Formative Fruit & Vegetable Consumer Market Research Consultant -Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Job Description

Opportunity Title: Formative Fruit & Vegetable Consumer Market Research Consultant

Short Description: TechnoServe is looking for a strong behavioral research partner to undertake formative research to prioritize interventions, based on effectiveness and cost, that would increase consumption of nutritious horticulture produce in Ethiopia. The research is structured around three core questions:
1. Why don’t consumers eat more fresh fruits and vegetables?
2. What would address those challenges and lead to increased consumption?
3. Which approach is the most cost effective?

Detailed Description

TechnoServe is seeking proposals from qualified consultants for the following scope of work. For information on timeline, application requirements, and evaluation criteria, please review the full Request for Proposals  here. Please submit your proposal for this consultancy to buy+US+P0015951@tns.org by November 9,2022.

Request for Proposals – Terms of Reference

Title: Formative Fruit & Vegetable Consumer Market Research

Project: Horticulture 4 Growth (H4G): An Initiative of the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters (ACCs)

Reports to: H4G Senior Program Manager

Expected start date: December 19, 2022

Period of Performance: ~5 months

About TechnoServe

TechnoServe works with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses, and industries. Founded in 1968, we are a nonprofit organization that develops business solutions to poverty by linking people to information, capital, and markets. With more than four decades of proven results, we believe in the power of private enterprise to transform lives.

Background

TechnoServe is partnering with the Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) to support the development of an inclusive, nourishing, and sustainable horticulture market system in Ethiopia. Focused on the Horticulture Agricultural Commercialization Clusters (ACCs), the project aims to improve critical market systems to better integrate domestic markets, increase exchange of quality produce, and transform the relationships of key market actors to be more inclusive and equitable.

TechnoServe is looking for a strong behavioral research partner to undertake formative research to prioritize interventions, based on effectiveness and cost, that would increase consumption of nutritious horticulture produce in Ethiopia. The research is structured around three core questions:

1. Why don’t consumers eat more fresh fruits and vegetables?
2. What would address those challenges and lead to increased consumption?
3. Which approach is the most cost effective?1

Overcoming barriers and changing purchasing habits, attitudes, and choice drivers involves looking at a combination of factors including knowledge, attitudes, norms, and behavioral biases that affect people’s ability to consume more fruits and vegetables. We have identified four hypotheses for the research partner to consider:

a) Affordability: Consumers cannot afford to purchase fruits and vegetables

b) Quality: Consumers are not willing to purchase fruits and vegetables

1 The partner is expected to estimate and quantify the amount by which consumption would increase (e.g., additional meals per day) and an estimation of the cost of the intervention in dollar terms. 

c) Awareness: Consumers are not interested to purchase fruits and vegetables

d) Availability: Consumers cannot access fruits and vegetables

The partner will first conduct research to assess these hypotheses to understand the social and cultural norms, choice environment, and common heuristics that lead to specific default consumer behavior and less demand for fruits and vegetables. We are open to additional and/or alternative hypotheses to be included in the research, as suggested by the research partner. Then, the partner will test corresponding interventions on their effectiveness in shifting consumer or vendor behavior to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables. The final deliverable shall include recommendations on the most impactful and cost-effective interventions that would increase consumer demand for nutritious horticulture produce.

Scope of Work and Deliverables

The partner will work closely with TechnoServe on the overall design of the research methodology and tools. We anticipate the study will consider three types of geographies: Urban (Addis), Semi-Urban (Hawassa/Adama/Arba Minch), and Rural (horticulture ACC woredas). Study participants will include consumers and retailers (open air markets and individual stalls/souks). The partner will take the lead on logistical planning for data collection, training of data collectors, data collection, and data cleaning and management— with regular input and participation from TNS.

The detailed protocol of the geographic and participant scope will be finalized during the Inception Stage together with the research partner. TechnoServe requests applicants to recommend a suitable sample size based on the goals of the TOR. As needed, applicant can prepare two illustrative budgets based on different sample sizes or additional services.

