured as follows:
- Executive summary (maximum four pages);
- Introduction (background, purpose and scope);
- Methodology;
- Findings;
- General recommendations to the Centre for improving the effectiveness of its operations and for UNESCO for improving the effectiveness of its coordination and interaction with the Centre; specific recommendations for amending the provisions of the agreement in order to improve the functioning and activities of the Centre;
- Annexes, including a draft agreement to be concluded between UNESCO and the Government of the Republic of Peru in case the evaluation recommends the renewal, interview list, data collection instruments, key documents consulted, and terms of reference.
The language of the report shall be English or French.
Requirements for the renewal evaluation team
The evaluation will be conducted by a team of gender-balanced independent experts. A single proposal/expression of interest must be submitted on behalf of the team.
The team should have the following qualifications:
- At least 7 years of professional experience in research and/or capacity-building in the field of cultural heritage, cultural diversity, cultural policy or culture and development; experience in intangible cultural heritage will be an asset;
- At least 7 years of professional experience in policy and programme evaluation in the context of international development;
- Excellent knowledge of English or French (written and spoken) and good knowledge of Spanish;
- Knowledge of the role and mandate of UNESCO and its programmes.
Roles and responsibilities
Local travel, materials, secretarial support and office space will be provided by the Centre during the visit. The experts will be responsible for telecommunications and printing of documentation.
The Living Heritage Entity of the UNESCO Culture Sector will facilitate and oversee the renewal evaluation process, to the extent possible, by providing any relevant information, and will be responsible for evaluating and approving the final report.
Schedule
The renewal evaluation shall be completed no later than 15 June 2020.
The schedule for the evaluation is as follows:
- A desk study of background documents (to be completed prior to the visit to the Centre);
- Visit to the Centre;
- Writing and submission of the draft evaluation report no later than 15 May 2020;
- Submission of the final evaluation report (before 15 June 2020).
The date of the mission to the Centre will be defined by UNESCO in coordination with the Centre and taking into account the availability of evaluators.
Submission of proposals
Proposals should be submitted in English or French, consisting of:
1. Curriculum vitae of expert(s)/evaluator(s) and, if applicable, a company profile;
2. Letter expressing interest and clearly identifying how the team meets the required skills and experience;
3. An approach and methodology for the assignment, a Workplan and comments on the Terms of Reference if any (in brief);
4. A total cost (quoted in US dollars), distinguishing the fees for services from the travel expenses, with a breakdown of the cost and number of working hours required for each phase of the schedule.
Applications should be submitted no later than 31 March 2020, midnight (Paris time) to the Living Heritage Entity (ICH-capacity@unesco.org). Please note that applications submitted through other channels will not be considered. Selection will be made on the basis of best value for money.