Resource Agency for understanding rapid assessment on coverage, efficacies, and impediments as well as building capacities of key stakeholders on Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna
 United Nations Development Programme
 Location: Eastern Uttar Pradesh
 Last Date: May 5, 2010
 Email: bids.india@undp.org (Reference: DevNetJobsIndia.org)

Date of Issue: 21 April 2010
Closing Date: 5 May 2010

Request for Quotation

Post Title : Resource Agency for understanding rapid assessment on coverage, efficacies, and impediments as well as building capacities of key stakeholders on Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna (RSBY)

Duty Station : Eastern Uttar Pradesh

Duration : 6 months, June - November 2010

Background

United Nations Development Programme has initiated a project in Eastern Uttar Pradesh that seeks to empower women in the Districts of Jaunpur (Rampur, Ramnagar & Barsathi), Sant Ravidas Nagar (Gyanpur & Abholi), and Mirzapur (City Block). The project adopts an integrated approach in the 500 project villages to address the key dimensions of women’s empowerment – social, economic and political. The project’s immediate objective is that “By 2013, women supported by the project in Jaunpur, Mirzapur and Sant Ravidas Nagar districts achieve a secure and enhanced income and effectively participate and contribute to decision-making in domestic and public spheres”.

One of the major impediments that insinuate women’s socio-economic status is the affliction due to out of pocket (OOP) expenditures on health, which in turn directly affect what has been termed as ‘structural’ and ‘conjectural’ poverty levels of a household through:
a) Lowering access to health care by creating Financial Barriers, and
b) Impoverishing the household because of high medical costs

One of the ways of reducing this is through health insurance, as it protects the household from paying at the time of illness.

Ministry of Labour and Employment, Govt. of India (GoI) had launched a Health Insurance Scheme in 2008 for the BPL households in India, called Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, (RSBY). Although central to state share in the scheme is 75:25, it is ultimately the responsibility of various State Govts. to implement the scheme and take ownership for its execution on the ground.

Results from a field survey in the project area (Jaunpur) highlighted the low levels of utilization of the scheme despite significant number of enrolments. The health service providers, members of the BPL and community health workers interviewed during the survey mentioned a strong need of structured awareness programs on the scheme so as to give them in-depth information about

• The use of smart card.
• Enrolment processes
• Benefits of district kiosks
• Scheme benefits
• Claims process
• Obligations of insurers & hospitals etc.

It was observed that though the macro-level awareness about availability of RSBY is satisfactory, additional efforts are needed to be put in by insurers, their service providers and other stakeholders to enhance awareness about the scheme amongst the beneficiaries and other stakeholders at micro level. Even though enrolments have now crossed 3.2 million success of the scheme would be measured by, inter alia, extent of the utilization of benefits availed by the beneficiaries. Therefore, it is important that literacy on Health Insurance, especially RSBY is spread amongst the women, so that they can take initiaves on enrolments as well on accessing benefits from the schemes.

In this context the project is seeking the services of a Resource Agency for the following scope of work
Scope of Work
The agency would undertake the activities in the following stages:
Stage I: Conduct a rapid assessment to map out the situational realities in the project area to highlight the coverage, efficacies, and impediments in RSBY
Stage II: Undertake Capacity Building through 3 district level sensitization workshops of relevant stakeholders in an attempt to overcome the impediments highlighted through the study at Stage I.

