Senior MERL Officer, Niger State Group Antenatal Care Deployment at Project Hope

Job Description

• The primary responsibility of the Senior Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Officer is to support better performance and greater accountability by implementing evidence-based program/project management at the field level, in order to guide and improve performance of the G-ANC deployment.
• Specifically, the Senior MERL Officer will be responsible for setting up effective monitoring systems to collect basic information about project activities; supports the design and implementation of sustainable monitoring and evaluation systems in coordination with relevant government agencies.
• Working with M&E officers, S/he will oversee the design, implementation, and analysis of project evaluation tools for quality assurance purposes, performance tracking, and build capacities of teams at State, LGA, Community and health facility level to collect, analyze and data for decision making.
• S/he analyzes, interprets, and communicates information in a way that promotes informed decision-making for on-going and future programmatic activity.
• S/he will support establishing and maintaining an effective feedback mechanism for decision making on the Niger State Group Antenatal Care (G-ANC) Program

Essential Responsibilities

• Lead the state level design and implementation of the project’s MERL system in coordination with Project HOPE’s HQ Results and Measurement (R&M) Team to develop key performance indicators, targets, tools, and appropriate MERL responsibilities across the project around RMNCH and G-ANC.
• Manage baseline assessments and support the implementation of research studies on RMNCH service delivery, G-ANC and Malaria surveillance.
• Coordinate any external evaluation processes, including drafting evaluation ToR and selection of relevant consultants.
• Develop and disseminate relevant M&E tools, formats and lead the provision of M&E specific technical training
• Lead data collection, collation, storage, analysis, and reporting, ensuring that data is of high quality and data quality audit worthy
• Ensure appropriate training and supportive supervision of all partners in monitoring and evaluation procedures, data collection tools, and data management practices in alignment with the MEL Plan
• Work closely with external stakeholders on MERL systems, M&E plans, and data quality management at both facility and community levels
• Conduct Routine Data Quality Assessments (RDQA) and implement corrective actions to improve data quality and accountability of project staff and facility service providers and state stakeholders
• Develop and maintain accurate information in a project database, as well as accurate and timely electronic files.
• Responsible for the data analysis, writing, and review of the results and learning sections of program reports in collaboration with program staff, before submission to donor and ensure consortium partners’ compliance with internal data quality requirements and timely submissions for reporting.
• Commitment to applied learning and adaptation based on data: Support the program team on routine reviews and interpretation of data for learning and adaptation; package and disseminate timely findings in a meaningful way, and make suggestions for adaption

Qualifications

• Master's-level or a higher degree in social sciences, public health, statistics, or international development, with experience or background in M&E, epidemiology, public health, and health information management
• Minimum of eight (8) years of applied experience with an NGO in designing, implementing, and overseeing monitoring and evaluation tasks
• Demonstrated experience in managing teams and building staff capacity within complex programing
• Experience with M&E approaches for key donors such as BMGF, PEPFAR (USAID/CDC), EU, DfID and UN preferred
• Experience in database design and other tools for information management like DHIS2
• Experience in use of qualitative and quantitative software for data analysis
• Experience with mobile data collection platform

Other Essential Requirements
Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse:

• Actively promote PSEA (Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse) standards within Project HOPE and among beneficiaries served by Project HOPE  

Compliance & Ethics:

• Promote and encourage a culture of compliance and ethics throughout Project HOPE.  
• As applicable to the position, maintain a clear understanding of Project HOPE' and donor compliance and ethics standards and adhere to those standards.  
• Conduct work with the highest level of integrity  

Competency:

• Strong writing and presentation skills  
• Proven capabilities in leadership  
• Strong negotiation, interpersonal and organization skills  
• Ability to read, writes, analyze and interpret, technical and non-technical in the English language  
• Ability to effectively present information and respond appropriately to questions from senior managers in the field and HQ, counterparts, senior government and rebel leaders and other related regional players