Save Somali Women and Children
Job Description
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Consultancy for Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Service Mapping and Referral Pathway Development
Daynile, Kaxda, Burhakaba, Borama and Erigabo Districts, Somalia
1. Background and Context
Gender-based violence remains one of the most pervasive protection risks in Somalia. Prolonged conflict, recurrent climate shocks, forced displacement and weak rule-of-law institutions continue to expose women, girls and other at-risk groups to intimate partner violence, sexual violence, child and forced marriage, female genital mutilation, denial of resources and exploitation. Displaced households living in informal settlements, female-headed households, adolescent girls, persons with disabilities and members of minority communities face elevated risk and more severe barriers to help.
A functioning, survivor-centred response depends on survivors, communities and frontline workers knowing which services exist, where they are, when they are open, what they offer and how to move safely from one service to the next. In practice, service information in many districts is outdated, incomplete or held informally by individual staff. Service availability has also become more volatile since the reduction in humanitarian funding from 2025, which forced a number of GBV, health and protection services to scale down or close. Referral pathways that list closed facilities or departed focal points place survivors at risk and erode trust in the response.
SSWC is commissioning this consultancy to produce an accurate, verified and validated picture of GBV prevention and response services in five districts, and to translate that picture into referral pathways that frontline actors can use immediately. The five districts cover distinct operating environments:
| District | Region / Administration | Operating context relevant to this assignment |
| Daynile | Banadir Region, Banadir Regional Administration | Peri-urban district of Mogadishu hosting large concentrations of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in informal settlements; mix of humanitarian, government and private providers. |
| Kaxda | Banadir Region, Banadir Regional Administration | Major IDP-hosting district on the outskirts of Mogadishu; high service demand, frequent settlement movement and evictions affecting service continuity. |
| Burhakaba | Bay Region, South West State | Rural and peri-urban district with constrained road access and insecurity along supply routes; limited specialised services and heavy reliance on referral to Baidoa or Mogadishu. |
| Borama | Awdal Region, Somaliland | Regional urban centre with established health, legal and social welfare institutions and a distinct coordination and regulatory framework. |
| Erigabo | Sanaag Region, Somaliland | Remote regional capital with long travel distances, periodic insecurity in parts of the wider region and a thin specialised service base. |
SSWC has previously supported the development of standardised referral pathways in other districts, including Baidoa, Afmadow and Xudur. Those pathways follow the inter-agency format used across Somalia, which organises services by reporting and entry point, immediate response, police and legal action, and follow-up services, and lists each provider with a named focal point, telephone number, operating hours and operating days. The pathways produced under this consultancy must follow the same format to ensure consistency across the organisation’s areas of operation (see Annex B).
2. Rationale
This assignment responds to four operational gaps:
- Information gap: no current, verified inventory of GBV services exists for all five districts, and existing lists have not been checked against the reality on the ground since recent funding reductions.
- Quality gap: existing lists record whether a service exists but not whether it functions to minimum standard, for example whether clinical management of rape (CMR) is available, whether post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) kits are in stock, or whether trained female staff are present.
- Access gap: little structured evidence exists on the barriers that prevent survivors, particularly adolescent girls, persons with disabilities and minority community members, from reaching services that do exist.
- Sustainability gap: referral pathways lose accuracy quickly. Without an agreed update mechanism and a clear custodian, any mapping will be out of date within months.
3. Purpose and Objectives
3.1 Overall purpose
To map, verify and assess the availability, accessibility and quality of multi-sectoral GBV services in Daynile, Kaxda, Burhakaba, Borama and Erigabo districts, and to produce validated, survivor-centred referral pathways and a maintainable service directory that strengthen timely and safe access to care.
3.2 Specific objectives
- Identify and geo-locate all GBV response and prevention service providers operating in each of the five districts, across health, psychosocial support and case management, safety and security, legal and justice, shelter and safe spaces, and livelihood and basic needs sectors.
- Assess the functionality and quality of mapped services against the Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for GBV in Emergencies Programming and the applicable Somalia GBV Standard Operating Procedures.
- Identify gaps, overlaps and barriers to access, disaggregated by service type, location and population group, including IDPs, adolescent girls, persons with disabilities and minority communities.
- Develop and validate one referral pathway per district, in English and Somali, using the standard inter-agency format.
- Produce a searchable service mapping database and district service maps that [Organisation Name] and coordination partners can maintain.
- Provide prioritised, costed where possible, recommendations for filling critical service gaps and for keeping referral pathways current.
