ICCO Cooperation, Bangladesh
Job Advertisement

Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (PMEL) Advisor - SONGO

Location:  Gaibandha, Bangladesh

Reports to: Project Manager- SONGO &
                     Head Of Programs in matrix Structure

Nature of Job: Full time

Level: Mid-level

Project duration: 5 years

Staff reporting : PMEL Officers (including partner organization)

I. Job Context

Since 1973 ICCO Bangladesh has been providing technical assistance on a range of programs that include food and nutrition security, economic empowerment, and disaster management.
Mobilizing rural communities and engaging them in developing inclusive sustainable and profitable income generating opportunities and building resilient local agro-food systems is the guiding direction of ICCO in Bangladesh. ICCO’s livelihoods projects are designed to improve health and nutrition behaviors at the household level through promotion of the Essential Nutrition and Hygiene Actions (ENHA), particularly for improving Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition (MIYCN), and increasing the availability and utilization of nutrient-dense foods, especially for pregnant and lactating women and children under two.  Our programs are co-created and co-implemented in partnership with cooperative members in the Netherlands, and 17 local partner organizations, reaching more than 1.5 million people in the country till date.
The EU objective of Sustained Opportunities for Nutrition Governance (SONGO) is to implement at local level innovative, resilient and scalable nutrition governance pro-poor models which are validated and aligned with national policies

  • Improved household nutrition and health behaviors
  • Increase use of quality nutrition and health services by women and children
  • Improved Access to diverse and nutrient-rich foods by women and children
  • Accelerated roll-out of the Multi-Sector Nutrition Plan through strengthened local governance.

2. Overall Responsibilities and Job Purpose:
The objectives of SONGO project is: “to improve maternal and child nutrition”. The specific objective is to achieve the following four inter-linked outcomes:
Outcome-1 Effective Upazila (UPZ) level nutrition governance mechanisms in operation
Outcome- 2 Improved Maternal and Child (reproductive) Health and Nutrition Practices
Outcome- 3 Improved WASH & Environmental Hygiene infrastructure and practices
Outcome-4 Enhanced year round availability and access to safe and nutritious food
The purpose of this post is to hold responsibility for design, implementation and management of the planning, monitoring, evaluation and learning (PMEL) of the Sustained Opportunities for Nutrition Governance (SONGO) project – a large five-year project in Gaibandha, Bangladesh.

Key Responsibility # 1:  Dimensions

  • The position will provide extensive supports for developing and implementing Programme Monitoring Framework for the project including detailed PMEL Plan.
  • The position provides technical support for developing results based M&E system, MIS and Downward accountability mechanism
  • Designs, develops and implements the M&E framework/strategy, system and quantitative and qualitative tools, with a focus on health management information systems strengthening and incorporating mobile technology.
  • Leads regular monitoring data collection, verification, entry, spot checking, analysis, reporting and sharing, ensuring accurate, high quality household, community and facility level data is collected on all PMF (Performance Measurement Framework) indicators on a regular basis and as per agreed framework and timelines.
  • Contributes to wider strategic development and implementation of the SONGO project, and ICCO’s approach in inclusive sustainable livelihoods, and profitable income generating opportunities and building resilient local agro-food systems is the guiding direction of ICCO in Bangladesh
  • Work with Project staff and partners to generate evidence, including evidence of project impact.
  • Strengthen knowledge management and risk assessment processes
  • Support innovation and learning in order to establish ICCO and partners as a thought leader in the outcomes areas of SONGO
  • Where required, contribute to MEL capacity-building at the country level so that ICCO is able to meet project MEL requirements.
  • Analyze and communicate complex information to a wide audience.
  • Draws on a variety of information sources to inform individual and group decisions. Provides specialist advice or teaches specific skills to project staff and manages expectations of advisory and project staff
  • Requires the ability to produce, analyze and communicate complex information from diverse sources to a wide audience.
  • Decision-making and problem-solving requires significant level of judgment based on technical experience, involving a range of external and internal factors.
  • Manages multiple learning activities and projects, or aspects thereof, simultaneously

Key Responsibility # 2:  Accountabilities

  • Working with key stakeholders, ensure the effective implementation of the Monitoring Evaluation and Learning Framework of SONGO project and to work collaboratively with partners and ICCO staff to plan MEL activities, ensuring space for practice-based learning and alignment with existing project  logical frameworks.
  • Responsibility, with the Project Manager, for maintaining MEL systems to meet project and organizational accountability and learning needs. This includes, among other things:
    • Ensures quality of application of the instruments and ensures coherence between instruments, procedures and guidelines in the field of Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning for this project.
    • Provides training and coaching in the application and the use of these instruments and procedures.
    • Provides technical assistance and advice on request and on own initiative to the line management and to country offices.
    • Supports country project s in identifying learning needs
    • Steering PMEL officers and data enumerators working on the project
    • Support the Baseline Study, Mid-term and End-line evaluation, KAP, training needs assessments, gender analysis of the assigned projects by assessing all the proposals for short listing and recruitment of consultants/firms for internal & external studies
    • Reviewing the ToR for Baseline study, midterm, and end-line Evaluation initiatives of the assigned project of ICCO Cooperation and Coordinate management response for the evaluations as well as follow up

