Job Description

Posted on May 29, 2023

Brief History of On Call Africa
On Call Africa was established in 2010 by a group of doctors and international development experts to address poor access to quality healthcare in remote rural Zambia, and work towards Universal Health Coverage. The organisation is registered as a SCIO in Scotland, and a Public Benefit organisation in Zambia. We continue to be led by a skilled board of trustees in the UK, with support from a growing team of staff and volunteers both in the UK and Zambia. Thanks to growth in the last two years, we have been able to pivot from an organisation delivering services through UK volunteer doctors, to an organisation that delivers quality improvement and health system strengthening work with support from skilled medical volunteers. Our shift in approach is driven by a desire to continue to utilise the skills of experienced medical volunteers, who can add value to the Zambian health system, while ensuring that our work builds long term capacity in a sustainable way. Rather than deliver mobile medical services in rural communities, we now support the quality improvement of rural health facilities to enable them to better carry out rural outreach services themselves.
As an organisation we strive to support the achievement of national strategic objectives, while ensuring that we listen to and are responsive to the communities that we support.
Our Vision
To improve access to and quality of healthcare in rural Zambia
Our Mission
To improve health outcomes with marginalised rural communities in Zambia by improving access to quality healthcare.
 What we do
1. Improve access to quality healthcare in rural Zambia
2. Improving water, sanitation, hygiene, and waste management in rural healthcare facilities
3. Strengthening national community-based volunteer programmes
4. Influence policy and practice at all levels of the health system in Zambia
The Project to be Evaluated
​On Call Africa have been working the Ministry of Health (MoH) to electrify three Rural Health Facilities (RHFs) in Kazungula District.  Working with the Ministry of Health, we identified the facilities with the greatest need in terms of electrification and WASH and worked together to electrify the health facilities using solar power, in an efficient manner that enhances WASH, improves quality of care, and supports the sustainability of interventions.
In this project, we have also piloted a Productive Use of Energy (PUE) technology to produce a low-cost chlorine that can be provided to health facilities and to community members for disinfectant and water purification. This chlorine will also be sold by the Kazungula District Hospital as a way of generating income for the district to support ongoing operations and maintenance of the installed solar systems and support district- and community-led health initiatives. ​
​ ​We expect the project to improve the quality of services provided at three rural health facilities, and the overall functioning of the health system that surrounds those facilities. We also expect to see improved hygiene at facility and community level, and improved function of the community structures that work within the health system at community level. We hope that these complementary programmes will lead to improved health outcomes.
​​​Project vision: Build a case for national investment in the electrification of rural healthcare facilities to help to build a case for wider investment in off grid solar solutions for RHFs. Build evidence for how solar power can complement and enhance impact of other health interventions.
Project Aim: Improve the functionality, quality of care and hygiene for three rural health systems in Kazungula District, through the provision of solar power, alongside complementary WASH and health interventions.
Evaluation brief
We are seeking an external consultant to carry out an independent evaluation to:

Assess the project performance and achievements vis-à-vis the overall project outcomes and outputs.
Assess the project relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, sustainability, and community participation.
Generate lessons learned from the implementation of the project activities and the outcomes achieved that will be useful for similar projects in the future.
Validate OCA’s internal monitoring and evaluation processes for the project
Evaluate project sustainability and integration into Kazungula District

The consultant will also review project documents that have been developed, as well as the processes that we have followed in project design. We will then ask that the consultant prepares a report outlining the strengths and weaknesses of the approach we have taken and identifies areas where we could make improvements.
To carry out this research project we expect the consultant carry out interviews with a sample of staff and neighbourhood health committee members at the target facilities in Kazungula District. They will also be asked to carry out remote interviews with a selection of On Call Africa staff and volunteers that have worked on the project, and District Health Office.
Key questions to consider
Relevance / Are we doing the right things?
•  How relevant has the OCA systems strengthening approach been in improving access to and quality of healthcare at the community level?
Effectiveness / Are we doing the right things well?
•  To what extent have our interventions/approaches achieved, or are expected to achieve: a) Improved quality of care at 3 rural health facilities b) Improved hygiene at 3 rural health facilities, and within the communities in their catchment areas c) Access to solar power contributes towards improved functionality at 3 rural health facilities
Efficiency / How well are resources being used?
•  Were the resources (funds etc) used well?
Impact / What differences have our interventions made?
•  What significant changes has the project brought in healthcare delivery at the three facilities?
•  What has been the progress towards the actual project impact?
Sustainability / Will the benefits last?
·       Does the approach taken set the project up for long-term sustainability?
Evaluation deliverables
1. Inception report
·       The inception report will be delivered to On Call Africa after the initial meeting and desk review have taken place and will be presented to the key On Call Africa and partner representatives in a meeting. The report should include the purpose and objectives of the evaluation, clarification, interpretation and elaboration of the evaluation questions, a detailed plan of how the evaluation will be carried out describing research methodology (including a clear methodology on how the community will be involved in the evaluation process), sampling strategy, proposed draft data collection tools (both qualitative and quantitative) together with a matrix lining the suggested methods and tools with the project indicators and evaluation questions they are supposed to answer. Methodology to address data quality issues should be explained in the report.
·       The inception report should also provide a clear matrix indicating the persons involved in the evaluation and their roles, the key internal and external stakeholders to be involved, a detailed work plan with expected outputs/deliverables and timeline and a detailed financial breakdown including the number of days and persons involved should be annexed to the report. A detailed plan on enumerator training, including persons to be trained, contents and duration of training and translation provided should be included.
2. Report on Effectiveness of the Project
Including how we’ve performed against outcomes, evaluation of successes, shortcomings and sustainability of the approach and its impact of building a case for electrification of rural health facilities.
3. Powerpoint presentation on findings.
Interviews required:
·       6 Health workers
·       6 NHC members
·       3 OCA staff
·       3 DHO staff
·       2 Hospital staff
Desk based reviews:
·       Project plan
·       Monitoring and evaluation plan
·       Monitoring tools
·       Project reports
Payment terms
50% of the fee for consultancy will be paid once an inception report has been approved by OCA, the remaining 50% will be paid once the final report has been approved.
Expected time requirements
10 days total
We expect the final output to be completed by 30th June 2022
How to apply
In order to apply for this role, please submit the following documents to [email protected] by 17:00hrs Monday 5th June. For any queries, please contact [email protected]
Technical proposal
Financial proposal
CV – outlining similar work carried out
Two references from organisations where similar work has been completed, including a sample of the work.
Person specification – Team Leader

Masters in public or global health
Relevant experience carrying out project evaluations (preferably in health systems strengthening)
 5 years experience in monitoring, evaluation and learning

To apply for this job email your details to rachel@oncallafrica.org