Nutrition National Consultant, NO-C Abuja

The main purpose of the assignment is to systematically collect and analyze benchmarking data before the intervention in Nangere and Shani, which will be used to measure the progress of the pilot activities during the course of implementation, and provide information which can be used to explain variance in different intervention modalities which include WASH, Education, Health and Nutrition, social protection, Food security and Livelihoods where beneficiaries receive complete package or partial packages. Two INP LGAs (one in Borno and one in Yobe) will also be selected to serve as the counterfactual or control for the pilot LGAs.

Purpose of assignment

The main purpose of the assignment is to systematically collect and analyze benchmarking data before the intervention in Nangere and Shani, which will be used to measure the progress of the pilot activities during the course of implementation, and provide information which can be used to explain variance in different intervention modalities which include WASH, Education, Health and Nutrition, social protection, Food security and Livelihoods where beneficiaries receive complete package or partial packages. Two INP LGAs (one in Borno and one in Yobe) will also be selected to serve as the counterfactual or control for the pilot LGAs.

Specific Project Objective to which the Consultancy is created:

To finalize the methodology and tools to be used for the baseline survey; collect baseline data which will be used as benchmark for measuring the performance of the multisectoral pilot phase of the project and to establish or validate the indicator targets described in the project’s logical framework

Major Tasks to be accomplished: (estimated time required to complete tasks. Attach additional sheets, if necessary, to describe assignments)

The consultant in collaboration with National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is expected to define a methodology which will utilize a mixed-methods approach for the baseline survey for multisectoral pilots which will be in Nangere and Shani LGAs. The study design will have special focus on health and nutrition with anthropometry and mortality indicators being the primary indicators of the study.  The consultant will use an integrated approach in developing data collection tools and instruments incorporating Education, WASH, FSL and social protection components bearing in mind the unique differences in the pilot package to be delivered in the respective pilot LGAs. As the baseline needs to ascertain variances in beneficiaries who receive partial or complete package, the design of the baseline will adopt quasi experimental design to make a comparative analysis of these different modalities. The sampling design to be adopted will also take into cognizance the approach but a multi stage cluster sampling of randomly selected clusters will be preferred. This is a brief overview of the assignment and is by no means exhaustive; further information will be provided to the consultant on engagement.

End Product: (e.g. final report, article, document, etc):

Expected deliverables:

Finalized baseline survey methodology and tools

Detailed proposal, work plan and budget including data analysis plan

Deployment of paper based questionnaire to electronic platform (ODK)

Training Package for the baseline data collection

Raw baseline data - Qualitative  and Quantitative

Cleaned baseline data -  Qualitative  and Quantitative

Inception report

Draft report with PowerPoint slides of key results of the survey

Detailed report and a 2 – pager summary baseline report

     Qualifications or specialized knowledge/experience required:

Education: Advanced University degree in Health, Nutrition, Public Health, Epidemiology, Economics, Food security, Statistics or and related field of study

Demonstrated 5 years’ experience in conducting Formative, Interim and  Summative  evaluations

Experience in Monitoring and Evaluation and knowledge management procedures

Knowledge and experience in application of SMART methodology

Experience working in conflict environment

Experience in application of Randomized Control Trial or Quasi Experimental Study design will be an added advantage

Demonstrable knowledge and use of statistical software for data analysis

Fluency in English (verbal and written); knowledge of Hausa and/or Kanuri language is highly desirable.

Estimated time of consultancy:

The consultancy is expected to take a period of 3 months beginning from October 2017.