Key Responsibility # 3: Innovation in MEL

  • Use cutting edge PMEL approaches to develop indicators and measures on important areas as Private sector development, Gender Leadership and economic, social and environmental Impact of SONGO

Key Responsibilities # 4: Compliance and reporting

  • Ensure grant compliance with ICCO’s management information systems; monitoring and learning practices at country level; and evaluation policy. Ensure that project stakeholders are aware of their own responsibilities in this regard.
  • Ensure tracking and meeting deadlines for donor reporting

Key Responsibility # 5: Generating evidence for learning

  • Develop the indicator setting for SONGO and its monitoring
  • Ensure that systems for collecting evidence on impact on target populations are available and operationalized (both quantitative and qualitative)
  • Develop clear mechanisms through which information collected is disseminated as knowledge
  • Feed lessons learned back to program management.

Key Responsibility # 6: Knowledge management

  • Contribute to the articulation and execution Knowledge dissemination strategy
  • Promote knowledge generation and sharing among SONGO stakeholders as well as across ICCO project s, including with partners.
  • Incorporate the global Knowledge Management Tools in the projects through providing orientation and trainings.
  • Synthesizes documentation and reporting of monitoring data, lessons learned and success stories from targeted areas for internal and external sharing
  • Supporting the project staff and Partners as well as coordinate with PMEL Experts/officers, to find out case studies (at the beneficiary level) and feed such case studies/Most Significant Change stories to the Communication desk

3. Working Conditions:

  • Working days from Sunday to Thursday with 40 hours per week. This position may be required to work some overtime hours to attend meetings / workshops/ Training.
  • Any other tasks assigned by the Supervisor from time to time.
  • Assist to implement other projects of ICCO.
  • Yearly renewable the contract based on fund availability and performance.

4.    Key Qualifications:

General

  • Master's degree in a relevant subject, preferably Development Study, Agriculture Economics, Economics, Statistics.
  • Minimum 5 years of experience in supporting of research, monitoring and evaluation systems for complex, multi-sectoral, rural development programs.
  • Proven experience in research and data collection, including survey design and a mix of qualitative and quantitative techniques, in a rural setting. Knowledge of the use of ICT tools (particularly smart phone technologies) to collect data would be beneficial.
  • Ability to cohesively work with various national and international team members, and the flexibility to adapt to different work conditions.
  • Experience in project cycle monitoring such as need assessment, baseline study and end line evaluation.
  • Experience of working in a field context and an ability to cope with basic living conditions in the field
  • Experience of supervising a team and good team player and relationship builder.

PMEL

  • Well-developed analytical and planning skills and an ability to analyze and synthesize information from different sources.
  • Experience of leading the setting up and supporting PMEL systems for complex development programming, ideally across multiple contexts and sites.
  • Experience in developing capacities of staff and partners to undertake monitoring, evaluation and learning activities – including meet both reporting and learning needs.
  • Knowledge of cutting edge tools and practices in development project planning and design, monitoring, evaluation and learning. An understanding of AKVO is an asset.
  • Experience with use of  household studies, community based data gathering (like e.g. community score cards) and use of secondary data
  • Experience providing leadership in evidence, learning or evaluation functions in earlier organizations. An understanding of humanitarian or advocacy/influencing MEL an asset.
  • Strong understanding of PMEL practice with institutional donors. This includes knowledge of the challenges in managing innovative or adaptive work, while remaining accountable to a grant reporting framework.
  • Experience in working with European Union funded project especially nutrition and/or governance related project is a strongly recommendation.

Personal

  • Ability to work effectively with others to achieve results, with strong advisory / facilitation skills and experience in training and coaching teams and individuals – especially in MEAL.
  • Results-focused with ability to manage own workload proactively, with own initiative.
  • An excellent understanding of and commitment to putting gender equality at the heart of development and humanitarian work

Knowledge management

  • A mature understanding of the links between knowledge management, MEAL and institutional development.
  • Relevant experience with knowledge management in similar organizations

External

  • An aptitude for external linking, learning and representation with a clear ability to make connections and draw knowledge and ideas from across the sector into the organization.
  • Good understanding of the external environment in international development, PMEL and research in the SE Asia context.
  • Full written and spoken fluency in English essential, with knowledge of an additional Asian language an advantage.
  • Good working knowledge of standard software, notably Microsoft applications.
  • Familiarity with popular data analysis software (NVivo/Atlas.ti, SPSS or Stata) or with the use of ICTs in monitoring and evaluation an asset.
  • Ability to travel around the region and occasionally outside the region.

Salary & benefits: Competitive salary package depending on education and experience.

Please submit your application details three pages CV and cover letter to hr.bd@icco.nl

The subject line should be '' Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (PMEL) Advisor ''. Only shortlisted candidate will be notified for the interview.

Women are encouraged to apply

Deadline for applications is 20th July 2018