Overview
Lead the operationalization of the project MEAL system under a Results-Based Financing (RBF) approach, ensuring credible, timely, and verifiable data for adaptive management, donor reporting, independent verification, and learning. Provide technical supervision to the MEAL Assistant, enumerators, and household coaches.
Key Responsibilities
- Finalise and operationalise the MEAL Plan, IPTT, SOPs, aligning indicators with payment metrics and verification protocols under the RBF model.
- Finalize and operationalize other MEAL toolkits, such as MEAL PIRS, Action Tracker, Feedback Tracker and Quality Benchmarks
- Develop and update MEAL plan and log frame on PRIME, ensuring indicator progress and means of verification are adequately updated by project teams.
- Lead set-up of database design, digital data collection (Kobo), data management pipelines and Power BI dashboards for near real-time performance monitoring.
- Establish Data Quality Assurance (DQA) procedures, verification sampling frames and traceability processes for payment-linked indicators.
- Lead training for coaches and volunteers and learning events organization.
- Oversee routine monitoring cycles, ensuring completeness, timeliness and disaggregation.
- Design and implement DQAs, spot checks, back-checks and independent verification preparations.
- Supervise the MEAL Assistant and enumerator teams and ensure corrective plans for identified data quality gaps are implemented.
- Lead design and execution of baseline, midline (if applicable) and endline studies and oversee selection and supervision of external evaluation consultants.
- Coordinate with the Research and Learning Specialist to develop and manage learning products and present findings.
- Support use of mixed methods to assess enterprise growth, household income reinvestment in children, VSLA performance and gender/child well-being outcomes.
- Ensure MEAL processes include safeguarding and confidentiality protections.
- Coordinate with the Protection/Gender/Child specialists on monitoring potential negative outcomes and risk mitigation monitoring.
- Translate RBF Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) into operational verification checklists and data flows; support the Project Management Unit (PMU) and Finance in preparing verifiable claims for disbursements.
- Coordinate with independent verifiers and donors for verification missions; compile evidence packs and support rapid responses to verification queries.
- Maintain auditable records and ensure systems meet donor compliance standards.
- Coordinate with MEAL experts from SCI member offices on co-design and maintenance of the data architecture, POWER BI Dashboards and verification workflow.
- Produce monthly performance reports for PMU, quarterly reports as requested and present dashboards during learning workshops and Award Review Meetings (ARM).
- Provide analytical inputs to adaptive management recommendations and support the Project Manager in evidence-based decision-making.
- Ensure timely handover of learning and data tools to local partners and incubators to strengthen sustainability.
- Coordinate with accountability team in order to ensure that feedback inform adaptive management.
Required Experience
- Minimum 5–7 years of progressive MEAL experience in livelihoods, economic empowerment or market systems programs, with at least 2 years in a senior MEAL role managing teams.
- Direct experience managing MEAL for RBF/disbursement-linked projects or other outcome-based financing modalities.
- Proven experience designing and running baseline/endline studies and managing external evaluators.
- Strong practical experience with digital data collection tools (Kobo/ODK), data management systems and dashboarding tools (Power BI or similar).
- Solid understanding of Data Quality Assurance methodologies, sampling, and independent verification processes.
- Experience integrating child protection, safeguarding and gender-sensitive monitoring approaches into MEAL systems.
Qualifications
• Degree in Monitoring & Evaluation, Statistics, Development Studies, Social Sciences, Economics or related discipline; advanced degree preferred.
