Job Description

Job Description:

IFPRI seeks a qualified survey firm based in Ethiopia to conduct a midline household survey, which will take place in April 2026.

Background:

Digital Green, with support from HereWeGrow, is implementing a project to improve the incomes of smallholder coffee and maize farmers in Jimma by addressing key constraints to technology adoption and increasing agricultural productivity. The project focuses on increasing the adoption of good agronomic practices through improved extension advisory services and enhanced access to improved technologies and inputs. IFPRI is conducting a midline assessment to evaluate project participation and its effects on intermediate outcomes, including knowledge gains and the adoption of promoted agricultural practices.

The study employs an experimental design and revisit approximately 3,000 households from the baseline survey through in-person interviews across four woredas (i.e., Seka Chokorsa, Mana, Limu Kosa, Shebe Sombo) and 75 kebeles in the Jimma zone. Data collection will consist of a household survey covering household characteristics, productive resources, adoption of good agricultural practices, agricultural production and productivity, intra-household decision-making and gender dynamics, and project participation. We estimate that the survey will take approximately 90 minutes to administer by experienced and well-trained enumerators. Data will be collected using tablets programmed with SurveyCTO. The study will also include a brief kebele-level survey to capture information on demographics, services, infrastructure, and local prices.

Scope of work:

The midline survey will be conducted in the month of April 2026 and the survey firm will be mainly responsible for (but not limited to) the following tasks:

Provide feedback/input on the questionnaire and translation: the midline questionnaires will be developed by the research team at IFPRI and partner organizations (the “IFPRI team”). The survey firm will provide feedback and translate the questionnaire into Amharic and Afan Oromo. The survey firm will also be responsible for coding the questionnaire in SurveyCTO or another survey application agreed upon with IFPRI.
Recruiting, hiring, and managing survey enumerators, supervisors, and coordinator: the survey firm will be responsible for the recruitment of 30 enumerators, 6 supervisors, and 1 survey coordinator—in addition to several alternate candidates.
Organizing enumerators training session to be led by the IFPRI team: the survey firm will be responsible for organizing a 7-day training session (4 days in the classroom plus three pilots) in Jimma. This includes renting the training hall and availing all the necessary materials for the training. The IFPRI team will evaluate each enumerator throughout the training for the understanding of the questionnaires and decide on the final list of enumerators who qualify to take part in the survey. The survey firm will be responsible for organizing three pre-tests/pilots of the survey and a debriefing session in a woreda neighboring the project area in Jimma zone as part of the enumerator training.
Organizing and conducting data collection: organize for data collection among approximately 3,000 households living in four district in the Jimma zone (i.e., Seka Chokorsa, Mana, Limu Kosa, Shebe Sombo), alongside kebele surveys. The organization of data collection mainly includes:
- The rental of 4x4 vehicles to be used for data collection for each survey team and all vehicles shall be insured for all their occupants in case of any injury occurring during transport.
- Organizing the survey logistics and checking the quality of the work performed by enumerators by frequent random visits to enumerators during their fieldwork (spot check), and by the verification of submitted surveys including through conducting back-check surveys with 5% of the sample households.
- Ensuring that the field operations run smoothly and solving any issues related to logistics, tablet computers, and others.
- Ensuring that enumerators upload all collected data onto the SurveyCTO every day.
- Ensuring the interviews meet ethical requirements, including but not limited to the administration of informed consent and maintaining confidentiality of data.
- Conducting a debriefing session at the end of the survey and preparation of a detailed field report.

Deliverables:

Deliverable 1: Survey Preparation and Instrument Finalization: Finalized Amharic and Afan Oromo translations; SurveyCTO-programmed and tested questionnaire; IFPRI-approved pilot-ready survey instrument.
Deliverable 2: Field Team Recruitment and Enumerator Training: Recruited and contracted field team; seven-day enumerator training (classroom and pilots); enumerator performance assessment results; IFPRI-approved final field team list and training and deployment report.
Deliverable 3: Data Collection and Field Operations: Completed household and kebele surveys (~3,000 households); daily SurveyCTO data submissions; and field supervision records including spot checks and ≥5% back-checks.
Deliverable 4: Data Quality Assurance, Reporting, and Close-Out: Cleaned and validated dataset; end-of-survey debriefing records; fieldwork and data quality report; financial and administrative close-out documentation.

Required qualifications of the survey firm:

Documented past performance on the organization and implementation of at least three large-scale household surveys in Ethiopia with a sample size comparable to this midline survey.
The proposed survey team/staff (i.e., enumerators, supervisors, coordinators) should have at least 3 years of university education and experience in at least three rural household surveys conducted with CAPI (preferably using SurveyCTO).
Financial report that shows proficiency in managing and documenting expenditures.
Ability to undertake survey work within the specified timeline.

Preferred qualifications:

Prior experience in conducting rural household surveys with coffee farmers / in coffee producing regions of Ethiopia.

Duration: 4 months (from preparation to completion)

Application documents:

Please include the following (in English) in your application: