COASTAL RURAL SUPPORT PROGRAMME TANZANIA – CRSP(T)
TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR A STUDY INVESTIGATING THE IMPACTS OF CRSP(T) RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES IN MTWARA AND LINDI REGIONS FROM A GENDER PERSPECTIVE
1.0 BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION
The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is a non-denominational, not-for-profit, international development agency that promotes sustainable and equitable development in Asia and Africa. The Aga Khan Foundation is part of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), a group of international agencies with specific mandates in health, education, rural livelihoods, private sector development, civil society strengthening and culture.
About 87 percent of Tanzania’s poor population lives in rural areas of which 80 percent depend on small-scale agriculture. Lindi and Mtwara regions are still classified as among the most marginalized and impoverished areas of the country. Population density is low with villages and towns well scattered throughout both regions. Diets remain poor with low consumption of protein, high prevalence of child stunting and many households suffering from food insecurity for a number of months each year.
The Aga Khan Foundation’s (AKF) Coastal Rural Support Programme Tanzania (CRSP (T)) works to contribute to the quality of life and social well-being of households in Lindi and Mtwara regions through sustainable and inter-connected interventions in agriculture, income generation, access to finance, education and health. The programme was started by AKF in 2009, in collaboration with the Government of Tanzania, under its MKUKUTA poverty alleviation programme.
CRSPT was designed from the outset to be led by ‘economic drivers’ that would facilitate uptake, impact and sustainability of social sector interventions later on. Sesame and rice were identified as the two agriculture-based sub-sectors of most potential to be these ‘economic drivers’, along with the facilitation of Community Based Savings Groups (CBSGs) and the promotion of conservation farming practices to underpin long term sustainability.
Since its inception CRSPT has worked extensively with over 50,000 farmers and contributed to improved farming practices, significant increases in yields and income for farmers and better access to markets. Rice yields have tripled and incomes from agricultural produce have doubled in many parts of the programme area, while sesame production has seen modest improvements and high numbers of new producers. Adoption of improved agricultural practices by rice and sesame producers combined with improvements in access to and use of inputs (such as better quality seeds, fertilizer, and agro-equipment) as well as improved linkages with markets are contributing to increased productivity, production volumes and incomes for farmers.
Women are essential to the well-being of households in Lindi and Mtwara regions and constitute a major part of the farming community. It is critical for CRSP(T) to understand the impacts that its FSI programme and approach is having from a gender and youth perspective in order to inform strategy and programming in the agricultural livelihood sector going forward.
Existing knowledge
In 2010, before undertaking their Women and Agriculture (WAA) project, CARE Tanzania carried out a broad gender analysis for Southern Tanzania to identify causes that might hinder women’s empowerment, equitable participation and accrual of benefits through their involvement in agriculture. The study covered existing producer groups in Lindi rural and Nachingwea districts in Lindi region, and Mtwara and Masasi districts in Mtwara region. The CARE study findings show that women and men are not equally rewarded for their contribution to the agricultural system. Women typically have less access and lower incomes despite laws, including the constitution, which promote equal opportunities. Additionally, the study identified traditional and religious norms as critical factors that inform gender relations and the division of labour in households and communities. Women generally have more responsibilities and longer working hours. In addition, in Lindi and Mtwara regions there is a comparatively high level of female-headed households, a below average number of members per farming household and low levels of ownership of farm equipment.
2.0 STUDY OBJECTIVES
The major purpose of the study is to inform AKF strategy and programming in the agricultural livelihood sector in Lindi and Mtwara regions by understanding the effects of the CRSPT rice and sesame production and market development project on gender relations of beneficiary farmers. Further to this, through sharing of study findings with key stakeholders, the Tanzanian government and other development agencies, this learning will inform broader government and donor policy in Tanzania.
The study has four key objectives:
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Evaluate how inclusive and relevant the CRSPT FSI programme and approach is for men, women and youth
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Assess the impacts of both the production and market development-related activities of the CRSPT FSI programme on gender and generational dynamics at farm, household and community level (i.e. on the level of men’s women’s and youth’s workloads in reproductive, productive and social spheres; roles in decision making; degree of access to and control of resources for rice and sesame farming)
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Establish what roles men, women and different generations would like to play in the agricultural livelihood sector
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Based on the findings of the study recommend how CRSPT could adjust its strategy and approach in current and future projects to address these issues and ensure that men, women and youth benefit equitably from CRSP(T) initiatives in southern Tanzania. Identify both opportunities and/or constraints in incorporating these recommendations.
3.0 KEY QUESTIONS
In order to address the above objectives the study will need to consider the questions detailed in table 1 below.
Table 1: Questions to be addressed by the study
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Beneficiary engagement/ involvement
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How inclusive is the programme approach in terms of beneficiary engagement for all genders and generations? Does the programme allow for effective participation of women and youth as beneficiaries and technical people?
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What are the ratios of men and women in terms of CRSPT rural development programmes: rice, sesame and CA PLAR and MAtT trainees and adopters; membership and leadership of Producer Marketing Groups (PMGs), Irrigator Organisations (IOs), Primary Co-operative Societies and CBSGs; Village Based agents (VBAs), Community Based Facilitators (CBFs), project and government field staff (collation of existing data)? Why?