4. Scope of Work
4.1 Geographic scope
The assignment covers the full administrative area of the five districts listed above. Where a critical service is unavailable inside a district and survivors are routinely referred elsewhere (for example from Burhakaba to Baidoa for specialised health care), the consultant will map that external referral destination and record travel time, cost and access conditions.
4.2 Thematic scope
The mapping will cover the following service sectors and service types:
| Sector | Service types to be mapped |
| Health | CMR; PEP within 72 hours; emergency contraception within 120 hours; STI treatment; treatment of injuries; sexual and reproductive health; care for FGM complications; medico-legal documentation; mental health services. |
| Psychosocial support and case management | GBV case management; psychological first aid; individual and group psychosocial support; Women and Girls Safe Spaces (WGSS); specialised services for child survivors. |
| Safety and security | Police stations and any dedicated women and children protection desks; community protection structures; safety planning support. |
| Legal and justice | Legal information and aid; formal courts; prosecution services; traditional (xeer) and religious justice actors, documented with attention to practices that may harm survivors. |
| Shelter and basic needs | Safe houses and emergency shelters; cash and voucher assistance for survivors; dignity kits; food and non-food items linked to GBV response. |
| Livelihoods and empowerment | Economic empowerment, vocational and education re-entry programmes available to survivors and women at risk. |
| Coordination and access channels | GBV coordination forums and their membership; hotlines and helplines; mobile and outreach services; community focal points. |
4.3 Out of scope
- Collection of information about individual GBV incidents, survivor identities or case records. The consultant will not interview survivors about their experiences.
- Prevalence estimation or population-based surveys on GBV.
- Programme evaluation of any individual organisation.
5. Methodology and Approach
The consultant will propose a detailed methodology in the technical proposal and refine it in the inception report. The methodology must combine the following components at minimum:
- Desk review of existing service lists, 4W/5W data from the GBV coordination mechanisms, previous referral pathways, the Somalia GBV SOPs and relevant assessments.
- Census of service providers in each district using a standard structured facility and service tool, administered in person wherever access allows, with GPS coordinates recorded for every service point.
- Direct verification of service functionality through observation checklists (for example private consultation space, PEP kit stock, female staff on duty, accessibility for persons with disabilities) rather than relying on self-report alone.
- Key informant interviews with coordination leads, district authorities, line ministries, health facility managers, police, legal aid providers and community leaders.
- Focus group discussions with women, adolescent girls, men and boys, persons with disabilities and minority community members, focused on awareness of services and barriers to access, never on personal experiences of violence.
- Mystery-call verification of every hotline and focal point number listed in the final pathways, repeated within 10 days before submission of final deliverables.
- District validation workshops with service providers, authorities and coordination members to confirm accuracy and agree referral procedures.
5.1 Indicative data collection targets
| Method | Per district (indicative) | Total (indicative) |
| Service provider census | All active providers | All active providers |
| Key informant interviews | 10 to 15 | 50 to 75 |
| Focus group discussions | 4 to 6 | 20 to 30 |
| Validation workshop | 1 | 5 |
Bidders may propose alternative targets with justification. Where insecurity prevents in-person access, the consultant must propose a remote or partner-assisted verification method and flag the limitation clearly in the reports.
5.2 Standards and ethical requirements
All work must comply with the following standards, and bidders must show how their approach meets them:
- IASC Guidelines for Integrating GBV Interventions in Humanitarian Action (2015) and the Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for GBV in Emergencies Programming (2019).
- WHO Ethical and Safety Recommendations for Researching, Documenting and Monitoring Sexual Violence in Emergencies (2007).
- The GBV guiding principles of safety, confidentiality, respect and non-discrimination, and a survivor-centred approach throughout.
- Informed consent for all interviews and group discussions, with specific assent and caregiver consent procedures for any participant under 18.
- Female facilitators and note-takers for all discussions with women and girls; a referral protocol so that any disclosure made during fieldwork is handled safely and the person is linked to services with consent.
- [Organisation Name]’s Safeguarding, Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA), Child Safeguarding and Data Protection policies, which all team members must sign.
6. Roles and Responsibilities
Clear division of responsibility is essential to deliver on time and to protect participants. The table below sets out the responsibilities of each party.
| Party | Responsibilities |
| Consultant / Lead Consultant | Lead the design and delivery of the full assignment and remain accountable for quality, timeliness and ethical conduct.
