Uganda: Consultant - BUILD Program - Gender Assessment, Uganda

BUILD PROGRAM CONSULTANCY

PRIVATE SECTOR-CENTERED (NGO-INSPIRED) GENDER CURRICULUM AND TRAINING MODEL

SCOPE OF WORK

Background

Mercy Corps Uganda, with support from Walmart Foundation, is implementing the Building Women's Incomes through Agricultural training (BUILD) program that strives to catalyze economic prosperity and food security in the four East Acholi districts of Kitgum, Pader, Agago and Lamwo in Northern Uganda. The program complements the USDA-funded RAIN program that aims at increasing the availability of farm-related products and services, along with the skills needed to use them and that are vital to improved agricultural performance and quality of life for smallholder farmers and their families.

BUILD's main focus is on improving access to information, skills and knowledge of smallholder farmers through trainings, and engagement of local community-based organizations to address gender issues and women economic empowerment. BUILD has a target of reaching 60,000 farmers (including 30,000 female farmers) to enhance smallholder production and profitability. BUILD has employed a market systems development approach which means that Mercy Corps takes a facilitative role and seeks to catalyze interactions between market actors (private sector partners) to create a more efficient, vibrant and inclusive market through the creation of increased availability, access and the utilization of products, services and technical information within key agricultural sectors such as tillage, ag-inputs, post-harvest facilities and buyer linkages.

Understanding gender dynamics is integral to the design and implementation of successful market systems development programs. This is especially true in East Acholi, where women are almost entirely responsible for economic production of their household, in addition to tending to the wellbeing of their families. They are involved in the majority of activities along the agricultural value chain including land preparation and planting. Weeding, harvesting and post-harvest handling remain by and large the sole responsibility of women farmers. According to the RAIN Mid-Term Evaluation, the increase in income from improved sales was appropriated and spent by men, even though females contributed over 80% of field work, and exacerbating pre-existent inequalities. Gender equality and power relations in the household require urgent attention; thus the BUILD program has explicit gender objectives.

Program Transition

The initially planned activities of BUILD around agricultural training have ended. With the remaining funds, Mercy Corps is implementing a special project, to use the learnings of BUILD and its sister program RAIN, to develop a training model tailored to the private sector. This will tie into three lessons learned specifically:

1. NGO activity in East Acholi is winding down. The private sector is taking a leading role in area development, providing training to farmers and buying agents. In order to make sure gender is a consideration, NGOs need to make a compelling business case for interventions that promote gender equality. The inclusion of a gender module in the overall training package delivered to farmers needs to be linked to increased profitability.
2. The private sector needs more precise trainings with specific messaging that would be relatively easy for an employee or input/output agent to provide and audiences of a low literacy background to comprehend. Current gender trainings are often extremely intensive and require a gender technical expert, not conducive to the private sector.
3. While fitting the above criteria, private sector-friendly training models must be effective at driving behavioral change around gender dynamics.

Our work through BUILD has taught us that while the private sector has potential to drive behavioral change, we have yet to create a behavioral change platform that is suited to a private sector company. The platform needs to be effective, yet scalable and appropriate for a private sector company, with a focus on larger-scale agricultural buying companies.

Our ultimate goal is to create a low-cost, efficient method of gender behavior change in the agriculture private sector and larger agent network/farming communities. Ideally, the gender training model increases private sector profitability so would be easier to scale in the future.

Consultancy Overview

The Consultancy will develop a scalable private sector-friendly curriculum and training model that will influence gender dynamics at the company and the company's network of agents and farmers. Likely the company will have the ability to reach 60,000 farmers through its agent network. The Consultant should be a curriculum development expert who has a deep understanding of gender dynamics as well as how private sector partners operate. The Consultant will be expected to develop the curriculum and training model in partnership with private sector partners, in line with the following:

1. Understanding what triggers would lead to behavioral change at the company and its network of agents and farmers;
2. Skill level of the employees and agent network at the private buying company;
3. How this training model would increase profitability.

After gaining an understanding of the above, the Consultant will be expected to define the specific topics of the curriculum and training model. Some topics of the curriculum might specifically address the staff and internal network at a private sector partners, and other topics might specifically address the wider community of farmers and agents affiliated with the private sector partner. These could include any of the following: the value of women farmers as customers/farmers/agents; women's role in farming; joint household decision-making around spending and savings; etc. Identifying the specific topics should also match previous research conducted by Mercy Corps around the major gender-related challenges in the area.

Wherever possible, the curriculum and training model should pull from international best practice around gender training in agriculture in similar contexts, while building off of the work of Mercy Corps Acholi. In addition, the module needs to step away from classroom-style training and use more innovative learning methodologies, adapted to audiences with low levels of literacy. On other programs, Mercy Corps has been exploring options with video, mobile technology and other platforms that should be aligned with the Consultant's recommendation on the training model. Mercy Corps has found that visual aids for trainings are an essential component to the audience successfully retaining information. Videos have been a useful tool to incite discussion around agronomy, financial literacy and other topics. With this curriculum and training model, we are looking to build on previous work and expand to additional innovations around learning platforms and technology.

