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1 1. Summary Title Purpose Expected fee Location Duration Start Date Reporting to Budget Code/PBA No Project and activity codes Education Management Information System (EMIS) consultant Support the Libyan Ministry of Education in strengthening Education Management Information System (EMIS) through the assessment of existing Information System and related databases and the establishment of an Integrated System. Tripoli Education Specialist 2. Background The problems of access, equity, quality and relevance of education can be addressed using various approaches which require an evidence-based management system for policy and decision-makers to determine the causes of these problems, the magnitude and extent of education services and the realistic amount of resources needed. In many countries, the dearth of empirical data generated through a reliable system is a problem that can be addressed developing an education management information system (EMIS). EMIS in fact are designed to collect and analyze a wide range of data on the educational system in order to improve planning, resource allocation and mobilization, monitoring, evaluation, policy formulation, and decision making in general. A school-based standardized information system is fundamental to improve the management of education at all levels and ideally the system should allow to track individual children across the grades. In the education management process, the information system should inform the different actors and partners on the state of the sector, its internal and external efficiency, its pedagogical and institutional operation, its performance, shortcomings and needs. Generally the focal functions of EMIS are: collection, storage, processing, extrapolation and dissemination of educational data providing timely relevant information to educational stakeholders using functional and user friendly interfaces. In its normal operation it employs both manual and ICT function. The establishment of EMIS also promotes an institutional culture that utilizes objective information for policy formulation and implementation and seeks to sustain the policy process through accurate, reliable and timely statistical information. In addition to quantitative data and statistical information, which are routinely collected and processed, EMIS can also provide other important information, such as outcomes of findings of education researches and assessments, results of school inspections, newsletters, regulations, school mapping and micro planning reports, public expenditure reviews, education acts and other relevant policy documents. The establishment of a functional and effective EMIS can be affected by a number of potential problems such as: Inadequate financial, technical and/or human resources, The system of data collection does not follow standardized procedures, Data are collected, generated and processed by different actors with different systems, pg. 1

2 The system is not supported by adequate regulations and guidelines, Data generated are not effectively used for policy formulation, implementation and management. 3. Justification Libya is in the midst of a historic political, economic and social transition following the overthrow of the previous government in Libyan Ministry of Education (MoE) is striving to reform the sector as inclusive and quality education will play a major role in building an equitable society. One of the strategies to materialize this vision is strengthening institutional capacity within the MoE and the education system as a whole. The last official statistics 1 show encouraging progress at primary and secondary level with regard to the access to the education, but the available information and data are insufficient to assess the internal and external efficiency of the education system at all levels. In this regard, taskforces are established within the Ministry of Education to improve quality education for all children and adolescents in the country, to increase the demand for quality education, and to strengthen the education system in order to provide a sustainable systemic response to the educational needs and demands of children, adolescents and their families. The MoE is currently in the process of developing inclusive education strategies, and elaborating systems and structures to stimulate the sector development of the country. In this phase strengthening of the Information System at all levels is a key element as planning and decision making should be supported by reliable and up-to-date data and information. Currently basic education data are collected and stored in the Centre for Information and Documentation (CID) of the MoE, but educational information and data are also generated by other directorates and departments of the MoE. In this transitional period, the MoE is supported by UNICEF and other international development organizations to guarantee the provision of education for all and improve the quality of education. In this framework, a new instrument for data collection has been utilized and a nationwide school assessment has been carried out, including the application of GPS/GIS technologies. All schools in the country were mapped for the first time after the crisis, providing quantitative data for various relevant indicators from each school. This assessment provided new data, including comprehensive mapping and analysis of schools distribution and capacity on a national scale. The data is stored in a CID database but an interconnection with a comprehensive Information system is still missing. In view of these challenges, it is crucial to analyse and assess the existing system of data collection, processing/management, utilization, dissemination and storage and develop a new comprehensive, integrated and user friendly EMIS. 4. Objective of the consultancy The objective of this consultancy service is to strengthen the Information System towards the establishment of an advanced EMIS through the assessment of existing databases and data collection mechanisms and the development of an integrated system in order to use it as a reliable instrument for policy formulation, monitoring and evaluation, standards setting, regulatory frameworks, co-ordination and optimization of resource. 1 UNESCO Institute for Statistics database (UIS, 2010) reported 110% GER in primary education in pg. 2

