Background:

IFPRI, in collaboration with Digital Green is implementing a series of learning experiments on the impact of digital tools/innovations on agricultural extension and advisory services in Ethiopia. One of the recent experiment tested the impact and cost-effectiveness of two variants of famer-learning videos (i.e., topic specific vs. comprehensive) on adoption of wheat production technologies. In the endline survey of this experiment, we embedded an information and measurement experiment that provide farm households with objective measure of land area and an equipment that they can use to measure the fertilizer quantity they apply on a given plot. IFPRI is planning to undertake a follow-up survey to assess: (i) farm households’ response to objective measures of their land area, and (ii) the potential of addressing misperception associated with land area and access to improved measurement methods for fertilizer quantity in improving farm management practices (e.g., input allocation).

The follow-up survey rely on the measurement experiment, in which 960 farm households will be surveyed in-person from 16 districts in Amhara, Oromia, and SNNP regions. The follow-up survey will mainly consist of farm household background characteristics; land use; crop production and utilization; access to extension and advisory services; adoption of inputs and production methods; and preferences. The farm household survey will be administered on tablets. IFPRI is seeking a qualified survey firm based in Ethiopia to conduct the follow-up data collection.

Scope of work:

The follow-up survey will be conducted in the month of December 2023 and January 2024 and the survey firm will be mainly responsible for (but not limited to) the following tasks:

• • Obtain all permissions or authorizations required to complete the follow-up survey (activities described below).
  • Develop a logistics / implementation plan to be approved by the research team.
  • Provide feedback/input on the questionnaire and translation: the follow-up questionnaires will be developed by the research team at IFPRI. The survey firm will provide feedback and translate the questionnaire into Amharic and Afan Oromo.
  • Program survey instruments: the survey firm will be responsible for programming surveys and other data collection materials in a CAPI program agreed upon by IFPRI, extensively test all data collection tools and respond to comments from the research team.
  • Recruiting, hiring, and managing survey enumerators, supervisors, and coordinator: the survey firm will be responsible for the recruitment of 20 enumerators, 4 supervisors, and 1 survey coordinator—in addition to several alternate candidates. The enumerators should have at least three years of university education, experience in at least three rural household surveys, and be at ease with working with computer assisted data collection software such as SurveyCTO.
  • Organizing enumerators training session to be led by the IFPRI team: the survey firm will be responsible for organizing a 4-day training session (3 days in the classroom plus 1 piloting/pretesting day). This includes renting the training hall and availing all the necessary materials for the training. The IFPRI team will evaluate each enumerator throughout the training for understanding of the questionnaires and decide the final list of enumerators who qualify to take part in the survey. The survey firm will be responsible for organizing pre-tests/pilots of the survey in a rural area (outskirts of Addis Ababa) as part of the enumerator training.
  • Organizing and conducting data collection: organize for data collection among 960 rural farm households living in 16 districts in Amahra, Oromia, and SNNP regions. The organization of data collection mainly include:
    • The rental of four 4×4 vehicles to be used for data collection and all vehicles shall be insured for all its occupants in case of any injury occurring during transport.
    • Organizing the survey logistics and checking the quality of the work performed by enumerators by frequent random visits to enumerators during their field work, and by the verification of submitted surveys.
    • Ensuring that the field operations run smoothly and solving any issues related to logistics, tablet computers and others.
    • Ensuring that enumerators upload all collected data onto the SurveyCTO every day.
    • Ensuring enumerators address data issues coming from high frequency checks.
    • Ensuring the interviews meet ethical requirements, including but not limited to administration of informed consent and maintaining confidentiality of data.
    • Conducting a debriefing session at the end of the survey and preparation of a detailed field report.

Required qualifications of the consultant / survey firm:

• • Documented past performance on the organization and implementation of at least three large-scale household surveys in Ethiopia with a sample size comparable to this baseline survey.
  • The proposed survey team/staff (i.e., enumerators, supervisors, coordinators) should have at least 3 years of university education and experience of at least three rural household surveys conducted with CAPI.
  • Financial report that shows proficiency in managing and documenting expenditures.
  • Ability to undertake survey work within the specified timeline.

Preferred qualifications:

• • Prior experience in conducting agricultural technology adoption surveys.

Duration: 3 months (from preparation to completion)

Application documents:

Please include the following (in English) in your application:

1. 1. Cover letter
   2. Technical proposal with detailed budget

Application Deadline: December 5, 2023