Begin with the decision the NGO must make
A baseline study in Chad becomes valuable when it changes an implementation decision. Before interviewing households in N'Djamena or Moundou, a programme team should decide what it needs to learn about access, quality, affordability, knowledge or behaviour. A pair of urban sites can illuminate how an intervention might work in different settings; it cannot establish results for every district, rural settlement or hard-to-reach population.
An effective baseline begins with the programme theory of change. Map the intended activities, outputs, outcomes and assumptions, then ask which assumptions are most uncertain. For an education intervention, access to classes and learning outcomes are different constructs; for a livelihood project, training participation is not the same as improved earnings. Define the measurement questions before selecting a questionnaire platform. The final study plan should say who will review the data and what programme choices each indicator is expected to support.
Understand how research geography works in Chad
Fieldwork should follow the administrative vocabulary used in Chad: provinces, departments and sub-prefectures. These structures help researchers identify the correct boundaries, local gatekeepers and likely sources of population lists, but they do not automatically supply a complete probability sampling frame. First establish which boundaries apply to the actual programme area, then verify maps and household or facility counts. Administrative labels should be used only after checking their exact local meaning and relationship to the study population.
Define the target population and sampling frame
Sampling quality depends on how people can enter the study, not simply how many questionnaires are completed. Construct a frame with clearly defined geographic and eligibility boundaries. If households are selected through multiple stages, track selected clusters and household selection rules; if facilities are sampled, separate a facility census from interviews with its users. Anticipate nonresponse and predefine replacement procedures. A two-city study can estimate outcomes for well-defined urban populations when designed for that purpose, but it cannot automatically claim to represent every region.
Baseline research in N'Djamena: designing the first city sample
In N'Djamena, where the city functions as a capital with ministries, services and formal businesses, a baseline might start with an inventory of programme catchments and service points. If the intervention concerns water, sanitation and hygiene, the field team should test measures of water source, reliability, access time, costs and household practices. Interviewer routes should deliberately cover selected neighbourhoods rather than concentrating around accessible offices and major roads. Compare the register of intended participants with people who actually use services; discrepancies may expose targeting or access problems. Whether the unit is a household, young person, facility or beneficiary must remain consistent through analysis.
Baseline research in Moundou: testing a contrasting city context
Moundou deserves an independent field plan because it is a southern commercial city with different livelihoods. Before importing the N'Djamena questionnaire unchanged, conduct a short cognitive pilot and verify where the target population resides, travels and receives services. The sample allocation should reflect the stated comparison question, not an arbitrary equal split made for convenience. If the NGO needs a comparison between the two cities, agree the minimum precision and subgroup coverage needed. Findings should describe the observed difference without attributing it automatically to geography or programme performance.
Build indicators that can be measured again
Treat indicator definitions as the bridge between programme claims and survey evidence. For each proposed outcome, ask whether it can be observed, self-reported or verified from records. Avoid relying on a single question when the construct has several dimensions. If measuring household resilience, for instance, clarify the time horizon and components rather than applying a generic label. Pilot response categories and translation choices. The baseline data dictionary should allow an independent analyst to reproduce the reported indicators without guessing.
Choose appropriate survey and qualitative methods
Selecting CAPI, CATI or CAWI is a coverage decision before it is a technology decision. CAPI helps where interviewers must locate households or verify assets. CATI can be efficient when phone numbers form a credible frame, but shared phones and unreachable numbers may affect who responds. CAWI works for digitally reachable populations, not automatically for everyone. Add observation and interviews with service providers when respondent accounts need contextual interpretation. Document any mixed-mode effects before combining the results.
Translate and pilot instruments for local respondents
Tools and consent scripts should be tested in Chadian Arabic, French and locally relevant languages. A language that works for a formal meeting may not be the clearest language for a household interview, and bilingual respondents may switch vocabulary when describing sensitive experiences. Prepare a glossary for core constructs, reconcile translations with the source questionnaire and role-play difficult questions. Recruit interviewers for language competence and cultural familiarity, not only device skills. Translation changes need recorded approval so that future midline and endline rounds can preserve conceptual equivalence.
