The MEAL Officer is responsible for cross-cutting programmatic information management, monitoring and evaluation, ensuring that information collected is used to improve on-going programs, and is incorporated into consistently high quality reports and program adaptations.
The MEAL Officer will support the program team in planning and execution of monitoring and evaluation activities, ensuring quality in accordance with accepted standards, providing essential feedback for learning, accountability and decision making.
Essential Responsibilities
Strategy Input and Oversight
Support development and implement monitoring and evaluation tools.
Play key role in the development of intervention designs, sector strategies and M&E frameworks.
Support inputs into program review documents.
Result Based Monitoring & Evaluation
Validating and verifying core indicators against the different sources of information.
Review, validation, and analysis of incoming results data from grantees;
Visit sites and partners to collect supplementary data, stories and conduct qualitative research both independently and in teams.
Work with Monitoring Evaluation Accountability and Learning Manager and other staff to ensure that activities are implemented on plan and progress towards targets is not compromised.
Learning
Regularly document and share all learnings from program implementation.
Maintain an up to date database that reflects progress and program indicators.
Capacity Building
Build the capacity of grantees to develop and maintain an excellent M&E system;
Facilitate grantees in periodic reflection and analysis of project monitoring information that feeds into LMS’s programming and learning.
Support timely production of weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual donor reports based on agreed performance indicator.
Program Advisory
Maintain an active advisory role with the program team to help guide them towards robust and relevant data collection.
Actively participate in all implementation, providing advice and feedback for quality results at any point.
Establish and maintain strong working relationships with partners and government departments.
Other
Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
Other duties as assigned.
Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills
Must hold at least a bachelor’s degree in social science, Statistics, Business administration or relevant field
At least 4-5 years of program monitoring and evaluation experience
Should understand concepts and demonstrate skills in monitoring and evaluation, project cycle, results chain and frameworks, participatory monitoring
Should be able to design and implement surveys, have knowledge of commonly used probability and purposive sampling techniques
Must have good writing and analytical skills
Should have knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data collection, reporting techniques. S/he should understand and be able to apply basic measures of central tendency and spread
In addition to Microsoft Excel, the incumbent should demonstrate fluency in use of at least one data management software including MS Access, SPSS, and STATA.
Must be fluent both spoken and written English.
Success Factors
A successful MEAL Officer will have the ability and curiosity to work comfortably and effectively.
S/he will be an excellent communicator, multi-tasker, with the ability to work effectively in complex environments.
S/he must have the confidence and humility to work effectively with a diverse group of people – as well as be sensitive to political and cultural nuance.
