RFP for onboarding agency for Impact Evaluation and SROI + ESG Assessment for Project Balvardhan – Nand Ghar

Request for Proposals (RFP)

Title: Impact Evaluation and Social Return on Investment (SROI) + Environmental Social and Governance ESG Assessment for Project Balvardhan – Nand Ghar

About Anil Agarwal Foundation (AAF), Vedanta Limited

Vedanta Limited is a diversified natural resources and technology company with operations spanning India, South Africa, Liberia, and Namibia. At its core, Vedanta believes in enabling social transformation by uplifting communities and contributing to nation-building.

Through the Anil Agarwal Foundation (AAF), Vedanta has pledged an investment of INR 5,000 crores over five years to implement social development programs focusing on healthcare, nutrition, early childhood and women’s development, animal welfare, and grassroots sports. AAF serves as the umbrella for all Vedanta’s social responsibility initiatives with a vision to foster resilient, inclusive communities across India.

About Nand Ghar

Nand Ghar, a flagship initiative of AAF, revitalizes the traditional Anganwadi system by establishing state-of-the-art centers that provide integrated services including digital early childhood education, nutritional support, primary healthcare, and livelihood training for women. It aims to support 7 crore children and 2 crore women through modernization of 14 lakh Anganwadis across the country.

Vision & Mission

Nand Ghar envisions a future where no child suffers from malnutrition, all children have access to foundational learning, and women are empowered economically and socially through skill development and support systems. For more information, please visit www.nandghar.org.in  

Project Balvardhan Overview

Project Balvardhan is a focused systems led intervention under Nand Ghar in the state of Rajasthan, with an emphasis on Dholpur district. The initiative enhances integrated service delivery within Nand Ghars, aligning closely with national programs such as Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0 and Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi. The objective is to holistically address nutritional deficits (0–6 years) and improve learning outcomes (3–6 years), using a systems-based approach.

This evaluation aims to measure both the short-term and long-term impact of Project Balvardhan, with a special focus on Social Return on Investment (SROI) to understand the value generated per rupee spent, factoring in social, economic, environmental, and governance impacts. Since its launch on 25th April 2025, the project has entered the early stages of implementation, focusing on foundational activities and systems setup. For more details on Balvardhan, please see the Annexure.

Objectives of the Evaluation

Nand Ghar seeks a third-party agency to conduct a comprehensive impact evaluation and SROI/ESG analysis, which will:

• Assess the trend reduction in malnutrition among children attending Nand Ghars.
• Evaluate school readiness and early learning outcomes in the 3–6 age group.
• Assess changes in behaviors among parents and caregivers, alongside a review of service delivery mechanisms, outreach approaches, and community engagement activities such as awareness sessions, community meetings, and health camps.
• Analyze how Nand Ghars serves as catalysts for community empowerment.
• Capture intended and unintended, direct and indirect impacts.
• Quantify social, economic, and environmental value created in proportion to the investment.
• Assess engagement with and feedback from key stakeholders using mixed-method tools.
• Incorporate ESG parameters within the SROI methodology.
• Compare project data with baseline and control groups and secondary government data (e.g., ICDS MIS, NFHS, Panchayat records).

The selected agency is expected to draw upon recognized impact evaluation and ESG frameworks such as OECD-DAC, Theory of Change, SROI, GRI Standards, SDG indicators, and the Impact Management Project to ensure a holistic, credible, and globally benchmarked analysis.

Project Scope and Geography

• Location: Dholpur, Rajasthan
• Stakeholder Groups:
  • Primary - Children (0–6 years), adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women, eligible couples and family members.
  • Secondary – PRI members, ICDS and health functionaries/ officials and frontline workers (AAA)

Scope of Work

Participate in the project inception phase to co-design the Theory of Change, indicators, baseline tools, and outcome tracking frameworks in close collaboration with Nand Ghar’s program team. Join strategy and review meetings to co-develop methodology, tools, and sampling plans. Support the co-development of tech-enabled M&E systems (e.g., mobile tools, dashboards, data visualization) to track live project progress.

1. Impact Evaluation
   1. Define KPIs in collaboration with Nand Ghar team.
   2. Develop and deploy mixed-method data collection tools (quantitative + qualitative).
   3. Evaluate impacts across education, health/nutrition, caregiver behavior, and community-level change. 
   4. Compare data against baseline, and secondary data sources, desk review etc.
   5. Identify enabling and limiting factors and provide recommendations for program improvement.
   6. Address data privacy and obtain informed consent. Conduct at least two capacity-building workshops for implementation agencies on impact data collection, ethical field practices, and ESG sensitization.

1. SROI & ESG Analysis
   1. Conduct stakeholder mapping and in-depth engagement. Include participatory tools (e.g., Most Significant Change stories, community scorecards, or social mapping) to incorporate beneficiary voice into evaluation.
   2. Quantify benefits using accepted proxies (e.g., DALYs, income gains, education indices).
   3. Estimate financial, environmental, and social value generated by calculating the SROI ratio and provide strategic guidance to increase long-term returns.
   4. Prepare a comprehensive ESG + SROI report

Deliverables

• Inception Report outlining methodology, tools, indicators, timeline, and risk mitigation.
• Baseline Evaluation Report with detailed KPIs, methodology, and data tables (to be submitted within the first quarter).
• Evaluation will follow three major milestones: Baseline, Midline, and Endline. SROI ratio and ESG findings will be updated iteratively.
• Impact Evaluation Report covering analysis, ESG lens, and recommendations.
• SROI Analysis Report with financial proxies, ESG integration, SROI ratio.
• ESG Annexure (covering infrastructure sustainability, social inclusion, and governance mechanisms).
• Quarterly Learning Briefs (2–3 pages) capturing insights, bottlenecks, and community stories for strategic reflection. Presentation of key insights and data to senior leadership and stakeholders.
• Data Sets and anonymized field data for review.
• Dissemination Plan for stakeholder and public sharing.

