Call for Expression of Interest: Consultancy for External Evaluation of the project “Building the Resiliency of Indigenous Communities on Climate Change Adaptation”

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1. Background and objective

The Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) is a regional organization established in 1992 by Indigenous Peoples’ movements across Asia. It serves as a forum and mechanism for building and strengthening the solidarity and cooperation of Indigenous Peoples in Asia for the promotion and protection of their rights, the protection of biodiversity and the environment, and the promotion of sustainable development. Over the years, AIPP has developed its programmes to address the key issues of Indigenous Peoples in Asia through capacity building, lobbying and advocacy, organizational strengthening, and networking.

Among AIPP’s six programmes, the Environment Programme is one of the main programmes that promotes the collective rights of Indigenous Peoples in Asia to land, territories, and resources. It also works to ensure that Indigenous Knowledge on sustainable natural resource management systems, food sovereignty, and livelihoods is protected, respected, and recognized at local, national, regional, and international levels.

Under the Environment Programme, there is an ongoing four-year project titled “Building the Resiliency of Indigenous Communities on Climate Change Adaptation,” which has been implemented in Thailand, Nepal, and the Philippines since April 2022. AIPP’s project partners include the NGO-Federation of Nepalese Indigenous Nationalities (NGO-FONIN) in Nepal, the Cordillera Disaster Response and Development Services (CorDisRDS) in the Philippines, and Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT)in Thailand. The project is ending in March 2026. In this context, AIPP is looking for an independent and experienced evaluator to assess achievements gained, challenges faced, and lessons learned, and to provide recommendations to improve and enhance the work of AIPP and its partner organizations in the future.

Overall Goal of the project

The rights and knowledge systems of Indigenous Peoples are recognised, respected and implemented through national and local climate change policies and action in partnership with Indigenous Peoples’ organisations.

Specific objectives/outcomes of the project

Objective no. 1: Indigenous Peoples, in particular indigenous women and youth, have strengthened food security and sustainable use of natural resources.

Objective no. 2: Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge, innovations, technologies and practices on climate change adaptation and mitigation are documented and strengthened.

Objective no. 3: Indigenous Peoples’ organisations and their networks are actively engaging in the climate change processes at all levels.

Objectives of the Evaluation

1. To assess the relevance, effectiveness, impacts and sustainability of the project in strengthening Indigenous Peoples’ capacity and promotion of their rights and traditional knowledge in climate change adaptation and mitigation processes and mechanisms
2. To assess achievements of the project based on the specific outcomes and indicators in the project document
3. To assess the working approach of AIPP partner organizations with project beneficiaries and evaluate effectiveness and responsiveness of AIPP partners to meet the needs, priorities and aspirations of project beneficiaries.
4. To provide an overview of the strengths, weaknesses, challenges and gaps in project implementation and formulate recommendations to address weaknesses and challenges in future project partnership

2. The Scope of the evaluation 

The main focus of this external evaluation will be on the project implementation at local community, national policy, regional and global Indigenous Peoples’ network levels. It will assess the key outputs of the project (such as training materials, policy briefs, network meeting reports, documented knowledge resources) and their direct and indirect impacts on socio-political realities and conditions at local community and national policy levels in Nepal, the Philippines, and Thailand. This includes examining changes in awareness of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, participation in decision-making processes, and the integration of indigenous knowledge into relevant policies.

3. Methodology

The evaluation shall be done through the review of literature, project documents, project reports, and relevant materials, field visits to project implementation sites in three (3) countries; and interviews with beneficiaries, project partners and AIPP. AIPP and its partner organization shall fully cooperate with the evaluator in providing requested documents and materials and arranging for interviews and focus group discussions. The number of working days for the evaluation is as follows:

1. Review of project documents, reports and relevant documents: 4 days
2. Field Visit in 3 countries: 15 days (Nepal, the Philippines and Thailand)
3. Report writing (draft): 5 days
4. Writing of final report: 2 days

The report shall be finalized in consultation with AIPP and its project partners. The debriefing of the evaluation report will be organized at AIPP Office in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

4. Qualification and Experience

The evaluation will be conducted by an external evaluator, either an individual or a team.

The consultant(s) must possess the following qualifications:

• Demonstrated in-depth knowledge and understanding of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, climate change adaptation, and mitigation, with a strong commitment to cultural sensitivity and respect for diverse perspectives.
• Proven in-depth knowledge and understanding of capacity building and advocacy activities within the South East and South Asia sub-regions, demonstrating cultural awareness and adaptability.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in project impact evaluation, preferably with civil society organizations at global, regional, or national levels, including experience working respectfully and effectively with diverse cultural contexts.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• High level of independence and impartiality.
• Ability to travel to Thailand, the Philippines, and Nepal, with a willingness to learn about and engage respectfully with cultures and protocols of Indigenous Peoples.

5. Output and Reporting 

The consultant will prepare a first draft of the evaluation report based on the desk review, field visits and interviews. The report shall be finalized in consultation with AIPP and its project partners.

The evaluation report will be prepared in English. The report shall be a maximum of 35 pages long, excluding annexes. The draft report shall be submitted to AIPP by December 10, 2025 and final report by January 15, 2026.

6. Timeframe and expected delivery of the service

A. Tentative Time Frame: October 2025 – January 2026

Date	Activity	Location
October  2025	Preparation for the evaluation Consultation Meeting/inception meeting with Management team and Environment Program team. Sending out of Questionnaire to project partners. Interviews with key partners, beneficiary, network members, allies	Chiang Mai, Thailand
November 2025	Visit to three countries	Thailand, Nepal and Philippines
December 2025	Submission of the draft Report to AIPP and AIPP partners by 10th December 2025	Online
	Finalization of the evaluation report by 15 January 2026
January 2026	Presentation to the Secretariat and project partners
	Submission of the final evaluation report 30 January 2026

B. Tentativework plan/ Schedule

The work should be undertaken from October 2025- January 2026.

The total number of workdays should not exceed 26 days.

C. ConsultancyFee and Remuneration

Interested candidates are requested to submit their expression of interests including presentation of a details work plan and consultancy fee.

Forty percent of the consultancy fee will be paid upon signing the contract of agreement. The remaining sixty percent shall be fully paid upon acceptance of the final evaluation report by AIPP. Any extension of days of work shall not entail additional payment from AIPP.

AIPP shall cover tickets/airfares, accommodation and local travel expenses of the evaluations in Nepal, the Philippines and Thailand.

7. Submission Deadline & Application process

Interested and qualified candidates are requested to send an Expression of Interest to Mr. Lakpa Nuri Sherpa at  [email protected], Ms.Pirawan Wongnithisathaporn at [email protected]   and Mr. Sujash Chakma at [email protected] no later than July 31, 2025.

The Expression of Interest should include:

1. CV
2. Daily consultancy fee in USD
3. Brief technical proposal, indicating main methodological considerations
4. Three references, to whom AIPP Secretariat may contact

Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted for the interviews. For more information about AIPP, please visit our websites: www.aippnet.org

Click here to download the full application information for CC External Evaluation