The Ugandan Jobline

Job Title:  MEAL Advisor

Organisation: CARE International in Uganda (CARE)

Duty Station:  Uganda

About US:

CARE is a global leader within a worldwide movement dedicated to ending poverty. We are known everywhere for our unshakeable commitment to defending the dignity of people. CARE works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty, and achieve social justice. We seek a world of hope, tolerance, and social justice, where poverty has been overcome and all people live with dignity and security. We put women and girls at the center of our work because we know that we cannot overcome poverty until all people have equal rights and opportunities. CARE has been working in Uganda for over 50 years. In FY ending June 2020, CARE improved the lives of nearly one million people in Uganda (62% women). Our ambition for the next five years is to reach 5 million people, through lifesaving and gender transformative programs

Program Summary:

CARE Uganda’s 5-year Business Plan focuses on four complimentary programs: Economic Justice, Climate Justice, Gender Justice and Humanitarian Action. All our programs are designed to strengthen gender equality, increase resilience and inclusive governance. We implement our programs across several districts in Southwest, Karamoja, West Nile and Northern Uganda. Our annual program portfolio is in the range of $10-12 million, funded by a diverse network of public and private donors. CARE is keen on localisation, and while it remains connected to its vast global footprint and skills base, the organisation is locally led. CARE also implements its programs in partnership with Government of Uganda line ministries, District Local Governments, Ugandan Civil Society Organisations and private sector enterprises.

Job Summary:  The MEAL Advisor (MA) is responsible for the functionality and quality implementation of MEAL function across the Emergency response program. The MEAL Advisor is responsible for aligning program MEAL frameworks to Country Office Theory of Change and CARE global strategic MEAL frameworks. Establishing, managing, and ensuring effective utilisation of the MEAL system by program staff and partners. This includes developing relevant and feasible MEAL tools and processes, building capacity of staff and partners to use these tools and processes, and providing ongoing technical support and accompaniment required for this to happen. Ensuring that Program Quality and Learning (PQL) is prioritized throughout the program cycle. This includes ensuring that CARE’s quality markers are embedded across program design, implementation and close-out stages and progress is measured and reported regularly. S/he will ensure that research and evaluations are rigorous in generating new knowledge and credible evidence and that learning leads to adaptation and innovations. Contributing to program design specifically to ensure that credible evidence is being used, program logic (Results Framework, Logical Framework, Theory of Change) and respective measurement frameworks are robust and aligned to CARE MEAL frameworks, principles and standards. Prioritising accountability to ensure MEAL resources are appropriately and sufficiently budgeted for in the range of 5-10% of total budget. Ensuring effective knowledge management for the program, such that information is accessible, shareable, transferable, and usable by all relevant stakeholders. Ensure that all CARE staff, especially those assigned to the program, are properly oriented on CARE MEAL system, tools, and processes. This includes supporting recruitments of MEAL staff and staff who will be engaged in MEAL work.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:  

Establish and Maintain a robust MEAL System (20%)

Working together with PQL Manager and Program Manager (PM), the MA is responsible for;

• Establishing, managing, and ensuring effective utilisation of the MEAL system by all program staff and partners. This includes; developing relevant MEAL tools and processes, building capacity of staff and partners to use these tools and processes as well as providing ongoing technical accompaniment required for this to happen.
• Ensuring the MEAL system covers the whole program cycle and include learning, monitoring, evaluation, research and learning, accountability and reporting. The MEAL system should be able to provide real time data for adaptation of existing programs, design of new programs and decision making hence need for digital skills to a high extent.
• Ensuring The MEAL system not only focuses on programs, but further includes critical elements of operations, finance, grants, logistics and human resources performance data for decision making.
• Ensuring The MEAL system enables the country office to be data-driven and evidence-based hence pushing boundaries for data to enhance appropriate decision making.

Program Quality and Learning (30%)

The MEAL advisor will be responsible for ensuring that Program Quality and Learning (PQL) is prioritized throughout the program cycle. This includes;

• Ensuring that quality markers (gender, resilience, and governance) are embedded at design stage and progress is measured and reported regularly.
• S/he will support the PM to ensure that all projects deliver high quality results that empower women and girls. This will require the MA to ensure PMs embrace and embed CARE quality markers across the cycle of all projects, regularly monitoring and reporting progress of all projects using the established PQL reporting system including quarterly program dashboards, AIIR tool and PIIRS reporting systems.
• Need for the MA to maintain a solid PQL field footprint and consistent presence across all field locations where the program is implemented in the country. It will require the MA to support the PM to establish and implement effective reporting mechanisms which allow all projects to report progressively and account for their resources to donors, Government of Uganda, program participants and CARE. This will include quarterly program and individual monthly reports from Initiative managers (IMs) and Project Managers (PMs).
• Ensuring quality, transparency, timeliness, consistency of reports and the reporting mechanism. The MEAL advisor will support the PM to ensure credible evidence is used by the program to engage in PQL platforms including monthly Program Review Meetings (PRMs) and quarterly PQL learning workshops. It will require MA to support PM to effectively manage a growing body of knowledge and credible evidence generated through research, evaluation, learning as well as use the knowledge and evidence to inform the design of new projects, strategic debate/discourse and influence development policy, practice and programs.
• Supporting the PM to define the communications and visibility plan and specific projects in the program. The MA will support quality assurance standardisation beyond programs to include program support services.

