Role overview
What you'll be stepping into
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is seeking a Senior Project Officer – MEAL to serve as the monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning (MEAL) lead for the project team in Uganda.
The Senior Project Officer – MEAL will support the achievement of project objectives by coordinating and reporting on project MEAL activities and providing technical guidance and advice to CRS staff and implementing partners.
The position will help ensure that project activities apply effective MEAL practices and continuously improve the impact of services provided to poor and vulnerable communities.
The successful candidate will require strong coordination, analytical and relationship-management skills, as well as practical experience in monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning within project or NGO settings.
Key Duties and Responsibilities
The Senior Project Officer – MEAL will be responsible for the following:
Organize and lead the implementation of assigned project MEAL activities in Uganda as outlined in the Work/Detailed Implementation Plan.
Ensure MEAL activities comply with CRS program quality principles, standards, policies, procedures and practices, as well as donor requirements and industry good practices.
Ensure learning is integrated throughout the project cycle.
Support accountability by coordinating project reflection and learning activities and guiding partners in reflecting on project experiences.
Analyze implementation challenges, identify inconsistencies and gaps, and provide information to support adjustments to project plans and implementation schedules.
Lead the rollout and implementation of the project’s Feedback, Complaints and Response Mechanism (FCRM).
Support the active collection and response to feedback from members of targeted communities and other relevant stakeholders in accordance with the FCRM.
Support the collection, analysis, validation and reporting of project and milestone data through national information systems where feasible.
Work with government counterparts to improve data quality, completeness, timeliness and use for decision-making.
Coordinate and facilitate national and sub-national consultations with government and key stakeholders to identify strengths, gaps, priorities and opportunities for strengthening MEAL systems.
Support the development and implementation of agreed capacity-strengthening plans.
Provide technical assistance and mentoring to government MEAL personnel and local partners in data collection, reporting, analysis, learning and data use.
Promote the gradual integration of project-supported MEAL tools and processes into national systems.
Coordinate and oversee MEAL-related working relationships with local project stakeholders.
Serve as a liaison between local stakeholders and the project team to mobilize local actors and promote project activities and impact.
Identify and respond to key stakeholders’ information needs related to MEAL activities using appropriate communication approaches.
Supervise and conduct ad hoc inspections of MEAL processes and resources at project sites.
Monitor implementation of project activities and adherence to established processes, standards and procedures.
Ensure appropriate tracking of resources used for project MEAL activities through periodic budget reviews and follow-up with implementing partners.
Support and coordinate MEAL capacity-building and technical support activities.
Ensure assigned MEAL activities are implemented in accordance with project guidelines and standards.
Promote partner and government participation and capacity development in the implementation of MEAL systems.
Coordinate MEAL-related logistical and administrative support for staff and partners.
Ensure project documentation for assigned MEAL activities is complete, properly filed and maintained in accordance with agency and donor requirements.
Assist with the preparation of trend analysis reports.
Support documentation of case studies and promising practices.
Required Language
Strong written and spoken English is required.
Travel Requirements
The successful candidate must be willing and able to travel for up to 30% of their working time to project locations and field offices outside Kampala.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Applicants should demonstrate the following knowledge and capabilities:
Strong analysis and problem-solving skills, with the ability to make sound judgments.
Good relationship-management skills and the ability to work effectively with local partners.
A proactive, results-oriented and service-oriented mindset.
Strong attention to detail, accuracy and timeliness when carrying out assigned responsibilities.
Strong understanding of child protection, family strengthening, family-based care, social service systems and/or Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and their monitoring, information management, reporting and learning requirements.
Demonstrated understanding of government-led monitoring and information systems.
Ability to identify practical approaches for strengthening system functionality, institutional capacity, data quality and data use in low-resource settings.
Ability to effectively use MS Windows and Microsoft Office, including Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
Supervisory Responsibilities
None.
Qualifications and Experience
Basic Qualifications
Applicants should meet the following requirements:
A Bachelor’s degree. A degree in International Relations or a field related to MEAL would be an advantage.
At least four (4) years of work experience in project support, ideally in MEAL and within an NGO environment.
Experience working with child protection, family strengthening, family-based care, social service systems and/or Early Childhood Development programs, including their monitoring, information management, reporting and learning requirements.
Preferred Qualifications and Experience
The following experience will be an added advantage:
Experience working with partners.
Experience in participatory action planning and community engagement.
Staff supervision experience.
Experience monitoring projects and collecting relevant data.
Experience working with child protection, family strengthening, family-based care, social service systems and/or Early Childhood Development programs.
Experience with government-led monitoring and information systems.
Experience identifying practical approaches to strengthen system functionality, institutional capacity, data quality and data use in low-resource settings.
How to apply