Kenya: M&E Specialist, Consultant

Organization: Winrock International

Country: Kenya

Closing date: 12 Feb 2016

This Statement of Work (SOW) describes tasks and deliverables for an M&E Specialist consultant under the Kenya Smallholder Solar Irrigation Project, implemented by Winrock International under the USAID RELWA, with partners DuPont, SunCulture, Futurepump and Equity Bank Kenya. The consulting assignment is 120 days during the period January 30, 2016 – February 28, 2017. Additional activities may be added in the future.

The consultant will report to Jennifer Holthaus, the Winrock home office project coordinator. Local travel within Kenya will be required.

Background: The Smallholder Solar Irrigation Project is led by Winrock, in partnership with DuPont Kenya and Amiran Kenya Ltd., and supported by Chase Bank and Equity Bank. The Project aims to increase commercial sales of photovoltaic irrigation pumps to smallholder farmers who could significantly increase their incomes in one of two ways: 1) by eliminating the on-going cost and difficulty of acquiring petrol/diesel fuel for water pumping; or 2) by being able to convert from rain-fed to irrigated farming in areas where it is not feasible to pump water using treadle pumps. The Project’s objectives are to:

1. Assess solar water pumps (SWPs) currently available in Kenya and identify high-quality models suitable for a range of smallholder farmer needs;


2. Conduct successful demonstrations of solar water pumps in target counties;


3. Document the costs and benefits to farmers who purchase SWPs, to verify the payback time and increased revenue from improved crops;


4. Enhance the capacity of value chain stakeholders, including farmers and farmers’ groups, borehole drillers, SWP suppliers, and USAID Feed the Future initiatives, to install, operate and maintain SWPs, and utilize the pumped water to increase production and income;


5. Improve access to financing, in collaboration with financial institutions and DuPont, to address the barrier of the relatively high upfront cost of SWPs; and


6. Achieve commercial sales of at least 500 SWPs to farmers targeted by the project, over a two-year period.

The Kenya Smallholder Solar Irrigation Project is funded by USAID as part of the Renewable Energy Leader with Associates (RELWA) program (www.RELWA.org), which aims to scale up access to and adoption of renewable energy (RE) globally, through the provision of technical assistance and project implementation. The RELWA shares the goals of USAID’s Powering Ag initiative (www.poweringag.org), which focuses on increasing farmer access to RE technologies which can improve agricultural productivity, sustainability, and income.

Task 1: Conduct cost-benefit analysis of farmers before and after they purchase SWPs.

• 
  

  Design a survey and data collection to compare costs and benefits of SWPs vs alternatives.

  
  


• 
  

  Complete a cost-benefit analysis which will provide compelling data to donors and private companies showing that farmers are deriving economic benefits from SWP purchases. Include baseline and follow-up surveys of 20-30 small farms (approximately 1 acre), at least 3 pump types (most likely SunCulture, Futurepump, and Davis & Shirtliff), and a range of different pumping characteristics from very low head/close proximity to shallow water source to high head/long distance to water or very dep water table.

  
  


• 
  

  Analyze the cost-benefit data and create a final report which shows the internal rate of return (IRR) to farmers for a) different crops grown; b) several types and sizes of pumps; and c) different depths of groundwater.

  
  


• 
  

  Coordinate with the USAID FIRM project for support on conducting the CBA.

  
  


• 
  

  Coordinate with the KAVES project financial analyst on conducting the CBA.

  
  

Deliverables:

• 
  

  CBA baseline survey report – February 15, 2016

  
  


• 
  

  CBA mid-term report – July 30, 2016

  
  


• 
  

  CBA final report – January 15, 2017

  
  

Task 2: Produce a white paper on the trajectory of small (<500 Watt-peak) SWP sales in Kenya.

• 
  

  Work with KSSI Project Manager to gather data on the sales of Futurepump, SunCulture and Davis and Shirtliff solar pumps

  
  


• 
  

  Draft a white paper with charts showing how the sales of small SWPs are increasing; tailor the paper to the target audiences (funders and agribusiness companies).

  
  

Deliverables:

• Draft white paper on trajectory of small SWP sales in Kenya – June 1, 2016


• Final white paper on trajectory of small SWP sales in Kenya – January 15, 2017

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Excellent written and spoken English and Swahili


• Minimum five years’ experience, including project management/M&E


• Demonstrated track record of conducting cost-benefit analyses


• Enthusiasm for networking and cooperating with other projects


• Strong management, communication, and organization skills


• Excellent analytic and writing skills


• Experience in the agricultural or renewable energy field, or similar fields


• 
  

  Excellent computer skills (word-processing, spreadsheets, power-point, and databases)

  
  


• 
  

  Comfortable in high-level representational role as well as interacting with villagers

  
  

  EDUCATION:

  
  

  Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree preferred. Preferred disciplines include project management, agriculture, renewable energy, or rural development.

  
  

How to apply:

Interested consultants are requested to write an expression of interest to CostBenefitConsultant@winrock.org

PLEASE NOTE: In addition to your current resume and cover letter, please attach a cost-benefit analysis report that you have prepared in the last 5 years.

Winrock thanks all applicants for their interest; however, only candidates who meet all requisite criteria and are short listed will be contacted.