Looking for an unpaid intern in Zimbabwe

INTERNSHIP
End-of-Program Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor for an International Agricultural Development Program: Scope of Work

Assignment Title : M&E Advisor for REALIZ Program Close-Out
Assignment Duration : 2-3 Months
Dates of Assignment : Summer 2011
Location : Zimbabwe

Note: This is an unpaid internship. Travel (e.g. roundtrip airfare) and living expenses (lodging and a modest meals stipend) will be covered.

1. Background

ACDI/VOCA is a private nonprofit organization with 48 years of experience implementing economic growth projects worldwide. ACDI/VOCA is headquartered in Washington D.C. and currently operates in 40 countries, including Zimbabwe, managing 94 active projects. We take a systems approach to economic growth and poverty reduction that is market driven, leverages incentives to drive upgrading at critical nodes, and addresses systemic constraints, including the need for vibrant support markets and mutually beneficial relationships.

ACDI/VOCA’s Restoring Economic Agricultural Livelihoods in Zimbabwe (REALIZ) program focuses on stabilizing and growing the economy of Zimbabwe by strengthening agribusinesses and working with vulnerable but viable farmers to increase the volume and improve the quality of agricultural production. The program is achieving results in horticulture and staple crops by linking farmers to markets, building capacity in good agricultural practice, and training farmers in ACDI/VOCA’s curriculum for Farming as a Business. The program has a market-driven value chain approach focusing on facilitating access to resources so farmers can better respond to market signals. After years of economic downturn and a culture of mistrust, REALIZ is also re-establishing mutually beneficial commercial relationships between multiple horticulture buyers and over 2,000 smallholders via contract farming initiatives that also allow farmers to access inputs on credit. The overall project goal is to improve livelihood opportunities for rural households. The program’s main objectives are to:
• Improve food security by boosting availability of staple crops at the household level and increasing access through improved purchasing power;
• Strengthen the capacity of farmers to meet market requirements through improved quality and volume of production from improved agronomic practices and marketing strategy; and,
• Increase incomes of rural households through strengthened commercial links between smallholder farmers and buyers.

2. Assignment Overview:

REALIZ is a 2 year, $2 million program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and operating in Mashonaland East and Manicaland provinces. It will be closing in Fall 2011. An intern is needed to assist REALIZ’s Monitoring and Evaluation Director during the Summer of 2011 with preparing close out reports, analyzing results and impact, drafting success profiles and capturing key learning.

3. Assignment Objectives:

The objective of the assignment is to provide technical assistance in the M&E department of the REALIZ program prior to the closing out process. It is proposed that the intern join for two to three months, June to August 2011. She/he will familiarize with the project; conduct data analysis of existing data collected through surveys; participate in project performance assessments through focus groups and interviews with farmers and commercial buyers; and contribute to write-ups and graphs that will feed into the end-of-project final report.

4. Assignment tasks and deliverables:

Under the direction of the Monitoring and Evaluation Director, specific tasks include:

1. Conduct data analysis of existing data collected through REALIZ surveys, identifying trends, investigating the ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind the results, and triangulating findings.
2. Capture program successes and draw out lessons learned through focus groups and interviews with staff, private partners, and beneficiaries, and drafting 1-2 page write-ups;
3. Support the draft final evaluation process, which will highlight the changes brought about by the project; interventions on the lives of beneficiaries and their community; and measures of the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability of the project;
4. Prepare regular reports as required;
5. Participate in relevant meetings, workshops and conferences as required

5. Anticipated work schedule:

Activities Period Expected Output/Outcome
1. Orientation
• Debriefing
• Review of project documents (much of this to continue throughout) 1st week June Intern has good understanding of project & its performance management processes.
2. Filed visit to project sites & participation in 4th Farmer survey data collection including focus group discussions. 2nd week June Intern familiarized with project activities.
Intern gets some hands on experience with field work in a Zimbabwe project setting.
3. Assist with 4th Farmer survey data capture & cleaning. 3rd week June Survey data captured.
4. Participation in 4th farmer survey data analysis & draft report writing. 3rd & 4th week June Preliminary data analysis results.
Assist in drafting 4th farmer survey report.
5. Assist with trigger indicators supplementary data collection. Analysis of data on indicators (to feed into programming decisions) 1st & 2nd weeks July Assist with analyzing data on trigger indicators and producing a report.
6. Project site visits
(to include working on success stories with field agents) 3rd week July Intern understanding of link between project implementation & M&E deepened.
Project success stories.
7. Participation in 5th Farmer survey data collection instruments adaptation 4th week July Farmer survey instruments adapted for 5th survey.
8. Participation in 5th farmer survey , FGDs & buyer surveys leading to end of project report. 1st & 2nd week August Survey data collected.
9. Assist with Farmer survey data collation, analysis and report writing. 3rd & 4th week August Assist with drafting end of project report.

6. Desired Qualifications
The qualified applicant will have:

• Must have completed at least 1 year of a Master’s program in a relevant field (e.g. Statistics, Program Evaluation, etc). Bachelors degree required.
• Familiarity with donor-funded overseas economic development programs and common monitoring and evaluation methods and indicators.
• Prior travel in developing countries, especially sub Saharan Africa, highly desired.
• Prior experience doing data analysis as well as conducting focus group interviews
• Solid English writing skills
• Willingness to travel to Zimbabwe

7. Logistics:

This is an unpaid internship, however ACDI/VOCA will cover the cost of roundtrip airfare from the United States to Harare, Zimbabwe and return. ACDI/VOCA will also arrange for and cover the cost of housing while in Zimbabwe, and provide a modest stipend to cover meals.

ACDI/VOCA is a registered NGO in Zimbabwe and has several project offices in Harare with managerial, administrative, and technical staff. ACDI/VOCA/Zimbabwe will be responsible for arranging airport pick-up and travel to and from the intern’s lodging site to the office and project. The intern will report directly to the Monitoring and Evaluation Director during his/her time in Zimbabwe.

8. Interested in Applying?
Interested candidates should send a CV and a brief cover letter to Diana Roach at:DRoach@acdivoca.org by April 30, 2011. Only finalists contacted. Women and minorities encouraged to apply.