Danish Refugee Council Seeks Consultancy Firm for Syria Community Consortium Midline Evaluation | Apply by August 26, 2026

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is inviting qualified consultancy firms to submit proposals for an External Midline Evaluation of the Syria Community Consortium (SCC) Programme. The consultancy will assess progress during the second year of a four-year programme and generate practical recommendations to strengthen future programming, resilience initiatives and area-based approaches in Syria.

The opportunity is particularly relevant to research firms and evaluation specialists with strong experience in mixed-methods research, humanitarian programming, social dynamics, post-conflict contexts and quantitative data analysis.

The deadline for submissions is 26 August 2026 at 10:00 AM UTC.

About the Syria Community Consortium

The Syria Community Consortium brings together four leading international NGOs: the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), International Medical Corps (IMC), Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), and Oxfam.

The consortium was established to build on the organisations’ extensive experience in Syria and combine their complementary technical expertise to support conflict-affected communities.

The programme operates in Aleppo and Rural Damascus, where communities continue to face damaged infrastructure, weakened public services, economic decline, displacement and return movements.

Through an area-based resilience model, SCC combines early recovery interventions designed to strengthen community resilience and improve access to essential services, livelihoods, markets and protection.

Purpose of the Consultancy

The selected consultant or consultancy firm will conduct an external midline evaluation of the SCC programme at the midpoint of its four-year implementation period.

The evaluation will assess whether programme interventions remain relevant to the context, whether they are achieving expected results and how effectively the area-based approach is contributing to resilience.

The evaluation will use the OECD-DAC evaluation criteria, including:

• Relevance
• Effectiveness
• Coherence
• Impact
• Efficiency
• Sustainability

The evaluation will also examine two important dimensions of the SCC programme: the experiences of returnee and host communities and the effectiveness of the Area-Based Approach (ABA) to humanitarian and resilience programming.

Key Evaluation Areas

The successful consultant will examine how returnee and host-community populations have experienced reintegration in SCC programme areas.

The evaluation will explore:

• How returnees and host communities experience reintegration.
• The extent to which SCC interventions have influenced reintegration.
• How reintegration has affected social relationships.
• The political implications of reintegration.
• Economic changes affecting communities.
• How the Area-Based Approach contributes to programme outcomes.
• The strengths and limitations of integrated resilience programming.

The findings should provide actionable learning that can be used for programme adaptation, donor engagement and future resilience programming in Syria.

Programme Pathways

The SCC programme is structured around five interconnected pathways designed to strengthen household and community resilience.

Pathway 1: Food Security & Climate-Sensitive Production

This pathway focuses on improving food security, agricultural productivity and climate resilience. Activities include Farmer Field Schools, climate-smart agriculture training, agricultural inputs, extension services, food production support, farmer associations, climate resilience assessments and rehabilitation of agricultural infrastructure.

Pathway 2: Household Income & Financial Services

The programme supports household income, employment, self-employment and economic self-reliance through business training, enterprise support, vocational training, employment services, skills development and financial and business development services.

Pathway 3: Functioning Markets

This pathway addresses systemic constraints within local market systems. Activities include market assessments, rehabilitation of productive infrastructure, strengthening value chains, technical assistance to market actors and improved access to services, inputs and employment.

Pathway 4: Basic Services

The programme supports essential services across several sectors, including:

• Shelter
• WASH
• Education
• Health
• Mental health and psychosocial support

Interventions include housing rehabilitation, water and sanitation infrastructure, school rehabilitation, health facility support, community health initiatives and MHPSS capacity building.

Pathway 5: Enabling Community Environment

This pathway focuses on protection, social cohesion, community participation and legal assistance. Activities include community governance structures, social cohesion initiatives, protection services, legal counselling, housing, land and property support, civil documentation assistance and community dispute resolution.

Proposed Evaluation Methodology

The evaluation is expected to use a comprehensive mixed-methods approach across urban Aleppo and selected locations in Rural Damascus, including Nashabiyeh and Hosh Nasri.

The methodology should include a review of SCC internal documentation and relevant external literature, alongside primary data collection.

Potential methods include:

• Surveys
• Key informant interviews
• Focus group discussions
• Literature and document review
• Quantitative analysis
• Qualitative research
• Participatory data collection
• Contribution analysis
• Quasi-experimental approaches where feasible

The consultant will develop a detailed evaluation matrix identifying evaluation questions, data sources and analytical methods as part of the inception process.

Existing SCC MEAL data should be used extensively. This includes baseline and midline pathway-specific data, longitudinal focus group discussions, photovoice data, financial and market studies and other programme assessments.

The evaluation must also incorporate Gender, Age, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) and displacement status into the analytical framework.

Ethical Research Requirements

All research activities must comply with appropriate ethical standards, including informed consent, confidentiality and protection of personal information.

