Terms of Reference (TOR)

Phase-Out Assessment of the Strategic Partnership Agreement II (SPA II) – Jordan

Project Duration: 2022 – mid-2026
Implementing Partners: Drabzeen for Human Development (local partner, leading Global Platform Amman) and Housewives Foundation (local partner)
Commissioned by: ActionAid Arab Region (AAAR)

1. Background

ActionAid Arab Region (AAAR), in partnership with Drabzeen for Human Development and Housewives Foundation (HSF), has been implementing the Strategic Partnership Agreement II (SPA II) programme in Jordan since 2022. The programme aims to contribute to just, feminist, resilient, and green societies by strengthening youth leadership—particularly that of marginalized young women—across democratic participation, climate justice, and humanitarian resilience.

After four years of implementation, SPA II will enter its final year in 2026. To ensure a responsible, accountable, and sustainable exit, AAAR is commissioning a Phase-Out Assessment to:

·       Verify completion and acceptance of deliverables

·       Conduct a Post-Project Review (Final Evaluation)

·       Assess sustainability and transition readiness

·       Document lessons learned for future programming

·       Support the formal handover of programme responsibilities

·       Where relevant, explore opportunities for cross-learning or strategic linkages with other Global Platforms in the region

This assessment will cover all components of SPA II in Jordan, including youth leadership initiatives, climate resilience interventions, humanitarian actions in Mafraq and Zarqa, and the Global Platform (a youth hub) activities managed by Drabzeen.

 

2. Purpose of the Assignment

The overall purpose of this Phase-Out Assessment is to generate a comprehensive evaluation of SPA II performance and provide actionable recommendations to guide partner transitions and future programming. This assignment combines a Phase-Out Assessment and Outcome Evaluation into a single exercise, assessing cumulative impact to date while generating actionable recommendations to be implemented during the final year of SPA II (2026)

Specific objectives include:

1. Deliverable Verification

·       Confirm that all project deliverables were completed according to scope, quality, timelines, and stakeholder expectations.

·       Verify evidence of outputs and intermediate outcomes against the Results Framework.

2. Outcome Evaluation

Assess the project’s effectiveness, relevance, efficiency, coherence, impact, and sustainability using OECD-DAC criteria.

Key questions include:

·       To what extent were the intended results (Intermediate Outcomes, Long-term Outcomes, and Specific Objectives) achieved?

·       Did the implementation strategy effectively empower marginalized young women, refugees, and host communities?

·       What are the available evidence-based information on the effectiveness and impact of the program, which can be used to demonstrate accountability to stakeholders, such as funders, policymakers, and program participants?

·       What are the interventions that are achieving their intended outcomes and providing the greatest benefits to the target population.?

·       What new knowledge and insights can we generate about what works and what doesn’t work in programs and interventions, which can be shared with other stakeholders and used to inform future program design and implementation?

·       How effective were the Global Platform and partner-led learning environments?

3. Sustainability & Transition Planning

·        

The assessment will examine how key stakeholders, including rightsholders, local partners, youth groups, duty-bearers, and relevant external actors, can contribute to sustaining SPA II outcomes beyond 2026. It will analyze the realistic roles and responsibilities stakeholders can assume, identify capacity gaps (institutional, technical, financial, or relational) that may undermine sustainability, and assess the types of support or enabling conditions required to address these gaps.

Based on these findings, the assessment will identify priority capacity-strengthening needs and propose targeted actions for consideration during the final implementation year (2026). Any proposed capacity-building actions will be presented as recommendations to inform planning and decision-making, rather than as automatic or pre-defined consultancy deliverables.

Sustainability will be analyzed across interrelated dimensions, including:

·       Financial sustainability: the extent to which local partners, youth-led initiatives, and platforms have access to diversified funding sources and resource mobilization strategies to sustain key outcomes beyond SPA II.

·       Institutional sustainability: the robustness of internal systems, governance structures, partnerships, and organizational capacities needed to maintain programme outcomes, including leadership continuity and accountability mechanisms.

·       Political and relational sustainability: the durability of relationships with duty-bearers, local authorities, and relevant institutions, as well as the legitimacy and policy anchoring of youth-led initiatives and advocacy efforts.

This analysis will inform practical, context-specific recommendations to strengthen sustainability during the final phase of implementation and the post-exit period.4. Lessons Learned

·       Document what worked well, challenges, innovative practices, and strategic improvements for future SPA programming.

·       Capture partner perspectives on coordination, MEL systems, youth engagement models, climate justice work, and humanitarian-delivery approaches.

5. Risk Analysis and Mitigation

The assessment will include a focused analysis of risks associated with the programme phase-out and transition process. This will examine both intended and potential unintended consequences of programme closure, including risks related to youth engagement, partner capacity, stakeholder relationships, and programme continuity.

Based on this analysis, the assessment will propose practical and proportionate mitigation measures to be considered during the final year of implementation (2026), with the aim of supporting a responsible, ethical, and sustainable exit.

5. Formal Handover Support

·       Provide recommendations and inputs for partner handover plans, sustainability agreements, and role distribution post-2026.

