Short-Term Consultancy: Author of Lebanon Profile and Levant Regional Overview for MENA Adequate Housing Yearbook

Terms of Reference (ToR) ‍

1. Background

The Urban Housing Practitioners Hub in Middle East and North Africa (UHPH-MENA) is an open platform, convened by Habitat for Humanity International, for the exchange and dissemination of knowledge and best practices regarding housing and urban issues in the MENA region.

The MENA Adequate Housing Yearbook is a flagship publication of the UHPH-MENA, and aims to prove an annual update of developments in the MENA region’s housing sector, reflecting the dynamic change in each country separately, and also providing a snapshot of MENA sub-regions and of the region as a whole.

The year 2023 will mark the launch of our Pilot Edition, which will contain two country profiles (Egypt and Lebanon), and two regional overviews (North Africa and the Levant), and will be published in English. 

Within this frame, we are currently calling on applications from interested individuals to author the following: 

1. The Levant regional overview;
2. The Lebanon country profile;

Since this is a pilot edition, the detailed structure of country profiles and regional overviews will be developed in collaboration with the consultants. However, a tentative basic structure of the regional overview is suggested in Annex A, and a tentative basic structure of the country profile is suggested in Annex B.

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2. Objectives

The MENA Adequate Housing Yearbook aims to present a detailed overview of:

1. Adequate housing for low-income and vulnerable populations, in the formal housing market, the informal housing market, and through public social housing;
2. Mechanisms in place to protect vulnerable populations from homelessness in times of increased financial strain;
3. The state of housing/shelter provided to refugees;
4. Programmes and approaches implemented in informal settlements;
5. The extent to which resilience and/or adaptation is incorporated into housing planning and urban upgrading, with a specific focus on household heat-, water-, and energy-stress. 

3. Methodology

The research will rely primarily on secondary data, and authors are expected to access public databases, previous reports and studies, and online information such as real estate price listings, social housing programme eligibility criteria, etc. Data sources used should incorporate the most updated data available on the housing sector in each of the countries and regions included in the pilot edition, and should be agreed upon jointly by the consultant and UHPH-MENA. Authors are expected to obtain all data themselves, and should not rely on obtaining any data from UHPH-MENA. 

Authors are expected to supplement the secondary data research with interviews when necessary, but should not rely solely on interviews for quantitative information. 

In collaboration with UHPH-MENA, authors are expected to set up an Expert Advisory Committee (EAC) who will review the profile and overview and provide feedback. The EAC should mostly consist of national and regional experts based in the MENA region. The UHPH-MENA is open to including at most one to two experts from outside the region in the committee.

4. Deliverables

The deliverables are as follows:

1. Inception report, including list of members of Expert Advisory Committee;
2. Draft country profile and regional overview;
3. Consultation session with EAC after they have reviewed the draft;
4. Final profile and overview; 

5. Timeline

The assignment will begin September 1^st and submission of the draft country profile and regional overview is due on November 1st. Submission of the final profile and overview is due on November 30th 2023.

6. Project Cost and Payment Arrangements

The proposed budget must include all costs, including any purchasing datasets, any planned field research, and the workshop. 

Invoicing will occur upon submission, approval and acceptance of the deliverables, based on the schedule below:

1. Inception report: 50% of contracted amount
2. Draft country profile and regional overview + consultation session: 20% of contracted amount
3. Final submission: 30% of contracted amount

7. Specific Requirements and Competencies

This consultancy is open to individuals. The applicant must have at a minimum the following qualifications:

• Expertise and relevant experience with the housing and urban research in the profiled country for at least ten (10) years;
• Demonstrated experience in conducting quantitative data overviews and analysis;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in Arabic and English;
• Demonstrated excellent technical writing skills;
• Ability to work within the proposed timeline;

8. Proposal submission

The proposals must be submitted by email to uhphMENA@habitat.org. Please submit the following:

A. Technical Proposal: 

A narrative proposal should include the following sections:

1. Capability Statement: Provide high-level details of similar projects accomplished by the consultant.
2. Suggestions for EAC: Describe the key experts you would tentatively invite to join the EAC and review your profile, and their relevant expertise; 
3. Project Implementation Methodology: Describe your overall approach and research methodology including, and not limited to, research design, data collection, data quality assurance measures and documentation.
4. Workplan: Present a detailed timeline of key activities.

B. Financial proposal:

The financial proposal should include at least a summary budget narrative. The cost estimates used to prepare the budget should be presented in US dollars.

The deadline for submission of applications is 15^th August 2023, 5 PM CLT (Cairo Local Time). 

Annex A: Tentative Basic Structure of Regional Overviews

1. General discussion of data availability in the region
2. Percentage of urban population and rate of urbanization
3. Overview of poverty rates
4. Percentage of population living in informal settlements
5. Estimated number of refugees and estimated number of refugee camps (if any)

Annex B: Tentative Basic Structure of Country Profiles

6. General country overview
7. Key country data figures
8. Housing affordability within formal private housing market
9. Public social housing schemes
10. Housing social protection
11. Housing financial inclusion for low-income populations
12. Informal settlements and upgrading programmes
13. Housing for refugees