National research partner in Mali-Partenaire de recherche au Mali

Background and Justification

Globally, 45 million children under the age of five suffer from wasting. Wasting dramatically increases the risk of death, killing 875,000 under-fives annually. Testing innovative solutions to prevent wasting are urgently needed. The Joint UN Partnership for the Prevention of Wasting (JUNIPr) between UNICEF, WFP, and WHO offers a unique opportunity to study the effectiveness of multisystem and multisectoral programs aimed at preventing wasting. This project will generate high-quality evidence through research in West Africa (Mali), East Africa (Ethiopia), and South Asia (Bangladesh).

Scope of Work

I. Goals

For the JUNIPr project we are looking to recruit an experienced research consultant as national research partner. In close consultation with the global research lead IFPRI, the national research partner will support the Design Phase (Phase 1) of the research project described above, with perspective to become co-principal investigator of the research conducted during the implementation Phase (Phase 2). Briefly, Phase 1 will consist of the following activities: support formative research; support the identification of the different components of the intervention package and the appropriate model to test at scale; co-design (with IFPRI) and submit for ethical approval the protocols for the implementation research, impact evaluation study, and costing study to be conducted in the second phase.

II. Activities and Tasks

The contract will be issued and managed by IFPRI. Under the close supervision of IFPRI and in close consultation with IFPRI, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, this consultancy will focus on the following activities.

Activity 1: Formative research

Formative research will be conducted to inform on the design of context-tailored intervention packages, including relevant delivery platforms and implementation modalities. The national research partner will contribute to the design and implementation of the formative research.

Sub-activity 1.1 Review and contribute to interpretation of findings from desk review, triangulation of findings from inception workshop and secondary data analysis.

Sub-activity 1.2 Contribute to the design of study tools for 5-7 key informant interviews; conduct, summarize and analyze the key informant interviews.

Sub-activity 1.3 Co-lead inception report writing.

Sub-activity 1.4 Contribute to the design of and co-lead second workshop to validate the intervention package

Activity 2: The development and approval of detailed research protocols for the implementation, impact evaluation and costing research

In close consultation with the JUNIPr consortium, the national research partner will co-develop (with IFPRI) the research protocols for the research activities of Phase 2: Impact evaluation protocol, implementation research protocol, cost study protocol. The consultant will be in charge to submit and present the protocol (if applicable) to the relevant national ethics commission and seeking final approval of the study protocol. The consultant will also seek additional necessary approvals from any other regional or national authority.

Outputs/Deliverables

Activity no.

Deliverable

Timeline

1.1 and 1.2

Review (commented document) of the early findings from workshop, desk review and secondary data analysis; study tools, and summary of 5-7 key informant interviews.

Approximately 30 days

November 30, 2025

1.3 and 1.4

Final formative research report with a clear summary of key findings, a clear section on options for the implementation package, a clear summary of key decisions of the validation workshop and next steps

Approximately 25 days

January 31, 2026

2

Impact evaluation protocol, implementation research protocol, cost study protocol

National Ethics committee approval, and any other approvals required at national or sub-national level.

Approximately 25 days

March 31, 2026

Required qualifications, experience, languages and competencies.

· PhD in nutrition, public health, nutritional epidemiology or related field.

· At least 5 years of professional experience in conducting high-quality research in nutrition, public health, or related fields in Mali.

· Residence in Mali required throughout the contract period.

· Experience conducting research on child undernutrition and, preferably, on wasting.

· Experience obtaining Ethics committee approval and other relevant approvals from authorities to conduct data collection.

· Experience sensitizing communities and other stakeholders about research activities.

· Experience developing reports, policy briefs and journal articles.

· Excellent communications skills.

· Excellent written and spoken French.

Preferred qualifications

· Experience conducting impact evaluations using a randomized controlled design, implementation research, and cost studies.

How to apply

The following items need to be included in the proposal:

· A letter of intent elaborating on capacity, experience and availability of the national research partner to conduct the work within the presented timeframe in Mali.

· Detailed up to date CV.

· A budget reflecting time involvement and daily rate.

· Minimally 2 references related to recent relevant work of the person(s) who will conduct the research.

In a second round of the selection process, selected candidates will work closely with IFPRI to refine workplan and budget.

French version :

Contexte et justification

A l'échelle mondiale, 45 millions d'enfants de moins de cinq ans souffrent d'émaciation. L'émaciation augmente considérablement le risque de décès, tuant 875 000 enfants de moins de cinq ans chaque année. Il est urgent de tester des solutions innovantes pour prévenir l'émaciation. Le Partenariat conjoint des Nations Unies pour la prévention de l'émaciation (JUNIPr), entre l'UNICEF, le PAM et l'OMS, offre une occasion unique d'étudier l'efficacité des programmes multi systèmes et multisectoriels visant à prévenir l'émaciation. Ce projet produira des données probantes de haute qualité grâce à des recherches menées en Afrique de l'Ouest (Mali), en Afrique de l'Est (Ethiopie) et en Asie du Sud (Bangladesh).

Description du travail

I. Objectifs

Pour le projet JUNIPr, nous cherchons à recruter un consultant de recherche en tant que partenaire de recherche national. En collaboration avec l'IFPRI, responsable mondial de la recherche, le partenaire national de recherche soutiendra la phase de conception (phase 1) du projet de recherche décrit ci-dessus, avec la perspective de devenir co-investigateur principal de la recherche menée pendant la phase de mise en œuvre (phase 2). En bref, la phase 1 comprendra les activités suivantes : soutenir la recherche formative ; soutenir l'identification des différentes composantes du programme d'intervention et du modèle approprié à tester à grande échelle ; coconcevoir (avec l'IFPRI) et soumettre à l'approbation éthique les protocoles de la recherche de mise en œuvre, de l'étude d'impact et de l'étude de coûts à mener lors de la deuxième phase.

II. Activités et tâches

Le contrat sera établi et géré par l'IFPRI.

Sous la supervision de l'IFPRI et en collaboration avec l'IFPRI, l'UNICEF, le PAM et l'OMS, cette consultation se concentrera sur les activités suivantes :

Activité 1 : Recherche formative

Une recherche formative sera menée pour éclairer la conception de programmes d'intervention adaptés au contexte, y compris les plateformes de prestation et les modalités de mise en œuvre pertinentes.