Category: Tenders and Announcements

RFP: External consultants to conduct the assessment of the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT) in the context of the transition from the Global Fund support to national funding in Republic of Albania and Kyrgyz Republic

Posted on by Igor Gordon

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) 

RFP Number EHRA-06-22
RFP Title External consultants to conduct the assessment of the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT) in the context of the transition from the Global Fund support to national funding in Republic of Albania and Kyrgyz Republic
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET 15 July 2022 г.
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

Background

Being a partner of the Alliance for Public Health, the All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH 100% Life and other regional and national organizations in the implementation of the Global Fund funded regional HIV project “Sustainability of services for key populations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia”, Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is aimed at the improving the sustainability of HIV programs in EECA countries.

To contribute to this objective, EHRA is planning to conduct in a number of EECA countries the assessment of the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT) in the context of the transition from the Global Fund support to national funding.

In 2019 – 2020 the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) has developed and piloted the methodological approach and tools for countries to assess the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT) programs in the context of transition from Global Fund’s, or other donor, support. This assessment covers the current situation, progress achieved, risks, and opportunities for sustainability with a focus on programmatic aspects of OAT.

EHRA is looking for the national level consultants to conduct the assessment of the sustainability of OAT programs in the context of transition using the EHRA developed assessment framework and methodology in Republic of Albania and Kyrgyz Republic.

Tasks for the consultant

The consultant is expected to conduct the national assessment process in accordance with an Assessment Guide “Measuring the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT)”. The assessment process should include the next stages:

  1. Preparation stage

At this stage consultant is expected to familiarize themselves with the reports on the results of the assessments, conducted in other countries, as well as to conduct the planning and revision\adaptation of the OAT Sustainability Assessment Framework and methodology to the national context. To do that it the consultant will need to establish and engage an advisory group composed of 4-7 national experts representing different sectors and bringing a combination of expertise in the issue areas (please see chapter 2.1. of the Assessment Guide for more details).

In particular, the revision and adjustment of the tools provided in the relevant sections of the EHRA Assessment Guide are recommended, including:

  • Outline of the report (Annex 3 of the Assessment Guide);
  • Instruments for structuring the collected information from the literature review and interviews (and focus groups, if any) (see the separate file for Annex 4 with the instructions and instruments for each of the indicators); and,
  • Interview and focus group guides (see separate files for Annex 5 and Annex 6 accordingly).

Adjustment of the first two instruments – the outline and the instruments for structuring information – is recommended to be undertaken first. The changes in the interview guide should follow the desk review (see Section 2.2.1. of the Assessment Guide) once conducted and missing information is identified.

  1. Assessment stage

To conduct a thorough and comprehensive assessment, the following steps must be undertaken:

  • Throughout the data collection process, to assess each indicator for each sustainability issue area using the tables provided in the annexes to the Assessment Guide (see Annex 4 of the Assessment Guide) and in accordance with the outline of the report (Annex 3 of the Assessment Guide);
  • To conduct the collection of quantitative and qualitative data through a desk review (see the Section 2.2.1 of the Assessment Guide);
  • To conduct the collection of quantitative and qualitative information through interviews with selected key informants (see Section 2.2.2. of the Assessment Guide) and focus group discussions (see Annexes 5 and 6 of the Assessment Guide); and,
  • To analyze the received data and prepare it for the inclusion into the report.

Guidance on how to complete each of the above key steps is provided in relevant sections of the EHRA Assessment Guide “Measuring the sustainability of opioid agonist therapy (OAT)”.

In accordance with the OAT sustainability framework, the focus of all of these steps should be around the next three issue areas of sustainability: Policy & Governance, Finances & Resources and Services.

  1. Development of the report

Once the assessment has been conducted, the consultant is expected to compile the data and draft the report. Conducting data verification will be required with the suppport of the Advisory Group – more guidance on that could be found in the Assessment Guide.

A report outline is provided in Annex 3 to the Assessment Guide. The report should include contextual sections, findings and conclusions for each of the issue areas as well as general conclusions and recommendations to government institutions, practitioners, civil society, technical partners and donors.

Deliverables

The report on the results of the assessment of the OAT sustainability in the context of the Global Fund transition in one of the next countries – Albania, Kyrgyzstan – in accordance with the preliminary agreed outline. The report should include the annexes with the information on the detailed methodology, the list of respondents and an overview of measurement scoring of sustainability. Other annexes could be included as well if relevant.

The language of the resulted documents should be English or Russian.

Timeframe

  • The Preparation stage should be completed by 15.08.2022. The report outline, instruments for structuring information and interview guide should be agreed with the EHRA in case they are changed\adjusted. List of the advisory group members should be agreed with EHRA as well by that date.
  • The Assessment stage should be completed by 30.09.2022.
  • The draft report should be provided to the EHRA colleagues for the review and feedback by 31.10.2022.
  • The final report should be submitted by 01.12.2022.

Payment

The final cost of the contract will be calculated based on the number of working days indicated by the consultant in their application required to complete each stage of the assessment process described in this RFP, as well as the daily rate (in Euros) confirmed and agreed with EHRA. The daily rate must include all taxes to be paid by consultant themselves.

Evaluation criteria / requirements for candidates:

Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association. A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals:

  • evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation (please find the criteria in the table below)
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation. The EHRA will evaluate the proposal regarding the best value for money (price in euros and other factors are taken into account).

Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 80 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal which fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further.

Criteria: Points
High level of knowledge on OAT situation in the country of the assessment, including programmatic, organizational, financial and political aspects (to follow from the Letter of Interest); 25
Good knowledge and understanding of the processes taking place in the country in the context of the transition from the Global Fund’s support and ensuring the sustainability of HIV and OAT related services. The personal participation of an expert in such processes at the national or regional levels is welcome (should follow from the Letter of Interest); 25
Relevant experience in conducting this kind of analytical work, including collecting and analyzing qualitative and quantitative data, preparing reports on the results of assessments and recommendations (should follow from the Letter of Interest); 25
Availability of professional contacts with experts dealing with OAT in the country, as well as clients of OAT programs, the ability to establish communication with experts key to this assessment (should follow from the Letter of Interest); 25
Maximum possible number of points 100

Mandatory requirement for the candidates: excellent knowledge of written and spoken English and Russian (for the candidates to conduct the assessment in Kyrgyzstan), good knowledge of written and spoken English (for the candidates to conduct the assessment in Albania) and excellent knowledge of the native language of the country to conduct the assessment for any candidates.

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

Based on the evaluation results, the evaluation panel may decide to support several consultants. In this case, the evaluation panel will contact the selected consultants for negotiations.

How to apply

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association Code of Ethics which you can find at the following link: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/ehra-code-of-ethics/ Also, the applicant should support the position of the EHRA on the issue of Russian aggression against Ukraine https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/eurasian-harm-reduction-association-condemns-the-russian-war-against-ukraine/

Applicants must submit the following documents:

  • CV,
  • Letter of Interest.

The CV and application must reflect the candidate’s competencies required to complete this task. The Letter of Interest should also include the estimated number of working days required to complete each stage of the assessment process and the daily rate in EUR.

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

RFP АEXTENDED UNTIL JULY 6! EHRA is looking for the consultancy to develop approaches of ensuring optimal access to Mental Health care services by key populations in emergency situations related to COVID and war crisis 

Posted on by Agne

 

RFP Number EHRA-06-23 
RFP Title RFP MH barriers OST 
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET on July 6, 2022 
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org 

Background  

Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is a non-for-profit public membership-based organization uniting harm reduction activists and organisations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) with its mission to actively unite and support communities and civil societies to ensure the rights and freedoms, health, and well-being of people who use psychoactive substances in the CEECA region. 

EHRA is looking for a consultant to conduct a mapping of existing systems of the mental health care and an assessment of existing and potential barriers hampering the access to mental health services available to people using drugs involving war refugees from Ukraine, in emergency situations connected to COVID and war crisis. 

Living a healthy and positive life is not possible without adequate mental health; mental health problems may have a significant impact on daily life and its quality without being treated effectively.  

People who use drugs, like all people, should have an appropriate access to mental health support. Mental health issues and drug dependency can be brought in by the same factors, like poverty, lack of access to healthcare and other services, homelessness, stigma and discrimination; people may also start or continue using drugs to deal with mental health issues. Providing adequate access to mental health services for people who use drugs “without framing drug use and/or dependence as mental health issues in absolute terms” should be considered a priority. People who use drugs should be able to exercise their right to have a choice regarding their physical/mental health and relevant ways to encourage better access to mental health or barriers hampering such access should be identified and properly analysed. 

For the past several years certain factors have influenced the optimal access to mental health services:  

  • influence of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health issues was obvious due to increased stress situations, lockdowns and growing waves of home and gender-based violence as well as extra strain on health care systems all over the world.  
  • the most recent war in Ukraine caused nearly one third of its population (over 14 million) to flee the violence and abandon their homes in search of safe haven inside the country or abroad, with over 6 million Ukrainians having crossed the borders and living as refugees abroad, while over 8 millions are internally displaced within the country. Many of these people are or will be in the nearest future in dire need of essential mental health support, also to mention the more specialized services needed for key populations, including people who use drugs, OST clients and NPS users including war refugees from Ukraine.  
  • some specific mental health challenges are encountered by a more specific group of people using NPS (new psychoactive substances). Services for NPS users are usually not available in existing harm reduction packages of services (syringe exchange, distribution of condoms and disinfectants, overdose prevention, testing for HIV and other infections, psycho-social assistance, etc.) and, therefore, opportunities to receive help with mental health or behavioral disorders due to the use of NPS is limited. Only a few countries in the region have established clinical protocols for the diagnosis and treatment of mental health and behavioral disorders by the use of NPS and even those are not widely used due to lack of knowledge among health professionals, resulting in lack of adequate medical assistance for NPS users.  
  • continued stigmatisation/discrimination in health institutions and judgmental attitudes toward people who use drugs from the general public, still remain a barrier for those who may be in need of mental health services. 

These and other significant factors influencing the provision of mental health services should be assessed, carefully studied, and relevant recommendations formulated for further optimization of mental health support services provision with an emphasis on people who use drugs (incl. OST clients and NPS users), including war refugees from Ukraine, in different backgrounds as mentioned above. 

Objectives and key tasks of the consultant: 

EHRA is looking for a consultant to develop approaches of ensuring optimal access to mental health care services by conducting a mapping of existing systems of the mental health care and its management in selected countries and  implementing an assessment of existing and potential structural, legal, language, stigma-related and other barriers hampering the access of people using drugs (incl. OST clients and NPS users) residing in a country and war refugees from Ukraine to mental health services, in emergency situations related to COVID pandemic and war crisis as well as identify existing best practices/innovations in provision of mental health services to indicated target populations.  

Mapping and assessment should be implemented in selected countries: Poland, Czech Republic, Estonia, Moldova.  

The consultant is expected to perform the following objectives, in accordance with the timeframe below: 

  1. Develop an outline and a methodology for implementing mapping and assessment, to be conducted by country analytics/coordinators individually for selected countries. 

Mapping of the mental health care existing system and management for each of the selected countries should describe available current possibilities to receive mental health services from a patient’s perspective (patient’s pathway at different levels of services’ provision – starting from community level up to specialised services) for the following categories: 

  • system of mental health services for a regular population in a given country, serving as an introduction and providing background to further provisions; 
  • people using drugs, including such sub-groups as OST clients and NPS users; 
  • refugees, incl. war refugees/temporarily displaced person from Ukraine, with limited access to regular health care. 

Limitations or changes in access to mental health services system which had been introduced in emergency situations as a result of COVID pandemic restrictions should be mentioned and explored in this section.  

Methods of data collection for the mapping may include: 

  • desk review of all relevant publications, legal documents and other materials being publicly available, including web-sites of relevant governmental institutions. 
  • interviews with the key informants (if needed). 

Assessment of barriers/innovations should explore: 

  • existing and potential structural, legal, language, stigma-related and other barriers hampering access to mental health services of the mentioned key populations; 
  • existing and potential barriers hampering the access to mental health services for war refugees and people on a temporary stay due to emergency situations seeking relevant MH services in the specified countries; 
  • existing best practices/innovations in MH provision which have proven its effectiveness and responsiveness to the needs of the mentioned key populations and (war) refugees.    

2. Develop TOR for selecting country analytics/coordinators in four identified countries, based on outline and methodology developed under p.1. TOR should be finalised in consultation with EHRA.

Mapping and assessment in each selected country will be conducted by a country analytic/coordinator individually while a consultant will offer mentorship and assistance (see p. 5).  

3. Participate in the selection process of country analytics/coordinators as a member of the evaluation team. 

4. Facilitate the discussion on methodology relevance and its implementation process and conduct a training for selected countries’ analytics/coordinators on methodology implementation. 

Training will be held offline as a separate event run concurrently (prior or after) with Access to Mental Health Expert Meeting planned tentatively for August 29-31, 2022. Expenses related to consultant’s participation in Access to Mental Health Expert Meeting/training
(travel, accommodation, etc.) will be covered by EHRA separately. 

