Evaluator – Hélène Ralivao Fund for Theology, Gender Justice and Leadership Education

1. Background and Context

The Hélène Ralivao Fund (HRF) was established in 2021 to address gender injustice and promote systemic change within church and society, particularly in terms of ensuring the full and meaningful participation of women in leadership and decision-making within Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches. It embodies the LWF’s collective commitment to gender justice, theological education, and transformative leadership. The fund is named after Hélène Ralivao, one of Madagascar’s leading theologians and gender justice advocates, who was tragically murdered on 23 February 2020.

The fund has two primary areas of action:

• to provide scholarships for women studying theology in the African region of the LWF. The scholarships aim to enhance and build upon existing efforts in theological education for women, empowering them to engage in theological work, take on leadership and teaching roles, and promote gender justice.
• to offer Theology, Gender Justice, and Leadership Education (TGLE) training programs for women and men in the African region. The TGLE program aims to equip participants with knowledge, skills and research in theology, gender justice and leadership enabling them to develop gender-inclusive interventions, especially on Church leadership, and to conduct related research that will drive transformational change towards gender justice in their church and the society in general.

During 2022–2024, LWF supported 15 scholarship recipients, 10 of whom have completed their studies by the end of 2024 while 5 are still pursuing their degree. All scholarship recipients are women and they represent 6 LWF member churches in the region.

The Theology, Gender Justice, and Leadership Education (TGLE) training program was developed in partnership with Tumaini University Makumira (TUMA) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. The training modules were designed for participants to acquire knowledge and skills on theology, gender justice, and leadership issues and on how to conduct related research with the aim of bringing about changes in the leadership and governance of their churches and society in general. The trainings were delivered through an intensive seminar organized at TUMA over a period of two weeks. After the seminar participants conducted action-oriented research in their home context and returned to TUMA to share their research findings during a one-week seminar. Between 2022-2024, the training was organized for three cohorts and a total of 59 participants representing 15 member churches in the African region had completed the training program by the end of 2024.

2. Purpose of the Evaluation

The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, and impact of the HRF’s initiatives, specifically in terms of their contribution to advancing gender justice and systemic change within the church and society, and its alignment with the vision of the Hélène Ralivao Fund. The findings will contribute to understanding of the program’s strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement, offering recommendations for the future of the HRF.

The HRF is going to expand into Asia in 2025, and there are also plans underway to extend it to the Francophone region in Africa. With this in mind, the evaluation should provide strategic recommendations on how to adapt and scale the approach to different contexts.

3. Evaluation Objectives

The objectives of the evaluation are as follows:

1. Provide an overall assessment of the HRF program’s achievements to date, including the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of HRF interventions, sustainability of achieved results and potential for impact;
2. Provide recommendations for the future of the HRF, in particular with a view to the planned replication of the approach in other contexts.
3. Document key good practices, success stories and lessons learned.

4. Scope of the Evaluation

The evaluation will focus on two primary components of the HRF:

1. Scholarships for Women in Postgraduate Theology Studies:
2. The Theology, Gender Justice, and Leadership Education (TGLE) Training:

• The training design, delivery, and content, as well as its alignment with the needs of participants.
• The knowledge, skills, and competencies gained by the participants.
• The relevance and effectiveness of action-oriented research.
• The impact of the training on participants’ ability to advocate for gender justice and implement leadership changes within their communities and institutions.
• The effectiveness of the collaboration between LWF, Tumaini University, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania in delivering the program.

Geographical Scope: LWF member churches in Africa region that participated in the TGLE program or received scholarships.

Timeframe: The evaluation will assess the activities and results from the past three years of HRF’s implementation (2022-2024).

5. Evaluation Questions

The evaluation will address the following key questions:

Relevance:

• To what extent are the HRF objectives and interventions (scholarships and training) well designed to address the needs of women in theological education and leadership within LWF member church structures?
• How well does HRF align with the priorities of the LWF and the broader goal of gender justice in theological education?
• Are there any gaps in the current HRF activities that need to be addressed to better support women doing theology and women in leadership in LWF member churches in Africa?

Effectiveness:

• To what extent have the HRF scholarships contributed to the academic and professional development of female theological students?
• How effective has the TGLE program been in equipping participants with the knowledge, skills, and competencies required to advocate for gender justice and assume leadership roles?
• To what extent and how have participants utilized their knowledge and skills to promote systemic change and gender justice within their churches and communities?
• What follow-up activities/projects have participants implemented in their respected member churches based on their action-oriented research?
• What were the benefits, challenges, and key lessons learned from the collaboration between LWF, Tumaini University, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania in delivering the program?