Design field operations around actual access conditions
Operationally, language choice and long-distance supervision are core cost drivers. Plan interviewer assignments, transport, safe operating hours, supervision and escalation around this reality. An initial reconnaissance visit can check listing feasibility, accessibility, the actual duration of an interview and any mismatch between administrative maps and lived settlement boundaries. A rigorous pilot should include sample-selection rehearsal, consent practice, skip-logic tests and mock data submission. Budget for replacements that comply with the original selection procedure rather than allowing opportunistic substitution when a respondent is absent.
Protect consent, privacy and vulnerable participants
Ethics is an operational design requirement. Explain that participation does not guarantee benefits or change programme eligibility. Avoid collecting precise location, images or contact details simply because a platform allows it. Where safeguarding topics or vulnerable populations are involved, establish a clear response protocol and train interviewers not to promise confidentiality they cannot protect. Consent wording should be understandable in the language used for the actual conversation. Institutional and local permissions must be checked for the relevant sites and activities.
Check quality while fieldwork is still active
The best way to improve data quality is to make failure visible early. Pilot every language version and test skip logic on actual devices. Compare early interview durations, survey routes, subgroup distributions and item nonresponse against expectations. If interviewers struggle with one translated concept, pause and correct the wording through formal version control. Independent back-checks and spot observations can verify authenticity, while clean decision logs show why any interview was excluded or repeated.
Analyse change without overstating causal claims
Turn the baseline into a measurement asset rather than a one-off report. The analyst should supply a transparent dataset, a codebook, stable indicator definitions and enough documentation to recreate every major result. Report confidence and precision where the design allows, and avoid making small subgroup differences sound definitive. The programme team should agree how baseline findings change implementation and schedule any follow-up measurements at periods that preserve comparability.
Turn baseline evidence into action in Chad
For a hypothetical NGO programme focused on water, sanitation and hygiene, the useful deliverable is not simply a table showing water source, reliability, access time, costs and household practices. It is an explanation of which barriers can be addressed through the intervention and which reflect factors outside programme control. If participants know a service exists but rarely use it, explore cost, location, opening time, quality, trust and social norms. Recommend a response only when the evidence distinguishes among those explanations. The baseline should also register external shocks and programme exposure dates to protect later interpretation.
At the end of the exercise, the NGO should be able to say what the baseline means for Chad, what it means specifically for N'Djamena and Moundou, and what it does not mean. Set a schedule for repeating core indicators, preferably at comparable seasonal periods. Keep the sample frame, contact protocol, questionnaire versions, interview-date records and calculation syntax. Use a short management session to decide whether targeting, staffing, communication or referral practices should change. Record those decisions so the endline can examine both outcomes and the adaptation process.
What a useful baseline report should deliver
A strong Chad baseline report should provide a clearly defined study population, an honest sampling account, accepted-interview totals, response outcomes, reproducible indicators and accessible recommendations. City comparisons should carry their own denominators and limitations. The report can be supported by a clean dataset, fieldwork memo, codebook and monitoring matrix, for internal analysis and subsequent measurement rounds. Any gaps in coverage should be visible so implementers can decide whether further listing or targeted qualitative inquiry is needed before expanding activities.
How Surveysphere Africa can support
Surveysphere Africa helps NGOs and development organisations design baseline studies, define indicators, plan samples, manage fieldwork, verify data quality and turn findings into actionable programme decisions. For work involving N'Djamena, Moundou or wider coverage in Chad, the research design should begin with the intended decision and the population it needs to represent, then adapt responsibly to the local context.
Related guidance
For the continent-wide view, read our guide to baseline, midline and endline studies.
Our services for research in Chad
We run research across African markets. Start with these services for work in Chad:
- Monitoring, evaluation and learning in Chad: Baseline, midline, endline and programme evaluation.
- Social and development research in Chad: Qualitative and quantitative studies for social and development programmes.
We also offer: Outsourced fieldwork, Market and consumer research, Public health research, Policy, economic and institutional research, Data analytics and insights visualisation.