Participate in the Meeting deliberations/brainstorming sessions on barriers impeding access to mental health services for the mentioned key populations. 

5. Provide further mentorship and accompaniment for countries’ analytics/coordinators in their work on completing mapping and assessment in specified countries. 

6. Based on results of Access to Mental Health Experts’ Meeting and selected countries’ Reports, develop comprehensive recommendations on optimization of mental health services provision to people using drugs (incl. OST clients, NPS users) involving war refugees from Ukraine, in emergency situations connected to COVID and war crisis.    

Deliverables: 

  • Outline and a methodology for implementing mapping and assessment;  
  • TOR for selection of country analytics/coordinators; 
  • Program and materials for the Training on methodology implementation for countries’ analytics/coordinators;  
  • Regional Report, including outline of mental health care system, assessment of barriers, existing best practices and recommendations on optimization of mental health services provision.  

The language of the resulted documents should be English. 

Timeframe 

  1. By July 20, 2022 – develop an outline and a methodology for implementing mapping and assessment and submit for feedback to EHRA. 
  2. By July 30, 2022 – develop  TOR for selection of country analytics/coordinators. 
  3. By August 10, 2022 – develop program and materials for the Training on methodology implementation for countries’ analytics/coordinators. 
  4. By September 5, 2022 – conduct Training on methodology implementation for countries’ analytics/coordinators, participate in Access to Mental Health Expert Meeting (exact name and dates TBD). 
  5. By October 25, 2022 – complete individual Country Reports;  
  6. By November 1, 2022 – submit draft of the Regional Report, including outline of mental health care system, assessment of barriers, existing best practices and recommendations, for discussion and feedback from EHRA.  
  7. By November 20, 2022 – complete the final version of the Regional Report, including outline of mental health care system, assessment of barriers, existing best practices and recommendations on optimization of mental health services provision. 

Cost of services 

The cost of services will be calculated on the basis of the consultant’s optimum number of working days and his or her confirmed daily rate. 

In addition, EHRA will cover travel and accommodation cost during training.  

Evaluation criteria / requirements for candidates: 

 Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association. 

 A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals: 

  •  evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation. 
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation. The EHRA will evaluate the proposal regarding the best value for money (price in euros and other factors are taken into account). 

 Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 90 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal which fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further. 

Consultants with proven work experience in the topics of mental health and key populations (people who use drugs, OST clients and NPS users) would be given a priority. 

Criteria Weighting 
Good understanding of the mental health care existing system and ability to present it from a patient’s perspective (patient’s pathway at different levels of services’ provision). Good understanding of existing/potential structural, legal, language, stigma-related and other barriers hampering the access to mental health services. Access to relevant sources of information required to complete the task.  35 points 

Knowledge of specifics related to people using drugs (incl. OST clients and NPS users) Access to relevant sources of information required to complete the task. 

 

25 points 
Knowledge of specifics related to emergency situations connected to COVID and war crisis, including war refugees/people on a temporary stay from Ukraine. Access to relevant sources of information required to complete the task. 10 points 
Experience of development of similar publications and a strong record of adherence to evidence-based approaches. 15 points 
Proven set of skills for methodology development, writing, training and mentoring other researches. 15 points 
Total 100 points 

 

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals. 

The above-mentioned parameters should be clearly explained in a Letter of Interest and CV submitted by a prospective consultant.  

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association Code of Ethics which you can find at the following link: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/ehra-code-of-ethics/ 

Additionally, the consultants should have: 

  • No conflict of interest (should be declared in the Letter of Interest); 
  • Fluency in English and/or language/-s of the countries selected.  

How to apply 

Applicants must submit the following documents: 

– CV, 

– Letter of Interest. The CV and application should clearly reflect the competency of the candidate necessary to complete this task, as well as include the proposed number of working days for each stage, cost per day in EUR and timing of their implementation. 

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org    

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered. 

 

EXTENDED: EHRA is looking for a consultant to provide communication support for the development of information materials to support the project “TIBERIUS: Overcoming legal barriers for key populations – on the way to 90-90-90”

Posted on by EHRA
RFP Number EHRA-06-20
RFP Title External consultant for communication support for the development of information materials to support the project “TIBERIUS: Overcoming legal barriers for key populations – on the way to 90-90-90”
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET on June 23, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

 

Background

The Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is a non-profit public membership organization that brings together activists and harm reduction organizations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) to actively unite and support communities and civil society to ensure the right and freedom, health.

Since 2020, EHRA has been implementing the project TIBERIUS: “Overcoming Legal Barriers for Key Populations – Towards 90-90-90”.

The project’s goal is to increase the effectiveness of continuous HIV care by overcoming legal barriers for the most vulnerable key groups at the level of EECA cities. The project is implemented by the Tanadgoma Reproductive Health Information and Counseling Center in Georgia, the Kazakhstan Union of People Living with HIV in Kazakhstan, the Union of Organizations Working in the field of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Harm Reduction (UORN) in Moldova with expert support from the HIV Legal Network /AIDS, ECOM – Eurasian Coalition on Health, Rights, Gender and Sexual Diversity and Sex Workers’ Rights Advocacy Network (SWAN). The project aims to build the capacity of lawyers/s and paralegals/s to provide legal assistance to people who use drugs, men who have sex with men, and sex workers/sex workers to overcome legal barriers to accessing HIV care cascade. Together with project partners, EHRA will address human rights abuses and legal barriers and analyze systemic legal trends to advocate for changes that will ultimately help reduce the vulnerability of key populations to HIV and improve their access to the continuum of HIV care.

For information support of the above project, EHRA is looking for a consultant to prepare information materials on the project results in Kazakhstan, Moldova and Georgia.

 

Purpose of the consultancy

The consultant is expected to develop separate information product packages for each of the three project countries, reflecting the project’s model of operation, effectiveness, and achievements. Therefore, EHRA proposes that the consultant’s workflow should include (but not be limited to) the following steps:

  1. Get acquainted with the project, results, work model, and prepared information materials. It is expected that the consultant will obtain this information due to desk research and interviews with project teams in Kazakhstan and Moldova, Georgia.
  2. Develop and agree with the EHRA and project teams on the concepts and structures of information packages separately for Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia.
  3. Ensure the preparation of the above information materials separately for Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia. It is expected that during the preparation process, the consultant will independently attract all the necessary technical specialists (translators, designers, etc.).
  4. Provide consulting support to project teams in Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia in the process of publishing and disseminating information products.

It is expected that when preparing information products, the consultant will rely on the requirements and recommendations of the project donor for the preparation of such products. After the tender, the EHRA responsible specialist will provide these requirements and recommendations to the consultant to the consultant.