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How does the make-up of our programme staff influence our capacity to deliver messages/engage with different target populations?
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To what extent does the program approach facilitate equal involvement for male, female and young beneficiaries?
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How would men, women and youth like to be involved in the different programme activities?
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What enables women to participate in certain project activities (e.g. training (rice, sesame, CA, PMG, IO, PCS, VBA), exposure visits, field days, demonstration plots) and what prevents them from participating? How does this participation affect their status in the household and community, their work load, control of resources, and meaningful contribution to decisions?
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How can the program adjust its approach to be more gender and age-inclusive?
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Gender and leadership/influence/ decision making
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From a gender and youth perspective, how are CRSPT rural development activities and approaches influencing: access to information and services; ability to speak out; participation in decision making processes; use and control of resources (e.g. financial and land to meet for e.g. agricultural, health, and education needs); participation in leadership; and community perception of women and youth at all stages in the rice, sesame and conservation agriculture programme roll-out?
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Rice/sesame production and marketing
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Overall:
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How have men’s, women’s and youth’s roles and workloads changed at the farm, household and community level in terms of farming activities, crop marketing activities, household activities and decision making as a result of CRSPT FSI interventions?
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How has access to farm inputs, equipment, advice, credit etc changed from a gender and youth perspective at the farm, household and community level as a result of CRSPT FSI interventions?
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How are the benefits of CRSPT FSI interventions distributed in terms of gender and youth?
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What roles would men, women and youth like to play in rice and sesame production and marketing?
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More specifically:
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Household level
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Community level
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Rice/sesame production and conservation agriculture
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How are decisions made re the allocation of farming tasks to the different genders and generations? How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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What are the roles of men, women, and youth in the different production systems (traditional, SRI, SSI and CA)? How have these changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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How much time does each member of the HH invest in rice and sesame growing and in applying CA practices? How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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Are men or women more likely to adopt SRI/SSI/CA practices? (answer available in adoption survey results). Why?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt the technologies promoted to better take account of men’s, women’s, and youth’s needs?
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What are the conditions (e.g. Sex of head of HH, migration, age, health status) within a household make-up that determine:
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who in the household attends SRI/SSI training;
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who takes on which roles in the growing of the crop;
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whether a household adopts improved practices;
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what resources and services related to the production of rice and sesame are used (e.g. inputs, equipment, credit, land, water, advice);
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who controls productive resources
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how decisions are made?
How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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In households adopting new farming practices promoted by CRSPT, how does this affect the way the household operates (the degree to which men and women farm together, decision making process, household chores, resource control, conflict etc). How do households view any changes/ compromises?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt its interventions and the way it works to better take account of men’s, women’s and youth’s needs?
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How does standing in the community influence involvement in CRSPT groups and participation in farming activities?
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How has the participation of men and women in community level activities (voice, role in decision making, leadership etc) changed following participation in CRSPT-related activities?
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How would men, women and youth like to participate at community level?
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Rice/sesame marketing
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What are the roles of men, women and youth in the commercialisation of rice and sesame? How have these changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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What are the benefits of rice and sesame commercialisation and how are these divided between men, women and youth in the same household? How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt its approach to better take account of men’s, women’s, and youth’s needs?
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What are the conditions within a household make-up that determine:
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who takes on which roles in the commercialisation of the crop;
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how the benefits from crop marketing are used by HHs;
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what resources and services related to commercialisation of rice and sesame are used;
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how marketing decisions are made?
How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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What impact has the market development approach had on food security in the household? Why?
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What aspects of the commercialisation of rice and sesame can women not engage in and why? How can this be addressed?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt its approach to better take account of men’s, women’s, and youth’s needs?
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What conditions determine the make-up (gender/age profile) of formal marketing groups and their leadership (PMGs)? Why?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt its PMG interventions and the way it works to better take account of the needs of men, women and youth?
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Irrigation
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How are decisions made re the cropping of irrigable land and by whom? How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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What are the implications at the domestic level of having access to irrigable land?
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How does access to irrigated land by women, and youth compare to men’s access? How has this changed in the last 4 years with the work that CRSPT is doing? Why?
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What conditions determine the make-up (gender/age profile) of irrigator organisations (IOs), their leadership and those undertaking collective actions? Why?
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How could CRSPT adjust/adapt its IO interventions and the way it works to better take account of gender and youth needs?
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4.0 APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY
CRSPT is seeking a consultant or team of consultants with the following qualifications and experience:
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Minimum academic qualification of a Master’s Degree or equivalent, preferably in Social/Socio-Economic Sciences with a specialization in gender studies, development or other related fields
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Experience of conducting gender analysis related to rural agricultural development in Africa and preferably in Tanzania
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Fluent spoken and written English; fluent spoken Swahili an advantage
The consultant/s will be supported by the Manager for Action Research, Monitoring and Evaluation and Communications or her representative who will ensure that all available and relevant background materials are provided and that day to day logistics are arranged. Where possible, during research, CRSPT team members will join the consultant/s to ensure transfer of CRSPT-contextual information, ownership and uptake of learning by CRSPT. The consultant/s will have full responsibility for the undertaking of the study. Note taking during interviews and transcription must be sub-contracted out in order to minimize analysis time.
