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TOR Title Terms of Reference consultant to develop Jordan’s National Strategy of career Guidance services
Country JORDAN
Project PRM
Duration From 4th of June 2023 to 15th of September 2023
Pillar: Develop a national career guidance strategy
Objective: Objective I: Enhanced employment readiness of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians through targeted and demand-driven skills development approaches.
Output: Output 1.1: Beneficiaries benefit from access to specialized career counselling & guidance services.
Activity / BL Activity 1.1.4: Develop a lifelong career guidance accreditation framework and training toolkit inline with JNQF and building on international good practice, in close coordination with national stakeholders and international implementing partners.
Jordan has been ensnared in back-to-back shocks that severely affected its economic and social stability for over a decade. Amid coping with the aftermath of a global economic crisis, the country was struck with the repercussions of turmoil in neighboring countries and regional instability that would shape the political and socio-economic landscape in the country for years to come. Political upheaval, namely in Syria, ushered the influx of over one million refugees to Jordan, leading to a sudden increase of 40 percent in population between 2008 and 2020. The country currently hosts the second-highest number of refugees per capita globally, with 650,000 officially registered with UNHCR. Over the past few years, Jordan made remarkable leaps in facilitating the Syrian refugees’ access to formal employment and issuing thousands of work-permits in specific sectors. Nevertheless, whilst shouldering the Syrian refugees’ crisis, Jordan was faced with mounting economic challenges, including the closure of major trade routes, rising energy prices, growing debt levels, exhausted infrastructure, among others.
In spite of a wearied economy, Jordan has been determined to handle the COVID-19 outbreak with the lowest possible impact on human life. This meant imposing exceptionally stringent measures and extended lockdown periods that took a toll on every aspect of macroeconomic performance. The year2020 was marked by a deep economic recession, with Real GDP growth falling to -2.0 percent and public debt approaching 115 percent to GDP. Initial forecasts had predicted that economic growth would bounce back to its pre-pandemic levels (around 2 percent growth) in 2021. The lingering crisis, however, renders these projections unattainable and the country’s growth trajectory is likely to remain stagnant until year’s end. Fortunately, the government initiated the vaccine rollout programme in January 2021 to facilitate the alleviation of containment measures and gradually opening up the economy.
The project "Formalizing Access to the Legal Labor Market for Refugees and Host Communities in Jordan " is a result of a collaboration between the ILO and the US Department of State to support the formal labor market participation of Jordanians and refugee men and women, through the provision of training and certification, business development support, employment services, and work permits. It helped embed the principles of the Jordan Compact to increase economic opportunities in host countries; thus, supporting developmental response and reducing poverty. It has also helped the government of Jordan to deliver on the commitment it has made to issue 200,000 work permits to Syrian refugees.
The project is part of the ILO program of support to the Jordan compact and falls within the framework of the ILO Decent Work Country Program of Jordan (2018-2022).
The main goal of the project is to enhance Jordanian and refugee beneficiaries' access to the formal labor market and decent work, to be achieved through the following outcomes: (i) Jordanians and refugees benefit from on the job trainings and the chance to have their skills validated through the application of the Recognition of Prior Learning model in several sectors; (ii) Jordanian and refugee women are supported to enter and remain in the formal workforce through targeted packages of support and business development services; and (iii) Syrian refugee have access to work permits.
The ILO and GIZ are main players in the national career guidance committee which has been established under the supervision of TVSDC as one of its core activities. This committee includes all national partners(Ministry of Labour, TVSDC, Ministry of Social development, Ministry of Education and HigherEducation) As well as NGOs and private sector entities that provide career guidance services.
As part of the Economic Modernisation Vision, TVET sector under the supervision of TVSDC, was assigned to develop a national career guidance strategy. ILO will support TVSDC and the national partners (Ministry of Labour, TVSDC, Ministry of Social development, Ministry of Education and HigherEducation) to develop lifelong career guidance strategy.
The Career guidance services intends to assist individuals of all ages to make educational, training and occupational choices and to manage their careers. The mapping exercise under this assignment must be designed to cover career guidance in schools, universities, ES, online platform. Based on this definition, the strategy will cover all life stages including career guidance in schools, universities, Employment Services, vocational training programmes and online career guidance platforms (E-career guidance).
The new strategy will support employment policies and systems and will provide opportunities for people to improve their life chances. In specific, this strategy will support with the following:
1. Encourage the lifelong acquisition of career management skills;
2. Facilitate access by all citizens to guidance services;
3. Develop the quality assurance of guidance provision;
4. Encourage coordination and cooperation among the various national, regional and local stakeholders
Assignment Objectives: The primary objective of this assignment is to develop Jordan's National Strategy for lifelong career guidance as part of the Technical and Vocational Skills Development Commission's (TVSDC) role in managing and supervising the TVET sector in Jordan and their participation in the new modernization plan.
The specific objectives of this assignment are:
1. To assess the current status of career guidance services in Jordan, including identifying any strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
2. To conduct a needs assessment to identify the career guidance needs and preferences of different population groups in Jordan.
3. To review relevant national policies, laws, and regulations related to career guidance, as well as best practices from other countries or regions.
4. To develop a comprehensive career guidance strategy for Jordan, based on the findings from the needs assessment and the review of relevant policies and best practices. The career guidance strategy should include the following items: (1) Comprehensive understanding of the country's context and the demand for a career guidance system that caters to diverse target groups, such as secondary and higher secondary school children, TVET students, and even refugees.; (2)Development of an extensive range of career information resources to provide accurate and relevant guidance; (3) promotion of work choice, search and maintenance skills development; (4)Efficient organization of service delivery and establishment of a robust institutional setup with effective governance and coordination mechanisms.; (5) staff development to support service delivery; and (6) Improvement of governance and coordination structures to enhance the overall effectiveness of the career guidance system.
