Research Associate, Irregular Migration and Misinformation in Nigeria at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) seeks a Research Associate to manage a study that investigates whether providing migration-relevant information to a random sample of subjects in high-migration areas of Nigeria would have effects on migration-related beliefs and behaviors. The study will be implemented in two states: Edo and Delta. The Principal Investigators are Alexandra Scacco (WZB Berlin Social Science Center), Bernd Beber (WZB Berlin Social Science Center), Macartan Humphreys (WZB Berlin Social Science Center), Florian Foos (London School of Economics), and Dean Yang (University of Michigan).

The Research Associate will work closely with the Research Manager, Principal Investigators, and other IPA country office staff to oversee all aspects of the research study. The Research Associate will be based in Abuja, with frequent travel to Edo and Delta.

This position provides an excellent opportunity to gain extensive hands‐on experience in a field setting and to have significant management responsibility in a vibrant organization undertaking cutting‐edge development research. Key areas of involvement will include: designing survey questionnaires, recruiting, training and managing survey teams, designing and supervising logistics for the field activities, cleaning and analyzing survey data, assisting in the writing of project reports and policy memos, and liaising with key government and nongovernmental stakeholders. The work will develop your analytical and management skills and require your full commitment in a challenging environment.

Responsibilities

• Throughout the life of the project, the Research Associate will be expected to carry out the following activities:
• Coordinate research and implementation efforts with all relevant stakeholders.
• Develop and pilot the survey instruments, including programming digital data collection, managing the translation and back-translation of the survey into applicable local languages.
• Hire, train, and manage the field teams that will conduct the data collections.
• Manage all field logistics, procure products, and get approvals from local authorities.
• Ensure all data quality protocols are followed including auditing enumerators and performing daily checks of the incoming data; correct the errors of staff iteratively to ensure the data is of the highest quality.
• Manage the data from collection at the household to delivery of a final, cleaned dataset.
• Manage the budget including tracking all expenses to ensure costs are within project funds.
• Manage the project budget and field expenses.

Education and/or Work Experience Requirements:

• A degree (Master’s preferred) in economics, public policy, international development, health, or related fields.
• Excellent project management skills and attention to detail, with a quality-focused mindset.
• Experience interacting with partners, government officials and other key stakeholders.
• Cultural sensitivity and demonstrated ability to work successfully with diverse constituencies.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Ability to work independently, problem-solve, and enlist support when needed.
• Strong quantitative skills and very good knowledge of Stata.
• Must be able to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Experience working in Nigeria or the West African context.
• Knowledge of randomized controlled trials and econometrics.
• Knowledge of measurement and instrument development.
• Experience supervising data collection and teams of field workers.