Consultant: Impact of solar irrigation in Bangladesh
International Water Management Institute, Bangladesh

International Water Management Institute (IWMI) a CGIAR Research Center is seeking applications from suitably qualified candidates for a short-term assignment under the project titled "Transforming Agrifood Systems in South Asia".

Project Background

While agriculture is a major contributor to Greenhouse Gas emission (GHG) in South Asia, the adoption of mitigation practices and technologies are promoted by governments and donors and are frequently included in the Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) plans. For example, in Bangladesh, the GHG emissions from the agricultural sector in Bangladesh for 201415 are 76.79 million tons (Mt) carbon-dioxide equivalent (CO2e) (Saptoka et al., 2021). A large part of these emissions in agriculture come from diesel pumps supporting the access to groundwater for the irrigation of water-intensive rice cultivated during the dry season (boro). Henceforth, solar irrigation pumps are promoted by the government and the donors to cut those emissions while maintaining strategic access to groundwater for food security.

The Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL), a Government-owned financial company, is the primary agency working for mainstreaming and installing solar pumps in Bangladesh. They so far installed 1500 Solar Irrigation Pumps (SIP) following a ‘fee-for-service’ model consistent with public-private partnership principles. Partner organizations, referred to as sponsors, buy the solar pump and the related equipment taking grants and loans from IDCOL. Approximately 50% of the cost is received as a grant by the sponsor and another 35% as a loan from IDCOL. The remaining amount referred to as equity has to be paid directly by the sponsor. The sponsor then operates the SIP and sells water to farmers in exchange for a fee. This fee is used to cover the operational costs (paid operator and maintenance costs) and mostly to recover the investment and to pay back the loan to IDCOL.

IWMI is doing an Impact evaluation study in Bangladesh collecting data from a representative sample of IDCOL SIPs to understand the bio-physical and economic impacts of adopting solar irrigation. Also to critically the look at the challenges and opportunities for IDCOL’s fee-for-service model in expanding solar irrigation in Bangladesh and other neighbouring regions of Eastern Gangetic plain.

Objective of the Assignment

The specific objectives of the proposed consultancy are twofold

• Undertake analysis of household data collected from 900 farmers in North-West Bangladesh and prepare a comprehensive article on the impact of shifting to solar irrigation on production costs, yield, poverty, and time allocation. The analysis should also look into the heterogeneity of these impacts in terms of the socio-economic and land tenure profile of the farmers. The household data consists of three groups of farmers - current solar farmers (one-third), current diesel farmers but SIP installation is in the pipeline (one-third) and finally control farmers using diesel or electric pumps in non-solarized villages. The econometric analysis for the article would be cross-sectional but using robust causal inference techniques to identify the farmer level impact of SIPs.
• Analyze the data collected from telephonic survey of a representative sample of 82 IDCOL SIPs across 6 seasons (end 2020 mid 2022) and prepare a comprehensive article on the performance of IDCOL SIPs over the seasons. The article should focus on the performance of the fee-for-service model as a sustainable model for expansion of SIPs and how different SIP characteristics (NGO/private sponsor, age, power installed, type of pump, financing) influence its operation? The consultant would need to merge new rounds of data with previous rounds and undertake required cleaning. This data collects SIP level information from across Bangladesh and would require descriptive analysis to answer the above questions in the article.

Deliverables

• Article on the farmer-level impact of solar irrigation using collected household data
• Article on the performance of the fee-for-service business and its determinants in terms of SIP characteristics

Duration: Six (06) months from August 2022 to January 2023

Your application must include a copy of your curriculum vitae, a cover letter that addresses IWMI’s requirements stated above, and contact information of three professional referees who may be contacted if you are short-listed for the position.

This is an internationally hired consultant position.

Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Requirements

The successful candidate will possess the following:

• Master degree or PhD in Econo

Job Rewards and Benefits