MEL Officer (Herat, Kandahar, Afghanistan)

Program/Department Summary

The Nova-INVEST (Introducing New Vocational Educational Skills’ Training) program is a vocational training and employment program funded by the US State Department of Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (BPRM) to be implemented in the provinces of Kandahar and Herat in its fourth phase. INVEST is Mercy Corps’ flagship Technical Vocational and Educational Training (TVET) program running since 2011, focusing primarily on delivering technical vocational skills training for six months’ to vulnerable Afghans (IDPs, returnees and host community members from 15-40 years old, including youth and women) with the aim of increasing their opportunities for self or waged employment after the training period. The Nova-INVEST program will provide vocational training and apprenticeships to 4,000 participants in 2 provinces (Kandahar and Heart) for 3 years, while working in close coordination with relevant government stakeholders, including the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MoLSA), Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation (MoRR), Ministry of Women’s Affair (MoWA), Ministry of Education (MoE), Governor’s Office, Community Development Councils (CDCs), District Development Councils (DDCs), Provincial Development Councils (PDCs), District Development Assemblies (DDAs), Shuras, community elders; partner INGOs/NGOs, private sector actors such as Chambers of Commerce and business/producer associations The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Department oversees all aspects of M&E including a country-level data management system. The MEL team ensures programs use the necessary M&E systems and tools across the country portfolio, to inform and improve programming through evidence-based learning. The MEL team supports Mercy Corps Afghanistan commitment to staff capacity learning through the training of new and innovative M&E methods and tools.

General Position Summary 

The Monitoring & Evaluation Officer will be responsible for supporting the MEL Manager in overseeing the overall aspects of program monitoring and evaluation activities conducted in Kandahar and Herat province for the NOVA-INVEST program. He/she will work as the focal point for M&E unit in the target provinces, responsible for daily monitoring and evaluation of activities implemented by program team. As part of the job, the M&E officer is responsible to provide productive feedback in order to improve the quality of the programs, and works as the lesson learned.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• Provide technical assistance to the Monitoring and Evaluation Manager to establish and create relevant M&E tools and systems that are consistent with the NOVA-INVEST strategy
• Conduct monitoring site visits and provide feedback and reports to MEL Manager
• Coordinate with the relevant departments including finance, operations and program to ensure the effective oversight of M&E functions
• Conduct VTC visits in Kandahar/Herat provinces to ensure that the MEL system is consistent with implementation.
• Assist in the design of monitoring and evaluation, forms, tools, and testing of data collection Instruments (i.e. baseline assessment, evaluations, monitoring tools, etc.).
• Conduct data analysis of surveys, in line with the directions of the MEL Manager (when required).
• Conduct daily monitoring and evaluation work in the field.
• Provide support to MEL Manager on developing reports for the program, especially reports intended for internal circulation. 
• Translate different MEL tools such as survey questionnaire, indicator plan and etc. to the local languages, as and when required.
• Assist in regular data entry into the MEL databases and donor required database, if required.
• Maintain the MEL related documents in soft and hard copies.
• Establish cordial, professional relations with MC Staff and other stakeholder and beneficiaries, ensuring Mercy Corps’ ability to work with transparency, accountability and good will. 
• Conduct themselves in a professional and personal manner to bring credit to Mercy Corps and in no way jeopardize our humanitarian efforts.
• Provide technical assistance to program staff in order to maximize use of the MEL data collection tools. 
• Develop capacity building and facilitation series to support program teams to better monitor and evaluate their program components, and to make better use of program information.
• Other duties as assigned and agreed upon by the Monitoring and Evaluation Manager.

Other Responsibilities

• Stay up to date on the MEL methodologies and technologies used by Mercy Corps as an agency. Integrate these methodologies and tools into work carried out for programming. Support efforts towards accountability, specifically to MC beneficiaries and donors.

• Minimum of 2-3 years combined work experience in M&E activities, program evaluation, and information systems
• Bachelor degree in social sciences, statistics, economics, measurement and evaluation, project planning and management. Master’s degree is a plus;
• Demonstrated quantitative analysis skills
• Both theoretical and practical background in MEL or research and knowledge of qualitative and quantitative methodologies and techniques.
• Ability to conceptualize, plan and implement M&E activities creatively, as well as possess the ability to analyze data and utilize lessons learned for the continuous improvement of program implementation and to promote a culture of learning.
• Experience in building staff capacity through facilitating formal trainings or workshops
• Experience with data management and statistical analysis including the ability to use statistical packages such as SPSS, Stata, or R and GIS software is an asset
• Fluency in verbal and written Pashto and Dari
• Proficiency in both written and spoken English
• Excellent organizational and communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to prioritize tasks and produce results in a timely and quality manner