 

Scope of Services

The following products should be provided as a result of the work performed by the consultant under this TOR:

– Prepared packages of information products for Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan;

– Recommendations for project teams in Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia in the publication and dissemination of information products

 

Proposed timeline:

– by June 17 – the consultant must familiarize himself with all the documents provided by the EHRA on the work of the project and conduct appropriate desk research;

– by June 24 – the consultant must conduct interviews with project teams in Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia;

– by July 1 – the consultant should develop and agree with the EHRA and project teams on the concepts and structures of information packages separately for Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia;

– by July 29 – the consultant must ensure the preparation of the above information materials separately for Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia;

– by September 31, the consultant must provide consulting support to project teams in Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Georgia to publish and distribute information products.

 

Cost of services and payment order

The total contract value of a consultant under this ToR shall not exceed $7,000 (including all taxes and related expenses). Given the terms of the TOR, it is assumed that payment under the contract will be divided into two parts:

50% will be paid to the consultant after developing and presenting the concept and structure of information packages separately for Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia and the relevant TOR documents to appointed EHRA staff/experts.

50% will be paid after reviewing and finalising the information package for Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia and relevant TOR documents to appointed EHRA staff/experts.

 

Evaluation criteria / requirements for candidates:

Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association.

A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals:

  • evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation.
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation. The EHRA will evaluate the proposal regarding the best value for money (price in euros and other factors are taken into account).

Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 80 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal that fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further.

Сriteria: Points
Experience in performing similar work (links to examples of relevant documents should be provided in the Motivation letter) 60
Proven skills to provide advisory support in the dissemination of information materials 20
Excellent written and spoken English and Russian 20
Maximum possible number of points 100

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

Based on the evaluation results, the evaluation panel may decide to support several consultants. In this case, the evaluation panel will contact the selected consultants for negotiations.

How to apply

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association Code of Ethics which you can find at the following link: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/ehra-code-of-ethics/

Applicants must submit the following documents:

– CV,

– Letter of Interest. The CV and application should clearly reflect the competency of the candidate necessary to complete this task, as well as include the proposed number of working days for each stage, cost and timing of their implementation.

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org .

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

SIGN UP FOR FREE ONLINE COURSE «Digital Help: Services For Key Populations»

Posted on by Igor Gordon

Sign up for the course HERE before June 30.

Who is this course[1] for and why?

This online course is dedicated for NGOs and public health institutions providing digital or remote services for key populations, as well as for organizations that are just planning to introduce such services. The purpose of the course is to build capacities of outreach workers, social workers, psychologists, and other specialists who are involved in provision of online/remote services, and managers of those programs, for better quality of the services.

This course has been designed to help organizations in providing direct online help for key populations. During the Covid 19 pandemic digital tools turned out to be important means of reaching members of vulnerable groups. The main aim of the course is to provide participants with the basic knowledge on the core elements of providing digital services for key populations.

There is no one tool that fits all needs. There are many specialized tools, and they are constantly being developed, improved, or fixed. A tool used by one organization may not fit the requirements of others. Therefore, the main objective of this course is to show how to properly select digital tools and evaluate their usefulness.

Before details of tool selection, we will show how using Internet based interventions can be an effective approach to evidence-based work with key groups and individuals. We will then look at another important aspect, computer mediated communication. We will also tackle the issue of confidentiality, privacy, and data storage safety, as well as ethics. The Internet can be a wonderful tool, but online safety is a key issue when providing online services.

What topics will be covered?

  • Online communication – specifics of computer mediated communication, rules of netiquette, language in digital services.
  • Planning digital services based on understanding of the target audience using Persona tool
  • Understanding of possible ways of using available digital tools.
  • Online counselling and therapy – framework for practice, structure of effective client session, practicalities of developing online relationship.
  • Secure digital services – privacy, confidentiality, and security guidelines, secure software, and hardware, encrypting sensitive data, tips to protect your online privacy and security.
  • Ethics and dilemmas of running online services and online services as a source of strain and the work-life in balance.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

  • Use online communication effectively for counselling and therapy.
  • Describe what a Persona is and identify why and when to use it.
  • Construct a Persona.
  • Recognize the strengths and weaknesses of various tool categories.
  • Compare and contrast digital tools.
  • Adopt the use of counselling skills in an online context.
  • Protect your online privacy and security.
  • Be aware of ethical issues and dilemmas of running on-line services

How will the course be organised?

The program of the course consists of six modules with learning content, self-check tests, additional tips, and practical exercises. For each module, the lesson text has been prepared for reading online and in PDF format for downloading it. We have also included additional materials such as: questionnaires and surveys, videos, and links to external sources on the Internet.

During the course, we plan four online video meetings with a group of all training participants. During these meetings you will be able to get to know your fellow students better, share your experiences, discuss with everyone important topics and ethical dilemmas you may encounter when working online in connection with the provision of online services, and receive advice from the trainers on the course and feedback on the completed assignments.

The course is available in Russian or English.

When will the course take place?

The full course will take one month to complete, in which you will need to allocate 22 hours of your time to learning. You can choose in which month you want to start training, from July till November.

Certificate

To receive certificate of completion, each participant must complete 80% of all tasks on the platform, take part in the four video calls, complete the final assignment.

You can register for the course HERE before June 30.

We will notify you personally about your enrolment and the start date by e-mail before 27th June.

If you have any questions, please contact Igor Gordon by igor@harmreductioneurasia.org

[1] The course was developed by the Global Public Health Network in partnership with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) with participation of ECOM – Eurasian Coalition on Health, Rights, Gender and Sexual Diversity and the Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA) within the framework of the Eurasian Regional Consortium’s project ‘Thinking outside the box: overcoming challenges in community advocacy for sustainable and high-quality HIV services’ funded by the Robert Carr Civil Society Networks (RCF).

[1] The course was developed by the Global Public Health Network in partnership with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) with participation of ECOM – Eurasian Coalition on Health, Rights, Gender and Sexual Diversity and the Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS (EWNA) within the framework of the Eurasian Regional Consortium’s project ‘Thinking outside the box: overcoming challenges in community advocacy for sustainable and high-quality HIV services’ funded by the Robert Carr Civil Society Networks (RCF).

EXTENDED: EHRA is looking for the consultancy to revise the methodology and tools of the assessment of the fulfillment of the commitments taken by the governments to ensure the sustainability of HIV response among key populations in the context of transition from the Global Fund’s support

Posted on by EHRA
RFP Number EHRA-06-21
RFP Title External consultancy for the revise the methodology and tools of the assessment of the fulfillment of the commitments taken by the governments to ensure the sustainability of HIV response among key populations in the context of transition from the Global Fund’s support
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET on June 27, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

 

Background

Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is a non-for-profit public membership-based organization uniting harm reduction activists and organisations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) with its mission to actively unite and support communities and civil societies to ensure the rights and freedoms, health.