Phase 1

1. Inception and Design 
   • Review, validate, and confirm hypotheses and consumer segments to be tested b. Finalize sampling methodology, design approaches, and surveys
   • Deliverable: Inception report that details the methodology, data collection instruments, sample strategy and implementation plan

2. Targeted Behavioral Research 

• Conduct research to understand the usage, attributes, attitudes, and purchasing behaviors that lead to specific default consumer behavior and less demand for fruits and vegetables
• Determine what informs decisions to buy a given horticulture product for a range of similar goods (the role of different attributes and the tradeoff people make while choosing the product)
• Profile and refine consumer segmentation based on research, identifying the key differentiating attributes
• Rank and prioritize the relative importance of each hypothesis in driving horticulture consumption across each consumer segment.

Deliverable:

Report on Behavioral Research Findings with an overview of the behavioral barriers, synthesis of evidence gathered on the relative importance of each hypothesis per consumer segment, and illustrative interventions that could increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables ii. Validation and strategy workshop with H4G consortium to identify and finalize top 3-5 intervention designs to be tested in the next phase

Phase 2

3. Testing Phase 

Conduct a rapid testing exercise with end-users to refine and validate behavioral interventions to help drive increased sales of F&V behaviors among consumers and vendors which should test:3

• Efficacy: Does the intervention work?
• Effectiveness: How well does the intervention work?
• Efficiency: Is the intervention working in the best way possible? Is it effective relative to its cost?

2 Partner to propose methodology; however, we identified Discrete Choice Experiments as a suitable model. For example, a qualitative exercise among consumers to understand the key attributes they evaluate purchasing decisions on and then a quantitative exercise using a Discrete Choice Experiment to quantify the way in which these attributes are weighted. 

1. Deliverable: Report on Behavioral Testing Findings, including experimental design and overview of the efficacy, effectiveness, and efficiency per intervention
2. Final Intervention Recommendations 
3. Rank and prioritize which interventions and what version(s) of those interventions will be 1) most effective in increasing consumer demand with an estimation of impact (e.g., increased meals per day) and 2) most cost-effective with an estimation of cost per intervention
4. Deliverable: Final Report: Summary of Activities, Results and Learnings, including intervention recommendations with an estimation of the amount by which consumption would increase (e.g., additional meals per day) and the cost of the intervention in dollar terms

Application Requirements

1. Narrative technical proposal with a detailed description of the approach, methodology, and tools that will be used to conduct the research, including any recommendations or suggested changes to the ToR
2. Detailed workplan including key milestones and deliverables
3. Detailed budget – As relevant, applicant can prepare two illustrative budgets based on, for example, different sample sizes or additional services
4. Succinct summary of how your organization meets the skills and qualifications, any unique capabilities of your organization that are relevant to this project, and a list of previous experiences highlighting relevant client engagements
5. List of biographies of people from your organization who will be engaged on this project, along with their roles, resumes, and references
6. Organizational licenses
7. Optional: Applicants may choose to submit one example of a relevant assessment report recently completed. All documents will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.

3 Partner to propose methodology; however, we identified Rapid Prototyping as a suitable model. For example: a. Qualitative methods involving sharing of wireframes, storyboards, animatics and/or product mock-ups to solicit feedback from end-users throughout the design process through individual interactions or focus groups and b. A/B testing involving creating multiple variations of the same intervention category or assessing multiple messages that might accompany interventions to short-list interventions 

Preferred Skills & Qualifications

• Previous experience in Ethiopia required; previous experience in study locations preferred
• Previous experience developing programmatic documents for governments, international organizations or civil society organizations on nutrition and/or agriculture; previous experience with BMGF a plus
• Proven behavioral research and analytical skills on issues related to nutrition-related programming, horticulture commodities, and agricultural value chains
• Understanding of market systems development and private sector-focused development programs
• Sensitivity to cultural/historical context in the data collection process
• Proven ability to work within limited time constraints in the preparation of high quality documents.