Research Adviser - Botswana

Location: Botswana and home-based
Closing date: 13th July 2015
Contract duration: 25 consultant days

Fee: All inclusive fee of £10,000

The Commonwealth Secretariat, through its Public Sector Governance Unit, is preparing a major publication entitled Collectively Combatting Corruption in Africa. This report will contain several elements, including a study into how ‘islands of success’ have made progress in the fight against corruption in Commonwealth Africa.

The Commonwealth Secretariat has identified six countries, which, while continuing to experience challenges arising from corruption, have made significant progress in combatting the problem. These countries are Botswana, Lesotho, Mauritius, Namibia, Rwanda and the Seychelles. The countries have been selected due to their relatively strong score on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index in 2014, or because they have registered a significant improvement in their score on this index over the past decade.

We are looking for experienced research advisers with strong analytical skills to carry out research into anti-corruption strategies in Botswana. You will have outstanding written and verbal communication skills and previous experience/knowledge of Botswana. You will ideally have a post-graduate degree or a PhD in a relevant discipline.

Project purpose

The research into the ‘islands of success’ in the fight against corruption will be aimed primarily at policy-makers in Commonwealth Africa. The overall aim of the project is to produce a resource which will help governments and other stakeholders to learn from the experiences of the countries which have been most successful in reducing corruption.

Scope of Work

The Collectively Combatting Corruption in Africa publication will contain one chapter dedicated to each of the six countries covered as part of the ‘islands of success’ research. A single consultant (or consultancy) will be responsible each country chapter, though a consultant may apply to cover more than one of the six country chapters.

The consultant is expected to perform the following tasks in the course of undertaking the research:

Review existing literature on efforts to combat corruption in Botswana.
Conduct a field visit to Botswana, and conduct extensive interviews with key stakeholders in government, civil society, development partners and the private sector, in order to identify the key institutions driving anti-corruption efforts in the country.
Utilise any other appropriate research methodologies, including telephone interviews, focus group studies, and surveys of key stakeholders, to gain access to the information required to fulfil the aims of the project.