RFQ FY27-223 Mental Health and Psychosocial Support for Gaza (Remote Consultancy)

For more information, please refer to Calls for tender | Plan International

Background of the consultancy

The ongoing conflict in Gaza has created a severe humanitarian crisis, significantly impacting on the mental health and well-being of children, families and front-line workers. Communities are facing injury, hunger, bereavement, displacement, and the destruction of their property while working around the clock to help others. Aid workers are exposed to continuous stress, trauma, and life-threatening situations while enduring vicarious trauma and struggling for their own and their families’ survival.The need for comprehensive Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) for local communities and aid workers is critical to ensure their well-being and ability to continue providing essential services. In Plan International OPT, we are leveraging our year-long experience in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza to strengthen the operations of this response. This includes the trust built with local partners, a deeper understanding of operational challenges and viable solutions, and a strong, established network of collaborators that we can capitalize on for greater impact. - Description The primary objective of this consultancy is to develop a package of targeted MHPSS interventions to support the mental health and resilience of local communities and front liners in Gaza. This includes a rapid baselines assessment, designing and implementing tailored MHPSS programs, and building local capacity to ensure the sustainability of these efforts. This consultancy aims to strengthen Plan OPT’s provision of MHPSS services to local communities and front liners, enhancing their ability to cope with the ongoing challenges and continue their vital work in the community.

Job Modality:

The modality of this consultancy will be remote, and it will include a comprehensive approach that involves the following: - Baseline/endline assessment: to identify the baseline wellbeing and MHPSS needs of local communities and frontline aid workers and effectiveness of MHPSS interventions. This will include online consultations with local partners in Gaza, designing assessments, developing tools, data collection, analysis and reporting. - Intervention Design and contextualization of MHPSS packages and tools: Mapping and adaptation of existing MHPSS resources. When necessary, developing tailored MHPSS packages based on the assessment findings, ensure that all interventions are trauma-informed, culturally appropriate and sensitive to the local context and traditions in Gaza. This will include consultations with local stakeholders to contextualize materials. - Implementation: Provide remote MHPSS to local counsellors supporting frontline aid workers. This includes direct individual counselling and supervision through various tools (telehealth, Zoom, etc).

- Monitoring and Evaluation: monthly monitoring, maintaining activity trackers, attendance records and monitor documentation.

- Beneficiary satisfaction evaluation: Develop monitoring and beneficiary satisfaction tools based on IASC MHPSS, conduct independent beneficiary verification and satisfaction interviews with a sample of participating frontline staff, analyse findings and develop final summary report.

- Reporting: Provide 2 progress reports, detailing the activities undertaken, challenges faced, and outcomes achieved.

- Final Report: At the end of the consultancy, prepare a comprehensive final report summarizing the findings, interventions, outcomes, and recommendations for future MHPSS initiatives (Max 10 pages).

Deliverables and Timeline

Key Deliverables It is expected that the consultant will produce the following deliverables:

Deliverables

- Baseline and endline MHPSS assessment reports. - Culturally adapted MHPSS resource package with tools, implementation guide and activity materials. - Counsellor wellbeing support, supervision and reflective practice sessions provided, including activity plans and tools. - Beneficiary satisfaction report. - Two progress reports. - Final consultancy report. Timeline Consultant timeline would be linked to the deliverables above and should include information on: The entire Activity will be undertaken over a time period from October 2026 to January 2027 (from hiring to the report delivery). Note: At this stage the timeline is indicative and should support any external consultant in the development of their proposal and Inception Report. As part of the process, this timeline should be re-evaluated in consultation between Plan International and the consultant. Expected qualifications of consultant Plan International OPT aims to contract consultants who have extensive experience in designing localized MHPSS materials and have a deep understanding of the context of Gaza. The external consultants should have the following skills:

Academic and professional requirements:

- A master's or doctoral degree in psychology, psychiatry or a related field. - At least 5 years of experience in providing MHPSS for communities experiencing conflict or crisis settings in MENA region. - Fluent proficiency in reading, writing and speaking Arabic is a must. - Extensive experience in designing and contextualizing MHPSS programs in MENA region. - Proven experience in providing capacity building and supervision services for front-line workers. - Deep understanding of Arab socio-cultural context, practices and traditions.

- Time-zone requirement: Applicants should be based in a time zone reasonably close to Gaza (within ±2 hours of Gaza time).

- Strong understanding of MHPSS needs and challenges in occupied Palestinian territories.

Personal Attributes:

- Resilience: Ability to work under high-stress conditions and adapt to challenging environments.

- Empathy: Strong sense of empathy and commitment to supporting vulnerable populations.

- Ethical Standards: Adherence to high ethical standards and confidentiality in dealing with sensitive information.

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