5. To develop a comprehensive strategy action plan outlining the necessary interventions national institutions must undertake, in accordance with the economic vision, and including a timeline. The consultant will work under the general direction of the Director General of the TVSDC and the supervision of ILO's team.
The consultant will collaborate closely with the ILO and TVSDC teams to perform the following tasks and activities as part of developing the career guidance strategy:
▪ Conduct a desk review of relevant documents, draft national career guidance strategy, reports, and policies related to career guidance in Jordan.
▪ Conduct interviews, focus groups, and surveys to collect data on the career guidance needs and preferences of different population groups in Jordan.
▪ Conduct a review of best practices from other countries or regions and adapting them to the Jordanian context.
▪ Develop a comprehensive career guidance strategy that considers the unique needs and preferences of diverse population groups in Jordan. These groups encompass a range of factors including age, gender, people with disabilities (PWD), refugees, socio-economic status, educational background, and other relevant characteristics. By acknowledging and addressing the specific requirements of each group, the strategy aims to provide tailored career guidance services that empower individuals to make informed decisions and achieve their professional aspirations.
▪ Developing an implementation plan with key milestones, timelines, and resource requirements.
▪ Developing a monitoring and evaluation plan to assess the effectiveness and impact of the career guidance strategy.
▪ Conducting stakeholder engagement activities to gather feedback on the career guidance strategy and ensure buy-in from relevant stakeholders.
▪ Developing training materials and manuals for career guidance professionals to support the implementation of the strategy.
▪ Providing technical assistance and support to the relevant government agencies, NGOs, and other stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of the strategy
The work is planned to start on 4th of June 2023 and is expected to be completed no later than 15th of August 2023. The deadlines in the table below are a suggestion. However, it is preferable to abide by the starting date and finish date of the assignment.
Output / Deliverables / Timeline
A. Conducting a desk review of relevant documents, reports, and policies related to career guidance in Jordan.
Report documenting the outcomes of the desk reviews
July 2023
B. Conducting interviews, focus groups, and surveys to collect data on the career guidance needs and preferences of different population groups inJordan.
Report documenting career guidance needs and preferences based on FGDs, interviews and surveys
July 2023
C. Conducting a review of best practices from other countries or regions and adapting them to the Jordanian context.
Report summarizing the outcome of the review of international good practices and how to adopt this to Jordanian context
July 2023
D. Developing a comprehensive career guidance strategy that takes into account the needs and preferences of different population groups inJordan. the strategy should include(1) understanding the country context and need for career guidance system covering…..(as said earlier please be specific about the target groups secondary/ higher secondary school children, TVET students, including refugees etc).; (2) development of career information; (3) promotion of work choice, search and maintenance skills development; (4) organization of service delivery and institutional set up/governance; (5) staff development to support service delivery; and (6) improvement of governance and coordination.
Developed career guidance strategy that is endorsed by TVSDC.
August 2023
E. Developing an implementation plan with key milestones, timelines, and resource requirements.
Well-structured implementation plan including milestones, timeline and recourses
August 2023
F. Developing a monitoring and evaluation plan to assess the effectiveness and impact of the career guidance strategy.
Well-structured M&E plan aiming to assess the impact of the proposed career guidance strategy
August 2023
G. Conducting stakeholder engagement activities to gather feedback on the career guidance strategy and ensure buy-in from relevant stakeholders.
Report of the outcome on the stakeholder engagement in relation to career guidance
September 2023
H. Developing training materials and manuals for career guidance professionals to support the implementation of the strategy.
Draft version of the training manual for professionals within career guidance field
September 2023
I. Providing technical assistance and support to the relevant government agencies, NGOs, and other stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of the strategy
-Report explaining the technical assistance given to related NGOs and governmental institutions -Final and approved version of training manual strategy -Final technical report on this assignment, the report should explain all the review process and approved deliverables (detailed above) as well as the expected improvements based on the proposed strategy and related recommendations
September 2023
The selected candidate shall have a minimum of 10 years’ experience in the field of TVET policy, skills governance, career guidance and counselling services & quality assurance in TVET, and familiarity of TVET laws and regulations in different countries. The candidate should preferably have a background in legal, social, political, or pedagogical sciences. Previous experience with the ILO and/or other UN agencies is an advantage.
The following documents/information are required to apply for this assignment:
1. Technical proposal.
2. Financial proposal.
3. Consultant CV
4. Work samples for similar assignments, if any.
The bidders must submit the proposed offer “Technical and Financial Proposals” in separate digital folders mentioning “Technical Proposal” and “Financial Proposal” on each digital folder so that the financial information could not be revealed before financial proposal opening. The two digital folders saved in one digital folder (zipped) with the title saved as the full name of the bidder, followed by the project title “POS-review Jordan’s National Strategy of Counselling Services”, and the date of submission.
Applications should be submitted by email to (Email Address at Apply Button). Both financial and technical proposals should be valid for 90 days.
The deadline for submission of technical and financial proposals is 27 of May 2023 COB, 12 midnight.
The table below summarizes the planned schedule for payments to be made upon the completion and submission of deliverables delineated in this ToR. A deliverable is considered completed upon review and satisfaction of the ILO.
1st Payment: Upon submissions of deliverables A, B & C , in Table 1, Section 4 upon review and satisfaction of the ILO
2nd payment: Upon submissions of deliverables D, E & F in Table 1, Section 4 upon review and satisfaction of the ILO
3rd and &final payment: Upon submissions of deliverables G, H & I in Table 1, Section 4 upon review and satisfaction of the ILO
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