3. Scope of Work

The assessment will cover:

A. All Results Framework Components (2022–2026)

Including:

Strategic Objectives (SO)

·       SO1: Youth access to decision-making (Drabzeen)

·       SO2: Sustainable livelihoods & climate resilience (Drabzeen)

·       SO3: Humanitarian protection & resilience in Mafraq/Zarqa (HSF & Drabzeen)

Long-Term Outcomes (LTO)

·       LTO 1.1: Young people and their allies successfully advocate for national priorities and engage in the democratic processes in Amman, Jordan.

·       LTO2.1: Young people from refugees and host communities and their allies hold local and national governments accountable in the implementation of water and waste management laws and plans in in Amman, Jordan.

·       LTO3.1: Young people from Refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women hold humanitarian-development actors accountable for the delivery of gender responsive services in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       LTO 3.2: Young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women, build their resilience and power to respond to protracted crisis in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

Intermediate Outcomes (IO) (examples)

·       IO 1.1.1: Young people, especially marginalized young women, have acquired the tools to engage with local governments actors in in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       1.1.2: Organized young people, especially marginalized young women and their allies lead advocacy initiatives promoting youth priorities to be incorporated in local government plans in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       IO 2.1.1: Young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women and the wider communities have a solid understanding on climate changes and mitigation actions in Amman, Jordan.

·       IO 2.1.2: Young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women, have acquired the tools to engage with local and national governments on climate changes in Amman, Jordan.

·       IO 2.1.3: Organised young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women and their allies lead advocacy initiatives promoting local and national governments implementation of climate laws and plans in Amman, Jordan.

·       IO 3.1.1: Empowered young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women have solid knowledge on the humanitarian-development sector in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       IO 3.1.2: Empowered young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women have acquired tools to engage with the humanitarian-development sector in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       IO 3.1.3: Organized young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women present PAR / score cards findings and recommendations to humanitarian-development actors in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       IO 3.2.1: Empowered young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women are able to identify and address protection risks in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

·       IO 3.2.2: Leadership of young people from refugees and host communities, especially young women is built to respond to protracted crisis situations in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan. 

·       IO 3.2.3: Empowered young people from refugees and host communities, especially marginalized young women have established business / start up opportunities in Mafraq and Zarqa, Jordan.

B. Geographic Coverage

·       Amman (Global Platform; advocacy; climate justice)

·       Mafraq & Zarqa (humanitarian and resilience programming)

C. Stakeholders

·       Youth participants (male/female, host/refugee)

·       Community groups & networks

·       Local authorities

·       Partner staff (Drabzeen & HSF)

·       AAAR country and regional teams

·       Duty-bearers and external institutions reached by policy/advocacy efforts

 

4. Key Evaluation Questions

Effectiveness

1.      To what extent did SPA II achieve the targets for indicators in the Summary Result Framework?

2.      How effective was the Global Platform model in strengthening youth leadership and advocacy?

Relevance & Coherence

3.      How well did the programme respond to the needs of marginalized youth in changing political and economic contexts?

4.      How coherent was the collaboration between AAAR, Drabzeen, HSF, and community stakeholders?

Efficiency

5.      Were resources used optimally, including staff capacity, partner roles, and programme delivery through hubs/platforms?

Impact

6.      What significant changes were observed in youth leadership, collective action, gender equality, climate resilience, and humanitarian capacities?

Sustainability

7.      Are youth structures, networks, and community entities capable of sustaining outcomes post-exit?

8.      What institutional capacities require strengthening to ensure continuity?

Exit & Handover

9.      How clear and realistic are the roles assigned to local partners and community actors for the post-project phase?

10. What systems or responsibilities require formalized handover agreements?

 

5. Methodology

A mixed-methods approach is expected, including:

Desk Review

·       Project documents, MEL data, progress reports, partner reports

·       Global Platform curricula, attendance sheets, advocacy documents

·       Humanitarian distribution and case management records

·       Indicator performance tracking matrix (IPTT)

Primary Data Collection

·       Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with AAAR, Drabzeen, HSF staff, local authorities, trainers, youth networks

·       Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with young women, refugee youth, host-community youth, and youth groups

·       Observation visits to hubs, training environments, and community initiatives

·       Verification of deliverables through sampling and field checks

·       Sustainability readiness assessment using a partner capacity checklist

Analytical Frameworks

·       OECD-DAC criteria

·       Outcome harvesting for policy & practice outcomes

·       Contribution analysis

·       Gender & feminist analysis lens

·       Climate justice and resilience assessment lens

·       Exit readiness assessment tool

 

6. Deliverables

1. Inception Report

·       Methodology

·       Data collection tools

·       Work plan & timeline

·       Evaluation matrix

2. Fieldwork & Raw Data Repository

·       Transcript summaries

·       Cleaned datasets

·       Deliverable verification tables

3. Draft Final Report

Including:

·       Executive summary

·       Deliverables verification section

·       Final evaluation findings (aligned to DAC criteria)

·       Sustainability analysis

·       Risk Analysis

·       Lessons learned

·       Exit & handover recommendations

·       Updated Results Framework performance table

4. Validation Workshop

Presentation of findings with AAAR and partners.

5. Final Report

(incorporating feedback from the validation workshop)

6. Handover & Sustainability Brief (2–3 pages)

Actionable roadmap for partners.

 

7. Timeline

Activity	Timeline
Inception phase	Week 1