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Job Title:  Regional MEL Officer

Organisation: World Education

Duty Station: Lira, Uganda

About Organisation:

World Education, a division of JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI/WE) is dedicated to improving people’s lives around the world through greater heath, education and socioeconomic equity for individuals and communities, and to providing an environment where people of passion can pursue this cause.

Job Summary:   JSI/WE is seeking for a Regional Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Officer for USAID’s Targeting the Learning Crisis (TLC) Activity in Uganda, which aims to create sustained, measurable improvements in development outcomes in Basic Education through Targeted Instruction for foundational skills, a learner-centric pedagogy that reorganizes math and reading instruction based on children’s actual learning levels, rather than on the prescribed grade-level syllabus. The Activity seeks to implement cost-effective, sustainable, and impactful programming, centered around Targeted Instruction pedagogy for P3-P5, Targeted Instruction and other evidence-based approaches for P1-P2, and evidence-based early childhood education for pre-primary years, in order to significantly improve math and reading learning outcomes for Ugandan primary students.

The Regional Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (RMEL) Officer is a full-time support role based in Lira and will report to the MEL Specialist. The RMEL Officer will support the implementation of the MEL system that will track, assess, and enhance the impact and effectiveness of the TLC Activity consortium partners, especially in the TLC districts. The RMEL Officer will play a supportive role in ensuring that the TLC Activity achieves its goals by continuously learning from its activities, adapting strategies based on evidence, and improving overall performance. She/he will assist in developing, implementing, and managing robust monitoring, evaluation, and learning frameworks to track the progress and impact of the activity by systematically collecting, cleaning and analyzing data. The RMEL Officer provides insights to support and inform decision-making, improve program effectiveness, and enhance organizational learning. He/she will support in strengthening the integration of MIS/GIS and community feedback mechanisms under the guidance of the MEL Specialist in the region. She/he will also participate in the data quality assessment (DQA) and promote the implementation of Collaboration, Learning, and Adaptation (CLA) in the districts.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Support overall management of MEL system

• Support the MEL Specialist in overseeing and managing the TLC Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) system and strategy.
• Assist in the coordination and maintenance of the new online system for reporting and monitoring of the TLC programme, including testing of the system and on-going refinement as necessary.
• Assist in the design of MEL procedures, templates and guidelines to support strong national level reporting.
• Support the monitoring of the overall implementation of the TLC MEL strategy and online system, identify gaps or challenges both with regards to the technical components of the MEL system, and with regards to the capacity of its users.
• Assist in data entry and storing of data to the TLC monitoring database, help in maintaining this as an accessible source of information on the TLC programme activities, results and (to the extent possible) impact, and ensure data safety and protection.
• Support capacity strengthening and training of users of MEL system
• Assist in the training and capacity building activities relating to MEL, through for example the creation of toolkits, and setting up webinars.
• Provide support to regional level data capturing, analysis and quality assurance processes.
• Support the implementation of quality assurance mechanisms and monitoring checks at regional level enabling improved capturing and narration of programmatic results and impact.
• Build the capacity and provide continuous mentorship to teachers and district education staff on the use of EMIS tools, proper data management analysis and use of data to support decision making at schools and district level.
• Contribute to establishing a team culture grounded in collaboration, openness, and learning
• Conduct trainings and other capacity building efforts for staff and partners in MEL, data collection and management, and research and learning methods
• Support monitoring, reporting and evaluation
• Share information about reporting requirements and timelines, and follow up with consortium partners to ensure timely submission of reports.
• Support the collection of TLC documentation to validate reports, and carry out regular spot checks.
• Assist the MEL Specialist in the production of high quality quarterly and annual progress reports to TLC, with support from the MEL Director.
• Conduct monitoring visits in the TLC targeted districts and ensure conformance of the program implementation in line with the program objectives, work plans, budget and expected results.
• Support the implementation of TLC’s MEL activities, including 1) monitoring of indicators; 2) implementation of surveys and routine monitoring activities; 3) coordinating and strengthening data collection, data cleaning, data quality, and data analysis (quantitative and qualitative); 4) synthesizing data and study outcomes for presentation in reports and presentations; and 5) quality assurance and auditing of data.
• Responsible for the program performance data quality entered into the MEL system.
• Contribute regular data analysis and knowledge gathering aiming at supporting adaptive management.
• In coordination with the MEL Specialist, lead the preparation of areas specific field inputs into the quarterly and annual reports as required by the program.
• Support the implementation of the TLC Activity’s assessment, research, and evaluation activities, which may include performance evaluations, surveys, formative research, qualitative studies, and rapid/special studies. This may include providing support to the contracted local research firm or partner universities.
• Support in ensuring that the program adheres to MEL best practices and standards. He/she will ensure that TLC partners’ staff are trained on MEL best practices, and make recommendations for improvements to MEL systems and processes.
• Assist in the monitoring of timely and consistent data collection and reporting from all project-supported partners and service providers.
• Work with the MEL Specialist to reconcile inconsistencies in monthly data reports sent from project-supported partners and service providers.
• Coordinate with the MEL Specialist to provide technical support to technical staff and partners in the area of MEL to ensure high quality record keeping at education facilities and in the communities in respective districts in meeting program objectives.
• Participate in the preparation of external and internal reports and communication materials for management and program staff to facilitate project and activity monitoring and planning.
• Plan and conduct needs assessments, quality assurance assessments, data quality assessments (DQAs), formative research, and other evaluations as necessary.
• Carry out other tasks as assigned by the Regional Program Coordinator.

Team membership

• Participate in regular TLC programme reviews and planning discussions.
• Participate in MEL-TWG team meetings.

Other

• Ensure that in of line of duty, S/He is aware of child safeguarding principles and guidelines and apply it in your day-to-day roles as you interact with communities and children.
• Ensure promotion of safe child practices and mitigation, prevention and reporting of violations of children to ensure compliance; and
• Perform any other tasks required for the needs of the project as assigned by the supervisor or designee.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in the relevant field such as Education, International Development Statistics, Social Sciences or related field
• Minimum of 3 years’ experience in M&E for international donor funded projects, preferably including experience with USAID-funded projects
• Prior experience supporting the Ugandan education sector is desirable but not required, preferably including experience coordinating with national and sub-national level stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to manage time and meet strict deadlines
• Knowledge of evaluation research methods (qualitative and quantitative), including data entry, analysis and report writing
• Computer proficiency, including use of MS Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Access and a statistics package (e.g., Stata, SPSS, SAS, R)
• Prior experience supporting USAID-funded programs, preferred.
• Excellent interpersonal, teamwork, and mentoring skills
• Excellent writing, oral and organizational skills.

How to Apply:

All interested candidates should submit their resumes and cover letters online at the link below

Click Here

Deadline: 8th January 2025.

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