Being a partner of the Alliance for Public Health, the All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH 100% Life and other regional networks in the implementation of the Global Fund funded regional HIV project “Sustainability of services for key populations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia”, EHRA is aimed at the improving the financial sustainability and allocative efficiency of HIV programs in EECA countries.

To contribute to this objective, in 2020 – 2021 EHRA has developed and piloted a methodology and tool for assessing the fulfillment of the commitments taken by the governments to ensure the sustainability of HIV response among key populations in the context of transition to national financing from the donors’ / Global Fund’s support. It is expected that the results of such assessment will help representatives of key affected communities maintain their awareness and engagement in monitoring of the transition related process and advocate for the sustainability of the national response to HIV.

In 2021, while piloting the developed methodology and tool, EHRA conducted nine assessments in such EECA countries as Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Tajikistan.

EHRA is looking for a consultant to help with revising the current version of the methodology and tools based on the results of its piloting in 2021.

 

Goals and objectives

The consultant is expected to review and refine the methodology and tool for assessing the implementation of government commitments to ensure the sustainability of the HIV response among key populations in the context of the transition from Global Fund support based on a pilot project conducted in 9 EECA countries in 2021. Therefore, EHRA proposes that the consultant’s workflow should include (but not be limited to) the following steps:

  1. Acquaintance with the current version of the assessment methodology and tools.
  2. Familiarization with reports on the results of assessments in 9 countries and a list of methodological and technical limitations and problems identified so far (to be provided by EHRA).
  3. Development and agreement with EHRA of a questionnaire for semi-structured interviews on issues related to methodology, preparation and agreement with EHRA of a list of experts for interviews. The total number of interviews should not exceed 12.
  4. Conducting, transcribing and analyzing interviews with selected experts.
  5. Based on the information collected, finalize the methodology and tool for assessing the fulfilment of HIV resilience commitments made by national governments in the context of a country’s transition from Global Fund support to national funding.

The Assessment Guide Benchmarking the Sustainability of the HIV Response in the Context of the Transition from Donor Funding, along with the Transition Monitoring Tool in Excel format, can be found on the EHRA website: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/tmt/. In addition, EHRA will provide the selected consultant with (1) national reports on completed assessments and (2) a list of methodological and technical limitations and problems identified from the results of the pilot, which will need to be taken into account and addressed in the course of work, as well as (3) contacts of experts who conducted national estimates.

EHRA will support the selected consultant in understanding the methodology. Upon request, the EHRA will provide detailed feedback on the intermediate products of the consultant’s work being created. In addition, the consultant is expected to be available for regular calls with assigned EHRA staff/experts to discuss progress/problems related to the implementation of the tasks set under this ToR.

 

Expected work results:

The following products (in English or Russian) should be provided as a result of the work carried out by the consultant following this TOR:

  • Revised and finalized methodology to assess of the fulfillment of the commitments taken by the governments to ensure the sustainability of HIV response among key populations in the context of transition from the Global Fund’s support;
  • Revised and finalized tool(s) required to do such assessment including the instruction for local consultants on how to use them.

 

Proposed timeline:

  • By 08.07.2022 – the consultant should familiarize himself/herself with all the provided by EHRA assessment related documents
  • By 22.07.2022 – to develop the questionnaires for the interviews discussions and agree on the list of key respondents
  • By 31.08.2022 – to conduct all interviews
  • By 22.09.2022 the consultant should provide the assigned EHRA staff/experts with a draft version of the revised and updated documents for review as specified in the section «Expected Results» of this ToR.
  • By 15.10.2022 the consultant must provide to EHRA assigned staff/experts a pre-final version of the revised and updated documents specified in the section «Expected Results».
  • By 31.10.2022 the Consultant must provide to EHRA assigned staff/experts the final version of the documents specified in the section «Expected Results».

Cost of services and payment order

The final cost of the contract will be calculated based on the number of working days indicated in the work plan, the daily rate (in Euros) confirmed and agreed with EHRA. The daily rate must include all taxes paid by the consultant himself. Taking into account the terms of the TOR, it is assumed that the payment under the contract will be divided into two parts:

  • 50% will be paid to the consultant after developing and submitting the first draft of revised and finalized assessment methodology and related TOR documents to EHRA assigned staff/experts.
  • 50% will be paid after revising and finalizing the assessment methodology and related to TOR documents will be reviewed and approved by EHRA assigned staff/experts.

 

Evaluation criteria / requirements for candidates:

Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association.

A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals:

  • evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation.
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation. The EHRA will evaluate the proposal regarding the best value for money (price in euros and other factors are taken into account).

Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 80 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal which fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further.

Сriteria: Points
Excellent understanding of the context and processes related to the sustainability and transition of the response to HIV from Global Fund support to national funding taking place in the EECA region 20
Experience in similar work over the past 3 years and commitment to evidence-based approaches (links to examples of relevant documents should be provided in the Motivation Letter) 40
Proven set of skills for interviewing, conducting a literature review, and writing 40
Maximum possible number of points 100

Excellent written and spoken English or Russian is a requirement for all applicants.

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

Based on the evaluation results, the evaluation panel may decide to support several consultants. In this case, the evaluation panel will contact the selected consultants for negotiations.

How to apply

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association Code of Ethics which you can find at the following link: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/ehra-code-of-ethics/

Applicants must submit the following documents:

– CV,

– Letter of Interest. The CV and application must reflect the candidate’s competencies required to complete this task and also include

  • the estimated number of working days for each stage,
  • the daily rate in euros,
  • the terms of the work plan within this terms of reference.

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org .

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

Invitation to apply: Training and study visit on the quality of harm reduction services

Posted on by Agne

Amsterdam, 12-14 July 2022

Invitation to apply

EHRA invites harm reduction specialists from the CEECA region to a training on the quality of harm reduction services and a study visit to service organizations in the Netherlands.

In April 2022, the EHRA Steering Committee voted to adopt the EHRA Position on the quality of harm reduction services. The document was developed by a specialized expert working group of the Association members together with the EHRA Steering Committee. This is the first significant step in the implementation of Objective 2.1. of  EHRA Strategy ”Contribute to improving the quality and comprehensiveness of existing harm reduction services in the countries of the CEECA region”.

