Food Security and Nutrition Needs Specialist - Consultant

Background:
Welcome to Scofield Associates, your premier research partner in the Horn of Africa. With a steadfast commitment to excellence, we have established ourselves as a leading research firm operating across nine countries in this dynamic and diverse region. Our extensive presence allows us to provide unparalleled insights and comprehensive analysis, tailored to meet the unique needs of our clients. Our expertise spans various sectors, including governance, development, security, and public policy. We pride ourselves on delivering high-quality, evidence-based research that informs decision-making and fosters positive change.

Operating in nine countries across the Horn of Africa, Scofield Associates is strategically positioned to capture the region’s complex realities. Our extensive network and local knowledge enable us to conduct thorough research and provide valuable insights that reflect the nuanced contexts of each country. This broad reach ensures that we remain at the forefront of developments in the region, offering our clients the most relevant and up-to-date information.

At Scofield Associates, we offer a wide range of research services designed to meet the diverse needs of our clients. These include Qualitative and Quantitative Research, Policy Analysis and Development, Program Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, Organization Capacity Assessment, and Big Data Analytics. We employ robust methodologies to gather and analyze data, assist policymakers with evidence-based recommendations, assess the impact and effectiveness of development initiatives, provide training and support to local institutions, and harness the power of big data for comprehensive insights.

Scofield Associates will be submitting an evaluation partner proposal for an upcoming Food Security and Nutrition Program. The Evaluation partner will play the role of a thought partner through the life of the programme (4–5 years), providing leadership on best practices for rigorous evaluations of complex multi-country projects while considering the evaluation approaches, contextual realities, and programmatic experiences in the upcoming program. The program’s goal will be:

To improve food security and contribute to the reduction of malnutrition of at least 5 million women of reproductive age and children in Benin, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Mozambique. The program will also include two strategic objectives:

1. increase access to and consumption of healthy diets.
2. increase the resilience of nutritional situations to price and climate change-related shocks and stresses of household members across the six countries, with a focus on women of reproductive age and children.

To this end, Scofield Associates is seeking technical specialists who will serve as consultants throughout the program. Scofield Associates is looking for two senior consultants per country (Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, & Uganda).

Duties and Responsibilities:

The Consultant will support Scofield Associates as the research partner of the program throughout the life of the program. This will include the assessments and evaluations for program impact on food security and nutrition in the six (Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, & Uganda) countries identified for the project.

Scope of Work:

The Food and Nutrition Security Consultant will work closely and report Scofield Associates Director. In detail, the Consultant, with the support of the Director, will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Conduct relevant surveys and review existing national reports to analyze the food security, poverty and nutrition problems, feasibility assessments and the responses to the national food and nutrition security strategies and policies.
• Evaluate the ongoing projects or initiatives and build on the good and bad experiences and identify gaps which can be incorporated into the Food and Nutrition Security Project.
• Identify key partners, including educational institutes, national/international NGOs, and relevant government ministries in each of the selected countries.
• Develop joint operational strategies for engagement with the stakeholders identified, including the levels of engagement, geographical areas of intervention, roles, and responsibilities of each stakeholder.
• Develop the joint programme framework and an action plan for implementing the Food and Nutrition Security project, in consultation with the identified key stakeholders and donors.
• Propose a coordination and monitoring mechanism for interventions.
• Incorporate the analysis done into the existing Food and Nutrition Security project for donor consideration.
• Support the local evaluation partner in the development of study protocols (including literature review, detailed methodology and justification, sampling strategy, data analysis plan, and data collection tools) for review and approval by the Reference Group.
• Support cross-country research when identified and applicable (including meta-analyses and reporting and publications).
• Support or oversee (as agreed with the Reference Group) all aspects of primary data collection, quality assurance, and data entry, cleaning, management, and analyses conducted by local implementing partners.
• Submit raw and clean datasets, accompanying codebooks, and syntax and output of all data analyses, for all primary data collected. If quantitative data are collected, data documentation must be provided using Nesstar, or a similar data storage program.
• Publish findings of impact evaluations in peer-reviewed journals in collaboration with the Reference Group.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling international values and ethical standards.
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of Scofield Associates.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Treats all people fairly, without favoritism.
• Technical Competencies:
• Analytic capacity and demonstrated ability to process, analyze and synthesize complex technical information.
• Ability to summarize complex information.
• Proven experience in the developing country context and working in different cultural settings.

Communication:

• Communicate effectively in writing to a varied and broad audience simply and concisely.

Professionalism:

• Capable of working in a high-pressure environment with sharp and frequent deadlines, managing many tasks simultaneously.
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills.

Teamwork:

• Projects a positive image and is ready to take on a wide range of tasks.
• Focuses on results for the client.
• Welcomes constructive feedback.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s Degree in Food and Nutrition, Agriculture, International Relations, Economics, Social Science or related.
• PhD in a similar field is an advantage.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years of experience in development issues and projects in Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, & Uganda.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in evaluation, research, writing, communication, and developing communication products, especially project proposal.
• Evidence of reports and journal publications and work in a similar field is required.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in working with international organizations and national governments in the Horn of Africa.
• Strong evaluation, research, communications and writing skills.
• Experience in communication and developing communication products is essential.
• Experience in evaluation research and report and partnership with international organizations and national governments.
• Linkage to an institution of higher learning is an added advantage.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• Knowledge of French is an added advantage

How to Apply:

Interested applicants must submit the following to applications@scofieldassociates.co.ke

• Curriculum vitae that includes references and publication list.
• Cover letter (2 pages Max – explaining how you would go about this role).
• Daily rate payment expectations in USD.

The deadline for submission of the application is on December 1st, 2022, at 1700hrs GMT+3.