Efficiency:

• To what extent has the HRF managed its resources efficiently to achieve its objectives?
• How was the application process led and coordinated in different member churches?
• Were there any challenges in the implementation of the HRF activities that affected their efficiency?

Sustainability:

• To what extent are the results of the HRF interventions sustainable in the long term, particularly in terms of the integration of gender justice into church structures and leadership?
• Have there been any partnerships or networks developed that may ensure the sustainability of the HRF’s efforts?

Impact:

• What is the potential for long-term impacts as a result of HRF’s work in empowering women in leadership, changing institutional practices, and promoting gender justice?
• Are there any indications that the HRF has contributed to social transformation and the dismantling of systemic patriarchy in church and society?
• How do scholarship recipients and training participants perceive the impact of their participation in HRF on their personal and professional development?

6. Methodology

The evaluation methodology chosen should:

• take into account the OECD-DAC Quality Standards for Development Evaluation for a participatory, credible, gender-sensitive and fair evaluation;1
• ensure that different stakeholder groups, such as scholarship recipients, TGLE participants, representatives of member churches and related institutions, staff of Tumaini University, staff of LWF, participate and that their different voices are heard and used;
• apply mostly qualitative techniques for data collection and analysis
• Use a mix of methods, incl. triangulation, i.e. validation of data through cross verification from different independent sources.

It is expected that data collection will include:

• Document Review: Review of HRF program reports, scholarship records, TGLE training materials, and relevant assessments conducted during the implementation period.
• Surveys and Questionnaires: Distributed to HRF scholarship recipients, TGLE program participants, church leaders, and other stakeholders to assess their experiences and outcomes.
• Interviews: Remote and in-person interviews with key informants, including HRF management, LWF representatives, partners (e.g., Tumaini University, Evangelical Lutheran Church), scholarship recipients, TGLE participants, and church leadership.
• Case Studies: Detailed case studies of selected scholarship recipients and program participants who have made notable contributions to gender justice and leadership within their communities.
• Field Visits: Field visit to Tumaini University and one or two participating member churches

7. Deliverables

The consultant(s) will deliver the following outputs:

1. An inception report including the detailed evaluation design, work plan and draft data collection tools
2. A draft evaluation report presenting findings, conclusions, and preliminary recommendations.
3. A final evaluation report incorporating feedback from HRF stakeholders, with clear recommendations for future program improvements and strategic directions.
4. A brief summary of key findings and recommendations for dissemination to HRF partners and stakeholders.

These deliverables are to be:

• Prepared in English
• Submitted to the LWF PMER Coordinator and Program Executive for Capacity Building and Leadership Development electronically via e-mail.

Inception Report

The Consultant will prepare a draft inception report to operationalize and direct the evaluation. The inception report will describe how the evaluation will be carried out, describe the overall design, the methodologies to be applied and the draft data collection tools, the proposed detailed timeline, refining and elaborating the assignment described in the terms of reference. LWF will provide comments on the draft inception report, which the Consultant shall take into account in finalizing the document.

Evaluation Report

The Consultant will prepare a draft evaluation report (max. 30 pages with an executive summary), including a description of the purpose, methodology and limitations of the evaluation, the evaluation findings, conclusions, recommendations, good practices and lessons learned. After receiving comments from LWF the consultant will finalize the evaluation report.

8. Timeline

Expected timeline for deliverables

• Draft Inception report: The consultant will submit a draft inception report within one (1) week of the contract signature.
• Final Inception Report: Within one (1) week of receiving the comments on the draft inception report, the Consultant will produce a final inception report.
• Draft Evaluation Report: The Consultant will submit a draft evaluation report for review by LWF by 25 April the latest.
• Final Evaluation Report: Within one (1) week of receiving comments on the draft report, the Consultant will submit a final evaluation report, including an executive summary and any relevant annexes.

The total estimated number of working days is approximately 23 working days between March and May 2025.

9. Key qualifications of the evaluator

A successful candidate will have:

• University Degree in international development, gender studies, evaluation or other relevant area;
• Proven track record of conducting evaluations of international development programs, including programs implemented in Africa;
• Proven experience in using participatory and qualitative research methodologies;
• Experience in working with faith-based organizations and/or churches;
• Previous experience in working with gender justice or theological education capacity building programs would be an advantage;
• Excellent skills in communication and report writing in English language.