Terms of Reference (TOR)

Market Research Consultant – Adaptive Learning App

Background

Ubongo is Africa's leading producer of kids' edutainment. As a non-profit social enterprise, we create fun, localised, and multi-platform educational content that helps kids learn, and leverage their learning to change their lives. Ubongo reaches over 62 million kids across Africa through accessible technologies like TV, radio, and mobile phones. Our show’s Ubongo Kids, Nuzo and Namia as well as Akili and Me currently air in 16 countries across Africa in multiple languages.

Ubongo is exploring the development of an Adaptive Learning App designed for Sub-Saharan African (SSA) contexts. The proposed solution aims to provide engaging, personalized, and contextually relevant learning experiences for children through accessible digital platforms. As the organization evaluates both home-based and school-based pathways for scale, it seeks to engage an external market research consultant or firm to conduct a comprehensive market validation and feasibility study that will inform product strategy, market prioritization, commercial viability, and go-to-market planning.

Purpose of the Assignment

The purpose of this consultancy is to identify the most viable pathway for launching and scaling the Adaptive Learning App. The consultant will assess which user segments, age groups, and delivery models offer the strongest product-market fit, highest adoption potential, and greatest long-term sustainability. The research should generate strategic insights on how children and caregivers engage with digital learning, how schools adopt educational technologies, and what product configurations are most suitable for African realities, including low-connectivity environments, shared device usage, varying literacy levels, and supervised versus unsupervised learning contexts.

The consultancy should also evaluate which commercial approaches are most viable across different user segments, including subscriptions, freemium models, hybrid pricing structures, donation-supported approaches, and geo-based pricing systems. Ultimately, the assignment should provide clear recommendations on whether the organization should prioritize home-based, school-based, or hybrid models, and for which learner age groups.

Scope of Work

The consultant will conduct research across both home-based and school-based ecosystems. For the home-based pathway, the study should focus on middle-income and high-income households with access to smartphones or shared digital devices in Sub Saharan Africa. The research should explore caregiver aspirations, learning priorities, willingness to pay, digital behaviors, language preferences, technology access, and the extent to which children currently engage with educational versus entertainment content online. The consultant should also assess how caregivers make decisions around device access, internet spending, educational investments, and the supervision of children’s learning. The key focus markets include: Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Ghana with potential secondary markets such as Zimbabwe and Rwanda.

For the school-based pathway, the consultant should assess the market size and demand of this solution from public schools, schools supported by implementing partners, low-cost private school networks, and middle- to high-income private schools. The research should examine infrastructure readiness, teacher and administrator needs, procurement processes, classroom realities, student-to-device ratios, and the practical feasibility of integrating adaptive learning solutions into existing teaching environments. The consultant should also assess incentives, training needs, and the role of governments, NGOs, school networks, and other institutional actors in driving adoption and scale. The study would also help prioritize which countries would be ideal for prioritization for the school-based pathway.

A critical component of the assignment is to assess the strategic trade-offs involved in prioritizing different learner age groups and product pathways. The consultant should evaluate whether the organization is better positioned to focus initially on early childhood learning or older learners, considering market opportunity, differentiation, competition, implementation complexity, and available technology solutions. Particular attention should be given to the structural differences between early learning solutions compared to learner systems for older students.

Methodology

The consultant is expected to propose a robust mixed-methods research approach that combines desk research, market sizing, surveys, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, competitor benchmarking, pricing analysis, and user journey mapping. The methodology should generate both quantitative and qualitative insights that support strategic decision-making. Comparative analysis of regional and global EdTech players, particularly those operating in low-resource or low-connectivity environments, should also be incorporated.

Expected Deliverables

The consultant will be expected to deliver:

• An inception report outlining the proposed methodology, workplan, and research tools
• Draft presentations of emerging findings from desk-research, market sizing and stakeholder engagement; and
• A final market research report containing clear strategic recommendations. The final outputs should include market sizing estimates, competitor analysis, user segment prioritization, product-market fit insights, recommended business models, go-to-market pathways, and practical recommendations on whether the organization should prioritize home-based, school-based, or hybrid models. The report should also identify key risks, implementation considerations, and recommended next steps for product and market development.

The Consultant can provide the appropriate timelines for each variable within the time frame set for this engagement (see below).

Duration and Proposal Submission

The consultancy is expected to take approximately 8–12 weeks. Interested consultants or firms should submit a technical proposal outlining their understanding of the assignment, proposed methodology, workplan, relevant experience, team composition, timeline, references, and financial proposal. Proposals will be evaluated based on technical quality, contextual understanding, relevant expertise, feasibility of approach, and overall value for money.

Consultant Qualifications

The consultant or firm should demonstrate:

• Strong experience conducting market research within education, digital products, or EdTech ecosystems, preferably within Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Experience conducting comprehensive qualitative and quantitative research with caregivers, children, schools, and digital learning environments
• Strong analytical and strategic capabilities, including experience assessing business models, pricing strategies, technology adoption, and market expansion opportunities
• Familiarity with adaptive learning systems, early childhood learning
• Familiarity in low-connectivity digital environments will be considered an advantage.

Application Instructions

Interested consultants (or agencies) should submit a proposal including:

• A brief profile experience in conducting market research and capabilities in Africa.
• Proposed approach to delivering the scope of work
• Portfolio of past relevant market research and strategy.
• Detailed quotation per deliverable.

The deadline to submit the proposals is 15th June, 2026. Kindly submit your proposal to shama@ubongo.org. The subject of the email should be: Market Research for Adaptive Learning Solutions. Submissions will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Equal Employment Opportunity

UBONGO provides equal opportunities to all bidders and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, sexual orientation or any other characteristic protected by the laws of the country we are operating in.

Job Scam Warning

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Beware of any individuals claiming to have influence over our hiring decisions or requesting favors in exchange for guaranteed shortlisting or employment opportunities. Such actions are against our policies and do not reflect our organization's values.