Duty Station: Romogi Sub-County and Barakala Town Council in Yumbe District

Project Period: January 2026 to June 2028

Target Beneficiaries:

About Organisation: 317 cooperative members and 100 women council members

Organization Background

AFARD is a registered indigenous not-for-profit, non-denominational NGO formed in July 2000 to empower poor and marginalized people – children, youths, women – to actively engage in unlocking the multifaceted drivers of poverty and livelihood insecurity in West Nile region, Uganda.  Our vision is “a prosperous, healthy and informed people in Uganda” and our mission is “to enhance the capacities of vulnerable and marginalized communities (especially youth, women, and refugees) for inclusive, dignified and sustainable socio-economic transformation of Uganda.”

Background of the Assignment

AFARD with funding from BMZ through AWO International implements the “Effective and Equitable Land Governance for Migration-Affected Communities in Uganda” (EELAG) project in Yumbe District. With a goal to promote self-reliance, resilience, safety and well-being of women, girls and vulnerable communities affected by migration through effective and equitable land governance, the project focuses on empowering women, youth and refugees to enable them play a crucial role in the process of social change and ensuring social cohesion centered around land as a crucial asset for vulnerable communities (refugees and host communities) at all levels (i.e. village – national levels). The project therefore seeks to conduct a baseline study.

Purpose of the Assignment

The purpose of the baseline is to gather quantitative and qualitative data to establish benchmarks for key project indicators, as a foundation for building a robust M&E framework that will enable adaptive project implementation and impact measurement.

Specific Objectives of the Survey

• Assess the land governance question by examining the policies, practices and tenure systems that affect; women, youth, host communities and refugees. This should include exploring the knowledge, attitude and practices of the vulnerable persons in land governance and decision making.
• Establish disaggregated baseline indicators on the planned outputs. Ensure that the qualitative and quantitative data collected will provide a reference for guiding decisions during the project implementation and assessing performance. The outputs of the project will be shared with the consultant
• Identify barriers (Institutional, cultural and structural) that affect access and or ownership of land by women and refugees
• Identify opportunities, entry points and synergies that can effectively enhance effective and equitable land governance interventions to strengthen the project impact.

Scope of the Assignment

The scope of the survey will encompass the three project result areas (i) Land security (ii) Food security and (iii) Income security.  The study will establish the pre-project conditions for all key project outcomes and outputs, providing reference points against which project progress and impact will be measured.

Methodology

The consultant will design and implement participatory methodologies for the baseline survey. It is expected that the consultant will develop appropriate research tools to generate both qualitative and quantitative measurements. The following methodologies are suggested;

• Conduct quantitative survey with 317 targeted households, 100 women from the women councils and 22 cooperative leaders.
• Qualitative interviews such as key informant interviews and focused group discussions with; Opinion/traditional leaders, Local Government staff and Office of Prime Minister staff.
• Conduct document reviews of existing secondary data /reports.

Duration of the Survey

The consultancy is expected to take up to 21 working days from the date of contract signing. The selected consultant will be expected to deliver high-quality work within the stipulated timeline. The Consultant and the team shall be reporting progress of works to the Team Leader – Yumbe, and all deliverables shall be approved by the Director of Programs – AFARD.

Expected Outputs and Key Deliverables

The deliverables will include, among others the following;

• Inception meeting with AFARD team to discuss and agree on the inception report.
• Inception report of not more than 10 pages by the consultant within one (1) week upon signing of the consultancy contract. This should include a clear description of the tools, methodologies and work plan for the assignment
• Draft Baseline Survey report submitted within 21days with preliminary findings, analysis and recommendations

• Present the draft report to key stakeholders during a validation meeting and incorporate the feedback in the final report.
• Final Baseline Survey report both in hard and electronic format (MS Word as well as PDF) clearly indicating findings, conclusions, recommendations, annexes of data sets, list of all referenced secondary data and photos.
• All primary source data/ data sets, both quantitative and qualitative, generated during the baseline Survey in an electronic file in an easily readable format.
•  An updated M&E framework for the project.
• Summary of the findings in (MS PowerPoint) to be used for subsequent dissemination.
• All raw data: transcripts from In-depth Interviews, FGDs and a cleaned data set used for analysis and production of the final report in an acceptable electronic format.

Consultant’s Profile

The consultant (s)/consultancy firm must have the following qualifications and experience to be eligible for this assignment;

1. The Team Leader must possess as a minimum qualification of a Master’s degree in community/development studies, rural development studies, agriculture or agri-business, monitoring & evaluation, Project management, or related fields.
2. At least 5 years’ experience in project development and management work including M&E, impact assessment and reporting.
3. Prior experience in baseline surveys.
4. Experience in working with marginalized and/or rural communities using participatory methodologies in mobilisation, planning and action.
5. Possess experience working with NGOs and conducting similar baseline surveys and in delivering agreed outputs on time and within budget.
6. Fluency in Kiswahili and English. Understanding of the local context will be an added advantage.
7. Excellent communication skills, including the ability to write clearly and concisely.
8. Ability to analyse complex development contexts, or multi-sectoral approaches to development, draw relevant conclusions and produce comprehensive reports.
9. Demonstrated ability to listen, use initiative in gathering and synthesising information related to the empowerment of rural communities and comprehend demand development.
10. Demonstration of good knowledge of the context in West Nile.
11. Knowledge of land frameworks and the establishment of community seed banks is an added advantage.

Expression of Interest

AFARD seeks an expression of interest from a suitable consultant/consultancy firm to conduct a baseline survey for its EELAG project in Yumbe district.

Interested and qualified consultants are invited to submit a technical and financial proposal that includes;                                                                         

Technical proposal

The Consultant should incorporate the following in the technical proposal.

• A cover Letter expressing interest and availability for the tasks.
• Understanding of the tasks, Baseline Survey design, similar works previously done/ track record, data quality assurance & management, sample size, Baseline Survey framework, expected deliverables and timelines, and brief profiles of the Baseline Survey team members.
• Baseline survey methodology (state details about the sampling, data collection systems, techniques /methods, key parameters, key questions, and respondents).
• Team composition should be mentioned in the technical proposal (proposed position/expertise, key tasks, allocation of time, Name, brief on education, and experiences required for this assignment.
• Recent curriculum Vitae (max.3-4 pages) of the lead Evaluators and team members as annexure.
• Attach at least two similar assignments with reference contacts.

Financial proposal

The financial proposal/budget should include the following;

• Number of days required for the assignment.
• All envisaged baseline survey costs (professional and other costs such as travel, taxes, accommodation, validation etc.).
• The budget must specify the daily professional fees. All costs must be reasonable and in Ugandan Shillings (UGX)

Interested applicants should submit their applications by email to AFARD through afard@afard.net and copy the subject heading: “Consultancy for EELAG Project Baseline Survey”.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.