Prepare the inception report, tools, sampling plan, ethics and safety protocol and work plan. Recruit, train and supervise the field team, including female enumerators and facilitators in each district. Obtain local access permissions with the support of [Organisation Name]. Collect, clean, analyse and securely store all data; conduct quality assurance checks. Draft and finalise all deliverables; facilitate validation workshops; incorporate feedback. Report security incidents, safeguarding concerns and delays to the Contract Manager within 24 hours. |
| Field Research Team | Administer tools accurately and ethically after completing mandatory training.
Record GPS coordinates and complete observation checklists at every service point. Follow the disclosure and referral protocol if any participant discloses violence. Submit daily data and field notes to the Lead Consultant for quality review. |
| SSWC Contract Manager | Manage the contract, approve deliverables and process payments against the schedule.
Provide background documents, previous pathways and partner lists. Issue introduction letters to authorities and coordination bodies. Convene the Technical Reference Group and consolidate feedback within agreed timelines. |
| SSWC District Field Teams | Support stakeholder mobilisation, logistics and venue arrangements for workshops.
Share security updates and advise on access and movement. Act as local liaison with community leaders and service providers. |
| Technical Reference Group (organisation GBV specialist, GBV coordination representatives, government focal points) | Review and endorse the inception report and data collection tools.
Provide technical review of draft pathways and the gap analysis. Advise on methodological and ethical questions arising during fieldwork. |
| Government counterparts (Federal Ministry of Women and Human Rights Development; Banadir Regional Administration; South West State Ministry of Women, Family Affairs and Human Rights Development; the relevant Somaliland ministry responsible for social and family affairs; district administrations) | Facilitate access and authorisations in their areas of jurisdiction.
Provide information on public services, including police and health facilities. Participate in validation and endorse final district pathways where applicable. |
| GBV coordination mechanisms (GBV AoR at national and sub-national level, and the relevant working group in Somaliland) | Share 4W/5W data and existing service information.
Participate in validation and adopt final pathways for circulation to members. Agree the custodian and schedule for future pathway updates. |
| Service providers | Provide accurate information on their services and allow verification visits.
Confirm focal point details and give consent for their inclusion in published pathways. Notify the designated custodian of any future change in service status. |
7. Deliverables and Timeline
Working days are counted from contract signature. All written deliverables are to be submitted in English in editable format (Word, Excel) with PDF copies. Referral pathways are to be submitted in both English and Somali.
| # | Deliverable | Description and minimum content | Due |
| 1 | Inception report | Refined methodology, finalised tools (English and Somali), sampling plan, ethics and safety protocol, risk plan, field schedule by district, report outline. Maximum 20 pages excluding annexes. | Day 5 |
| 2 | Enumerator training report | Training agenda, attendance, pre and post test results, signed codes of conduct and safeguarding declarations. | Day 9 |
| 3 | Field completion note | Short note per district confirming coverage achieved, providers mapped, limitations and any unmapped areas with reasons. | Day 20 |
| 4 | Service mapping database and maps | Clean Excel database containing all fields in Annex A; GIS shapefiles or KML; one printable service map per district. | Day 23 |
| 5 | Draft district referral pathways | Five pathways (one per district) in the standard format described in Annex B, in English and Somali. | Day 26 |
| 6 | Draft mapping and gap analysis report | District profiles, service availability and functionality findings, access barriers, gap and overlap analysis, prioritised recommendations. Maximum 40 pages excluding annexes. | Day 30 |
| 7 | Validation workshop reports | Five short reports documenting participants, corrections agreed and endorsement status. | Day 32 |
| 8 | Final package | Final report, validated pathways (print-ready and editable), final database and maps, a two-page summary per district, and a pathway update protocol naming the agreed custodian. | Day 33 |
SSWC will provide consolidated comments within 5 working days of receiving each draft. The consultant will address comments within 3 working days. Review periods are not counted within the consultant’s 33 working days.
8. Work Plan and Level of Effort
| Phase | Main activities | Working days |
| 1. Inception | Desk review, stakeholder briefings, tool design and translation, ethics protocol, inception report | 5 |
| 2. Mobilisation | Team recruitment, training, tool pre-testing, access permissions | 3 |
| 3. Field data collection | Census, verification visits, KIIs and FGDs across five districts (staggered by location) | 14 |
| 4. Analysis and drafting | Data cleaning, GIS mapping, analysis, drafting of pathways and report | 5 |
| 5. Validation | Five district validation workshops and incorporation of corrections | 4 |
| 6. Finalisation | Final number verification, final deliverables and handover | 2 |
| Total | 33 |
9. Risk Management
Bidders must show in the technical proposal how they will manage the following risks, and may add others.
