Cordaid is a Dutch NGO with over 100 years of experience. Cordaid works in and on fragility, which means that our work focus is on fragile and post-conflict affected settings addressing five thematic focus areas, with one of these areas being Private Sector Development (PSD).
Through Cordaid’s Private Sector Development programmes, Cordaid fosters inclusive economic growth by acting as agents of change – designing and facilitating private sector ecosystems to catalyse sustainable growth. Cordaid’s work includes M4P, value chain development, business incubation and accelerator programmes, youth employment programmes and financial inclusion.
Cordaid recognizes that youth employment presents a major challenge in Iraq, as youth make up around 60 percent of Iraq's nearly 40 million people. While the World Bank says the youth unemployment rate reaches 20 percent in Iraq, the International Monetary Fund estimates the rate to be more than double this and in some areas of the country unemployment rates are said to even reach more than 60%.
Context
Due to the history of violence and extremism, numerous cities and towns have been (partly) destroyed and many have fled their homes in quest of safety. But as situations have improved over the last years, people seek to return to their home grounds. Mosul is one of those cities that people seek to return to, yet the socio-economic situation (lack of essential services, education, and employment opportunities) hinders the return process.
Historically, Iraqis have been exporters of agricultural products, yet the country currently exports under 100 million USD in agricultural products and imports over 5 billion USD of these products. The volume of imports indicates segments of the food chain that should be targeted for domestic agricultural production. International organizations as the World Bank Group (WB), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), highlight the large potential that the agriculture and food sector in Iraq and the Kurdistan region can play in job creation and income generation.
With Nineveh originally being the breadbasket of the region, we believe that accelerating existing and upcoming agribusinesses (SMEs) in this location can create employment opportunities for youth and women. It is against this background that Cordaid has started an Agribusiness Acceleration Project in Mosul / Ninevah in 2020.
Agribusiness Acceleration Project in Mosul and its surroundings
The Agribusiness Acceleration Project is a 21-month project that will run until February 2022 and is funded by GIZ. The overall goal of the project is to foster economic growth and create employment for youth and women in Mosul and its surroundings.
The project will support 50 agribusiness SMEs with business development services to realize their growth and create jobs. The project will also support (250) youth and women to secure and retain those employment opportunities created, by capacitating TVETs to deliver job readiness training and demand-driven skills training, to equip youth and women with the soft and technical skills required to succeed in the workplace.
Background of the assignment
The project has five specific objectives which contribute to achieving the intended goal through five outcomes and seventeen outputs. To attain these, Resilient Business Development Services (RBDS); Job Readiness; Small and Medium (SME) Agribusinesses; Business Support Centre (BSC); Access to Finance (A2F); Access to Networks, Mentors and Markets, are the main approaches utilized by the project.
In order to continually test the approaches and assumptions and to improve the project implementation process, continuous Action Research (AR) is needed to support the project staff to make informed decisions and adaptive programming.
In the context of Mosul and its surroundings, where a volatile security situation persists, AR is a very useful tool that can be used to evaluate the implemented approaches, strategies and methodologies, and support the redesign process, basing project decisions as much as possible on facts. Although the exact research questions should follow from the findings of the inception report and the monthly report, one could consider the following attribution questions that relate to the outcomes:
- To what extent have our beneficiaries’ agribusinesses improved the way they operate and grown to create jobs for youth and women through this project?
- To what extent have our beneficiaries (youth and women) secured and retained employment opportunities through this project?
Questions regarding the role of the security situations, trauma, the differences in gender and/or social backgrounds on the outcomes of the project are also encouraged. Examples could be:
- To what extent is the training approach flexibly applied to cater to differential needs of beneficiaries (or was there not a possibility to deviate from a pre-set format)?
- To what extent does the training include former freedom fighters, IDPs, returnees, etc.? Are special activities needed to include them and to make the training successful for future programming?
- What additional support do traumatized participants need to take to successfully participate and receive & pay a loan?
- Identify and analyze gender roles in businesses (owners/employees), and identify obstacles to women participation in training (transport, children, unwillingness of the husband that his wife participates), and seek to address them.
