PHA-Exchange> Request for proposal to Host Secretariat of the NETWORK FOR ACTION ON TB AND POVERTY

Thu Apr 1 20:17:06 PST 2004

From: Ruggiero, Mrs. Ana Lucia (WDC) 

-----Original Message-----
From: David Gwatkin  Dgwatkin at worldbank.org -   Ger Steenbergen     steenbergeng at who.int 

We have issued today through our website (www.stoptb.org ) the request for proposal of the hosting of the secretariat for this network.

We look forward to receive proposals from a wide spectrum of capable candidates.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

TO HOST THE SECRETARIAT OF THE 

NETWORK FOR ACTION ON TB AND POVERTY

1.         Background

The relationship between TB and poverty has been explored in depth as a result of the 2002 World TB Day theme "Stop TB, fight poverty". With input from many international experts on health and equity, and with practical contributions from TB control managers in high burden countries the main barriers faced by poor people attempting access TB programmes have been identified. It is clear that poor people face specific difficulties in accessing health services and experience long delays before the diagnosis of TB can be made.

Based on these findings, the Coordinating Board of the Stop TB Partnership has endorsed the setting up of a Network for Action on TB and Poverty to become a platform for innovative implementation and sharing of experiences. Furthermore the Network aims to be the catalyst for expansion of best practice as TB control activities extend and adapt the DOTS strategy to better meet the needs of the poor and help meet the global target of 70% TB case detection.

2.         Network for Action on TB and Poverty - phased development

The Network aims to bring together TB Control and Poverty experts with different backgrounds and interests to create a synergy for more coordinated action in support of countries and the poor in particular. Ultimately the Network is expected to be competent at all stages of the cycle of activities required to promote useful action at country level in those places where the needs of the poor are greatest.  It is, however, recognised that not all stages of the action cycle (programming, identification, appraisal, financing, implementation and evaluation) can be established immediately.   Establishing and embedding a global Network for Action on TB & Poverty with all of these functionalities will take time and further financial investment.  The STOP-TB Partnership therefore envisages a phased development of the Network as follows:

Phase 1.  Establishing a Secretariat for the Network in a Developing Country.  The Secretariat will be responsible, over a 1 year time period for the following programming responsibilities:

a)       Engagement of policy-makers, practitioners, NGO's and other stakeholders, including representatives of poor women and men, in setting the foundations for the development of tools, guidelines and activities which promote the access of the poor to TB services in at least one region of the world.

b)       Dissemination of new knowledge emerging throughout the STOP-TB Partnership and the emerging Network for Action on TB & Poverty.

c)       Development of productive working relations with other health equity initiatives

d)       Assisting the TB & Poverty Core Group of the STOP-TB Partnership in securing the additional financial and other support required to move into Phase 2.

The possibility of extending the Secretariat function for a further year will be kept open until towards the end of the first year of Secretariat operation.  At this time the performance of the Secretariat will be reviewed the light of progress towards Phase 2 of the Network Development.

Phase 2.  Extending the range of activities undertaken by the Network and the geographical spread of Network activities. 

3                    Setting up the Network for Action on TB Poverty

The Stop TB Partnership seeks, therefore, to contract a developing country organisation to host the Secretariat for the Network for Action on TB & Poverty which will serve as a focal point for communication and facilitation of the Network throughout Phase 1 of its development.

The Network will be organizationally located in the Stop TB Working Group for DOTS Expansion, but will also maintain a presence in the other working groups of the Stop TB Partnership. This facilitates the mainstreaming of equity issues in all TB related work.

The Network will be governed by the TB & Poverty Core Group which includes representatives from developing countries in the different regions of the globe as well as NGO and technical expertise on TB & Poverty.  The chair of this Core Group will rotate among members, with priority for the chair position being given to representatives from those developing countries where implementation of TB control is especially important for the poor.  

4                    Network Secretariat

In order to provide cohesion between the stakeholders in the regions and the organizations with relevant technical expertise, a small secretariat is necessary. The secretariat will also provide follow-up on the decisions of the TB & Poverty Core Group for the benefit of the Network growth and productivity. This secretariat will must be located in an established organisation in a TB high burden or high prevalence country that has significant health equity concerns. 

                        Role and functions

The main roles of the secretariat are to carry out the executive decisions of the TB & Poverty Core Group and to provide follow-up of ongoing issues (both within and outside the Network) in support of the further growth and productivity of the Network.

The related functions are:

Communications with the (WHO delineated) regions and to facilitate contacts between the groups with technical expertise 

Issue three monthly electronic newsletter

Establish and maintain Internet web site with collaborative workspace 

Support the governance of the Network

Organise semi-annual meeting of the TB & Poverty Core Group

Organise annual conference of the Network

Carry out resource mobilization in support of the Network and the work of the participants

External relations

Maintain close relations with the DOTS Expansion Working Group

Maintain contacts with other Stop TB Partnership Working Groups

Maintain representation in other Health Equity Initiatives

Administration

Prepare and submit to TB & Poverty Core Group annual work plan and budget for Network functions

Prepare and submit to TB & Poverty Core Group semi-annual financial and progress reports of the Network Secretariat

Follow-up administratively the issue and maintenance of grants (contracts, financial and progress reports)

Liase administratively with external donor agencies that provide financial support

                        Essential Capabilities
General overview
  a.. Skills in organization (conferences), administration and (financial) management. 
  b.. Skills in communication, advocacy and networking. 
  c.. Knowledge, understanding and affinity in TB issues. 
  d.. Knowledge, understanding and affinity in poverty related issues. 

Personal and professional capabilities
  a.. Nationally acknowledged and respected public health and equity experience and/or expertise 
  b.. Excellent communicative and language skills, always including English (both in writing and verbal) 
  c.. Ability to establish and maintain international and external relations 

Organisational capabilities
  a.. Excellent secretarial skills (report and newsletter writing and follow-up of executive decisions, e-mail and other correspondence) 
  b.. Excellent administrative skills (financial reporting and control, management of grant portfolios) 
  c.. In-house expertise on information technology (data base management, skills to establish and maintain web-site) 
  d.. Adequate computer capacity and capability 
  e.. Easy access to reliable communication facilities (telephone, fax, e-mail and broad band internet) 

                        Desirable Capability

  a.. Internationally acknowledged and respected centre or focal point for public health and equity experience and/or expertise. 

5                    Proposal to host the secretariat

Proposals are herewith invited to host the above mentioned secretariat, taking the above roles and functions into consideration. Only serious proposals that substantiate the required capabilities and capacity of the applicants will be considered.

Proposals will be appraised on the strength of their capabilities, proven interest and capacity. The Stop TB Partnership Secretariat will, in close consultation with the members of the TB and Poverty Core group, decide on behalf of the Stop TB Co-ordinating Board. It is expected that the TB & Poverty Secretariat will be contracted from 1st July 2004 until 30th June  2005 with an opportunity for extension depending on performance, available funding, and Network development.

Proposals are expected to be specific in their bid in relation to the following points:

  a.. Contact person responsible for the bid with his/her formal institutional affiliation. 
  b.. Institutional history and technical background, with special emphasis on TB equity experience and expertise. 
  c.. Legal status for contractual purposes. 
  d.. Description of how the roles and functions of the secretariat can be realised. 
  e.. Description of the existing capabilities as mentioned above 
  f.. Investments needed to fill probable gaps in the existing establishment to adequately address the stated requirements for the secretariat (including recruitment of additional full time staff) 
  g.. Proposed indicative annual plan and budget for the secretariat's function (2004 - 2005). Bids must not exceed USD. 100,000 per annum. 

Proposals are appraised on technical contents and organizational / managerial merit by an expert group, using the Bid Evaluation grid as per Annex 1.

The closing date for the submission of proposals is 1st May 2004.

All proposals should (preferably by e-mail) be sent to:

Stop TB Partnership Secretariat, 

Att. Ger Steenbergen MD MPH,

World Health Organization (STB/TBP),

Avenue Appia 20,

1211 Geneva, Switzerland  email : steenbergeng at who.int fax: +41.22.7914886

ANNEX 1

Evaluation Grid

      Section
     Maximum Score

      1. Financial, administration  and operational managerial capacity
     25

      1.1 Do the applicant and partners have sufficient experience of project administration? 
     5

      1.2 How coherent is the overall design of the secretariat? (appropriate mix of staff skills: TB expertise, poverty expertise, financial management expertise)
     5

      1.3 Do the applicant and partners have sufficient management capacity? 
      (including planning, reporting and to handle the budget for the action)?
     5

      1.4 Does the applicant have stable and sufficient sources of finance?
     5

      1.5 Is the proposed secretariat likely to have a tangible impact on the establishment and growth of the Network?
     5

      2. Communication, advocacy and networking
     30

      2.1 How reliable are the means of communication (e-mail function, international telephone    network, website)
     5

      2.2 How excellent are the language skills: English, French, Spanish and or other languages?
     5

      2.3 What is the reputation of the institute in terms of national acknowledged and respected public health and in maintaining developing external relations for the Network?
     5

      2.4 Have the needs and demands of the Network been clearly defined and does the proposed secretariat address them appropriately?
     5

      2.5 Does the proposal contain specific elements of added value, such as innovative approaches?
     5

      2.6 Is the level of involvement and participation by the participants (especially TB burdened countries) in the secretariat functions for the Network satisfactorily anticipated?
     5

      3. Knowledge, understanding and affinity in TB issues
     25

      3.1 Do the applicant and partners have sufficient technical expertise?(notably knowledge of the issues to be addressed in the field of TB)
     5

      3.2 To what extent has the applicant experience and is involved in TB control in their receptive country? 
     5 

      3.3 Is the anticipated partners' level of involvement and participation in the action satisfactory?
     5

      3.4 Is the applicant member of the Stop TB partnership or its working groups?
     5

      3.5 Does the proposal contain objectively verifiable indicators for the outcome of the action?
     5

      4. Knowledge understanding and affinity in poverty issues 
     10

      4.1 Do the applicant and partners have sufficient technical expertise?(notably knowledge of the issues to be addressed in the field of poverty reduction)
     5

      4.2 To what extent has the applicant experience and is involved in poverty reduction in their receptive country? 
     5

      5. Sustainability Budget and cost-effectiveness
     10

      5.1 To which degree is the proposed secretariat sustainable in terms its ability to mobilise additional external resources to continue the functions upon a positive evaluation and endorsement from the core group after the project period? 
     5

      5.2 Is the proposed expenditure necessary for the implementation of the proposed action?
     5

      Maximum total score
     100

Scoring:

The evaluation criteria are divided into sections and subsections. Each subsection will be given a score between 1 and 5 in accordance with the following guidelines: 1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = adequate; 4 = good; 5 = very good. The applications with the highest scores will be given priority.

The relationship between TB and Poverty has been explored in depth. We know

now that poor people face specific difficulties in access to health services

and experience long delays before the diagnosis of TB can be made. Time has

Ger Steenbergen

Stop TB Partnership Secretariat

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://phm.phmovement.org/pipermail/phm-exchange-phmovement.org/attachments/20040402/eab41919/attachment-0001.html>