Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) / Collaboration, Learning and Adapting (CLA) Director At Global DAI

DAI Global is implementing a five-year, USAID program in West Africa. The program supports the efforts of West Africans to address the risks of instability from democratic backsliding and from conflict, and prioritizes targeted governance, conflict and violence prevention, peacebuilding, and, and preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) interventions across the region. The program will engage with regional partners and with governments and non-government institutions to address causes of fragility, and focus on good governance approaches, conflict prevention and response, and P/CVE interventions across select target countries in the Sahel and across Coastal West Africa.

Position Description

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)/Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) Director will oversee all aspects of program research and MEL processes, including the development of activity indicators. The MEL/CLA Director will garner their technical expertise in MEL/CLA in stabilization and P/CVE programming to track program activities and progress towards achieving the key results of the program. The MEL/CLA Director will also be responsible for promoting collaboration and effective knowledge exchange among the programs’s local partners and external stakeholders. S/he will ensure that the program produces and disseminates high quality knowledge, tools, and lessons learned through monitoring and evaluation and implementation. The MEL/CLA Director will oversee a MEL technical team which includes an M&E Research Manager and Communications Specialist.

• PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: 2023 – life of project (up to 5 years)
• MAXIMUM LEVEL OF EFFORT: LTTA
• BASE OF OPERATIONS: Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Togo, Benin, Guinea or Burkina Faso
• POSITION REPORTS TO: Deputy Chief of Party

Tasks and Responsibilities

• Provide technical and training assistance to country-and regional-level activity design, research, and capacity-building efforts.
• Designing, implementing, and revising the MEL Plan.
• Oversee the MEL and reporting team and assessment and reporting progress towards achieving key results per the MEL Plan.
• Supervise a team of MEL/CLA and other research experts.
• Support grants and partners in developing reporting requirements and build local partner capacity on MEL reporting.
• Analyze lessons learned from grantee and partner activities at the close-out stage of grants.
• Identifying and designing program research opportunities and initiatives, context monitoring and analysis, adaptive management processes in collaboration with the DCOP-Technical, Country Directors, and GESI Lead.
• Ensure that the program’s MEL systems are efficient and effective and will promote collaboration and effective knowledge exchange within the program team, between the team and external partners and among external stakeholders.
• Leading indicator development and data analysis, data visualization, and reporting processes.
• Provide technical guidance to the subcontracting research partner in design research methodology and providing oversight of work implemented. In collaboration with the DCOP-Technical, review all deliverables completed by the subcontracting research partner.

Qualifications

• At least 8 years of experience in MEL/CLA for international development activities; experience with conflict mitigation, P/CVE, and/or peacebuilding programming strongly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in social science, research, political science, business management, or other relevant field required; advanced degree preferred.
• Significant experience in the West Africa region on USAID-funded programs preferred.
• Prior experience in evaluation of regional projects using qualitative and quantitative tools and analyses.
• Experience applying complexity-aware MEL and experience in survey design, activity, and context monitoring, and program evaluations.
• Strong writing and reporting skills.
• Bilingual fluency in English and French required.

In french

DAI Global is implementing a five-year programme of the’USAID in West Africa. The programme supports the efforts of West’ Africans to address the risks of’ instability linked to democratic retreat and conflict, and prioritises targeted governance, including, to the prevention of conflict and violence, to peace-building, as well as to the prevention and fight against VIOLENT extremism in the region. The’ programme will engage with regional partners, as well as’ with governments and non-governmental institutions to address the causes of fragility, and will focus on good governance approaches, including, conflict prevention and response, and P/CVE interventions in selected target countries of the Sahel and coastal’Africa.

Job description

The director of monitoring,’assessment and’learning /Collaborating, learning and’adapting will oversee all aspects of research on MEL programs and processes, including the’ elaboration of the’activity indicators. The Director of MEL/CLA will draw on his technical expertise in stabilization and P/programming/CVE in order to monitor the activities of the programme and the progress made towards achieving the main results of the programme. The Director of MEL/CLA will also be responsible for promoting effective collaboration and exchange of knowledge between local program partners and external stakeholders. He/she will ensure that the program produces and disseminates high-quality knowledge, tools and lessons learned through follow-up,assessment and implementation of routing. The director of MEL / CLA will supervise an MEL technical team which includes a manager of research on monitoring and evaluation and a specialist in communications.

• PERIOD OF’EXECUTION: 2023 – project life (up to 5 years)
• LEVEL E’EFFORT: LTTA
• BASE D’OPERATIONS: Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Togo, Benin, Guinea or Burkina Faso
• THE POST IS PLACED UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF: Deputy Party Leader – Technical

Main functions and responsibilities

• Provide technical assistance and training to’ design, research and capacity-building efforts at national and regional levels.
• Design, implement and revise the MEL plan.
• Oversee the MEL and the’ reporting team, as well as the’assessment and reporting on the progress made towards achieving the key results in accordance with the MEL plan.
• Supervise a team of’ experts in MEL/CLA research and research.
• Assist recipients and partners in developing reporting requirements and building the capacity of local partners to report on MEL.
• Analyze the lessons learned from the activities of beneficiaries and partners at the’ stage of grant closure.
• Identify and design program research opportunities and initiatives, monitoring and’context analysis, adaptive management processes in collaboration with the DCOP-Technique, and, national Directors and the GESI official.
• S’s ensure that the program’s MEL systems are efficient and effective and will foster effective collaboration and exchange of knowledge within the program team,’, between the’ team and external partners and between external stakeholders.
• Direct the processes of indicator development and data analysis, data visualization and reporting.
• Provide technical advice to the subcontracting research partner in terms of research methodology in design and supervision of the work implemented. In collaboration with the DCOP-Technique, review all the deliverables produced by the subcontracting research partner.

Qualifications

• At least 8 years of experience in MEL / CLA for international development activities; Experience in conflict mitigation, the fight against violent extremism and/or peacebuilding programs is highly desirable.
• Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, research, political sciences, business management or other relevant field required ;’ graduate degree preferably.
• Significant experience in the’Africa de l’Ouest region on programmes funded by’USAID is preferable.
• Previous experience in’ evaluation of regional projects using’tools and’Qualitative and quantitative analyses.
• Experience in the’application of MEL taking into account the complexity and experience of the design of’investigations, activity and context monitoring, as well as program evaluation.
• Strong writing and reporting skills.
• Bilingual mastery of’anglais and French required.