Background

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRis seeking a consultant(who can provide background information on local agrifood value chains in Ethiopia. The main output for this consultant would be a report detailing the value chains, and a presentation summarizing the results. This report will be led by the consultant but may be coauthored with the IFPRI research team. The consultant will maintain close communication with the IFPRI research team to ensure that the resulting report is satisfactory and complements parallel work in other countries. The work will be conducted over a period of about two months.

Scope of work

The consultant will first advise on the selection of 68 agrifood value chains for the focus of this report. These value chains should include a mix of types: both domestically targeted value chains and internationally targeted value chains, government priority value chains, and traditional, transitional, and modern value chains that have strong prospects for future growth.

The consultant will then produce a report following the outline provided by IFPRI researchers. The report will follow a standard format used across four countries. As such, IFPRI researchers will provide the final outline to the consultant before beginning work.

IFPRI has a history of conducting extensive research on agrifood value chains within Ethiopia (see, e.g., the Ethiopia Strategy Support Program). The consultant will integrate relevant findings from this existing IFPRI research and include insights from important nonIFPRI research in the report. The objective of the report is, therefore, to summarize both existing findings produced by IFPRI researchers and relevant information from external sources.

Note that we are not expecting extreme levels of detail. For topics where data is readily available, referencing values and numbers is desired. However, IFPRI recognizes that data may not be available and does not expect the consultant to conduct any data collection or field work of their own for this project. For these topics without available data, the consultant’s existing expertise and experience working on these themes can be used as the basis for a response instead though the source of these assessments should be acknowledged clearly in the report. Phone or inperson interviews with easily accessible experts can contribute the analysis needed for this report. A short bibliography of highly relevant existing reports or research on these agrifood value chains should also be included at the end of the report.

The IFPRI research team will make themselves available to the consultant throughout the project wherever further guidance is needed. The consultant will be expected to respond to the needs and maintain communication with the IFPRI research team throughout the project, following the schedule of Key Milestones below. This includes email and phone updates. The IFPRI research team will provide feedback on each Milestone within three business days of receipt, upon previous agreement.

Key Milestones:

1. Launch meeting/discussion (date to be determined in collaboration with the consultan.
2. List of the 68 value chains (two weeks late.
   • Receive feedback from IFPRI research team.
3. Draft of first value chain (one week late.
   • Receive feedback from IFPRI research team.
4. Completed draft of report (three weeks late.
   • Receive feedback from IFPRI research team.
5. Back and forth with IFPRI research team on the final report.
6. Report finalized and submitted (roughly two months after the launch of the projec.

Deliverables:

1. Workplan and list of value chains to be studied and agreed upon with IFPRI team.
2. Draft of first value chain.
3. Revised draft of first value chain.
4. Drafts of remaining value chains.
5. Revised drafts of remaining value chains.
6. Drafts of introduction and conclusion.
7. Revised drafts of introduction and conclusion.
8. Final report.
9. Summary PowerPoint presentation.

Required qualifications of the consultant / survey team leader

• A minimum of 3 years of experience conducting research related to digital finance and/or agrifood value chains in Ethiopia.
• Fluency in English and able to communicate verbally and in writing with IFPRI researchers.
• Established connections with existing researchers and relevant policy organizations within Ethiopia.

Preferred qualifications

• Proven track record of collaboration with international organizations and donors.

To apply: Please send a short expression of interest that includes the following: a summary of relevant experience, a proposed plan for conducting the case study, a proposed budget, and a CV. Email Jeff Bloem (j.r.bloem@cgiar.org) or Kate Ambler (k.ambler@cgiar.org) with any questions.

Application Deadline: November 1, 2024