MEAL Specialist

Posted date 23rd December, 2024 Last date to apply 30th December, 2024
Country Pakistan Locations Islamabad
Category Monitoring & Evaluation
Type Contractual Position 1
Experience 6 years

The position of MEAL Specialist will provide technical support to partners and CIP staff in design, implementation and maintenance of the MEAL system and tools, including adapting them to the planned activities and programs. Furthermore, the position will assess and build capacity of the staff, both internally and also of partner organizations to ensure effective program monitoring and accountability whilst ensuring that MEAL tools and mechanism are set up and running smoothly. The incumbent will be responsible for conducting timely and effective monitoring and evaluation, impact assessment and undertake assessments to inform management and field team/s, with regular improvements in project execution in order to meet high quality standards.

Job Description:

Development of MEAL System, Tools, and Processes. (20% of the time)

• In coordination with partners and as per donor requirements, set up a project MEAL System that incorporates basic standards, including tools for designing, evaluating and assessing along with guidelines, including CARE International Principles, MEAL Strategy, Management Information System (MIS) and other MEAL relevant standards, systems and quality management processes.
• Guide the process for identifying and designing key indicators to record and report physical progress against the work plan.
• Ensure that the incorporated time frames are clarified and indicators and responsibilities are clear.
• Develop MEAL plans and frameworks for projects and implement it in the field through CARE staff and partners staff.
• Provide overall support, advice, and oversight on program-level monitoring and evaluation.
• Provide technical assistance in the development, selection, and application of MEAL processes and tools.
• Assist in evaluating the methods and procedures used to obtain data for ensuring validity, applicability, efficiency, and accuracy.
• Develop or adapt quality standards for project activities to assess the quality of implementation.
• Maintain and update action plan tracker with monitoring findings for course correction and follow ups.

Implementation of Project M&E Plan (30% of the time)

• Supervise and constantly track all project activities, inputs, outputs and outcomes ensuring continued relevance to the project.
• Oversee the database development, data entry, data cleaning, verification, data analysis, and development of worksheets, tables, and table format, charts, and graphs.
• Work with partners in reviewing and analyzing project progress reports in terms of problems identified and actions required in accordance with approved reporting formats and deadlines.
• Document methodologies and procedures used in the compilation and analysis of data as well as data sources and limitations of estimates and guidelines for their use.
• Ensure that consortium members as well as partner organizations have effective Complaint Response Mechanism in place and roll it out from inception stage of the project.
• Review the FAM and monitoring system at field and partner levels to identify gaps and areas of improvement.
• Identify relationships and trends in data as well as any factors that could affect the results against key performance indicators in future.
• Consolidate and analyze the Monitoring Action Plan Tracker and Feedback and Accountability Mechanism (FAM) Data on monthly basis.
• Conduct field visits to CARE and implementing partner field offices periodically to assess progress toward achieving objectives, ensure program compliance and effective implementation according to work plans, M&E plans, and proposals. providing recommendations for improvement.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (35% of the time)

• Collaborate with partners and CARE staff on quantitative and qualitative monitoring to provide relevant information for ongoing evaluation of project activities, effects, and impacts.
• Support the partner to collect case studies, success stories and share it with internal and external audiences.
• Review monitoring reports, analyze them for impact evaluation, and identify the causes of potential bottlenecks in project implementation.
• Ensure regular submission of program performance reports based on their performance management regulations and LFA.
• Assist the MEAL Manager in developing monthly, quarterly and annual consolidated data sheets and reports.
• Assist in conducting site verification visits. develop a field trip report with key findings and recommendations.
• Plan and coordinate project reviews, evaluations to be conducted internally or externally as required by projects M&E plan.
• Conduct beneficiary verification survey, Knowledge, Attitude and Practices survey, learning and satisfaction survey, tracer studies and post distribution monitoring of distribution activities.
• With support of project leads ensure that project information is correctly shared with beneficiaries through the most appropriate mechanisms.
• Review the project progress in MIS and generate project report and country progress reports.
• Build strong and functional accountability mechanisms and ensure that relevant static and active channels to solicits and listens to, collates and analyses feedback from members of the community about their experience of CARE and its partners
• Ensure data protection and confidentiality CFM guidelines are followed by all staff and partners.
• Maintain and update a complaints and response mechanism database for tracking feedback from communities and ensure that the feedback/complaints are responded timely.
• Ensure to triggers action, influences decision-making at the appropriate level in the organization and/or prompts a referral to other relevant stakeholders if necessary and appropriate and provides a response back to the person who raised the feedback (when not anonymous) and also responds to the wider community
• Build capacity of other program staff to undertake accountability including ensuring participation of communities and sharing information with communities as well as undertake accountability assessments
• Ensure the Complaint Feedback Mechanism (CFM) are functional and accessible to beneficiaries.
• Develop regular trend analysis of complaints at organizational level and share these with program team as per protocols.
• Conduct comprehensive analysis of evaluation and research findings. provide summary of findings, learning and recommendations and share these with program staff.
• Develop evaluation tracker and evaluation action plan tracker for country office and follow up on action and course corrections.
• Share all information (monitoring reports, CFM databases, preliminary verification reports, case studies etc.) with the supervisor.
• Support team in implementation of country learning agenda through researches, learning workshops, secondary data review and other learning activities.
• Assist in maintaining learning and knowledge management system for the field office.
• Ensure the key learning’s are incorporated in upcoming plans and interventions.
• Professionally document and proactively share information and learning from projects with CARE staff and stakeholders as necessary.
• Take an active role in ensuring that staff are compliant in sharing the reports with the donors, member countries and with the relevant online system.

Knowledge Management and Learning (10% of the time)

• Facilitate the project learning and reflection workshops and help in the identification, analysis, and synthesis of lessons learned from program implementation and, facilitating the incorporation of those lessons into the activity development cycle.
• Build capacity of partners in data collection tools, data entry interfaces, data entry process, maintaining and sharing supporting documents.
• Maintain a positive and close liaison with consortium members as well as partners.
• Organize Learning Workshops that brings together internal and external stakeholders.
• Set up and maintain a knowledge management system of the project that includes key project reporting and learning documents, M&E tools, tracking and reporting forms, monitoring reports, proposals, donor requirements and reports, evaluations and other program information).
• Support strengthening learning and knowledge management in CARE and contribute to country learning agenda.
• Develop a project database at CO that ensures the availability of all required information based on project performance indicators aligned with central database of CIP.

Any other task as assigned by the supervisor (5% of the time)

• The duties and responsibilities described above are subject to change, depending on organizational needs.
• Safety and Security is everyone’s responsibility within CI through full compliance and accountability (as per Principle of the CARE International Safety & Security Principles).

Education/Training

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Sociology, Development studies or related disciplines or equivalent

Desired

• Master’s degree in relevant field along with knowledge of statistical software i.e. SPSS, MS Access Database will be preferred.

Experience/Technical Skills

Required:

• Minimum of six (6) years of experience in monitoring and evaluation at similar level, impact assessment, social science research, or a similar field, with specific focus on Education, Economic Empowerment, Food Security and Livelihoods, WASH, Nutrition and Health sectors;

• Experience of working in humanitarian response and development projects with National and International NGOs is required;

• Strong and Demonstrated experience of working with local partner organizations is required;

• Experience of working with international donors is required;

• Experience of working in a MEAL role with multi-thematic projects will be highly preferred;

Desired

• Familiarity with qualitative and quantitative MEAL data collection, verification & validation and analysis methods, including tracking indicators and conducting program evaluations;

• Ability to interface with and manage stakeholders;

• Strong research, analysis, and presentation skills;

• Strong rapport building and interpersonal skills;

• Well versed with handling database management systems;

• Ability to conduct technical analysis, and data visualizations;

• Ability to determine key indicators to measure project impact and to develop measurement systems for them;

• Fluency in written and spoken English and Urdu; knowledge of any other local language will be preferred;

• Excellent computer skills (MS office);

• Pro-active attitude with a proven ability to engage with multiple team

ARE participates in the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we hereby request information from the candidate’s previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the candidate left employment. All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Note: Individuals can apply using Brightspyre or send their resumes directly to [email protected] clearly mentioning the position title in the subject line of the email, before the stated deadline. Please share your current as well as salary expectations along with the CV.