The Consultant will be expected to develop an indicator/measurement plan for a pilot, as well as the specific tools (questionnaires, surveys, etc.) that the Mercy Corps team would use to measure the success of the pilot. The indicator plan should also include profitability markers for the private company. The curriculum and training model will be tested by Mercy Corps staff at one of our partner buying companies. Following the pilot, the Consultant will be expected to make revisions to finalize the curriculum and training model based on learnings from the pilot.

Key Deliverables

The Consultant will be responsible for:

• Comprehensive work plan submitted within 5 days after contract award including;

• Revised project timeline, including best dates to travel to the field.

• Key interview questions for private sector partner.

• Suggested improvements to project scope.

• Options for curriculum platform/learning technology and visual format presented. This will help Mercy Corps plan additional service providers, i.e. curriculum designers for mobile technology, if needed.

• A brief on the top 25 key messages for gender behavioral change for the curriculum. Key messages should be identified based on linkages to profitability and importance to the community (as defined by community leaders, gender experts, and NGOs, including Mercy Corps).

• Each message should be accompanied by a detailed definition and/or explanation and the reason for its prioritization.

• First draft of the curriculum and training model, prior to the pilot for review. This should include the specific details of the curriculum platform/learning technology that will be used.

• Training model should include an indicator/measurement plan as well data collection tools that should be utilized to determine effectiveness of the training model.

• First draft will be presented to Mercy Corps and private sector partner(s) for feedback.

• Second draft of the curriculum and training model for the pilot, based on feedback.

• If Consultant has this experience, transfer of curriculum to curriculum platform/learning technology.

• Training for Mercy Corps and private sector company staff on the Second Draft of the curriculum and training model, including the indicator/measurement plan and data collection tools.

• Final version of the curriculum and training model based on findings of pilot.

Role of Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps' responsibilities in this study include the following:

1. Provision of the necessary documents for review, including all previously-conducted studies on gender and agriculture in Acholi.
2. Connection to selected farmers, private sector actors and facilitation of meetings/calls where needed.
3. Avail team members in the planning, execution and discussions, whenever needed.
4. Program Manager, Agriculture Extension Team, Gender Officer, Deputy Program Director and Regional Gender Advisor will provide input and guidance, as needed, to ensure Consultant has the needed information and resources. Key check in points for these discussions are defined below.
5. Provide transport in-country, including travel to/from airport and to/from field.

Project Timeline

The project will be conducted in October- November 2016, for a duration not exceeding 29 working days, some of which will be in-country and some of which can be done remotely.

Activity

No of days

Remote Work

· Program documents shared with consultant

· Preliminary documents review

· Work Plan, Interview Questions submitted for review

· Options for curriculum platform/learning technology presented

3 days

Kitgum Field Work

· Interviews with the private sector company (these can start remotely) (3)

· Identify key messages for curriculum and training model (1)

· Draft curriculum and training model, including indicator/measurement plan and data collection tools (5)

· Present curriculum and training model to team for feedback (1)

· Revised curriculum and training model (5)

· Potentially, translate curriculum into another technology platform (Ideally can be done by consultant (5); if not, Mercy Corps will engage another service provider)

· Train Mercy Corps staff and private company staff/network on the training curriculum and indicator/measurement plan (1)

· Ensure that team is prepared for the pilot

21 days (if Consultant can transfer the curriculum to the learning technology)

16 days, if not

Remote Work

· Analyze data from the pilot (1)

· Make final revisions to curriculum and training model + technology platform, if possible (4)

5 days

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Gender and women studies, sociology, international development, rural development or other related field required.
• Substantial experience in women, gender and development issues, agriculture, livelihoods and food security issues in the Acholi sub-region and/or rural agricultural areas in Africa required.
• Demonstrated success in designing curricula and training models that have led to gender-related behavioral change.
• Deep understanding of private sector companies, specifically in agriculture, is necessary.
• Entrepreneurial capacity to be continually adaptive is a must.
• Ability to transfer curriculum onto a technology platform, including video, mobile technology, is a PLUS.
• Strong monitoring, evaluation and learning background is a PLUS.
• Experience training others in gender awareness and social inclusion a plus.
• Strong written and verbal communications is required.
• Must be independent but collaborative, willing to share thoughts and ideas, and able to give constructive feedback to Mercy Corps team.
• Demonstrated cultural sensitivity, particularly in multi-ethnic and multi-religious contexts.

Reports to: Senior Program Manager in Kitgum

Works closely with: Director of Programs; Gender Officer; Senior MEL Manager and MEL team; Agriculture Extension Team

PI95142578

Apply Here: http://www.Click2Apply.net/c98rj3jvch

Apply Online