Research Manager at Aquaya Institute

About the position

• We are recruiting a Research Manager as a full-time position.
• This position will require international travel within sub-Saharan Africa and will report to Aquaya’s Director of Research & Programs.
• The Research Manager will be responsible for managing research activities, including
• Design and manage field trials of water and sanitation interventions
• Develop data collection tools and research protocols
• Oversee fieldwork and data collection teams
• Write literature reviews and research briefs
• Manage project budgets and timelines
• Manage datasets and conduct analysis (quantitative and qualitative)
• Draft publications, reports and dissemination materials

The Research Manager will contribute to Aquaya’s new initiatives:

1. Rural Evidence and Learning for Water (REAL Water) Program. Funded by USAID and led by Aquaya, the REAL Water program will evaluate strategies for expanding access to safe, equitable, and sustainable rural water across the developing world. The REAL Water program will conduct research on three primary topics:

• Professionalization of rural water service delivery
• Strengthening of water quality monitoring in rural areas
• Improved planning for water resources

2. Urban Resilience by Building partnerships and Applying New evidence in WASH (URBAN WASH) Program. Funded by USAID and led by Tetra Tech, the URBAN WASH program will generate and promote evidence for more sustainable, equitable, and climate-resilient WASH and water resources management (WRM) policy and programming in urban and peri-urban areas. The URBAN WASH program will conduct research on three primary topics

• Institutional frameworks for city-wide access to safe water and sanitation
• Water safety management among small-scale providers
• Targeted subsidies for water and sanitation

3. Enhancing WASH (E-WASH) Program. Funded by USAID and led by Global Communities, Aquaya will cover research and learning activities within the E-WASH program. The goal of the research is to understand the financial requirements for achieving inclusive and sustainable improvements in rural water supplies and sanitation conditions in Northern Ghana. As an implementation program, the research and learning activities will include defining key learning topics, implementing the agenda while leveraging partner implementation and data collection activities, and facilitate learning within the consortium and local government. The Research Manager will likely be engaged with finalizing the research and learning agenda and designing the baseline data collection. We are considering the following research streams:

• Evaluation of supply-side costs
• Evaluation of demand
• Evaluation of subsidy strategies
• Testing of interventions

Criteria for the position

The following qualifications are necessary for this position:

• Demonstrated experience in managing impact evaluations to assess intervention outcomes, preferably related to water or sanitation.
• Master’s degree – preferably in engineering, science, environmental science, or related field.
• 4+ years of relevant work experience OR PhD in related field.
• Previous international work experience in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Ability to conduct quantitative data analysis in Excel, R, or Stata.
• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Fluency in English.

We are also looking for the following skills and attributes:

• Commitment to living in Kenya or Ghana on a full-time basis is preferred.
• Ability to travel to field sites approximately 25% of time (this is an estimated average and is subject to fluctuation)
• Good problem-solving and time management skills.
• Strong work ethic and a commitment to delivery.
• Outstanding organization and time management skills, with an attention to detail and an ability to establish systems to manage constant flows of information and deliver on deadlines.
• Proven ability to work closely with a small team and to successfully manage multiple and changing priorities in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, while maintaining a positive and productive attitude and a good sense of humor!

Compensation and Benefits

This is a full-time position, with an initial 3-month probationary period. Aquaya offers competitive salaries that are commensurate with experience. Benefits include medical insurance and enrolment in a pension plan.