Background

The CGIAR research initiative “Ukama Ustawi: Diversification in East and Southern Africa” (UU) and the “Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa” (AICCRA) program, funded by the World Bank, have invested in and partnered with Munda Makeover (MMO), a farm makeover reality TV show broadcast in Zambia that disseminates information on agricultural practices, technologies, and climate at scale and in an entertaining way. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is conducting an impact evaluation of Munda Makeover in 160 pre-selected villages in Kasenengwa, Nyimba, and Petauke districts, Eastern Province.

We are looking for a survey firm or any other local organization to help with two separate components of the impact evaluation.

Component 1: Collect baseline information among 2,560 households in the 160 study villages

Component 2: Organize monthly screenings of two episodes of the Munda Makeover show in 80 study villages

Interested firms are requested to prepare a detailed plan for each component, in addition to a budget. Firms are welcome to apply for both components or for only one of them; it is expected, however, that some cost savings would be achieved when applying for both components, in terms of travel to the villages and interaction with local authorities. Firms should clearly indicate whether they are applying for both components or for a single one.

Scope of Work for Component 1 – Data collection

The firm will conduct household surveys among 16 farming households in each of the 160 pre-selected study villages, for a total of 2,560 interviews. Data will be collected before the end of 2023 and collected on tablets using SurveyCTO or a similar tool. The survey will take about 1 hour to complete and inquire about basic demographic, socioeconomic, and agricultural information. The surveys will be conducted in either English, Nyanja, or other local language, as required. IFPRI will provide a list of 16 households to be interviewed at each study village.

The firm will also send weekly SMS and/or voice messages to all selected farmers in each village, reminding them to watch the MMO show on ZNBC, and including YouTube links of the show to those farmers who were identified as having smartphones, tablets, and/or PCs with internet during the baseline survey.

Scope of Work for Component 2 – Munda Makeover screenings

The firm will conduct screenings of Munda Makeover in 80 of the 160 study villages. Each village will be visited once each month for a screening of 2 Munda Makeover episodes (each episode has an approximate duration of 30 minutes). Screenings should be organized in the afternoon/evening hours (approximately from 4 to 8pm) so as to maximize attendance of farmers, who may otherwise be busy earlier in the day. The screenings will be held between November 2023 and March 2024. The screening organization’s responsibilities will include the following:

• • Scouting for an appropriate location in each village that can comfortably seat at least 20 individuals. If no such location is available indoors, then an outdoor location in the village may be identified.
  • Inviting all households from the village to the screening through the village headman or other local collaborator, as well as through phone calls and/or SMS to households in the village.
  • Arranging for projectors and portable televisions, including batteries or generators to provide power, and other necessary audio-visual equipment for the screenings. At each screening, soft drinks and/or simple snacks should be made available for attending individuals only, to be consumed exclusively during the screening.
  • Ensuring that the screening content can be properly seen and heard. E.g. outdoor screenings should be held after dark or inside a tent to make sure that the content can be properly seen, or shown on a TV if conducted during daylight hours.
  • Taking pictures of each screening event and keeping a digital record of the day, time, total duration, location, and specific MMO episodes shown. This information should be shared with IFPRI within 3 days of every screening.
  • Keeping a digital record of all the people who attend each screening, including their full name and gender, name and gender of the household head, and household identifier (in the case of the 16 households in each village who were selected for the baseline interview in component 1). This information should be shared with IFPRI within 3 days of every screening.
  • Sharing the screening schedule for the upcoming week with IFPRI in advance.
  • If a scheduled screening cannot take place for some reason (such as heavy rains or a funeral in the village), the screening should be rescheduled and held on another day.

Required qualifications of the survey team leader

• • Demonstrated past performance in implementing at least three large-scale household surveys with sample sizes comparable to this survey (2,000 households) and resulting in good-quality data.
  • Demonstrated past performance in conducting fieldwork with development projects in rural Zambia and interacting with local authorities and farmers
  • Previous experience hiring and supervising teams of enumerators and working with computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI) software such as SurveyCTO, Kobo Collect, or others.
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills

Preferred qualifications

• • Agricultural expertise and previous experience with collecting agricultural information from farming households
  • Local presence in Zambia’s Eastern Province and existing ties to local village authorities and farmer communities
  • Previous experience in working with international organizations in development projects

Firms should submit the CV of the project leader, company details, a short description with the proposed fieldwork plan and a detailed budget, while clearly indicating whether they are applying for both components or for a single one.

Application Deadline: October 19, 2023