🇸🇱 Job Vacancy @ Concern Worldwide – MEAL Officer

The MEAL Officer will be primarily responsible for M&E and program quality tasks associated with the Saving lives phase 3 program in the assigned district. The MEAL Officer will ensure that the Saving lives phase 3 projects’ MEAL systems are used effectively. S/he will facilitate project staff, target communities and other stakeholders to carry out monitoring and evaluation of project activities, facilitating accurate data collection through standardised data collection tools, accurate computer entry, targeted analysis and systematic use of findings for program learning and improvement. The MEAL Officer will work closely with Concern’s National MEAL Manager and Project Coordinator to ensure accurate and effective program monitoring and evaluation.

Responsibilities:

• Prepare and implement district MEAL activity plans that correspond to the approved consortium MEAL plan.
• Ensure that the Saving Lives 3 activities are accurately reflected in the integrated M&E system, identifying activities to be monitored and data to be collected.
• Support the Program Quality unit to integrate mainstreaming activities (gender, HIV&AIDS, accountability) in the Saving Lives 3 program
• Participate in reviews and revisions of project documents as necessary during the life cycle of the project

Program Monitoring and Evaluation: 

• Lead data collection, entry, and analysis activities for internal assessments including ongoing monitoring and periodic evaluations.
• Manage Saving Lives 3 field activity reports and other means of program monitoring for the assigned district.
• Clearly understand and support other project staff to understand the project log frame, objectives, indicators, and targets
• Draft Terms of Reference (TOR) for data collection activities including purpose, methodology, logistics, and budget.
• Conduct basic analyses of data and present in narrative, charts, tables, etc.
• Draft district reports for all internally conducted Saving Lives 3 assessments and MEAL activities which include purpose, methodology, results, and discussion/recommendations.
• Communicate and collaborate with Consortium members on M&E activities.
• Attend partner meetings which pertain to MEAL requirements.
• When necessary, guide and support external evaluators, enumerators, and other contracted workers.
• Participate in review and validation of externally produced M&E reports for Saving Lives 3projects.
• Maintain a systematic database system whereby relevant project information, data and lessons for the assigned district are documented and communicated to inform ongoing implementation and future programming.
• Directly supervise MEAL Support Officer to collect, enter, and clean data with a high standard of accuracy and quality.

People Management:  

• Line manage DDC in your district, contributing to their capacity building and career development through technical support and on-the-job training and coaching, including a thorough induction at the start of their contract.
• Ensure that all team positions have accurate job descriptions and that each member of the team fully understands deliverables, which are expected of them, by setting SMART objectives, and that they are aware of the success criteria relating to their work.
• Ensure that all staff are aware of and comply with all of Concern’s Policies and Procedures;
• Monitor and review performance of your direct reports and hold them accountable for executing their job as per the agreed job description and performance objectives; give corrective feedback where required and take decisive action in the case of poor performance; conducting regular Performance Development Reviews; setting and identifying areas of staff development needs;
• Ensure that work within the team (s) is planned and organised in a way which will meet the organisation’s needs in the most cost effective manner possible; ensuring that team members are given appropriate workloads and are working efficiently.
• Routinely observe and monitor the co-facilitation of field activities to ensure they are carried out to the highest quality, providing critical and constructive feedback to Field Officers.

Learning: 

• Participate in program development activities like contextual analysis, baseline studies, specific studies and project reviews when called upon.
• Respect, uphold, and actively support the broader Concern Worldwide Sierra Leone and Concern World organizational initiatives within the context of knowledge management, planning monitoring and evaluation, and sharing innovations and learning from Concern interventions.
• Support the professional development of direct supervisees and colleagues.

• University degree in in MEAL, Mathematics, Statistics, Social Sciences, Development Studies or related field
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in planning, monitoring, and evaluating donor funded projects for INGOs, preferably for RMNCAH projects
• Field experience in health projects working directly with communities, partners and government officials.
• Clear understanding and experience of quality assurance in data collection
• Strong analytical skills
• Excellent computer skills: MS Office (Word, Excel) and experience in analytical software packages such as SPSS an advantage
• Strong writing skills in English
• Ability to motivate a team to reach shared objectives
• Strong attention to detail
• Fluency in Krio language (spoken)

 Desirable 

• Experience with Digital Data Gathering (DDG)
• Experience with both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis
• Experience with research methodologies
• Experience with basic Geographic Information Systems (GIS) functions such as using GPS
• Experience line-managing others