Consultant, Agricultural Education & Training Endline Analysis

Position : Consultant, Agricultural Education & Training Endline Analysis Reports to : Project Manager Location : Remote work with travel to Guinea, Nigeria, and Senegal Period of Assignment : April-August Number of LOE days : 30 days Background The Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) Program, funded globally by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), provides volunteer technical assistance to farmers, agribusinesses, and education and extension providers in developing countries to promote sustainable improvements in the agricultural sector. The F2F Program goal is to generate sustainable, broad-based economic growth in the agricultural sector. The program also contributes to an overarching goal to increase the American publics understanding of international development issues and programs, and international understanding of the United States and U.S. development programs. F2F activities introduce innovation and develop local capacity for more productive, profitable, sustainable, and equitable agricultural systems while providing opportunity for cross-border people-to-people interaction. Since , Winrock has implemented USAIDs F2F Program and our volunteers have completed more than 6, assignments in 59 countries. For additional information, see Winrock leads the implementation of the West Africa Farmer-to-Farmer program (-). F2F has a unique implementation model that engages volunteer experts to provide technical assistance and training to host organizations in the target countries. The West Africa F2F program sends expert U.S. volunteers to Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal to share their knowledge and experience directly with agriculture stakeholders to address critical needs. Post-Covid, some U.S. volunteers engaged remotely, paired with in-person national volunteers within each country. By the end of the program, Winrock expects to mobilize nearly volunteers to provide training and technical assistance to host organizations to support the following focus areas : Improved agriculture education and training (all countries) working with schools, public and private extension providers, and farmers groups to successfully equip a cadre of trainers and young people to address agriculture challenges Rural livelihood development (Guinea & Mali) to expand livelihood opportunities for rural smallholders (particularly women & youth) by enabling them to diversify income streams and meet market expectations Postharvest quality (Ghana & Senegal) to address issues of postharvest waste, quality control, and value addition to increase availability of nutritious foods and food products, improve food safety, and increase incomes For more information, see Purpose of Assignment The objective of the agricultural education and training (AET) Country F2F Project is to strengthen formal and informal AET institutions to recruit and retain qualified faculty and students, mobilize resources, develop partnerships, and continually update and adapt curricula and programming to meet changing labor market needs. These AET providers will institutionalize sustainable mechanisms for upgrading curriculum, improving pedagogy, introducing more experiential learning opportunities, and offering improved services to students and trainees. Our strategy draws on lessons regarding agriculture innovation systems that link the public and private sectors in developing and disseminating market-driven technologies. This work replicated and expanded upon Winrocks previous F2F for AET program (-). The purpose of the AET Endline Analysis is to capture evidence of relevance and coherence, effectiveness, potential impact, and sustainability of each of the F2F country AET projects. Winrock envisions that the consultant will be contracted to produce a final analysis of the projects methods, achievements, results, and learning - both specific to each country and comparing across the region. This consultancy requires field work in rural parts of Guinea, Nigeria, and Senegal to validate and triangulate data collected through a separate final impact assessment exercise, as well as to obtain qualitative input from select host organizations. In general, it should assess : Relevance and coherence : The extent to which the project interventions met the needs of the project beneficiaries. Relevance should also address the extent to which the project was designed taking into account the economic, cultural and political context and existing relevant program activities. Effectiveness : The extent to which the project has achieved its objectives. Effectiveness should also assess the extent to which the interventions contributed to the expected results or objectives. Impact : Assessment of the medium and long-term effects, both intended and unintended, of the F2F project interventions. Effects can be both direct or indirect and positive or negative. To the extent possible, the analysis should assess the extent to which the effects are due to the project interventions and not other factors. For F2F, specific intended effects (to be assessed) include : recruitment and retention of qualified faculty and students, improved pedagogy and teaching or classroom management skills of faculty, mobilization of resources, development of partnerships, and updated curricula and programming - including experiential learning opportunities and integration of business orientation to meet changing labor market needs. Sustainability : Assessment of the likelihood that the benefits of the project will endure over time after the completion of the project. Sustainability should also assess the extent to which the project activities can continue after the end of the project, and the extent to which hosts have developed local ownership of activities and sustainable partnerships. Responsibilities Complete Winrocks Ethical Training before departure to ensure anonymity of data, human subject research concerns (Do No Harm - dignity, right, safety, and privacy concerns), and confidentiality. Become familiarized with the unique F2F implementation model. Review key project documents including, West Africa F2F program Proposal, West Africa F2F Mid-term Report, F2F for AET Final Report , Country F2F Project Strategies, Indicator Data Sheets, Midterm and Final Impact Surveys, Organizational Capacity Index (OCI) (only for Informal AET hosts), Institutional Assessment and Host Plan Formal AET Institutions (only Formal AET hosts), etc. Develop analysis questions in the context of relevance, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability (as outlined above). In collaboration with F2F home office staff, develop a detailed plan for execution of the analysis tasks and final report. Develop interview questions and conduct interview / focus groups with key stakeholders. Present initial findings and recommendations (drawn from own conclusions) to the F2F team. Develop a full report and success stories; Outline to be discussed with the Home Office team. Prepare a 35-page stand-alone technical brief describing the AET activity, analysis design, key findings, impacts, and other relevant considerations that will serve to inform any interested stakeholders of the final analysis. This should be written in language easy to understand and with appropriate graphics and tables. Deliverables : Analysis plan and learning questions Semi-structured survey questionnaire Draft analysis report Virtual presentation of findings Final analysis report in English to Winrock 3-5 page technical brief 3-5 host success stories (one or more for each country) All documents related to the analysis (example : interview notes) Consultant minimum qualifications : Degree in social science, international development, agriculture, agriculture education and training, or related field with focus on research, monitoring and evaluation. 10 years relevant professional experience, with minimum of 5 years of experience with donor-funded development programming. Experience in agriculture education and training strongly preferred. Experience in Africa (particularly West Africa) or other developing country context strongly preferred. Demonstrated experience leading an analysis of a project within the past 5 years. Fluency in English and excellent written and oral communication skills. Fluency in French a plus. Winrock is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all people and value diversity and inclusiveness. Winrock recruits, employs, trains, promotes and compensates regardless of race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, family care status, or any other basis protected by law. At Winrock we have a clear mission : Empower the disadvantaged, increase economic opportunity and sustain natural resources through unwavering dedication to accountability, equity, innovation, integrity and transformation. Winrock knows that its success comes from the hard work and steadfast dedication of its diverse workforce. Winrock remains committed to maintaining diversity, inclusion and equity across the entire organization