Where participants include patients or MHPSS service users, the consultant must not collect identifiable clinical information. Enumerators must receive appropriate briefings, and a distress protocol with functioning referral pathways must be established.

The inception report must explain how these safeguards will be implemented throughout the evaluation.

Key Stakeholders

The evaluation may engage a wide range of stakeholders, including:

• Programme participants
• Partner organisations
• Local authorities
• Government officials
• Suppliers
• Donors
• Governance bodies
• Coordination bodies
• Other organisations conducting similar activities
• Communities in and around SCC intervention areas

The selected firm will be responsible for securing appropriate access to relevant stakeholders while SCC will support introductions where possible.

Deliverables

The consultancy will produce several major deliverables.

Inception Report and Methodology

Within approximately 10 working days, the consultant will submit an inception report covering the methodology, sampling strategy, timeline and data collection tools. DRC must approve the report before data collection begins.

Data Collection Tools

Data collection tools will be submitted for review and alignment with the SCC logical framework, with the expected timeframe being approximately one week.

Draft Evaluation Report

The consultant will prepare a draft report approximately four weeks after approval of the inception report.

The report should be approximately 30–35 pages excluding annexes and should include an executive summary. It must clearly answer the evaluation questions, represent stakeholder perspectives fairly and present evidence-based conclusions.

Debriefing Meeting

The selected consultant or firm will conduct a remote or in-person meeting or workshop to present draft findings to the Evaluation Committee.

Final Midline Evaluation Report

A final report incorporating agreed feedback will be submitted approximately one week after the debriefing meeting.

Additional deliverables include:

• Lessons Learned Brief
• Final presentation slides
• Raw data collected during the evaluation

The raw data will remain the property of the SCC.

Consultancy Duration and Payment

The total assignment is expected to take no more than 50 days, with completion required by 15 December 2026.

The estimated consultancy start date is 28 September 2026.

Payments will be made according to the following schedule:

• 30% upon validation of the inception report.
• 30% upon validation of the draft report.
• 40% upon validation of the final report.

Required Qualifications and Experience

The opportunity is open to consultancy firms with appropriately qualified research teams.

Research team managers should hold an advanced degree, such as a Master’s or PhD, in development studies or a related discipline and have expertise in mixed-methods research.

Essential requirements include:

• At least five years of experience conducting primary data collection and managing research projects.
• At least three years of relevant experience in development, quasi-experimental research or related fields.
• Proven experience designing and leading research on social dynamics.
• Strong understanding of the Syrian context.
• Experience working in post-conflict environments.
• Proven quantitative research and statistical analysis skills.
• Familiarity with humanitarian response and relevant sectors.
• Access to appropriate stakeholders for data collection.
• Excellent spoken and written English.
• Team members with strong spoken and written Arabic.

Experience with DRC or other SCC consortium members is desirable. Syria-based consultants, research groups and organisations are also encouraged, particularly where they can demonstrate relevant local networks and field capacity.

Location and Travel

The evaluation will be conducted in person, with visits expected to DRC country offices, field locations in Rural Damascus and Aleppo, and SCC area offices.

The consultant should have a presence in selected locations during the data collection period to monitor field activities.

The consultancy firm will be responsible for arranging and budgeting for:

• Transportation
• Accommodation
• Insurance
• Food
• Other travel-related expenses

These costs must be included in the financial proposal.

How to Apply

Interested consultancy firms must submit a complete proposal containing:

• Technical proposal outlining the methodology and workplan.
• Detailed financial proposal.
• CVs of proposed key team members.
• One example of a previous evaluation report.
• Up to two references from previous assignments.

The proposed price must be all-inclusive, covering transportation, accommodation, taxes and other ancillary costs.

Application Deadline and Email

Closing date: 26 August 2026

Deadline: 10:00 AM UTC / 1:00 PM Syria time

Tender email: tender.syr@drc.ngo

For questions regarding the RFP, applicants can contact the Procurement Focal Point at:

syr-procurement@drc.ngo

Late submissions will not be considered.

Final Thoughts

This consultancy represents a substantial research and evaluation opportunity for firms with expertise in humanitarian programming, resilience, social research and post-conflict recovery.

The evaluation will play an important role in determining how effectively the Syria Community Consortium’s area-based model is addressing complex challenges across livelihoods, markets, basic services, protection, social cohesion and reintegration.

Firms interested in applying should demonstrate not only strong research and evaluation credentials but also a practical understanding of the Syrian operating environment, mixed-methods research and inclusive data collection.

With the submission deadline set for 26 August 2026 at 10:00 AM UTC, eligible consultancy firms should prepare their technical and financial proposals, supporting CVs, previous evaluation example and references well ahead of the deadline.

Application email: tender.syr@drc.ngo

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