Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant - Gombe at Malaria Consortium

Description

• The SARMAAN II Project, an acronym for Safety and Antimicrobial Resistance of Mass Administration of Azithromycin among Children 1-59 Months in Nigeria is a large-scale initiative aimed at evaluating the safety and impact of azithromycin mass drug administration (MDA) on antimicrobial resistance and child mortality.
• The project has both an intervention and a research component, which is being implemented across ten states in Nigeria: Sokoto, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kaduna, Jigawa, Zamfara, Bauchi, Gombe and Adamawa.
• The research component is led by the Nigeria Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) in collaboration with the Federal and State Ministries of Health, national agencies such as Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), and international partners, including the University of Washington, University of California San Francisco, and the Institute for Disease Modelling. This research component focuses on monitoring drug safety (Adverse Drug Reactions), antimicrobial resistance, and mortality trends.
• The intervention component however involves a bi-annual (every 6 months) mass administration of azithromycin to children aged 1–59 months and is implemented by Malaria Consortium alongside other key partners, including Sightsavers, eHealth Africa, African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), Mission to Save the Helpless (MiTOSATH), Solina Centre for International Development and Research, World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF),. Furthermore, NHREC and NAFDAC provide statutory regulatory oversight to both research and intervention components of the SARMAAN Project.
• Malaria Consortium is implementing directly in Kaduna, Kebbi, Jigawa, Gombe and Adamawa states, while providing oversight to AFENET and MiTOSATH implementation in Katsina, Zamfara and Bauchi States respectively.
• The primary goal of SARMAAN II is to explore the potential of azithromycin in reducing under-five mortality in Nigeria, where the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) currently stands at 105 deaths per 1,000 live births, and the infant mortality rate (IMR) at 60 deaths per 1,000 live births. By addressing the leading causes of child mortality including respiratory infections, diarrhoea diseases, pneumonia, and malaria, the project aims to contribute to significant reductions in morbidity and hospitalization rates. To achieve measurable impact, the consortium is committed to reaching at least 80% coverage of eligible children across all implementing states during the MDA rounds.

Job Objective

• The objective of this consultancy is to engage qualified Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Consultants to provide technical support for micro planning, data collection, validation, analysis, reporting, and learning during the 2026 AZM MDA campaigns in Adamawa, Gombe and Jigawa States.
• The M&E consultants will ensure evidence-based implementation, accountability, and delivery of high-quality data for timely decision-making and reporting.

Purpose of the Assignment

• The purpose of this ToR is to engage one (1) consultant each to serve as an M&E Officers in Adamawa, Gombe and Jigawa states. They would support MC’s state implementation team to carry out all M&E-related tasks through the AZM MDA campaign. These include micro planning, digital data collection, data quality assurance, geospatial analytics, supportive supervision, reporting, and documentation.
• The consultants would also provide M&E leadership to ensure effective tracking of programmatic indicators, timely submission of high-quality data, and triangulation of data across multiple sources to support validation and learning.

Methodology
Engagement and Onboarding:

• The consultants would be engaged as short-term M&E personnel via MC’s standard HR recruitment protocols.
• The Consultants would be introduced to program teams and oriented on campaign tools, digital systems (Kobo, Digit HCM), data workflows, and validation processes.

Embedded Support Model:

• M&E Consultants would be embedded with MC’s state team and support all LGAs through direct visits or remotely as needed.
• He/She will coordinate with MC’s State Programme Manager, Program Officers, and Field Assistants.

Implementation Strategy:
The consultants would:

• Lead pre-implementation data verification, support Kobo collect tool deployment, track all activity attendance digitally, and support real-time supervision.
• Coordinates daily data analysis, conduct facility visits, supervision, and validate treatment, and logistics data.

Support and Supervision:

• The consultants will report to their respective State Programme Managers, with technical guidance from the M&E Manager/Designee.
• They would conduct coordination meetings and reviews.

Data Quality Assurance:
The Consultants would:

• Tracks and reconciles daily digital submissions from CDDs, HFWs, and LGA teams.
• Conducts field validation, spot checks, and data triangulation with physical and digital records.

Reporting

• Submit reports and summaries and support M&E reports.
• Documents lessons learned and contributed to knowledge products.

Timeline:

• The consultants will be engaged for 90 days from March to August 2026.

Key Responsibilities

Daily Tasks:
Monitoring & Evaluation (70%):

• Manage the information-gathering process for results and performance reports, in addition to other briefings, summaries, presentations, etc. as needed.
• Ensure quality data collection and management processes before, during and after each round of mass SARMAAN II drug administration.
• Coordinate the documentation of SARMAAN II state level performance and ensure proper achieving such for easy access and reference.
• Assist State project managers to develop robust monitoring plans for quantitative and qualitative reporting on project performance indicators.
• Adapt and maintain a high-quality database for the project in line with the MC standards.
• Routinely monitor project performance against targets and prepare periodic reports on M&E activities for SARMAAN II Project.
• Support learning-to-action events and reflection sessions to systematically analyze data for programmatic use for the state, and to document and incorporate lessons learned into program design and implementation.

Data Validation & Reporting (20%):

• Analyzes and cleans treatment, stock, and other relevant datasets.
• Collaborates with Country M&E team, Digital Health and State team to resolve data errors.
• Produces periodic summary reports, dashboards and trend analyses.
• Ensures accurate population-based coverage and program reports.

Coordination & Capacity Building (10%):

• Supports training of supervisors and HFWs on data collection tools.
• Participates in state-level review and validation meetings.
• Provides technical mentoring to LGA-level staff on data entry and tool use.

Specific Tasks, Expected Deliverable and Timeline
Deliverables

• Verified personnel database.
• Finalized MDA e-attendance records.
• M&E section of End-of-Round (EoR) reports.
• Data analysis briefs and dashboards.
• Activity reports (Training, Supervision, validation sessions).
• List of flagged data issues and resolution summaries.
• Updated Performance Monitoring (targets vs. achievement).

Accountability

• Reports directly to the State Programme Manager.
• Functional reporting to the M&E Manager.
• Adhere to MC’s safeguarding, ethics, and data protection policies.

Expected Outcome

• Timely and complete reporting from all LGAs.
• Quality-assured datasets with validated daily submissions.
• Active monitoring of program performance indicators.
• Early detection and correction of errors in submitted data.
• Contribution to data-informed decision-making at the state level.
• Strengthened capacity of LGA staff on M&E practices.

Required Specifications for Consultants

• Degree in Public Health, Development Studies, Statistics, Data Science or a related field.
• Minimum of 5 years’ experience in M&E roles, preferably in malaria campaigns.
• Proficiency in data collection tools like Kobotoolbox, QGIS, Excel, and Power BI.
• Strong understanding of Nigeria’s public health systems and campaign structure.
• Excellent analytical, coordination, and communication skills.
• Ability to speak English and Hausa fluently; Fluency in other local languages is an added advantage.
• Availability for the full period of the survey.
• Candidate must not be a staff member of Government or involved in MDA-AZM activity at any level and in any State Ministry of Health (SMoH) at the time of the consultancy.