3 5. Work Assignments The consultancy comprises 3 assignments in line with specific deliverables for each one. Assignment 1: Draft the Schools Assessment Report using consolidated data from the Nationwide School Assessment database Deliverable: 1.1 Schools Assessment database with reliable quality data Schools Assessment report print-ready. Task: Check and, if possible, correct, ambiguous/duplicated/empty records and identify data gaps and limitations of the data. Use data of the Schools Database to draft the Nationwide School Assessment Report in close cooperation with the CID/MoE and UNICEF. Assignment 2: Assess the current Information System in place at the CID/MoE and propose a set of policy and technical recommendations towards the establishment and usage of a reliable EMIS. Derivable: 2.1 EMIS Assessment Report 2.2 Policy and technical recommendations for the establishment of a reliable and efficient EMIS elaborated and presented to the MoE. 2.3 At least 3 training/capacity building workshops for MoE staff in EMIS function, management and operation Tasks: Overall assessment of: 1) Data collection tool 2) Quality of Data, 3) Procedures of collection, storage and analysis of data 4) System functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency and interoperability of information and data collection of the MoE. Elaboration of technical and policy recommendations to develop a new EMIS system which will be centralized, for use at national and subnational level, child-based, effective and reliable. The recommendations shall also include a roadmap for the establishment of the new EMIS indicating actions to be undertaken at short, medium and long term. At least 3 training/capacity building workshops for MoE staff in EMIS function, management and operation. Assignment 3: Setup of a centralized Information System based on the consolidation of different databases within the MoE and CID, including the MoE database on students and teachers, the database of the nationwide schools assessment and the database on child-tracking system. pg. 3

4 Deliverable: 3.1 Structure for a consolidated Information System with, nationally and internationally, relevant indicators defined and approved by the MoE. 3.2 Integrated Information System installed, merging/linking different databases. 3.3 At least 3 training/capacity building workshops for MoE staff on the integrated Information System, the training material shall include a basic user s manual. Tasks: Define structure and indicators for the development of an Integrated Information system with the CID/MoE, defining technical solution for the centralization of different databases. Design, test and install a centralized and integrated Information System that will gather/connect the information from different databases. For this task the application of specific database management system software (e.g. SQL programming) will be required. Provide 3 training/capacity building workshops for MoE staff on the integrated Information System, the training material shall include a basic user s manual. 6. Reporting The consultant will complete the assignment under the direct supervision of the assigned MoE staff and the UNICEF Education Specialist. 7. Expected background and Experience Advanced degree in education, statistics, mathematics, computer science or related fields, At least 8 years of extensive experience and demonstrated ability in designing and establishing EMIS, Excellent understanding of the current status and trends in terms of international education indicators, standards and targets in the context of MDGs, EFA, etc., Competent in EMIS related database programs and other software with broad understanding of information systems and technology, Extensive knowledge and skills of computer programs applications, particularly in the area of database management system (e.g. SQL programming), High analytical skills using diverse and complex quantitative and qualitative data from a wide range of sources, Demonstrates, applies and shares technical knowledge to government partners, Fluency in English, Arabic is an asset, Communicates effectively, both orally and in writing, to varied audiences, Able to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment. 8. General Conditions: Procedures and Logistics The consultant will be normally based in Tripoli. DSA will be calculated according to the actual stay of the consultant at the duty station/place of stay and may be prorated if accommodation is provided by UNICEF pg. 4

5 Notes: The consultant must use his/her own laptop. Under the consultancy agreements, a month is defined as 21 working days. Consultants are not entitled to payment of overtime. All remuneration must be within the contract agreement. No contract may commence unless the contract is signed by both UNICEF and the consultant. No consultant may travel without a signed travel authorization prior to the commencement of the journey to the duty station. Consultants do not have the access to UNICEF official mails Consultants will not have supervisory responsibilities or authority on UNICEF budget. Consultants will be required to sign the Health statement for consultants/individual contractor prior to taking up the assignment, and to document that they have appropriate health insurance 9. Terms of Payment Payment is linked to deliverables, UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment for any part of the assignment if the quality of the deliverables does not meet professional standards. The outputs and reports produced under this assignment remain the property of UNICEF, which retails the right to use it in whatever way or form it deems appropriate. The contractor working on this task does not have the right to use this data for publication or presentational purposes without prior approval of the task managers. INSTRUCTIONS FOR APPLYING: After careful review of the work assignments and using the Work Plan attached as Annex 1, prospective consultants should submit a cover letter, CV and P11 form with their bids by indicating the number of days they require for each deliverable under each assignment, and their consultancy fee per day in US Dollars. UNICEF will select the most appropriate proposals and will fix a rate for each deliverable taking into consideration the quotation of the consultant. It has to be noted that payments will be linked to deliverables and not to the number of days worked. An assignment should be undertaken as a whole, and the consultant should commit to all deliverables within any given assignment. However the consultant may wish to indicate if they would like to be considered for one or more assignments. Consultants may also wish to indicate different consultancy fees for different assignments. Consultants should also indicate the timeframe for each deliverable as required in the work plan. In addition consultants should indicate the date from which they will available to undertake the consultancy, candidates with immediate availability will be preferred. pg. 5