Background

Under the CGIAR Sustainable Animal and Aquatic Foods (SAAF) Program, IWMI is assessing the impact of water bunds — small earthen structures that capture and retain rainwater — in pastoral communities in Kajiado County, Kenya, and co-designing gender-transformative approaches for scaling this innovation in partnership with Justdiggit.

The study covers three types of communities, selected in collaboration with Justdiggit: (1) communities where water bunds have been established for several years (long-established bunds); (2) communities where bunds have been introduced recently (recent bunds); and (3) communities with no water bunds (no bunds). The main data collection for the study, which includes a household survey of approximately 300 households in 30 communities and qualitative data collection through focus group discussions and key informant interviews, is being conducted by IWMI.

This assignment covers a complementary activity conducted as part of the Kenya MELIAF Activator, with support from IFPRI. It consists of integrating the modules of the MELIAF Kenya Harmonised Questionnaire, a standardized set of modules shared across the SAAF Kenya Activator studies, into the household survey, administering them to the study households, and delivering the resulting data in a harmonised format.

Statement of Work

The Kenya MELIAF Activator is looking for an organization to adapt, pre-test and administer the MELIAF modules as part of the household survey in Kajiado County, Kenya. The work will be carried out alongside the main data collection, using the same field teams, training and logistics. IWMI will provide the modules, integrated into the household survey instrument. This activity consists of administering the MELIAF modules to the approximately 300 households included in the household survey, across the three community types, as part of the same interview.

The firm will be responsible for the following activities:

• Review and translate the MELIAF modules. The firm is responsible for reviewing the MELIAF modules to ensure all questions are adapted to the local context, translating them into Swahili and Maa as required, having them back-translated into English by a different person, and ensuring that the translation correctly reflects the original English version.

• Pre-test the MELIAF modules and document the results. The firm will pre-test the MELIAF modules and document the results in a short note. The note will cover the time required to administer the modules, translation and comprehension issues in Maa and Swahili, and any items that required adaptation to the local context.

• Provide experienced enumerators and electronic devices. The firm will provide enumerators with prior experience implementing quantitative surveys in rural or pastoral settings in Kenya, good knowledge of the pastoral context in Kajiado County, and fluency in Maa and Swahili. A gender-balanced team is preferred. The firm will provide tablets and will be responsible for all technical aspects related to their use, including power supply and daily back-up of the data.

• Train the enumerators. The firm will organize and lead the training of enumerators before the survey begins, including a classroom part and a practical part in the field. IWMI researchers will participate in the training. The field practice will also serve as pre-testing of the instrument, and the firm should allow time for IWMI to make final adjustments. Where feasible, the training may be combined with the training for the main data collection.

• Data quality checks and post-survey verifications. The firm will be responsible for checking the data during and after collection. Where problems or inconsistencies are detected by the firm or by IWMI, the firm will be responsible for contacting respondents again to clarify or correct the data.

• Clean dataset and data collection report. The firm will provide a clean dataset in Stata format with variable and value labels, accompanied by a short data collection report documenting fieldwork, sample coverage, and any relevant issues reported by enumerators.

Deliverables

Deliverable 1: Successfully completed activities 1-3 (label the activities by numbers).

Deliverable 2: Completion of activities 4-6 and submission of clean dataset.

Period of performance

1 November 2026 to 15 December 2026. The final and clean dataset and data collection report are due by 15 December 2026.

Required Qualifications

• A firm registered in Kenya with previous experience in household data collection in rural or pastoral areas, preferably in Kajiado County or comparable pastoral contexts.

• An established team of field enumerators.

• The team should include female enumerators.

• All enumerators should be proficient in Maa and Swahili.

Application

Please upload a proposal outlining the approach, human resources, timing, and costs (including details of staff time, training of trainers, field data collection, overhead, etc.), along with CV/resume (including details of previous related experience) for individual(s) leading the work. We expect that the applicant will be a local survey firm able to handle a contract with IFPRI and source the required human resources to fulfil the scope of work themselves.

Application Deadline

October 14, 2026