Internship Opportunity for Research Intern at Fortify Health

About Fortify Health

Fortify Health has a vision for a healthier world where everyone has the micronutrients they need to survive and thrive. We work toward this by enabling access to micronutrient-rich wheat flour to reduce and prevent iron deficiency anaemia. We currently have operations in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Telangana, India, and plan to expand in other states in the next three years. We provide career development opportunities and a wide range of resources to support our team.

Fortify Health operates through three work streams:

• Open Market Support: We support millers to cost-neutrally fortify chakki atta in the open market
• Government Partnership Support: We work with governments in India to mainstream wheat flour fortification through social safety net programs
• Evidence Generation: We conduct monitoring and evaluation of activities to inform the public about the value of food fortification

Position overview

Fortify Health seeks to hire two (2) research interns to support Fortify Health’s program. These interns would be full-time team members, provided with paid employment for a period of between 2 – 4 months, depending on availability. The role would be highly suitable to students interested in international development, global health and development and / or development economics. The research synthesised by these team members will directly inform how the team will plan to expand over the next 2-3 years. 

We are hiring for two interns, the two roles shall be:

• Open Market Research Intern: this intern will largely support our Open Market team. This team works with wheat flour millers who fortify their products and sell them into the open market. This intern would investigate questions such as: 
• Which regions are the most advantageous / cost-effective to expand into? 
• What alternative sales channels (apart from the open market) should the team focus on? 
• How can the team cost-effectively increase the volume of wheat flour fortified within existing regions?   

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Intern: this intern will largely support our M&E team. This teams ensures the quality of the products produced by our milling partners, monitors the program as a whole and evaluates the effectiveness of our work This intern would investigate questions such as:

• How can we cost-effectively capture data on our beneficiaries? 
• How can we develop a system for streamlining the calculation of our key indicators and displaying them in a decision-ready manner? 

Applicants are allowed to provide a preference for one of the roles, however the application process and interviews for the internship roles will be done together. Furthermore, there is a chance that interns may be requested to work with both the Open Market and M&E teams depending on need at the time. 

Responsibilities and activities

Research

• Assist in conducting literature reviews related to wheat flour fortification and anaemia reduction
• Support the preparation of research reports and presentations
• Collect and analyze data on the prevalence of anaemia in India
• Stay up-to-date with the latest research and developments in the field of wheat flour fortification and anaemia reduction, and contribute to the knowledge base of the organization by sharing relevant information and resources with other team members.

Evidence Generation

• Help with the design and implementation of field research studies to evaluate the effectiveness of wheat flour fortification
• Assist in the development and implementation of data collection tools, including surveys, questionnaires, and interviews, to gather information on anaemia prevalence, dietary patterns, and wheat flour consumption among target populations.

Communication

• Provide administrative support as needed, such as drafting correspondence, maintaining project files, and scheduling appointments
• Contribute to the development and dissemination of communication materials, such as fact sheets, newsletters, and social media posts, to raise awareness about anaemia and wheat flour fortification.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the supervisor, as needed.

Requirements

• Understanding of Indian context
• Experience working with remote team members
• Experience working independently and preparing actionable research outputs
• Hard-working, inquisitive, growth mindset
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, Data Analysis Skills
• Completed or currently enrolled in Bachelors or higher degree

Desirable attributes

• Experience working in the Indian global health and development space
• Relevant experience in NGO field environment 
• Enthusiasm about the opportunity to improve people’s lives
• Bachelors or higher degree in food technology, milling engineering, public health, or related field (current studies is permitted)

Terms of employment: 

Remote role

12-week preference (flexibility between 10 to 16-week role)

Full-time preference (flexibility with part-time, but strong preference full-time or close to full-time)

Salary and benefits: 20,000 – 30,000 INR (or GBP / USD equivalent) per month for full time role and adjusted on a pro-rata basis for a part-time role