Developed as a practical guidance on how to apply the EHRA Position the Tool “Components, arguments, criteria (CAC) of quality harm reduction services” provides a framework for assessment of the capacities of harm reduction service providers to run high quality harm reduction services and for planning respective changes. It looks into the organizational capacity, staff capacity, client work, and partnerships from the point of view of the five key principles of harm reduction quality: respect for the dignity and acceptance of people who use drugs; community engagement; reaching people who use drugs in their diversity; responsiveness to clients’ needs; and target setting based on local health and social specifics.

During the training and study visit, participants will be able to have a detailed overview of CAC and the self-assessment tool, as well as learn how harm reduction programs in Amsterdam are organized for different target groups. After the training, 5 participating organizations, selected on a competitive basis, will be able to receive a mini-grant for self-assessment and expert support on quality assurance.

To apply for participation in the meeting, follow this link to fill out the form until June 17, 2022.

ATTENTION! According to the Netherlands’ entry restrictions, all participants travelling to the  training are required to have vaccination certificate with one of the EU approved vaccines.

RFP EXTENDED: trainers to run an online course on delivering digital services to key populations

Posted on by Igor Gordon

We are looking for trainers to run an online course on delivering digital services to key populations

RFP Number EHRA-05-19
RFP Title Trainer online course on digital services
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET on June 19, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

Background

Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is a non-for-profit public membership-based organization uniting harm reduction activists and organisations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) with its mission to actively unite and support communities and civil societies to ensure the rights and freedoms, health, and well-being of people who use psychoactive substances in the CEECA region. This call for proposals is organized within the project “Sustainability of Services for Key Populations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia”.

In 2021, in collaboration with the Global Public Health Network, EHRA has developed an online course that provides the basic knowledge and skills needed by community workers, social workers, psychologists and other professionals who are already involved in or are just planning to launch digital and remote services for key populations.

The course consists of four modules with learning content, self-tests, additional tips and practical exercises. The course also contains additional materials including questionnaires and surveys, videos and links to external sources.

The course is designed in a way that 80% of the material is for self-study, and the rest 20% with supervision of trainers.

The course is available in Russian and English and can be found on the LearnWorlds platform – https://ehra.learnworlds.com/course/digi.

The consultants selected under this request for proposals will be financed from two different projects. The work of a trainer to deliver a course for social workers, outreach workers, psychologists and other professionals providing counselling to people who use drugs will be funded from the multi-country project ‘Sustainability of Services for Key Populations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia’ funded by the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The work of trainers to deliver a course on online services for other key populations, including gay men and other men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender people, and women and young people living with HIV will be funded by the Eurasian Regional Consortium project supported by the Robert Carr civil society Networks Fund (RCF).

Aim of the consultancy: 

As part of this request for proposals, we are looking for qualified trainers who will be able to independently deliver an online course for 5 different groups in Russian or English. All pre-selected trainers will receive training for trainers to work effectively with the course.

Objectives of the consultancy:

  1. with EHRA support, familiarise with the course content and how to manage the LearnWorlds platform. EHRA will provide instructions on course management, access to the LearnWorlds platform, and technical support to trainers.
  2. Conduct online trainings for up to 6 groups of participants. In each training, the trainer will be required to keep high level of attention and interest of the course participants (up to 30 people) while going through 5 training modules and 4 online sessions in each training session, controlling giving feedback on test assignments.
  3. Provide participants with counselling and mentoring support after completion the course (no more than 2 hours of support for participants on request).
  4. Provide a progress report, including recommendations for further technical support to specialists who provide online services to key groups. 

Proposed timeline: All trainings must be completed by 31 November 2022. A detailed training plan will be agreed separately with trainers.

Evaluation Criteria

Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association.

A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals:

  • evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation;
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation.

Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 80 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal which fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further.

 To assess submitted applications, the following technical criteria will be used (80%) (maximum possible number of points is 100):

Evaluation criteria:

 

 Points
Experience of working as trainer (including experience of delivering online training) 40

 
Experience in working with key populations 30

 
Relevant education (psychology, social work, pedagogy) 30

 
 

Maximum possible number of points

  

100

Cost proposal (20%): EHRA will allocate same importance to the provided portfolio and recorded experience as to the cost of the services. The cost proposal will be evaluated in terms of best value-for money to EHRA in EUR, price and other factors considered

Condition

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

How to apply

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with:

Applicants must submit the following documents:

  1. CV
  2. Cover letter

The CV and Letter of Interest should clearly reflect the competency of the candidate and trainer’s experience (including delivery of online trainings) necessary to complete this task, as well as include daily rate in US dollars.

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org. In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate: EHRA-05-19 and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered. 

General terms

Interested consultants should pay attention to the following conditions:

  • EHRA will sign an agreement with the winner of the competitive selection. The contract will define a detailed work plan and payment terms.
  • EHRA reserves the right (but does not commit itself to obligations) to enter into negotiations with one or more applicants in order to obtain clarifications or additional information, as well as to agree on the timing of work.
  • The winner must confirm his/her daily rate before signing of the agreement.
  • Results will be announced by June 23, 2022. Each candidate will be contacted individually.
  • Any questions regarding the participation should be sent to igor@harmreductioneurasia.org till June 17, 2022.

EXTENDED! REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS: consultant to develop practical compendium of methods for community-led monitoring

Posted on by Igor Gordon
RFP Number EHRA-05-18
RFP Title Consultancy CLM practical compendium
RFP Closing Date and time: 24:00 EET on June 12, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

Background

Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) is a non-for-profit public membership-based organization uniting harm reduction activists and organisations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEECA) with its mission to actively unite and support communities and civil societies to ensure the rights and freedoms, health, and well-being of people who use psychoactive substances in the CEECA region. This call for proposals is organized within the project “Sustainability of Services for Key Populations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia”.

Community-led monitoring is becoming increasingly demanding among both key population community groups and donors as an approach and mechanism in identifying and addressing gaps in HIV response in the CECCA region.

However, community groups often abstain to get involved in CLM, thinking it costly, complicated, and has limited advocacy effect. Many community groups face challenges to choose correct monitoring methods, compatible with organization’s human, financial and technical resources.

In December 2021, EHRA in collaboration with UNAIDS and GF carried out a webinar (link: https://eecaplatform.org/en/webinar-on-clm/), where community and civil society activists were provided with information about:

  • international approaches to CLM by UNAIDS and the Global Fund,[1]
  • existing experience of conducting CLM and follow-up advocacy by different community groups in the CEECA region (gender audit by EWNA, community satisfaction by EHRA, „secret client“ by ECOM).[2]
  • addressed key principles and approaches when selecting CLM methods and role of CLM in community-driven advocacy, illustrated with practical examples.