Stage III: Train a cadre of 1000 women in project villages

Stage IV: Process monitoring

Stage I
Agency will be required to conduct a rapid assessment study to map out situational realities in the project area to highlight the coverage, efficacies, and impediments in RSBY. across the three districts (enrolees and eligible non-enrolees). Adequate attention in sampling may be given on the first and second phase districts for RSBY.
Stage II
Agency will be required to link up with the relevant stakeholders and sensitise and capacitate them through 3 workshops on overcoming the impediments highlighted through the study at Stage I. Relevant stakeholders may include People associated with the insurance company (ICICI Lombard), TPA, Government Officials, PHC/CHC staff, Officials from empanelled hospitals, People associated with District Kiosks.
Stage III
Prepare a cadre of capacitated women who in turn act as a change agents for optimizing the benefits of the scheme in project villages. SHG leaders, NGO mobilisers, members of CBOs, ASHA & ANM in the village can be capacitated to take up the task. The main objectives are
• To make the stake-holders contractually responsible of their role in undertaking IEC activities
• To make the stakeholders aware of the scheme, the ‘business case’ in joining the scheme from their own perspective so as to secure their ‘buy in’ to tie-up with the scheme
• To enable community workers, NGOs and other grass-root social organizations to popularize the scheme though appropriate and frequent interactions with the BPL community and their opinion leaders.

Stage IV
Agency will be required to continuously monitor the impact of the interventions, tracing the changes and documenting it and its relevance to social empowerment of women. A compiled report on the impact assessment will be submitted at the end of the contract period.
Deliverables and timelines:
I. Work plan submission (including study plan & methodology)
(within 15 days after signing the contract)
II. Study report
(within 8 weeks of singing of contract)
III. 3 District level Workshops
(within 12 weeks of singing of contract)
IV. 1000 SHG leaders, NGO mobilisers, members of CBOs, ASHA & ANM in the village capacitated.
(within 24 weeks of singing of contract)
V. Process Monitoring report
(within 24 weeks of singing of contract)
Required Expertise
• Demonstrated experience in working with communities on health Finance and risk mitigation issues;
• A minimum of 3 years experience in handling relevant assignments
• Demonstrated expertise in developing the capacity at grass-root level;
• Possessing required documentation and analytical skills – both quantitative and qualitative;
• Established contacts with relevant stakeholders in Uttar Pradesh (including both state and non state actors) will be an added advantage.
Technical Proposal
While submitting the Technical Proposal, the Applicant shall, in particular, ensure to attach the following:
1. Profile of the organization (1/2 page)
(Brief overview of the organization including year of establishment, main areas of expertise (thematic and sector), past client organizations (credentials), last three years’ audited statement of accounts, geographic scope of work and contact information of key focal point).
2. Relevant Experience (1 page)
(Summary of relevant experience. This should include a list of the name of funding agency, nature of technical inputs provided by the Agency, resource allocation, location and duration, initiatives undertaken, geographical coverage, sustainable partnerships and linkages developed at state and sub state levels with state and non state actors, main outcomes of similar interventions, if any, taken in the past and other information that is deemed necessary).
3. CVs of Team Members (attach separately)
(Curriculum Vitae of team members, specifically mentioning their technical expertise, from the Agency’s own organization or external resource persons who will be part of the team. (Note: These members should be available for the assignment.) The CVs shall contain an undertaking from the respective Key Personnel about his/her availability for the entire project duration; and

4. Detailed methodology and conceptual framework with expected deliverables

Financial Proposal
A separate Financial Proposal (containing details of personnel fees, travel, other expected costs, etc.).

The interested agencies are advised to submit technical bids, elaborating on their capacity to undertake the assignment, the approach taken towards the assignment, as well as a timeline indicating milestones. A financial bid shall be submitted in a separate envelope.

RFQ shall be sent to bids.india@undp.org or addressed to the Procurement Division, United Nations Development Programme, 55, Lodi Estate, New Delhi 110003.

Note: Company’s/ Bidders are requested to mention the RFQ Title / the RFQ applied for, in their mail.

Deadline for submission is 5 May 2010, 7 PM, IST.


Download ATTACHMENT
Strengthening Women’s Social, Economic and Political Empowerment in Jaunpur, Mirzapur and Sant Ravidas Nagar of Uttar Pradesh (Add-on Component for the IKEA Social Initiative supported UNICEF Child Rights Project in Uttar Pradesh)