Other considerations:

• The agency shall be responsible for ensuring the integrity of the data collected for the assessments.
• The agency will be responsible for ethical clearance (especially for child surveys) for impact evaluation.
• Use geotagging to help visualize reach and identify under-served clusters.
• Pre-test tools in the field before deployment.
• Submit all relevant raw data, including interview transcripts, audio recordings, audiovisual content, and photographs, as applicable.

Eligibility Criteria

• Proven experience in independent third-party evaluations and SROI assessments for CSR interventions. Familiarity with ESG evaluation in social development contexts.
• Knowledge of early childhood education, maternal and child nutrition, public health and community-based programs.
• Capacity for large-scale field research with multi-lingual, gender-sensitive tools. Ethical research credentials and data protection protocols.
• Prior work with government, CSR bodies, or multilateral agencies.

Documents to be Submitted

1. Organizational profile
2. Copies of certifications (whichever applicable): 80G, 12A, 12AA, 10(23C), 10AB, PAN, TAN
3. Authorized signatory cover letter
4. Registration certificate
5. Capability statement
6. Child protection policy
7. Board of Management list
8. POSH Policy
9. GST Certificate / No GST Declaration
10. Past relevant project portfolio
11. Last 3 years’ audited financials and audit reports
12. Last 3 years’ IT returns
13. Cancelled cheque
14. Annual reports (last 3 years)
15. Proposed M&E framework
16. Activity Timeline and Gantt Chart
17. Financial Proposal
18. Team structure and CVs
19. Certificates of recognition or awards (e.g., government letters)
20. Any other relevant supporting documents

Proposal Submission Instructions

Technical Proposal:

• Detailed methodology for impact and SROI& ESG evaluation.
• Team structure, qualifications, and CVs.
• Timeline and Gantt chart with clear phases.

Financial Proposal:

Indicative Budget for Impact Evaluation (As per CSR Rules, Govt. of India): In accordance with Rule 8(3)(ii) of the Companies (CSR Policy) Amendment Rules, 2021, the cost of conducting an impact assessment may be booked under CSR with a maximum budget ceiling of INR 50 Lakh.

Note to Applicants: Proposals exceeding the prescribed CSR threshold (INR 50 lakh or 5% of CSR budget) may be disqualified unless explicitly justified for co-financing/multiyear assessments. Agencies are encouraged to adopt cost-effective, ethical, and tech-enabled approaches (e.g., mobile data tools, remote monitoring) to remain within budget. Cost breakdown (fieldwork, reporting, staff time, travel, tech tools) with Justification for all budget components.

Supporting Documents:

• Relevant project reports.
• References and testimonials from past clients.
• ESG assessment experience (preferably in health/nutrition or education).

Project Duration & Timelines

• Project Duration: 2 years (with a possible 1-year extension)
• RFP Release Date: 20.5.2025
• Deadline for Queries: 26.5.2025
• Proposal Submission Deadline: 6.6.2025

Payment Terms:

• Final inception report: 20% of total value
  • 70% on Successful completion of approved methodology, sampling, indicators, timeline, testing of tools, and risk mitigation etc.
  • 30% on submission of approval of final report
• Submission of baseline report: 20% of total value
  • 50% on draft report
  • 50% on approval of final report.
• Submission of midline report: 20%
  • 50% on draft report
  • 50% on approval of final report.
• Submission of impact report: 30% of total value
  • 50% on draft report
  • 50% on approval of final report.
• Submission of final SROI & ESG report: 10% of total value

Terms and Conditions

• Nand Ghar reserves the right to accept or reject proposals without assigning reasons.
• All intellectual property developed under the project shall remain with Nand Ghar. All data, tools, and reports developed shall remain the intellectual property of Nand Ghar. The agency may publish results in academic or public platforms only with prior written permission.
• Agencies must adhere to Nand Ghar branding, communication, and data confidentiality guidelines.
• Use of the Nand Ghar logo requires prior written approval.
• ESG, SROI, and impact data will be treated as confidential and must be submitted to Nand Ghar at project closure.

Submission Instructions

Proposals must be emailed to Mohd. Arshlan (Muhammed.arshlan@vedanta.co.in) with the subject line: “Proposal for Impact Evaluation and SROI + ESG Assessment – Project Balvardhan”

Late submissions will not be entertained.

Annexures

• Balvardhan Project Details
• Scope of Work (SOW)
• Technical Bid Evaluation (TBE) Matrix
• Budget Format Template

To download the full RFP, click here

To download the TBE criteria, click here

To download the Financial Outlay, click here

To download the SoW, click here

To download the SoW (2), click here

Tags Children and Childcare Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Education and Education Technology (edtech)