Other CLM resources include:

  • CLM Resource Hub, powered by UNAIDS,
  • Community–Led Monitoring Tools developed by PEPFAR,
  • Technical Guidance: Principles and process in establishing CLM of HIV services, developed by UNAIDS,
  • A community toolkit developed by ITPC.

Aim of the consultancy:

With this RFP we are looking for a qualified external consultant who will help us to develop practical compendium of CLM methods. This document should easily explain community groups different CLM methods and how logically select appropriate one, to identify gaps or address stated advocacy asks. The guidance should also show in a simple way, a clear link between the chosen methods and required human, financial and technical resources needed to carry out the monitoring.

 

Objectives of the consultancy:

  1. Develop a practical compendium of CLM methods. Should be completed before 10th July 2022.
    • Develop preliminary outline of the compendium, in consultation with EHRA.
    • Draft compendium of CLM methods which contains structured catalogue of different CLM methods with clear and simple explanation of each method. The catalogue should also include section with complete list of possible issues that CLM could address; examples of required financial, technical, and human resources for each CLM method; clear explanation and criteria of what is the difference between CLM and other research and monitoring methods; illustrative examples of CLM use. Volume of the publication should not exceed  30 A4 pages, Times New Roman 12, excluding infographics and illustrations. The document can be drafted in ENGLISH or RUSSIAN languages.
    • The document should be written in a simple, clear language, understandable to people without special education and without use of specific sociological professional terminology. This tool should not duplicate all previous efforts made by the
    • Finalize the guidance, after two rounds of feedback from EHRA.
  1. Participate in development of a webinar and content for online tool for community-based organizations. The webinars will be focused on CLM methods described in the tool. All webinars will be conducted tentatively in August 2022.

 

Proposed timeline:

All activities should be completed before 31st August, 2022.

 

Evaluation Criteria

Submitted applications will be evaluated by the evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association.

A two-stage procedure will be utilized in evaluating the proposals:

  • evaluation of the previous experience (portfolio) via technical criteria – 80% in total evaluation;
  • comparison of the costs (best value for money) – 20% in total evaluation.

Cost evaluation is only undertaken for technical submissions that score a minimum 80 points out of a maximum of 100 as a requirement to pass the technical evaluation. A proposal which fails to achieve the minimum technical threshold will not be considered further.

 To assess submitted applications, the following technical criteria will be used (80%) (maximum possible number of points is 100):

Evaluation criteria:

 

 Points
Knowledge of research methodologies and experience in conducting research 40

 
Experience in working with key populations 20

 
Experience in developing tools, writing technical reports, guidance 20

 
Relevant education 20
 

Maximum possible number of points

  

100

 

Cost proposal (20%): EHRA will allocate same importance to the provided portfolio and recorded experience as to the cost of the services. The cost proposal will be evaluated in terms of best value-for money to EHRA in EUR, price and other factors considered.

Condition

This announcement shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

How to apply

To be eligible as a EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with:

Applicants must submit the following documents:

  1. CV
  2. Cover letter
  3. Examples of relevant publications

The CV and Letter of Interest should clearly reflect the competency of the candidate necessary to complete this task, as well as include the proposed number of working days for each objective, cost and timing of their implementation. Please, also add to your Letter of Interest short description of your approach in developing the guidance and very preliminary vision of the guidance content structure (150 words max).

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org. In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number (EHRA-05-18) and your name.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

General terms

Interested consultants should pay attention to the following conditions:

  • EHRA will sign an agreement with the winner of the competitive selection. The contract will define a detailed work plan and payment terms.
  • EHRA reserves the right (but does not commit itself to obligations) to enter into negotiations with one or more applicants in order to obtain clarifications or additional information, as well as to agree on the timing of work.
  • The winner must confirm his/her daily rate before signing of the agreement.
  • Results will be announced by June 7,2022. Each candidate will be contacted individually.
  • Any questions regarding the participation should be sent to igor@harmreductioneurasia.org till June 3, 2022.

[1] a. HOW TO IMPLEMENT COMMUNITY-LED MONITORING. A Community Toolkit. URL: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/1205_itpc_clm_design_fullreport06_compressed.pdf

  1. Community-led Monitoring for HIV, TB and Malaria programs and to address the impacts of COVID-19. URL: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/clm_ehra-webinar.07122021.pdf
  2. UNAIDS Perspectives and Support for CLM, by Dominic Kemps. URl: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/clm-presentation-for-eurasian-harm-reduction-assoc-webinar-1221.pdf

[2] a. ЧЕК-ЛИСТ ПОДГОТОВКИ К ИССЛЕДОВАНИЮ. Сексуальное и репродуктивное здоровье и права

женщин, живущих с ВИЧ. URL: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/chek-list_ezhss.pdf

  1. “Mystery Client” methodology, ECOM. URL: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/ecom_clm.pdf
  2. Community led survey of client satisfaction with opioid maintenance therapy services among participants in Kyiv and the Kyiv Oblast region, Ukraine, by Maria Plotko. URL: https://eecaplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/ehra_omt_plotko.pdf

RFP extended: Small grants to support local actions on 26 June 2022 as part of the “Support. Don’t Punish!” campaign in the CEECA region

Posted on by Igor Gordon

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)

Small grants to support local actions on 26 June 2022 as part of the “Support, Don’t Punish!” campaign in the CEECA region

RFP Number EHRA-05-17
RFP Title Small grants SDP2022
RFP Closing Date and time: 23:59 EET on May 22, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

BACKGROUND

Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) would like to inform initiative groups and organizations of the community of people who use psychoactive substances, as well as organizations working in drug policy and harm reduction field in CEECA region, about the possibility to receive up to 500 USD in form of small grant for local actions and events on Global Day of Action, June 26 in a frame of “Support, Don’t Punish” campaign.

The Eurasian Harm Reduction Association has been actively supporting the global initiative and activities of the campaign “Support, Don’t Punish”, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. More information about the campaign can be found at https://supportdontpunish.org/join/. A report of the 2021 campaign events funded by EHRA can be found –>HERE <–

This year is no exception. We are joining the broader coalition of campaigners to support drug policy reform, decriminalisation and community involvement in advocacy. EHRA as a part of the International Harm Reduction Consortium project “Ending Inequalities for People who Use Drugs: Strengthening Harm Reduction to Elevate Rights, Health and Capacity” will provide small grants to CBOs and CSOs to deliver local actions and events on June 26, organised by harm reduction activists and the community of people who use drugs, who on the ground are resolutely opposing the harmful “war on drugs”.

