Vacancy title:
Research Associate, Ewallet Project

Jobs at:
Innovations for Poverty Action

Deadline of this Job:
June 16th, 2017

Duty Station:
Kampala, Uganda

Job details:
IPA seeks a qualified applicant for the position of Research Associate in Uganda. The research focuses at generating high-quality evidence about the marginal impact of each of two innovative interventions both on women’s empowerment: (1) offering labeled mobile money ‘sub-wallets’ to make mobile money products more relevant to the way that women think about and use money, and (2) improve equitable household decision making through household financial counseling across 2 parishes in two districts of Western Uganda. The Principal Investigators for this study are Linda Scott (Oxford), Catherine Dolan (University of London) and Anna Custers (Oxford).

Digital financial services are potentially one of the most accessible means for the rural poor to access the formal financial sector. Cellular based services break down barriers to traditional financial services, which have failed to penetrate most of rural Africa, maintaining branches only in distant and difficult to reach urban centers. However, globally, women have lower adoption rates for digital technology, including mobile banking, compared to men. Indeed, in low- and middle- income countries, women are 21% less likely to own a mobile phone than a man (Cherie Blair Foundation 2010). Research in sub-Saharan Africa shows that, even when using mobile money, women are “passive” users; that is, they receive, but do not send money, probably a symptom of unequal authority over the deployment of funds.

CARE and Postbank Uganda will develop mobile money products that speak more directly to women’s priority needs, aimed at improving the relevance of mobile money specifically to how women plan and use money. CARE intends to address the socio-cultural barriers to women’s uptake of mobile money services by using existing Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) groups as the entry platform for promoting mobile money use amongst women, who form the majority of VSLA members.
The Research Associate (RA) will be hired through Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), will report to IPA Uganda’s Research Coordinator, and work in close collaboration with the PIs.

Tasks and Responsibilities
Throughout the timeframe of this position, the RA will be expected to work full-time on the research project. The major roles and responsibilities of the RA are expected to consist of:
1. Data collection: The RA will take a lead role in designing and implementing all data collection activities. These include organizing focus group discussions, piloting survey instruments, programing surveys into hand-held devices, and training and supervising survey enumerators.
2. Data management. The RA will take a lead role in cleaning original survey data and preparing fully labeled datasets for analysis. The RA will also be responsible for assembling information from official sources (e.g. Postbank customer information) and CARE’s respondent data.
3. Permissions: The RA will assist with development of material for IRB approvals and research permits from the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST), as needed.
4. Budgets: The RA will track expenses to ensure they align with the evaluation budget.
5. Support to partners. The RA will help ensure that CARE and the implementing partners adhere to the research protocol. This role will require operating with considerable sensitivity, as well as establishing trust with and respect from our partners. In particular, the RA will work closely to track uptake of the digital sub-wallets from post bank customer data.
6. Maintaining the distinction between treatment and control until after the study period

Education and Work Experiences
• Hold a bachelor’s degree in economics, political science, cognitive sciences, public policy, or related field is required, Masters preferred. Coursework in statistics is a big plus.
• Possess excellent management and organization skills, along with keen attention to details
• Have advanced proficiency using data management software. Knowledge of Stata is a MUST.
• Be interested financial inclusion, and social development issues.
• Be willing to travel extensively in the field.
• Have excellent communication skills in English.
• Experience in qualitative interviews is a strong plus
• Familiarity with randomized controlled trials preferred
• Demonstrated ability to manage high-level relationships with partner organizations
• Be able to work effectively independently and as part of a team.
• Have excellent attention to detail, a strong work ethic, and a high level of comfort leading people.
• Be able to command respect not just from the research team and other local partners.

Job application procedure
1. Please send an updated CV (Including naming 3 professional referees), a statement of purpose (cover letter), and academic transcripts to jobs-uganda@poverty-action.org
2. Type “Research Associate, Ewallet Project, Uganda” in the email subject line.
3. Deadline for submitting applications is June 16th, 2017
4. Applications will be processed on rolling basis. Please apply early.
5. Due to the high number of applications, only candidates who meet position requirements after CV screening will be contacted for interviews.
6. FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY

DISCLAIMER: The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of the work being performed by the Research Associate. The statements are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all possible duties, tasks, and responsibilities. Management reserves the right to amend and change responsibilities to meet organizational needs as necessary. Please note that IPA will never request any form of payment from an applicant. IPA is an equal opportunity employer.