The RWI – Leibniz-Institute for Economic Research is offering a 3-month research internship position with stay in Senegal to support a research project of the Climate Change in Developing Countries research group. The research project is financed by the “Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung” and aims at understanding the charcoal supply chain in Senegal spanning the rural production sides to the urban vendors. Charcoal plays an important role in many developing countries since it constitutes a major cooking fuel for urban areas and at the same time an important income source for rural households. However, there is very little knowledge on the value chain of charcoal in terms of economic relevance and environmental consequences. The central task will be the supervision of the data collection along the entire charcoal value chain, from producers over transporters and traders to final vendors in Dakar.
The internship is expected to take place from the mid of October 2019 to the mid of January 2020. During this time, the intern will have the opportunity to do field research in Senegal for four to six weeks. The data collection takes place in Dakar and involves regular travelling to and staying in rural areas. It is the task of the student to accompany the data collection that is jointly implemented with a Senegalese partner, ensure data quality, assist interviews and collect additional qualitative information. Before the stay in the field it is planned that the intern supports the preparation of the data collection in Essen. After the stay in the field it would be desirable to continue the internship in Essen to support the data analysis and the reporting.
Our team is looking for a student interested in empirical, quantitative research. In addition to interest in development policy, knowledge of empirical work (econometrics/ statistics and study design) is helpful. At a minimum, there should be an increased willingness to acquire them. Furthermore, good French and English skills are required. RWI will pay a monthly lump sum and all travel costs associated with the data collection in Senegal.
Please direct questions or, if you are interested, a short letter of motivation as well as a CV and transcripts of record, by email until September 13th 2019 to Julian Rose.