Objectives of the assignment
The project is looking for the service of experts who are experienced in designing research questions and concepts as well as providing guidance and training for project staff on AR activities. The AR assignment attains, but is not limited to, the following objectives:
Identifying and limiting the specific topic of research
Gathering a selection of relevant literature on the topic
Reviewing the related literature (desk research)
Specifying research questions, methodology of analyses required data. plan and related instruments for data collection
Collecting data
Analyzing data
Forwarding recommendations based upon results.
Implementing the new insights.
Sharing and communicating the results
Evaluation and reflecting on the process and action
Expected Results
The project team becomes acquainted with AR activities/approaches and capable to define AR questions, design research framework, data collection, analyses, and interpretation.
The lessons learned incorporates redesigning the project strategies and approaches and hence the implementation process improved.
Deliverables of consultant
- Develop training materials on action research activities/approaches
- Facilitate on the job training for the project team
- Develop with the project team AR concepts and questions
- Lead the project team to roll out the AR in the field
- Coach and mentor project team on the analysis and interpretation of AR
- Oversee, guide and plan AR-cycles
- Document lessons learned and challenges encountered in this year AR process
- Evaluate with the project team and management the AR result and recommend the way forward.
- For this project, Cordaid Iraq seeks (a) consultant(s) to perform an Action Research.
Job Description
The Action researcher will be responsible of Identification of research questionaries, Data Collection, making sense of the data (reflection & learning) and Integration of lessons learned in the implementation of the project.
The Action researcher will report directly to the Program Manager based at Cordaid’s Office in Erbil.
Duties and responsibilities:
- Work with the PSD MEAL Officer and Project Manager to design the research activities
- Coordinate with partner organizations to provide training to ensure quality data collection practices.
- Develop, merge, present, localize and translate action research questionnaires.
- Clean, collect and analyze data collected by staff and partner organizations
- As appropriate to the specified position, code and verify data following the specified research protocol and coding procedures and enter data into a computer database and/or spreadsheet application for subsequent analysis.
- Conduct key informant interviews with community leaders, community councils, and others.
- Write the content of the report clearly and consistently.
- Present the findings in a variety of formats to suit different audiences, including delivering research findings back to the target community through events or resources.
- Deliver regular reporting to the program manager.
- Develop and plan for the lesson learned Workshop
- Perform any other duties as assigned by the Programme Manager.
Qualification’s requirements:
- Experience of working in livelihoods interventions like enterprise development, business management training, youth, and women economic empowerment program.
- Strong Monitoring and Evaluation, Research and Learning background, especially using a mix of qualitative and quantitative, observational, and participatory data collection and analysis methods, working in complex, humanitarian contexts.
- Excellent intercultural communication skills/cultural sensitivity and the ability to forge strong cross-cultural relationships and build trust demonstrated through previous experience.
- Strong understanding of the humanitarian principles to ensure data collection including Kobo Toolbox, analysis software.
- Self-motivated, committed, honest, and eager to learn
- Language: Able to communicate and write fluently in English and Arabic.
- Willing to travel.
Competencies & Preferred Skills
- Bachelor’s degree and above in project monitoring and evaluation, agribusiness, value chain, marketing, food security, statistics, and agriculture,
- Experience in agribusiness, market development, food security livestock or agriculture
- Knowledge of action research activities/approaches
- Knowledge of Iraq, Mosul, and/or fragile contexts.
Timeline
It is foreseen that this Action Research is conducted by a team of international and local experts. The start date of the assignment should be planned in October 2021.
What we offer
• Remuneration (daily fees) according to relevant work experience
How to apply:
Send your financial and technical proposal (including a workplan and CV(s) of main team) to Agribusiness.Iraq@cordaid.org, before the deadline which is Oct 3rd, 2021.
Note: Please include the “***Action Research***” in the subject line of your email. Any email without the subject line will not be considered.
For any information about Cordaid organization, please visit our website: www.cordaid.org
Cordaid is fully committed to a safe working environment and the highest integrity standards. To read more on our commitment to Integrity, click here: An integrity screening will be part of this application procedure.