Consultancy Service at Build Africa

Project Description

In Nakuru County, Kenya, 41% of the population live in severe poverty, threatening their ability to feed their children and support their education. For children to have the opportunities they deserve, it is vital that their families have secure and steady incomes, with no parent forced to make terrible choices such as between feeding their children and sending them to school. This situation threatens to worsen, as 70% of Kenya’s rural population is dependent on agriculture, and productivity is stagnating, placing families at risk of heightened food and financial insecurity.

Between December 2014 and December 2016 Build Africa worked with over 3,000 small scale farmers to ensure that small scale farmers in Nakuru County were able and empowered to make informed choices to improve their farming practices and increase their incomes.

An outline of some key activities included:

Establishment support and training of 71 Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA) Training for farmers on post-harvest handling and improved farming practices Establishment and support to 14 Farmers Networks with the identification and sharing of positive and innovative farming practices within the networks and beyond

Build Africa has developed an integrated 3 year programme, Farmers Network Project 2 to build on the achievements of this investment. In this next phase of the project, we are bringing together our tried and tested innovations, helping every farmer to grow more, store more and sell more produce. We also seek to integrate these successes with a training programme on how best to improve their livelihood and farming practices while also supporting their children’s education through practical as well as financial measures.

The key output(s) from this preparatory phase will be a tailored and integrated training package designed with Egerton University, and Adult Education and Child Development Specialists, tailored to the needs of the farmers with whom we work (see section 3 below).

Project Outcomes FNP 2

Farmers and their families have the skills to improve their economic and food security as well as supporting their children's education

Intended objectives and outcomes

Specific Outcomes for FNP 2 include;

Outcome 1 3,000 farmers can manage fluctuating, seasonal income and better manage their household expenses and labour needs

Outcome 2 3,000 farmers have increased produce quality and quantity and are storing goods for better economic and food security for themselves and their children

Outcome 3

3,000 farmers are using their new resources to support their children's education in the home

Consultancy purpose.

Working with local experts including professors from Egerton University, and Adult Education and Child Development Specialists, the consultant will create a training programme tailored to the needs of the farmers with whom we work. S/he will use a tested model of adult education to source and incorporate relevant content with a focus on practical and contextual skills to enhance the farming and business practices and parental skills of the group members.

Build Africa anticipate modules to include:

• Practical time management and household budgeting sessions ICT-based (or other media platforms) curriculum outreach (quiz text messages, linkages to existing online services and to peer learning networks)
• Scenario based learning - i.e. experimenting with different scenarios such as drought or disease and learning how to manage these
• Creating or adapting learning resources for parents with low literacy to assist their children in their learning

Training programme will focus on 3 staple crops grown by the majority of farmers and select at least 5 other crops and / or livestock groups most relevant to the majority of group members. It is expected the consultant will draw on and link to existing extension services and available online and digital resources.

Tasks and deliverables for consultant

The consultant is expected to undertake specific tasks and produce deliverables under each of the three project outcomes.

Outcome 1

What to eat, what to sell? A guide to managing your family and business needs Collectivisation and other coping skills - how to make the most of what you've got and to work together to maximise storage, impactful labour and market access Income and expenditure management – practical guides and tools for how to create a seasonal/annual budget and use it to manage your needs

Outcome 2

Training programme produced on 3 staple crops (Irish Potatoes, maize and beans) plus 5 or more other popular cash or food crops and or livestock identified through stakeholder engagement and secondary research linking with and building on existing materials and approaches Outcome 3

Parental guides - nurturing learning in the home (food management, time to study and helping your children study) Parental guides - Rotational childcare and other ways of managing how to support your children and make the most of your farm Materials and outline for guided discussions and reflection sessions with parents with a focus on the importance of timely and continuous education for all children

S/he will also be expected to conduct a ToT on the training content for Build Africa and Community based trainers

Build Africa will:

• Ensure engagement and introduction to government authorities and officials as needed
• Share reference materials including FNP final evaluation, FNP theory of change and other internal primary research
• Facilitate venue and logistics for the training workshops
• Facilitate any initial consultations with project stakeholders including university professors, other technical experts and farmer or stakeholder group(s)
• Maintain project staff involvement and quality oversight in the production of materials and resources

NB: Build Africa will not pay for nor provide printing, typing and communication services.

Budget

The Training consultant(s) to provide the costs (all inclusive) of the deliverables at number 4 above.

Skills and qualifications of consultants

• An advanced degree in agriculture, agro-economics, community development with demonstrated practical on ground experience with farming communities
• Links to other development specialists in the area of child development and or adult education as needed
• Knowledge of traditional and modern farming practices, tools and services and their integration for practical cost effective solutions for resource poor farmers
• Knowledge of storage methods, value addition, supply change integration and market access for subsistence farmers
• Experience in conducting Training of Trainers (ToTs) with a technical focus on farming and rural livelihoods
• Previous experience of developing, writing and delivery of training using materials for low literacy adult learners
• Experience in monitoring and evaluation and usage of tools to measure effectiveness of trainings
• Experience in carrying out primary and secondary research using a range of participatory methods
• Knowledge and application of gender sensitive programming to ensure equal participation of all groups
• Knowledge of do no harm programming and its application to livelihoods in resource poor settings
• Knowledge of climate change adaption and scenario based planning would be an advantage

Child Safeguarding

It is essential that the successful applicant familiarise self with, and sign up to abiding by, Build Africa’s Child Safeguarding Policy We reserve the right to conduct background checks for all shortlisted applicants in line with our child safeguarding policy. This may include collecting references from past employers or commissioning organisations.