| Risk | Mitigation expected from the consultant |
| Insecurity or movement restrictions, particularly around Burhakaba and parts of Sanaag | Daily security liaison with the organisation; locally recruited enumerators; remote or partner-assisted verification as a documented fallback; flexible sequencing of districts. |
| Harm to participants, including retraumatisation or backlash | No survivor interviews; trained female facilitators; private venues; disclosure and referral protocol; no collection of identifying incident data. |
| Unauthorised disclosure of personal data | Encrypted devices and storage; access limited to named team members; consent recorded before any focal point contact is published; deletion of raw data at handover. |
| Rapid obsolescence of the pathways due to funding changes and staff turnover | Recording of funding end dates for each service; use of institutional rather than personal numbers where possible; update protocol with named custodian and quarterly review. |
| Differing administrative and coordination arrangements across jurisdictions | Early engagement with each relevant authority and coordination body; district-specific validation; neutral, service-focused language in all products. |
| Over-reporting of service capacity by providers | Observation-based verification and triangulation with community feedback and coordination data. |
10. Required Qualifications and Team Composition
10.1 Lead Consultant (mandatory requirements)
- Master’s degree in gender studies, public health, social sciences, development studies, law or a closely related field.
- At least 7 years of experience in GBV programming, protection or GBV research, including at least 3 years in Somalia or a comparable humanitarian context.
- Demonstrated experience leading at least two service mapping, referral pathway or GBV assessment assignments; examples must be provided.
- Sound knowledge of the IASC GBV Guidelines, the GBV Minimum Standards, the Somalia GBV SOPs and GBV coordination structures.
- Proven experience applying ethical and safety standards for GBV data collection.
- Fluency in written and spoken English and Somali.
10.2 Desirable
- Experience working in Banadir, South West State and Somaliland.
- GIS and database skills within the team, or a dedicated data and GIS specialist.
- Existing working relationships with GBV service providers and coordination bodies in the target districts.
10.3 Team composition
Bidders should propose a team that includes at minimum a Lead Consultant, a data and GIS specialist, and district field researchers with a majority of women. Field researchers should be recruited locally where possible and must have prior experience of protection or GBV data collection. The CVs and roles of all core team members must be included in the proposal.
11. Data Ownership, Confidentiality and Safeguarding
- All data, tools, reports, maps and pathways produced under this consultancy are the property of SSWC The consultant may not use, share or publish them without prior written permission.
- The consultant must hand over all datasets and delete copies held by the team at the end of the contract, and confirm this in writing.
- All team members must sign and comply with [Organisation Name]’s Code of Conduct, Safeguarding, PSEA and Child Safeguarding policies. Any breach will result in termination of the contract.
- [Organisation Name] applies zero tolerance to fraud, corruption and sexual exploitation and abuse. Candidates will be subject to reference and safeguarding checks.
12. Application Requirements
Interested individuals and firms must submit the following:
- Technical proposal (maximum 12 pages): understanding of the assignment, detailed methodology, ethics and safety approach, risk management plan, work plan and team structure.
- Financial proposal in [USD], with a breakdown of professional fees (daily rate and number of days per team member), travel, accommodation, enumerator costs, workshop costs and other expenses.
- CVs of all core team members (maximum 3 pages each).
- Two samples of comparable work, preferably a service mapping report or a referral pathway, with personal data redacted.
- Three professional references, including at least one from an assignment in the last three years.
- For firms: business registration certificate and tax compliance documents. For individuals: copy of national identification.
- Signed declaration of no conflict of interest.
13. Evaluation Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated using a combined scoring method: technical proposal 70% and financial proposal 30%. Only proposals scoring at least 49 of the 70 technical points will have their financial proposals opened.
| Criterion | Maximum points |
| Understanding of the assignment and the Somali GBV context | 10 |
| Quality and feasibility of the methodology, including ethics and safety | 25 |
| Relevant experience of the Lead Consultant and firm, evidenced by work samples | 20 |
| Team composition, gender balance and local presence in target districts | 10 |
| Risk management and work plan realism | 5 |
| Technical subtotal | 70 |
| Financial proposal (lowest compliant price receives full points; others pro rata) | 30 |
| Total | 100 |
Shortlisted bidders may be invited to an interview or presentation.
14. Submission Instructions
- Submit applications by email to hr@sswc-som.org with the subject line: “Application: GBV Service Mapping Consultancy, Five Districts”.
- Deadline:. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
- Questions may be sent to the same address until 7th September 2026 answers will be shared with all bidders who request them.
- SSSWC does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process.
- Qualified women, persons with disabilities and members of minority communities are strongly encouraged to apply.