M & E Officer

Job Description

BACKGROUND Present in Sierra Leone since 1999, IRC supports Sierra Leonean institutions – government, civil society, community-based organizations, and private sector – to provide improved social services, decrease youth unemployment and mitigate gender-based violence. The IRC does this through programs and partnerships designed to improve the lives of women, youth, and children by implementing Health, Education, and Women and Girls’ Protection and Empowerment (WGPE) programming. IRC. IRC has a Country Program office in Freetown, a Regional Field Office in Kenema, Field Offices in Kono and Bo, and a satellite office in Kailahun. IRC will be working through civil society partners in Falaba district, and Karena district in the northern region of Sierra Leone.

The IRC in partnership with UNICEF Sierra Leone will be implementing a whole-school approach project to support the achievement of ending School-Related Gender-Based Violence in Sierra Leone. This project will seek to address the problem of SRGBV using an approach that will be guided by recommendations from 6 domains for minimum standards for a whole-school approach to minimizing SRGBV based on the UNICEF report on findings from school-related gender-based violence action research in schools and communities in Sierra Leone as well as IRC’s long experience of working in schools and communities in Sierra Leone on GBV and its consequences, especially for school-aged girls. The project will align itself with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education’s objective 4 in its Education Sector Plan 2022 – 2026[1] which specifically seeks to “Provide safe, healthy, and conducive educational environments”.

JOB SUMMARY Reporting to the Monitoring & Evaluation Manager, the M & E Officer is responsible for the collection and accurate inputting of information collected by the project field staff, and for supporting the overall data entry aspects of the project. He/she will provide direct support to the M & E sector in creating/maintaining the corresponding data-collection tools and systems. The M & E Officer will work closely with the M &E Manager to maintain quality assurances of data collected. She/he will do follow-up monitoring visits to communities as required. The M&E Officer will oversee the day-to-day M&E tasks arising in the field and provide technical support to field teams to ensure the effective implementation of the project.

KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS Position Reports to:M & E Manager internal: Project Managers, Senior Project Officers, Field Managers, Field Coordinator, Other IRC Departments – Supply Chain, Finance and Administration External: The Donor, Project Schools and School Authorities, Government and relevant ministries (MBSSE, MoGCA, MoHS), INGOs, NGO, and other key partners and stakeholders

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES: Program/Project Design and Learning: Assist the M&E Manager to develop and ensure the designated project has tested monitoring tools that capture both program activity and indicators progress. Ensure records are checked during meetings for accuracy and provide support where necessary and share data with project managers. With support from the M&E Manager and/or M&E Coordinator, collect project field level information required by IRC, donors, and/or stakeholders; and establish and maintain project-level information management system.

Monitoring Ensure on-time execution of project’s major monitoring and evaluation events including but not limited to data quality audit, field data supervision, and project/client feedback data collection. Document findings from data quality audits and store in project files to ensure collective and sustainable access. Provide technical assistance to staff on information management systems, proper data collection, and record keeping. Provide consistent, supportive supervision to strengthen staff performance as necessary to meet monitoring objectives. Provide M&E inputs for reports written during project implementation at the field level.

Reviews & / Evaluation Provide summarized monthly data analysis showing target against progress over time. Follow up with Senior Officers on project quality improvement action plans. Ensure action points are followed up and relevant measures taken and incorporated into programming; verify entered data for completeness, correctness, and consistency and follow up on any data quality issues. Periodically lead in the presentation of M&E data trends during reflective practice forums at the field office/ project level and gather lessons from project implementation processes. Support the implementation of processes to review the quality of existing project data, information collection methods, and the suitability of the existing data for the provision of sound baseline information.

Database management, Information Management and Reporting Provide and maintain MIS content/requirements and feedback to the project team and document progress on indicators/achievement of targets using Indicator Performance Tracking Tables (IPTT) Submit data set to update country office-wide program database, IPTT, & Comet on a monthly basis. Maintain and regularly update project monitoring reports, including lessons learned.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS Education (Knowledge): Diploma in Statistics, Computer Science/IT/or any sector or sub-sector related field.

Experience: At least two years’ experience working in monitoring and evaluation. Experience working in GBV programs, especially in rural settings. Ability to clearly convey concepts to populations with limited numeracy and literacy skills. Excellent training and mentoring skills with the ability to work as part of a team with diverse backgrounds. Familiarity with result framework analysis and M&E plan implementation. Experience in conducting assessments. Strong experience working with community groups. Strong data collection, analysis, and report writing skills. Proven experience with mobile data collection systems such as CommCare, ODK, Kobo, etc.

SKILLS & ABILITIES Mandatory: Best practice in monitoring and evaluation. Proficiency in basic computer operations and data entry, including Microsoft Excel Strong writing and organizational skills. Good verbal communication skills in local languages and working knowledge of English. Willingness to travel frequently to field sites. Committed to the mission and principles of the International Rescue Committee. Good understanding of gender and child rights. Good interpersonal skills, with the ability to work within a team environment. Ability to work independently, think analytically and take initiative in solving problems. Good judgement and negotiation skills. Must be results driven. Must be able to ride a motorbike and hold a valid driving license.