Consultancy for Developing Partnership Guidelines for African Statistical Systems

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT) Name of Project: Harmonizing and Improving Statistics in West and Central Africa - Series of Projects 1 (HISWACA - SOP 1) Grant No : P178497 Assignment Title: Individual Consultant (IC) to perform the Consultancy services for the development of guidelines for Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and partners in the continent and outside the continent. Reference No . ET-AUC-478522-CS-INDV.

• Background

The African Union Commission (AUC) has received financing from the World Bank toward the cost of Harmonizing and Improving Statistics in West and Central Africa - Series of Projects 1 (HISWACA - SOP 1) and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services. The consulting services (“the Services”) include Selection of an Individual Consultant (IC) to perform the Consultancy services for the development of guidelines for Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and partners in the continent and outside the continent. In response to persistent challenges in production, coordination, and use of statistics across Africa, the second Strategy for the Harmonization of Statistics in Africa (SHaSA 2 ) was launched as a continental framework. SHaSA 2 seeks to strengthen the capacity of the African Statistical System ( ASS ) to produce reliable, harmonized, and policy-relevant data for tracking development agendas such as Agenda 2063, the Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs ), and key integration initiatives like the African Continental Free Trade Area ( AfCFTA ). Within the framework of SHaSA 2 , the African Union Institute of Statistics ( STATAFRIC ) plays a central role in coordinating the production of quality statistics across the continent. To support this effort, STATAFRIC is undertaking an initiative to develop guidelines for building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and stakeholders both within and beyond the continent

• Overview on the projects and concerned activity

The HISWACA-SOP1 project aims to strengthen the capacities of national and regional statistical systems in West and Central Africa by enhancing the production, comparability, quality, and accessibility of statistical data. It forms part of a broader continental initiative led by the African Union and supported by the World Bank, in alignment with key reference frameworks such as the African Charter on Statistics, the SHaSA 2 Strategy, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).. In Africa, despite notable progress in the production of reliable statistics, national statistical systems remain fragmented. Coordination among national statistical offices, sectoral ministries, regional organizations, civil society, and international partners is still insufficient, which undermines the effectiveness of the African Statistical System (ASS) and limits the optimal use of data for development. Recent initiatives across Africa underscore the urgent need for quality statistics that are: reliable, objective, coherent, harmonized, and comparable across time and space. Also, produced regularly and effectively; Accessible to a broad spectrum of users—public, private, and civil society. Therefore, and as part of the Strategy for the Harmonization of Statistics in Africa (SHaSA 2), Strategic Theme 2, Coordinating the Production of Quality Statistics for Africa, seeks to enhance coordination through the establishment of formal collaboration mechanisms. Indeed, in its strategic initiative 2.1.7 Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, partners, users in the continent and out-side the continent, it is expected that Actors and financial and technical partners are involved in the development of African statistics. This should be addressed through the establishment of partnerships within all AU Member States, RECs and all ASS actors. Also, it promotes the development of strong and inclusive partnerships, engaging foundations, civil society, data users, and both technical and financial partners. The formulation of specific guidelines is crucial to clearly define roles, facilitate the pooling of resources, and ensure alignment with continental standards.

• Objectives of the assignment

The aim is to develop a guidelines document to establish solid and lasting partnerships with foundations, civil society organizations, data users, and technical partners across the African continent and internationally. This will be achieved through the organization of structured exchanges designed to identify their specific needs regarding statistical data. This document will serve as a strategic reference for National Statistical Offices (NSOs) and all ASS stakeholders by providing a structured partnership framework for the cooperation in the production, dissemination, and use of statistical data. It seeks to foster inclusive participation at every stage of the process by ensuring accessibility, representativeness, and responsiveness to the diverse needs of data users.

• Duration and Timeline

The Individual Consultant (IC) is expected to produce a final guidelines document within 90 days starting from the date of signing the consultancy services contract. The first revised version will be submitted to the AU Member States and the relevant stakeholders from RECs and international organizations for comments and validation.