In order to respond to the objectives of this study it will be necessary to make an in depth study of gender relations and of the perceptions of the different household members around these questions. In order to achieve the necessary depth of understanding qualitative research methods will be required rather than quantitative methods. Qualitative methods are likely to include focus group discussions, structured and semi structured interviews with key informants including CRSP (T) staff, Government of Tanzania staff, farmers, community leaders and other relevant actors.
Prior to conducting the field research the consultant/s will be required to:
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conduct a desktop review of existing information on gender-related issues in the project area; studies conducted by other government and non-government actors working on gender in southern Tanzania; and CRSP(T) strategies, reports and data.
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develop and share with CRSPT for approval: a detailed research plan; a list of people/ groups to be interviewed; selection criteria for these people/groups; a set of questionnaires/ semi-structured interview/ FGD questions based on the study objectives and questions to be answered.
Based on the specified selection criteria, the CRSPT team will suggest locations and people/ groups for interview and provide contact details of the relevant people.
On completion of the field research the consultant is expected to conduct two feedback sessions to present findings: one to CRSP(T) staff, and one to a range of other stakeholders, possibly at national level. In addition to a detailed final report the consultant will develop a summary brief for circulation to a range of stakeholders.
In summary, roles and responsibilities will be as follows:
Study stages
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CRSP(T)
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Consultant/s
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Management
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CRSPT Personnel
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Action Research/M&E
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Definition of study objectives
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X
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X
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X
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Review of existing relevant programme data
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X
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X
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Definition of village and interviewee/group selection criteria
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X
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X
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X
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Identification of locations and people/ groups meeting selection criteria
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X
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X
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X
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Development of research plan
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X
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Development of interview guides
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X
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Validation of research plan and interview guides
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X
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X
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Translation of interview guides
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X
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Pilot of interview guides
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X
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X
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Revision of interview guides following pre-test
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X
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Validation of revised interview guides
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X
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X
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Data collection (including note taking)
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X
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Transcription of research activities in English
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X
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Coding, categorization and content analysis
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X
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Validation of content analysis (including the codes, categories and themes)
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X
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Writing and revision of full and summary reports
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X
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Report review and validation
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X
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X
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5.0 KEY OUTPUTS
The consultant/s will produce the following deliverables:
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Research plan and interview guides - to be approved by CRSPT prior to commencement of the field work
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Village and interviewee/ group selection criteria – at same time as research plan so that CRSPT can make recommendations
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A debriefing presentation to CRSPT management and relevant team members – prior to the end of the in-country mission
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A debriefing presentation to a range of stakeholders either at local or at national level – prior to the end of the in-country mission
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Raw data (recordings), transcribed data (in English); coded and categorized data; results of content analysis – to be shared before the final report is drafted
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Draft full report (to include a table summarizing key findings) – to be submitted within three weeks of the end of the field work for review by CRSPT
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Summary brief/digestible learning paper to disseminate findings and recommendations to varied stakeholders including the development community in Tanzania - to be submitted within four weeks of completion of the field work for review by CRSPT
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Final report and summary brief – to be completed within one week of written feedback received by CRSPT on the draft report
6.0 DURATION OF THE STUDY AND ACTIVITY SCHEDULE
Activity
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Place
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Duration
(days)
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Literature review, briefing on programme activities and required outputs of study
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Normal base well in advance
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3
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Development and validation of research plan, interview guides, village and respondent selection criteria
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Normal base/ southern Tanzania
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2
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Data collection (including piloting of tools)
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Lindi/ Mtwara Regions, southern Tanzania
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15
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Coding and categorization of themes coming out of the qualitative data collected
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Normal base
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4
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Data analysis: content analysis (thematic analysis, evaluative propositions and stereotypes)
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Normal base
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7
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Dissemination workshops CRSPT and wider stakeholders
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Lindi/ Mtwara Regions and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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2
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Draft final report and summary brief
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Normal base
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4
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Final Report and summary brief
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Normal base
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1
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Total
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38
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It is envisaged that the research will be undertaken in November 2015, although the timing is to some degree flexible.
7.0 MODE OF APPLICATION
Interested candidates should submit an application briefly outlining their relevant experience, their understanding of and observations on the assignment, and detailing their proposed methodology. They should attach their CV; a final report from a similar piece of work that they have undertaken; and a budget for the activity (to include daily consultancy rate/s, note taker/transcriber etc; flights, accommodation, food, transport and other costs which will be reimbursable by AKF). If a team of consultants are making a submission, CVs for each member of the team should be included and the report from a previous piece of work undertaken by the lead consultant. Submissions should be sent by email to the Manager for Action Research, Monitoring & Evaluation and Communications not later than 8th September 2015:
Sally Ross
Manager for Action Research, Monitoring & Evaluation and Communications
Coastal Rural Support Programme, Tanzania; sally.ross@akfea.org
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