 

IMPLEMENTATION TIME: June 2022

Language of proposal: Russian or English

Application submission deadline: 23:59 EET on May 22, 2022

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS

  • Only non-governmental and non-profit organisations registered as legal entities in one of the 29 countries of the Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia region can apply. Initiative groups can also apply, but their fiscal agent must be an NGO or non-profit organisation.
  • Work with / represent / provide services to / advocate for the needs of people who use drugs.

The total budget for sub-grants is $2 000. 4 groups/organizations with a highest score (out of 100 points) and based in 4 different countries will be selected to receive the funding. Maximum grant amount is 500 $.

 

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Submitted applications will be evaluated by an evaluation panel of the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association.

Evaluation criteria: Points
Clear and specific description of stated problem.

The stated problem is directly connected with drug policy reform, decriminalisation and community advocacy.

 30
The proposed activities should be feasible. 20
The anticipated results should be realistic, commensurate with the proposed format and budget. 20
Realistic and justified budget 20
Applicant is member of EHRA 10
Maximum possible number of points 100

How to apply

To be eligible as EHRA sub-grantee, any organization or initiative group must comply with

 Applicants must submit the following documents:

– Application form <– download 

– Organizational registration document

– Memorandum of cooperation (in case of working through a financial agent).

Please submit your proposal to the info@harmreductioneurasia.org.

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate: EHRA-05-17 “Small grants SDP2022”_ and name of your organization/ initiative group.  Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

 

General terms and conditions

This announcement and its attachments shall not be construed as a contract or a commitment of any kind. This request for proposals in no way obligates EHRA to award a contract, nor does it commit EHRA to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals.

Interested applicants should pay attention to the following conditions:

  • EHRA will sign an agreement with 4 winners of the competitive selection. The contracts will define a detailed work plan, budget and payment terms.
  • EHRA reserves the right (but does not commit itself to obligations) to enter into negotiations with one or more applicants in order to obtain clarifications or additional information, as well as to agree on the timing of work.
  • Results will be announced by 20th May 2022. Each applicant will be contacted individually.
  • Any questions regarding the participation should be sent to igor@harmreductioneurasia.org till May 13, 2022.

EXTENDED: EHRA is pleased to announce a new RFP for the selection of the consultant to develop an Info Note on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment

Posted on by EHRA
RFP Number EHRA-04-13
RFP Title External consultant. Info Note on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment
RFP Closing Date and time: 23:59 EET on May 4, 2022
Proposal Submission Address: info@harmreductioneurasia.org

Background

Since 2017 Eurasian Harm Reduction Association is being the host of the EECA Regional Platform for Communication and Coordination. One of the EHRA responsibilities in its role as EECA Regional Platform is to enhance community knowledge of the Global Fund and its processes, through the regular bi-directional sharing of tailored and targeted information to a diverse audience.

To be in line with this objective, EHRA through its EECA Regional Platform is aimed to better inform civil society and communities in the region about the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment including its Investment Case.

Objectives of the tender and key tasks of the consultant:

EHRA is looking for a consultant to develop the Info Note for civil society and communities in EECA on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment.

The consultant is expected:

  1. To propose the format and structure of the Info Note. The document may cover the next topics (but not be limited by them):
    • What is the Global Fund’s Replenishment?
    • A brief overview of the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment including its objectives, key processes, timeframe
    • Brief summary of the Global Fund’s investment case for the 7th Replenishment
    • Key messages for civil society activists and advocates with regard to the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment
  2. To collect all required information needed to develop the Info Note. The methods of data collection may include:
    • desk review of all relevant publications, documents, and other info materials on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment being publicly available, including those being available at the Global Fund’s website and being produced by different Global Fund’s partners including those from civil society (like GFAN, W4GF etc.)
    • interviews with the key informants (if needed).
  3. Based on the collected information – develop an Info Note on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment including its Investment Case.

Deliverables:

A document presenting a brief overview of the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment objectives and processes including its Investment Case. The length of the document should not exceed 7 pages.

The language of the resulted document should be English or Russian.

Timeframe

  1. By 12th of May – to propose and agree with EHRA on the format and structure of the final document to be developed.
  2. By 30th of May – to provide EHRA with the draft document for feedback and comments.
  3. By 10th of June- to provide EHRA with the final product.

Cost of services

The total contract cost for the work of the consultant under this ToR should not exceed 1 100 EUR (including all taxes).

Evaluation Criteria:

An evaluation panel will assess the extent to which proposals submitted in response to this announcement meet the evaluation criteria below.

The minimum technical score is 90. Only candidates with a minimum score of 90 points out of a maximum of 100 are considered eligible for the assignment. Consultants with proven work experience in the community organization would be given a priority.

The candidates with the highest technical score that meets the requirement will be invited to negotiate the agreement.

Criteria Weighting
Good understanding of the Global Fund’s processes including the Replenishment in particular (should be clear from LoI) 25 points
Knowledge of, and access to relevant sources of information required to complete the task (should be clear from LoI) 25 points
Experience of development of similar publications and a strong record of adherence to evidence-based approaches (should be clear from CV and LoI) 25 points
Proven set of skills for interviewing, conducting a literature review, and writing (should be clear from CV and LoI) 25 points
Total 100 points

Additionally, the consultants should have:

  • No conflict of interest (should be declared in the Letter of Interest);
  • Fluent in English and/or Russian languages;

How to apply

To be eligible as an EHRA consultant, any organization or individual must comply with the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association Code of Ethics which you can find at the following link: https://old.harmreductioneurasia.org/ehra-code-of-ethics/

Applicants must submit the following documents:

1. CV with the relevant information

2. Letter of Interest (LoI)

Please submit your proposal to info@harmreductioneurasia.org by the 4th of May 2022 23:59 EET.

In the subject line of your e-mail please indicate the RFP number EHRA-04-13, the title “Consultant to develop Info Note on the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment, and your name. Otherwise, the application will not be considered.

ATTENTION. If these documents are not submitted in full, the participant will not be allowed to take part in the tender.

General terms

Interested consultants should pay attention to the following conditions:

•  This RFP shall not be interpreted as a contract or obligation of any kind. This invitation to tender does not in any way oblige EHRA to enter into contracts, nor does it oblige EHRA to pay any costs incurred in preparing and submitting applications.

•  EHRA will sign an agreement with the winner of the competitive selection. The contract will define a detailed work plan and payment terms. The contract is not an employment contract. Payment of all taxes and social insurance is the responsibility of the contractor.

•  EHRA reserves the right (but does not commit itself to obligations) to enter into negotiations with one or more applicants in order to obtain clarifications or additional information, as well as to agree on the timing of work.