Research, Evaluation and Knowledge Management (20%)

The MEAL Advisor (MA) is responsible for overseeing research, evaluations and knowledge management for the program. This includes all research, baseline, mid-line, and end-line evaluations.

• The MA will ensure the program invests in research and evaluations to generate new knowledge (learning) and credible evidence.
• The MA will ensure that research and evaluation findings inform new program design, ongoing program adaptation and credible body of evidence contributing to accountability, advocacy, and policy engagement.
• Working with PM, the MA will ensure that research and evaluations budgets are sufficient (in the range of 5-10% of total budget), processes are rigorous, and results are credible. The MA will ensure knowledge management is effective and efficient, whereby knowledge products and credible evidence are accessible, shareable, transferable and usable by relevant people in real time.

Team Leadership and Capacity Building for Staff and Partners (10%)

The MA is responsible for hiring, training, and retaining a gender-balanced team of competent and motivated MEAL Coordinators.

• S/he will establish a collaborative culture, high performance standards and transparent performance management practice using appropriate combination of reward, recognition and reprimand.
• As a CARE ambassador, the MA is required to ensure Gender Equity and Diversity (GED) within the team and nurture CARE’s core values and code of conduct. The MA will promote continuous learning and professional development of the team through on-job learning, relevant exposures, and appropriate stretch assignments.
• The MA will ensure transparent and visible workflow through Microsoft TEAMs and appropriate digital platforms.
• The MA will ensure that annual performance goals and regular evaluations of supervised staff are concluded in time. In addition, the MA will ensure that all CARE staff, especially staff assigned to their program are properly oriented on the MEAL system, tools and processes and that staff continue to receive technical support and accompaniment for new or complex MEAL tools and processes. This will require the MA to support the recruitment of MEAL staff.

Contribute to Program Design (10%)

The MEAL Advisor (MA) is responsible for supporting design of new program logic model including; Theory of Change, Logical Framework and Results Framework or Results Chain. This includes;

• Ensuring that the results statements and indicators are SMART (Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Realistic and Time bound) and Gender Transformative.
• S/he should ensure that the targets and impact groups are well defined in all proposals.
• Ensure that program design embrace and embed critical indicators from the quality (Gender, Resilience, and Governance) markers in all new program designs. This includes ensuring that the MEAL measurement framework for all new programs designed are aligned with CARE (CI) MEAL principles and standards.
• Reviewing new program budgets to ensure MEAL resources are in the range of 5% of the total program budget.

Promote Gender Equity, Diversity & Safeguarding Practices (5%)                                                              

• Practice a behaviour that is consistent with CARE’s core values, and promotion of Gender Equity and Diversity goals.
• Plays a leadership role in identifying and implementing initiatives that enhance CARE’s commitment to gender and diversity.
• Ensure that CARE Safeguarding policies and procedures are adhered to by all and the staff that S/he supervisors both directly and indirectly.
• Ensure that staff and related personnel under their jurisdiction are familiar with the organisational policies and procedures and can identify when needed, how these may have been breached. Organisational policies include; The CI Safeguarding policy, Protection from Sexual Harassment, Exploitation and Abuse and Child Abuse, The anti-discrimination and harassment policy, The code of conduct and the organizations Values.

Any other duties assigned from time to time (5%)

• Support country office MEAL functions from time to time
• Step in and cover for Program Managers from time to time
• Take on stretch assignments assigned from time to time

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• The ideal applicant must hold a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Statistics, Development studies, Humanitarian response and any other course relevant to the position.
• Masters or a PDG in Monitoring & Evaluation or relevant field of study from a reputable university is a MUST.
• At least seven years’ relevant experience with reputable organisations in similar roles
• Previous experience working in Emergency context is highly desirable
• Skills in using quantitative data Analysis software like SPSS or STATA or Excel
• Experience in gender transformative approaches, including specific experience in working with and empowering women and girls in emergency, conflict or disaster settings.
• Experience in networking and strategic relationships management and engagements.
• Conceptual abilities, strategic thinking and analytical writing skills and knowledge.
• Good communication, presentation, public speaking, discussion, and negotiation skills.
• Good research, learning, evidence-generation, policy debate and advocacy skills.
• Organizing skills and capacity to multi-task in rapidly changing & fast-paced environments.
• Knowledge of and demonstrated personal commitment to relevant organizational codes of conduct for emergencies, including anti-fraud and anti-corruption, safeguarding etc.
• Leadership and interpersonal skills and proven experience influencing others without necessarily directly managing them.
• Desired:
• Professional training and experience in gender equality, women, and girls’ empowerment
• Professional experience in working with young people (youth) and refugee communities
• Professional training in research, analytical writing, advocacy, and policy influencing

How to Apply:

All Candidates who are interested in the above job should submit an updated CV and Application letter. Also, please provide a daytime telephone contact and three referees with their work-related email addresses. All information should be sent via CARE’s recruitment email: ugarecruitment@care.org indicating MEAL Advisor in the email subject.

Deadline: 10^th December 2021

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