• Reporting and supervision.

The Individual Consultant (IC) will work remotely under the supervision of STATAFRIC staff and will provide regular updates according to the agreed schedule. The contract is proposed under the following terms and conditions:

• The duration of this contract is three months .
• The individual consultant must send an updated C.V. and a methodological note on the understanding of the entire assignment and tasks.
• Timeframe.

Activity Deliverables/ Outputs Anticipated Duration (Days)

• Define the consultant’s approach to delivering the guidelines document.

Methodological report outlines the consultant’s approach to undertaking this consultancy. This should be after the submission of an inception report. 10 days

• Development of the guidelines document for Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and partners in the continent and outside the continent.

Stakeholders’ engagement and assessment report and outline of the guidelines document. 20 days Draft of the guidelines document. 30 days Stakeholder validation report. 10 days In person presentation of the updated guidelines document to STATAFRIC and broader stakeholders’ group 10 days Finalized guidelines document. 10 days

• Required Qualifications and Experience

The ideal Individual Consultant (IC) should have:

• Master’s degree in statistics, demography, international relations, political science, development cooperation, public governance, or a related field with at least 15 years of professional experience .
• Demonstrated ability to identify, categorize, and assess relevant foundations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civic networks, and bilateral/multilateral partners involved in statistical cooperation and policy implementation.
• Strong command of issues related to data governance, inter-institutional coordination, and collaborative frameworks among key stakeholders, including National Statistical Offices (NSOs), Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), and technical and financial partners.
• Experience in working with NSOs, governments, international organizations and regional bodies.
• Strong report-writing and communication skills, with the ability to produce clear, concise, and policy-oriented documents.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret complex data and formulate actionable recommendations.
• Experience in multi-stakeholder engagement and consultation processes.
• Proficiency in at least one of the AU languages (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese or Spanish).
• Evaluation Criteria

The Candidate shall be evaluated based on the following criteria: Evaluation Criteria

• General experience: 10%

Use the general experience indicated in the ToR

• Specific experience: 40%

Use the specific experience indicated in the ToR

• Qualifications: 25 %

Use the qualification indicated in the ToR

• Methodological note: 15 %

Understanding the entire assignment and tasks.

• Language: 10 %

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment are attached to this request for expressions of interest. The African Union Commission now invites eligible individuals (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Individual Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the aforementioned Consultancy Services. The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016, revised November 2020 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Individual Consultant selection method set out in the Procurement Regulations. Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours i.e. 0900 to 1700 hours . Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form following the above shortlisting criteria to the address below (in person, or by mail) before 06th March 2026 at 15:00 Hours Local Time, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Only submitted Expression of Interests (EoIs) mentioning the reference number “ ET-AUC-478522-CS-INDV “ in the subject field of the e-mail, will be considered. African Union Commission, Attn: Head, Supply Chain Management Division - Operations Support Services Directorate Building C, 3rd Floor, P.O Box 3243, Roosevelt Street Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Tel: +251 (0) 11 551 7700 – Ext 4305 Fax: +251 (0) 11 551 0442; +251 11-551-0430 E-mails: tender@africanunion.org Terms of Reference Individual Consultant (IC) to perform the Consultancy Services for the development of guidelines for Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and partners in the continent and outside the continent

• Background

In response to persistent challenges in production, coordination, and use of statistics across Africa, the second Strategy for the Harmonization of Statistics in Africa ( SHaSA 2 ) was launched as a continental framework. SHaSA 2 seeks to strengthen the capacity of the African Statistical System ( ASS ) to produce reliable, harmonized, and policy-relevant data for tracking development agendas such as Agenda 2063, the Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs ), and key integration initiatives like the African Continental Free Trade Area ( AfCFTA ). Within the framework of SHaSA 2, the African Union Institute of Statistics (STATAFRIC) plays a central role in coordinating the production of quality statistics across the continent. To support this effort, STATAFRIC is undertaking an initiative to develop guidelines for building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and stakeholders both within and beyond the continent.

