SELECTION OF CONSULTANTS BY THE WORLD BANK

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

Electronic Submissions through World Bank Group eConsultant http://www.worldbank.org/eConsult

Assignment Overview

Assignment Title: Baseline Survey for SEQAEP

Assignment Country: Bangladesh

Assignment Description

Government of Bangladesh is going to implement a new stipend project funded by IDA. The new project proposes to: (a) improve education quality and the capacity to monitor learning outcomes in project areas through: (i) give incentive awards to students, schools and teachers to improve academic performance; (ii) assess educational quality outcomes through regular testing of students; and (iii) provide water and sanitation facilities; (b) improve equitable access in project areas mainly through proxy means testing (PMT) of potential students; (c) strengthen the institutional capacity of MOE both at central and local levels, and (d) establish an effective monitoring and evaluation system. The success of the project will be assessed via several outcomes: i) increasing completion rates in secondary school cycle; ii) increase pass rates in SSC exams; iii) increase the number of pupils appearing for the SSC exam; iv) strengthen the institutional capacity to monitor learning level; v) improving gender balance; and vi) increasing the share of poor children enrolled in secondary schools. A comprehensive child, household, community, and school-level household baseline survey will be fielded in a sample of IDA (and GoB) funded areas before any changes in existing project modalities. Given that we will have a baseline survey before any project intervention and several rounds of follow-up surveys, randomized phasing-in of treatment, and a control group which will remain as control, we can use a range of econometric analysis for the impact evaluation.  While the World Bank will be responsible for the technical analysis of the impact evaluation, the services of an independent survey firm with a solid track record to carry out the baseline survey. This requires the services of a survey firms with considerable experience in conducting panel surveys – longitudinal surveys of same set of pupils, households, communities, and schools. The panel data will be essential for conducting the impact evaluation.

Funding Source:

The World Bank intends to finance the assignment/services described below from a Trust Fund.

Eligibility:
There are no eligibility restrictions.

Individual/Firm Profile:
The consultant will be a firm or consortium.

Submission Requirements:
The World Bank now invites eligible consultants to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested consultants must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc.).
Consultants may associate to enhance their qualifications.

Interested consultants are hereby invited to submit expressions of interest.

Expressions of Interest should be submitted, in English, electronically through World Bank Group eConsultant http://www.worldbank.org/eConsult.

Notes:
Consultants will be selected in accordance with the procedures set out in the current edition of the World Bank's Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers.

Selection and contracting will normally be made from responses to this notification. The consultant will be selected from a shortlist, subject to availability of funding.

Contact Information:

Nazmul Chaudhury, 1818 H Street, NW, World Bank, Washington D.C, 20433, USA

Syed Rashed Al Zayed, World Bank Office Dhaka. Ph: 8159001