Background and context

• The Saharawi refugee population has been living in protracted displacement for many years in five camps, each with several dairas and a network of primary health facilities. Despite longstanding efforts, malnutrition and anemia remain priority concerns, particularly among women and children.
• Over the past decades, many activities have taken the form of information or awareness campaigns (lectures, posters, one-way messages). These have sometimes produced limited change in behavior and, in some groups, a sense of saturation or low interest.
• The project seeks to strengthen Behavior Change Communication (BCC), which goes beyond providing information. BCC:
• Starts from the real perceptions, constraints and motivations of people;
  
• Uses interactive, participatory methods;
  
• Adapts content and channels to different segments of the population;
  
• Aims for more sustainable changes in behavior.

Objective of the assignment

• To design and support a BCC approach on malnutrition and anemia that:
• Is rooted in a preliminary understanding of current practices and barriers in the camps, addresses the varied needs of different groups (e.g. mothers, adolescents, pregnant women, men, elders),
• Mobilizes women leaders and community structures as key actors,
  
• Can be implemented and monitored with realistic effort by MLRS and MoH
• Scope of work and main tasks
  
• The selected consultant or organization will:
  
• Understanding behaviors and context
  
• Review available documents, previous assessments and staff experience regarding food practices, perceptions of anemia and malnutrition, and previous campaigns.
• If necessary, conduct a limited, focused exploration (e.g. short discussions, key informant interviews, mini focus groups) to:
• understand how families make food decisions in current conditions;
  
• Identify main perceived causes and consequences of anemia and malnutrition;
  
• Detect barriers and facilitators to preventive behaviors;
  
• Capture different views between age and gender groups.
  
•  Summarize key findings in a short note highlighting relevant behavioral insights and
  
• what they imply for BCC design (what to emphasize, what to avoid, how to framemessages).

Design of BCC strategy

• With MLRS and MoH, define:
  
• Priority behaviors to promote (e.g. using available iron-rich foods, adherence to supplements, early care-seeking for warning signs);
• Primary and secondary audiences;
  
• BCC channels and methods best suited to camp realities (small group discussions, peer sessions, home visits, sessions attached to clinic visits, etc.).
• Develop a brief BCC strategy document with clear objectives, audiences, key messages and planned delivery methods and intensity.
• Development of BCC tools
  
• Draft simple, clear messages in Arabic/Hassaniya, avoiding technical language and moralizing tone.
• Develop or adapt interactive tools, such as:
  
• Discussion guides for small groups;
  
• Simple stories or examples;
  
• Low-cost visual aids that help structure dialogue.
  
• Pilot test these tools with a small sample of community members, adjust content and format based on their feedback.
• Support to preparation and implementation
  
• Design and support orientation sessions for women leaders and community facilitators, covering:
• The logic of BCC (listening, dialogue, negotiation);
  
• Main messages and tools;
  
• Tips for handling questions, resistance or sensitive topics.
  
• Provide simple monitoring formats so that facilitators can record when, where and with whom sessions are conducted, and note main issues raised.
• Provide remote or short in-person support to MLRS during initial implementation, if needed.

Documentation and recommendations

• Prepare a brief implementation summary (what was done, participation levels, common questions, emerging themes).
• Provide practical recommendations for future BCC cycles (duration, intensity, integration with other services, capacity gaps).

Expected deliverables

• Behavioral/context note for BCC design.
  
• BCC strategy document (objectives, behaviors, audiences, channels).
  
• Set of BCC tools (messages, discussion guides, visuals).
  
• Outline and materials for orientation/training of women leaders and facilitators.
  
• Simple monitoring formats and a brief implementation/lessons-learned note.

Required profile

• For individual consultants:
  
• Background in health promotion, communication, nutrition or social sciences.
  
• Experience in BCC or community mobilization, preferably in humanitarian or refugee settings.
• Strong ability to work in Arabic/Hassaniya and adapt content to local culture
• For firms / organizations:
  
• Demonstrated capacity to design and/or implement BCC or community-based communication approaches in health, nutrition or related areas. This capacity can be
• shown through:
  
• Prior organizational projects, and/or
  
• The experience of proposed staff in similar assignments, including work conducted before joining the current organization.
• Ability to provide a team including at least:
  
• one BCC / health promotion specialist with experience in behavior-oriented communication (not only information campaigns);
• one person with solid experience working directly with communities, preferably with women’s groups and vulnerable populations in low-resource settings.
• Familiarity with participatory, dialogue-based methods and with adapting messages to different audience segments (age, gender, level of literacy).
• Capacity to develop simple, field-ready materials (discussion guides, visuals, monitoring formats) and to test and adjust them based on community feedback.
• Organizational arrangements to ensure consistent quality across different camps/wilayas (common approach, shared tools, internal review of key products) and to document lessons learned for MLRS and the Ministry of Health.

Submission of proposals

• Interested individual consultants and firms/organizations are invited to submit a technical proposal and a financial proposal.

Technical proposal

• The technical proposal should include at least:
  
• A brief description of the understanding of the assignment and proposed approach.
• A short workplan and indicative timeline.
• Profiles and CVs of the proposed expert(s).
  
• For firms/organizations, a short description of the organization and relevant experience or capacity.

Financial proposal

• The financial proposal should:
  
• Present a clear total cost for the assignment.
  
• Indicate the main budget lines or unit costs (fees, travel, per diems, communication, other direct costs as relevant).
• Specify the currency used.

Format and language

• Proposals should be submitted in English or Spanish.
  
• Proposals should be sent in PDF format, and MO Word format. 

Submission address and deadline

• The email subject line should clearly indicate the assignment title, for example:
• Proposal Name of consultant or firm
• The deadline for submission is: 27/01/2026

Note:

• MLRS reserves the right to request additional information, conduct interviews or clarification meetings, and negotiate technical and financial aspects before final selection.