Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Officer - Madagascar

Position Overview

Based in the coastal town of Fort Dauphin in the southeast of Madagascar, this post will support the provision of Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) support and advice to multiple projects across the thematic areas of community health, rural livelihoods, education infrastructure, WASH and conservation programmes. The successful candidate will work within a combined national and international staff team to develop, refine, train on and provide data analysis on MEL across a range of projects. Predominantly office-based in Fort-Dauphin, the MEL Officer will travel occasionally to visit project sites. This exciting post would suit an early-career MEL Officer with 1-3 years experience seeking an in-country posting for developing and managing MEL systems.

Location: Fort Dauphin, Anosy Region, Madagascar

Contract duration: 2 years with the possibility of extension

Probationary period: 3 months

Contract: Local stipend; £1,200 contribution to flight; £650 contribution to insurance; unaccompanied post

Primary Responsibilities

Support on the coordination and oversight of MEL procedures and strategies to ensure progress toward project outcomes on select projects; refinement and development of MEL systems and tools; completion of reports, papers and other documents analysing data and summarising findings and support on project reporting; capacity-building for SEED staff to ensure high-quality MEL that aligns with international standards and best practice.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Support on the design and implementation of rigorous MEL procedures and strategies for select projects and organisational initiatives incorporating stakeholder feedback, adapting to local needs, and supporting high-quality implementation in line with ongoing and emerging initiatives.
2. Develop, adapt and support the usage of MEL tools, such as knowledge, attitude, and practice surveys, and focus group discussion guides to maximise effective data collection.
3. Support the adaptation of technical information/evidence/MEL findings into audience appropriate formats, for internal and external dissemination which informs future programming and project development.
4. Support on data collection, and lead on cleaning, management and analysis of data from a range of sources to determine progress towards objectives for a range of projects.
5. Support in the implementation of MEL tools, particularly using the Kobo toolkit, across the organisation.
6. Support the MEL Coordinator and Heads of Programmes to formulate future research strategy, ensuring project MEL captures data adhering to international development indicators.
7. Identify technical needs and the resources required for successful MEL and make appropriate recommendations given locational and budgetary limitations.
8. Support on MEL-related capacity-building for SEED staff and local partners, including providing tailored advice to the Programmes/Implementation team to support MEL practice, from the development of MEL tools to analysis and dissemination of findings.
9. Ensuring the quality of project data, including the cleansing and analysis of data and feedback to teams to inform project learning and direction.
10. Foster essential cross-cultural collaboration and learning, providing support to both the national and international teams to bridge gaps in understanding and priorities for project development and implementation.
11. Ensure all of SEED’s policies and procedures are evident throughout the work of the department, including those for safeguarding, whistleblowing and anti-corruption, and undertake continual training to ensure these are promoted at all times.
12. Other tasks within the broad outline of the role to support the development of MEL capacity across SEED, agreed in partnership with the MEL Coordinator and Programme Managers.

Person specification

• Master’s degree in International Development, Research Methods, Statistics, or equivalent field experience
• 1-2 years of professional work in Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning.
• Experience in the design, refinement, development and implementation of MEL tools such as surveys, focus groups or observation forms for international development and/or community health sectors.
• Experience leading Results-Based Management approaches, including logframe development and refinement. Experience with participatory approaches to MEL is desirable.
• Experience leading MEL-related capacity-building and training.
• Clear, demonstrable understanding of research ethics.
• Demonstrable experience of coordinating and undertaking data collection and analysis, for both qualitative and qualitative data, including proficiency in Excel or GoogleSheets. Experience using STATA, SPSS, Power BI or R is desirable.
• Experience managing, designing and uploading forms on data collection platforms, such as Kobo, Open Data Kit, or SurveyCTO is desirable.
• Strong ability and desire to work independently and within teams from different economic and cultural backgrounds and across multiple language barriers, and to build capacity across cultures.
• Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to SEED’s ethos and approach, and always be a good ambassador for SEED.
• Be able to work to and advocate for all of SEED’s policies and procedures, safeguarding those that SEED works with and reporting any concerns appropriately.
• Be punctual and able to work to tight deadlines in an organised manner and to a high standard.
• A flexible and patient attitude, with excellent problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication skills, including a sound ability to adapt material for different audiences.
• Fluency in English required, knowledge of French and or Malagasy is desirable.