Company Profile

DKT Anglophone West Africa (AWA), is an innovative, adventurous and sustainable social marketing enterprise that improves people’s lives in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone by contributing to raising modern contraceptive prevalence rate, reduce maternal mortality and provide safe quality options for HIV/AIDs prevention.  

Job Description

Insights on Family Planning, Brand/Logo Positioning and Consumer Experience
A multi-component research by DKT International Ghana
Terms of Reference

Background
Family planning if used properly is a great tool to avert unintended pregnancies, maternal and child mortality and unsafe abortions. Family planning has also been found with the ability to promote gender equality and empower women in our societies.

With all these enormous benefits of family planning, its usage is still low among women of reproductive age 15-49. The Ghana Demographic and Health Survey revealed that modern contraceptive prevalence rate among married women is currently 22% with an unmet of over 30%. The low patronage of family planning has resulted in high rates of unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortion and increased maternal and child mortality. Currently, Ghana’s maternal mortality ratio stands at 380 deaths per 100,000 live births.

Various factors account for the low patronage of family planning services in Ghana. The lack of communication or miscommunication about family planning services has been observed to greatly influence the uptake of family planning services. Although, individuals know where to seek for family planning services, they are not well informed about the various methods of family planning and how they work.

Creating a positive customer experience that is synonymous to a particular brand is becoming increasingly important in any company’s performance. Satisfying the customer is invariably the most important part in customer experience. DKT International in light of this seeks to identify strategies that would influence consumer’s behavior in taking up family planning services and by extension increase the purchase of DKT RH products; and adequately the role customer experience plays in the uptake of RH commodities.

As part of a strategy to improve consumer experience and improve the uptake of family planning services. DKT, under its female contraceptive line, Lydia, has created a Lydia Care Network. The Lydia Care Network comprises of health facilities who offer reproductive health services, especially family planning, with the support of DKT, to reach as many women as possible with an unmet need for family planning, through family planning information and creating access to high quality service and consumer experience through branding, social marketing, demand generation, consumer experience and referrals.

Objectives
The general objective of this research is to contribute to increasing the contraceptive prevalence rate in Ghana.

Specific objectives

1. To explore contraceptive needs and perspectives among non-users (15-24 & 25-34 years; Unmarried; Peri-Urban and of class BC);
2. To determine the factors influencing contraceptives use among the target audience
3. To examine the relationship between brand familiarity and consumer satisfaction
4. To determine factors responsible for attaining “consumer engagement”
5. Explore the positioning of Lydia Care Network Logo and its appeal to the target audience
6. Examine consumers’ insights about LYDIA positioning in health care outlets 

Expected Results/Outcomes

1. CONSUMER INSIGHTS – current family planning options; barriers to use (Affordability. Availability, Assured Quality, Appropriate Design and Awareness)
2. LYDIA – Brand familiarity; positioning; packaging; product category and competition
3. LYDIA CARE NETWORK – Positioning (gap) testing leading to tangible customer experience; other category (alternatives)

Methods
This will include

1. Structured questionnaire;
2. Focus group discussion guide among target audience;
3. Precision or Exploratory;
4. Other relevant methodology

Methodology developed by consultant (s) will be reviewed by a team from DKT International. The decision is not DKT exclusive, consultants would be expected to bring forward suggestions on methodologies they will employ in the study

Output
The main body of the report should not exceed 25 pages and should include an executive summary and recommendations. Technical details should be confined to appendices, this should include the work plan of the consultant (s). Background information should only be included when it is directly relevant to the report’s analysis and conclusions.

The consultant (s) should support their analysis with relevant data and state how this has been sourced. Recommendations should also include details as to how they might be implemented

Timeframe
We anticipate a time frame of not more than 2 months starting from June 19th 2017

Scope
The scope of this work is expected to be limited to three regions with each selected region from the Northern, Middle and Coastal belts of the Country. Preference for the Greater Accra, Ashanti and Northern regions is highly desirable.

Consultants/firm Experience
We plan to recruit either a team of consultants or a competent firm. Either way, the team should include a ‘lead’ consultant, who will be responsible for the overall conduct of the research.

Deliverables
The team leader is responsible for the timely submission of the following deliverables to DKT’s General Manager (Operations).

1. Inception Report/Tools: This will    involve all inception documentations including research tools, protocols and proposals; 
2. First Draft Research Report : The first draft will be submitted within two weeks of the end of the data collection exercise;
3. Final Research Report will include feedback from Stakeholders, including DKT and MSIG staff. The submission will include all data sets, annexes and presentations. The consultant will present three bound copies of the final report, and a CD Rom copy of the report.

The final research report will be a maximum of 25 pages including an Executive Summary. The executive summary of the evaluation report will be presented to DKT and its partners as the summary evaluation report.

Proposed Payment Terms
Payment will be made based on the proposed payment structure:

• 20 percent within 2 weeks of signing contract;
• 50 percent upon deliverables 1;and
• 30 percent within 2 weeks of deliverable 3

Technical & Financial Proposals
The technical and financial proposal should be no more than 15 pages, 12 point font and 1.5 line spacing excluding Appendixes. It should address the following areas:

• Experience of firm in this area including past performance, especially as related to health, abortion, and exit surveys;
• Principal Investigator experience and qualifications (include CV as Appendix);
• Description of other key personnel if necessary (include CVs as appendix);
• Sampling strategy and methodology;
• Description of proposed field work operations plan;
• Quality control measures in data collection;
• Data entry approach and quality assurance measures including use of incentives for participation;
• Cost table for the entire research;
• The budget narrative must explain the assumptions behind all cost estimates including number of interviews per enumerator, number of travel days, number of field days (with due allowance for travel days). It should also explain the data entry assumptions (whether manual or direct entry using tablets for field work), as well as the time line for data collection and data entry and other items relevant to the TORs.
• Ethics review experience and proposal;
• Any other issues relevant to the TORs;

Evaluation criteria of proposals is the following:

Financial – 30%

Structure of Financial Proposal
The financial proposal must be submitted in a separate sealed envelope from the Technical Proposal. The budget narrative must explain the assumptions behind all cost estimates including number of interviews per enumerator, number of travel days, number of field days (with due allowance for travel days). It should also explain the data entry assumptions (whether manual or direct entry using tablets for field work), as well as the time line for data collection and data entry and other items relevant to the TORs.

The Financial Proposal should be submitted to: gertrude_amo@dktghana.org

Required Skills or Experience

• The consultants/firm will have demonstrated experience in conducting large, multi-topic research.
• The Principal Investigator must have an advanced degree (preferably PhD) in a Social or Health Science and at least 5 years’ experience conducting both social and consumer research.
• The PI should have a solid understanding of marketing and issues about consumer experience in Ghana, and be fluent in modern research methods including quasi-experimental evaluation designs. The PI should be fluent in written and spoken English.