Background

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), under the Area of Work “Market Intelligence” in the CGIAR program Breeding for Tomorrow, generates behavioral, social and economic intelligence to foster increased adoption and turnover of improved varieties. In this context, IFPRI is recruiting a consultancy firm to implement a study generating behavioral, social and economic intelligence in Kenya.

The study will employ a lab-in-the-field experimental design, simulating real-world agricultural decision-making scenarios for smallholder farmers in two counties, Machakos and Makueni, which both face semi-arid conditions, limited access to financial markets, and low agricultural technology adoption. The study is designed to evaluate farmers’ investment behavior whilst varying their access to different risk-mitigating tools, specifically seeds of drought-tolerant varieties, index insurance, and pre-approved emergency credit.

The consultancy firm will implement an experimental game using tablets. The game incorporates counterfactual scenarios to evaluate preferences and decisions under different financial constraints. The study targets a total of 252 participants, with each participant expected to take around 1.5 hours to complete the experiment. The work will need to be conducted in the first half of 2025. The consultancy firm will be based in or near Nairobi, Kenya.

To apply, please include a cover letter, company profile, financial proposal, and proposed work plan (including description of the work to be completed, timelines for completing the work, deliverables, and a proposed payment schedule).

Scope of work

• Translate finalized research instruments to local languages spoken in the study locations, especially Kiswahili.
• Recruitment of a field coordinator and enumerators; train enumerators, pilot the experiment, and debrief the study team in Machakos.
• Work with local mobilizers to recruit the targeted 252 study participants from Machakos and Makueni who completed a previous survey.
• Administer the experiment with 252 study participants whilst overseeing data collection and data quality assurance.
• Provide regular updates on fieldwork progress and share data collected at regular intervals with researchers from IFPRI, ILRI and the University of Illinois.

Required qualifications of the consultancy firm / survey team leader

• Demonstrated understanding of the assignment
• Demonstrated experience with similar types of studies
• Demonstrated experience working with international organizations
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Office located within 30 minutes from Nairobi
• Financial and technical proposal work plan that demonstrates value for money

Preferred qualifications

• Previous experience implementing lab-in-the-field experiments in rural Kenya
• Demonstrated knowledge of smallholder farmers’ constraints to adopt technologies
• Ability to work in Machakos and Makueni as demonstrated in the work plan

Application Deadline: February 27, 2025