WRI Africa Research Consultancy

WRI Africa Research Consultancy

Terms of Reference

Development Partners Database Management and Engagement Coordination Consultant

Location: Nairobi

Reports to: Africa Director: Food, Land & Water

Institution overview

The World Resources Institute (WRI) is a global research non-profit organization established in 1982. The organization has been working in Africa for more than 30 years, supporting local partners and African governments to advance forest protection, landscape restoration and sustainable cities. Our vision for Africa is an inclusive transformation so that Africa’s people and landscapes can flourish. WRI Africa generates actionable knowledge across three strategic pillars: Vital Landscapes, Thriving and Resilient Cities, and Institutional and Economic Transformation. The goal of the Vital Landscapes pillar is to revitalize and protect landscapes for people and the planet in four programmatic areas: Food, Restoration, Water and Forests. Because Africa’s population will continue to grow rapidly in the next decades, and climate change will remain an obstacle for development, the vital landscapes pillar aims to build the resilience of our natural ecosystems so that they can continue to provide vital ecosystems services – food, water, carbon sequestration and climate regulation sustainably. The pillar aims to catalyse comprehensive transformation of African food systems, so that the way we produce, transport, store, process, trade and consume food is done in such a manner that protects the environment and guarantees human health and well-being.

Assignment background

We are seeking a motivated and detail-oriented consultant to support the development, maintenance, and strategic use of development partners and funder database, with a focus on the food systems/agriculture, environment, and water sectors. The consultant will play a key role in strengthening our resource mobilization efforts by ensuring timely and accurate data acquisition, management, while also facilitating effective coordination with program leads for donor engagement and follow-up.

The consultant will also be responsible for proposal pipeline development, ensuring data quality and accessibility for the Food, Land and Water teams to support planning, reporting and strategic decision making. He/she will contribute to data management, donor research, meeting briefs and ensuring accurate and current fundraising information is captured accurately and shared with relevant team members across the Food Land and Water and Development teams. The consultant will work closely with the Africa Director: Food, Land & Water, as well as the Africa Development Team.

Donor research and Data Management 

• Develop, maintain and update an accurate funding pipeline for food, land and water programs funding pipeline
• Collaborate with program leads to support development partners mapping, engagement planning, and timely follow-ups.
• Support in preparing briefs and presentations, note taking and action points for relevant development partners meetings under the food, land and water portfolio
• Consolidate fundraising information including ongoing and upcoming proposals and any requested write ups and file accurately in the internal shared system.
• Support in researching potential development partners and their key requirements under the three workstreams (food, land and water) and drafting the funding requirements, funding cycles and deadlines.
• Collaborate with the development team to validate and align data across WRI systems
• Collaborate with the food, land and water teams to ensure that all engagements are captured and follow up actions are documented and actioned.
• Generate periodic reports and insights on development partners strategies and trends to support strategic engagement
• Ensure timely proposal writing planning process including scheduling calls with the technical teams, budget and financing officers to deliver high quality proposals on time.
• Coordinate the scheduling and preparation of large proposal reviews (LPR), working closely with the development team technical and finance teams. 
• Leverage on the latest tools and technology to capture funding data, insights and share them in the most simple and actionable manner to the food, land and water teams.

Deliverables

• A fully functional and regularly updated development partners database for food, land and water programs.
• Weekly summary on upcoming engagements and related activities
• Monthly update reports on development partners’ information and engagement progress and recommended follow-up actions.
• Contribution to strategic engagement plans and fundraising calendars.

Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree in International Development, Environmental Studies, Agriculture, or a related field. A master’s degree is an added advantage.
• Proven experience in data management and engagement tracking-preferably in a non-profit or development context
• Proficiency in tools such as Excel, Salesforce, Asana or other CRM/databases
• Familiarity with data visualization tools is a plus
• Strong communication skills and the ability to translate data into practical insights
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively with cross-functional teams.
• Detailed oriented with strong organizational skills
• Completed an undergraduate degree in International Development, public policy, environmental studies, economics or related fields

Duration and level of effort

The consultancy will run from 23^rd June 2025 with an estimated level of effort of 10-15 days per month until 30^th September 2025.

Expression of Interest should contain:

• A brief (Max. 2 pages) document outlining your approach. This should explain why you are qualified for this assignment.
• An indicative budget proposal. The budget should provide a breakdown of the consultant fee and the costs for each of the deliverables.
• CV(s)
• All these documents should be in one pdf file.

We invite qualified persons to submit their Expressions of Interest by 13^th June 2025 to Samuel.Gaturu@wri.org for the attention of Samuel Gaturu, with cc to Edith.Kalela@wri.org for the attention of Edith Kalela, Development Specialist, WRI Africa.