• Overview on the projects and concerned activity

The HISWACA-SOP1 project aims to strengthen the capacities of national and regional statistical systems in West and Central Africa by enhancing the production, comparability, quality, and accessibility of statistical data. It forms part of a broader continental initiative led by the African Union and supported by the World Bank, in alignment with key reference frameworks such as the African Charter on Statistics, the SHaSA 2 Strategy, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The project covers eight countries—Benin, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and The Gambia—as well as three regional institutions: the African Union (STATAFRIC), ECOWAS, and UEMOA. In Africa, despite notable progress in the production of reliable statistics, national statistical systems remain fragmented. Coordination among national statistical offices, sectoral ministries, regional organizations, civil society, and international partners is still insufficient, which undermines the effectiveness of the African Statistical System (ASS) and limits the optimal use of data for development. Recent initiatives across Africa underscore the urgent need for quality statistics that are: reliable, objective, coherent, harmonized, and comparable across time and space. Also, produced regularly and effectively; Accessible to a broad spectrum of users—public, private, and civil society. Therefore, and as part of the Strategy for the Harmonization of Statistics in Africa (SHaSA 2), Strategic Theme 2—Coordinating the Production of Quality Statistics for Africa—seeks to enhance coordination through the establishment of formal collaboration mechanisms. Indeed, in its strategic initiative 2.1.7 Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, partners, users, etc in the continent and out-side the continent, it is expected that Actors and financial and technical partners are involved in the development of African statistics. This should be addressed through the establishment of partnerships within all AU Member States, REC’s and all ASS actors. Also, it promotes the development of strong and inclusive partnerships, engaging foundations, civil society, data users, and both technical and financial partners. The formulation of specific guidelines is crucial to clearly define roles, facilitate the pooling of resources, and ensure alignment with continental standards. The development of statistics in Africa could not be done without enhanced partnerships, notably with the private sector, which can contribute to the financing of statistics, but also foundations, civil society, development partners, researchers, academics, media and journalists, and users etc both inside and outside the African continent.

• Objectives of the assignment

The aim is to develop a guidelines document to establish solid and lasting partnerships with foundations, civil society organizations, data users, and technical partners across the African continent and internationally. This will be achieved through the organization of structured exchanges designed to identify their specific needs regarding statistical data. This document will serve as a strategic reference for National Statistical Offices (NSOs) and all ASS stakeholders by providing a structured partnership framework for the cooperation in the production, dissemination, and use of statistical data. It seeks to foster inclusive participation at every stage of the process by ensuring accessibility, representativeness, and responsiveness to the diverse needs of data users.

• Scope of work
• Review of relevant documents :
• Analysis the status of cooperation of foundations, civil society ect within ASS;
• Identify and examine successful initiatives of statistical cooperation among institutional stakeholders and civil society both within Africa and internationally, to extract relevant lessons, identify reproducible models, and explore avenues for optimizing data exchange mechanisms.
• Analyze the shortcomings of existing policy frameworks governing the sharing of statistical data between stakeholders, with the aim of identifying key barriers to collaboration, pinpointing harmonization needs, and proposing actionable improvements.
• Stakeholders’ Engagement :
• Conduct consultations with relevant stakeholders (e.g. foundations, civil society, and partners) to get their views on how they could contribute to statistics and what could be their role in partnering in statistics.
• Required contents :
• a structured and comprehensive overview of stakeholders’ statistical needs and expectations, aligned with their sectoral mandates and operational priorities. The identification and promotion of methodologies, best practices and tools fostering cooperation in existing statistical initiatives
• formulation of concrete strategies to strengthen collaborative mechanisms with foundations and civil society
• elaboration of an operational roadmap for establishing effective and sustainable partnerships
• establishment of a robust monitoring and evaluation framework to track progress and refine collaborative approaches.
• Validation and Finalization :
• Present the draft guidelines document to stakeholders for review and feedback.
• Revise the guidelines document based on stakeholders’ comments.
• Presentation of the updated document to STATAFRIC and wider stakeholders for review and finalization.
• Deliverables:

-

• Methodological report outlines the consultant’s approach to undertaking this consultancy. This should be after the submission of an inception report.
• Assessment Report highlighting findings from the review of existing practices and stakeholders’ consultations and outline of the guidelines document.
• Draft (guidelines) document including adapted methodologies, best practices and tools of collaboration
• Stakeholders Validation Report : Summarizing feedback and input from stakeholders.
• Report on in-person presentation to STATAFRIC and wider stakeholders.
• Final Document with clear actionable recommendations ready for adoption by relevant stakeholders after incorporating feedback from stakeholders.
• Duration and Timeline

The Individual Consultant (IC) is expected to produce a final guidelines document within 90 days starting from the date of signing the consultancy services contract. The first revised version will be submitted to the AU Member States and the relevant stakeholders from RECs and international organizations for comments and validation.

• Reporting and supervision.

The Individual Consultant (IC) will work remotely under the supervision of STATAFRIC staff and will provide regular updates according to the agreed schedule. The contract is proposed under the following terms and conditions:

• The duration of this contract is three months .
• The individual consultant must send an updated C.V. and a methodological note on the understanding of the entire assignment and tasks.
• Timeframe.

Activity Deliverables/ Outputs Anticipated Duration (Days)

• Define the consultant’s approach to delivering the guidelines document.

Methodological report outlines the consultant’s approach to undertaking this consultancy. This should be after the submission of an inception report. 10 days

• Development of the guidelines document for Building strong partnerships with foundations, civil society, and partners in the continent and outside the continent.

Stakeholders’ engagement and assessment report and outline of the guidelines document. 20 days Draft of the guidelines document. 30 days Stakeholder validation report. 10 days In person presentation of the updated guidelines document to STATAFRIC and broader stakeholders’ group 10 days Finalized guidelines document. 10 days

• Required Qualifications and Experience

The ideal Individual Consultant (IC) should have:

• Master’s degree in statistics, demography, international relations, political science, development cooperation, public governance, or a related field with at least 15 years of professional experience .
• Demonstrated ability to identify, categorize, and assess relevant foundations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civic networks, and bilateral/multilateral partners involved in statistical cooperation and policy implementation.
• Strong command of issues related to data governance, inter-institutional coordination, and collaborative frameworks among key stakeholders, including National Statistical Offices (NSOs), Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), and technical and financial partners.
• Experience in working with NSOs, governments, international organizations and regional bodies.
• Strong report-writing and communication skills, with the ability to produce clear, concise, and policy-oriented documents.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret complex data and formulate actionable recommendations.
• Experience in multi-stakeholder engagement and consultation processes.
• Proficiency in at least one of the AU languages (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese or Spanish).
• Evaluation Criteria

The Candidate shall be evaluated based on the following criteria: Evaluation Criteria

• General experience: 10%

Use the general experience indicated in the ToR.

• Specific experience: 40%

Use the specific experience indicated in the ToR.

• Qualifications: 25 %

Use the qualification indicated in the ToR.

• Methodological note: 15 %

Understanding the entire assignment and tasks.

• Language: 10 %
• Payment Terms and Milestones

Payments will be made in installments based on the delivery of the following milestones: No Activities and deliverables Remuneration Percentage - Methodological report outlines the consultant’s approach to undertaking this consultancy. This should be after the submission of an inception report. 10% - Stakeholders’ engagement and assessment report and Outline of the guidelines document. 10% - Draft of the guidelines document. 40% - Stakeholder’s validation report. 10% - Report on presentation to STATAFRIC staff and broader stakeholders’ group. 10% - Finalized guidelines document. 20% Agency: Africa Union Commission Procurement method: Individual Consultant Selection Notice type: Request for Expression of Interest Status: Published Value: 31760.0 USD