Consultancy - Trends of media portrayals of Rangelands and Pastoralism in Kenya over the last decade
Duty Station:Marsabit
Duration: 34 consultancy days
Reporting To: Executive Director
1. Organizational background
Center for Research and Development in Drylands (CRDD) is a non-profit organization that engages in people-centered research and development partnerships. It develops and implements approaches and provides services that catalyze sustainable development of livelihoods and the welfare of communities living in the drylands of Kenya. Drawing on an extensive pool of expertise and networks from the region, CRDD brings together stakeholders with diverse knowledge of the complex situations, challenges and opportunities in drylands. In its work, CRDD emphasizes knowledge integration of academic and societal stakeholders to co-develop and implement development solutions that take the conditions and the capacities of the community and other relevant stakeholders into account. Hence, CRDD works towards generating practical knowledge through inter-phasing participatory research with development in pastoral regions of Kenya. This serves to support and empower the local population to co-develop their future.
2. Context and scope of the study
In the drylands, pastoralism – the mobile rearing of different types of livestock species that also play a critical cultural role- remains the main economic stay of the inhabitants. Despite various challenges, it continues to make major contributions to food security, livelihoods, ecosystem services and economic prosperity for the communities. Pastoral livestock production contributes over 80% of the incomes of residents of Kenya’s drylands. However, the value of pastoralism is yet to be fully acknowledged by policymakers, donors and the public at large. There are some notable policy and developmental improvements including the formulation of the ASAL Policy (2012) for the Sustainable Development of Northern Kenya and other Arid Lands, the enactment of the Community Land Act (2016) and the range and pastoralism strategy 2021-2031. Nonetheless, the economic and non-economic value of pastoralism remains poorly acknowledged. Indeed, research shows that some of the grandiose infrastructural projects and interventions in these areas may aggravate rather than alleviate pastoralists' vulnerability to diverse shocks because they are anchored on a poor or incomplete understanding of pastoral dynamics.
Media play an important role in shaping the public understanding and perception of pastoralism, particularly based on prevailing policy discourse. Often, this is based on prevailing and dominant policy discourses, Yet, the need to correctly portray pastoral production systems has long been pointed out by studies on pastoralist-related conflict. Positively, the media spaces in Kenya have experienced significant growth over the past three decades, both in the print, broadcast and digital segments. The media have become a stronger shaper of public opinion in the country and exert extensive influence in policy direction, investment and development decisions. The presence of the media in the far and hard-to-reach places in northern Kenya has particularly improved over the last decade, particularly with the operationalization of devolved governance units. Therefore, accurate media coverage of pastoralism and its potential to contribute to sustainable development in a changing climate such that the system features well within the country’s economic outlook has far-reaching implications. Understanding the trend of media portrayals will help us understand the common storylines on pastoralism and rangelands and the perception it creates. We therefore propose a study aimed at improving the understanding of what has changed and could be changed in media portrayals of rangelands and pastoralism since the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010.
By reviewing national main print media (such as the Daily Nation and the Standard), the study will have a national perspective. However, a more granulated and contextual perspective will also be obtained by collecting primary data from county/regional-based media personnel in Marsabit and Isiolo. Additionally, an analysis of attitudes and perceptions of media professionals from the major media houses will be undertaken to establish the source of information that shapes this attitude.
The findings of this study will enlighten the stakeholders on how media have portrayed rangelands and pastoralism and how this relates to the current understanding of the potential of the pastoral production system as revealed through research. It will also provide a reflection of the possible impact of the media portrayals on changes in development plans and budgeting for rangelands and pastoralism over the past decade. Additionally, the findings can provide opportunities for improved coverage by journalists by giving a voice to pastoralists themselves and also for researchers and journalists to communicate better together. This is particularly important in the context of the International year of Rangeland and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026) as the findings will highlight the role of media in developing impactful messages and areas that need to be improved for media personnel to be well prepared to be part of this important global series of activities.
3. Approach
The study will involve:
- Analysis of coverage relating to rangelands and pastoralism in the two main Kenyan newspapers – Nation and Standard – since the promulgation of the constitution of Kenya 2010 looking at the frequency of mention and the depiction of rangelands and pastoralists/pastoralism.
- Interviews with journalists at national and county levels to understand their perceptions of rangelands and pastoralism and what informs these perceptions.
- Conducting feedback sessions with journalists in Marsabit and Isiolo Counties on the preliminary findings of the study.
Deliverables
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A study report (max 30 pages) on the findings and recommendations
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A blog post to be published in New Humanitarian or other suitable blogs
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A policy brief (Max 3 pages)
Timelines
The total number of days of this assignment is 34 consultancy days, which is distributed between the main
Tasks as follows
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Obtaining and analysis of the newspaper contents (10 days)
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Interviews with media personnel and other key informants (7 days)
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Data analysis and drafting of the report (7 days)
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Feedback sessions with local-level media personnel (2 days)
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Finalization of the report with inputs from the discussion sessions and CRDD team (3 days)
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Development of policy brief and blog post (5 days)
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Travel costs will be catered for by the organization.
Qualifications
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Advanced degree in journalism or other social sciences
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Previous experience in similar assignment
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Good knowledge about and experience working on rangelands and pastoralism
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Excellent analytical and scientific writing skills
Expression of interest
Interested individuals or consulting firms are 2to submit their expression of interest that includes technical and financial proposal (max 5 pages) as well as copies of or links to similar assignments to humanresource@crdd-kenya.org by 5.00 pm on 20th December 2023. CRDD is an equal-opportunity employer. Only shortlisted candidates or firms will be contacted.