Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, Dar es Salaam

The incumbent will ensure that the UNICEF Country Office has useful, valid and reliable information on the situation of children's and women's rights, and the performance of UNICEF-supported programmes including their relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability, and in emergency contexts, their coverage, coordination and coherence.

The incumbent will work within the UN country team to support UNCT goals for delivering valid and reliable information on the attainment of the MDGs and other goals, and on the performance of UN-supported programmes

The incumbent will assist in the development of national capacities for monitoring, evaluation and research, with special attention to the interest, concern and participation of government, community, and civil society stakeholders.

Key expected results

1.Integrated Monitoring, Evaluation & Research Plan (IMEP)

Ensure that the Country Office and national partners use a well-prioritised and realistic plan of research, monitoring and evaluation activities that will provide the most relevant and strategic information to manage the Country Programme, including tracking and assessing UNICEF's distinct contribution.

Duties & Tasks

Make professional contributions to and provide technical assistance for the planning and establishing the major research, monitoring and evaluation objectives, priorities, and activities in UNICEF's multi-year and annual IMEPs.

Likewise, support the development of UNDAF M&E Plans from a sound results-based programming process.

Identify the M&E objectives, priorities, and activities required for effective CO and partner Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans,

In humanitarian response situations, within the first month, draft and recommend a simple one-month data-collection plan to cover key data gaps as required for the initial emergency response.
After the initial humanitarian response , support management of the medium-term response with a revised IMEP

2.Situation Monitoring and Assessment

Ensure that the Country Office and national partners have timely and accurate measurement of change in conditions in the country or region, including monitoring of socio-economic trends and the country's wider policy, economic or institutional context, to facilitate planning and to draw conclusions about the impact of programmes or policies.

Duties & Tasks

In coordination with other stakeholders, support the collection of Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and other key social development indicators (through MICS or other surveys) to improve national planning.

Support partners in the establishment and management of national statistical data bases (e.g., DevInfo), ensuring that key indicators are readily accessible by key stakeholders. Potential uses include the Situation Analysis, Common Country Assessment, Early Warning Monitoring Systems, and Mid-Term Reviews.

Support the preparation of country level statistical and analytic reports on the status of children's and women's rights issues when opportunities emerge to influence developmental and social policies. To include technical support to global reporting obligations including national reports on progress toward the MDGs, and toward CRC and CEDAW fulfilment.

In humanitarian response situations, provide professional support for one or more rapid assessments (inter-agency or independently if necessary) to be carried out within the first 48-72 hours.

3.Programme Performance Monitoring

Ensure that the Country Office has quality information to assess progress towards expected results established in annual work plans.

Duties & Tasks

Provide technical support to ensure that a set of programme performance indicators is identified and adjusted as necessary, in the context of the multi-year and annual IMEPs, the Annual Management Plan and Annual Work Plans, as outlined in the Programme Policy and Procedures Manual).

Coordinate with partners to ensure that monitoring systems are properly designed, and that data collection and analysis from field visits are coordinated and standardised across programmes to feed into to programme performance monitoring, with special attention to humanitarian response .

Drawing on monitoring and analysis of key program performance and management indicators, provide professional input to management reports, including relevant sections of the annual reports.

4.Evaluation

Ensure that UNICEF-supported evaluations are designed and implemented to established UN quality standards, and the results are disseminated in a timely fashion to stakeholders in order to improve programme performance and contribute to wider learning.

Duties & Tasks

Technically support programme partners to formulate Terms of Reference and evaluation designs of high quality in compliance with the organization's programme evaluation policies and guidelines.

Monitor and ensure the quality of the field work and data management during the implementation phase, and the quality of the analysis and ease of understanding during the report writing phase.

Disseminate evaluation findings and recommendations to the intended audiences in user-friendly methods. In particular, to ensure that effective participatory feedback is provided to community and civil society stakeholders.

a. Monitor and ensure that a management response to the findings and recommendations of the evaluation is completed, recorded, and followed up for implementation. Most specifically, ensure that evaluation recommendations are submitted to the Country Management Team and follow-up actions recorded in CMT minutes. Submit electronic copies of all evaluations to NYHQ via the Evaluation Data Base web portal, with full accompanying documentation.

5.M&E Capacity Building

Ensure that the monitoring and evaluation capacities of Country Office staff and national partners – government and civil society – are strengthened enabling them to increasingly engage in and lead monitoring and evaluation processes.

Duties & Tasks

a. Promote the awareness and understanding of the shared responsibility of M& E function among all staff members through communication, training, learning and development activities organization-wide.

b. In close collaboration with partners, ensure that an M&E capacity building strategy for UNICEF/UN staff national partners and institutions exists in the context of the IMEP, or UNDAF M&E plan. Pay particular attention so the capacity needs of national partners such as professional evaluation associations will be strengthened by involvement in evaluation processes and possibly through specific capacity building initiatives.

c. Collaborate to implement capacity building strategies as a joint commitment with other developmental partners. Utilize a range of appropriate skills building strategies including self-learning, seminars and workshops and practical experience in order that UNICEF and UN staff have the basic knowledge and skills in understanding and applying new M&E policies, tools, methods to fulfil their responsibilities. Similarly, design and implement strategies suited to the skills needs of national partners.

6.Coordination and Networking

Ensure that the UNICEF office is effectively linked to wider UNICEF M&E developments in a way that both contributes to and benefits from organizational learning on effective M&E management.

Duties & Tasks

Collaborate with Regional M&E Advisers and HQ Evaluation Office for overall coordination of priority research, monitoring and evaluation activities, especially those of regional scope requiring the coordinated effort of multiple countries.

Partner with the Regional Monitoring and Evaluation Adviser to ensure that current and accurate M&E data and results are included in regional reports, multi-country studies, and knowledge sharing networks.

Undertake lessons-learned reviews on successful and unsuccessful M&E practices and experience at the national level, and ensure they are shared as appropriate. Similarly, pay attention to M&E knowledge networks to identify innovations and lessons learned that may be relevant for the CO and partners to improve their M&E function.

Qualification

Advanced university degree in social sciences , statistics, planning development, planning*.

Five years of relevant work experience in programme development and implementation including monitoring and evaluation activities. Developing country work experience (for IP) or field work experience (for NO). At least one instance of exposure to emergency programming, including preparedness planning. Active involvement in a humanitarian crisis response programme preferred.

Fluency in English and another UN language. Fluency in the national language of the duty station an asset.

*A first level university degree with a relevant combination of academic qualifications and experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Competencies

Communicates effectively to varied audiences, including during formal public speaking.

Able to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment.

Sets high standards for quality of work and consistently achieves project goals.

Has good leadership and supervisory skills; co-ordinates group activities, ensuring that roles within the team are clear.

Analyzes and integrates potentially conflicting numerical, verbal and other data from a number of sources.

Translates strategic direction into plans and objectives.

Demonstrates and shares detailed technical knowledge and expertise.

Creates organization-wide processes to help ensure that all adhere to procedures and policies.

Adjusts team or department's approach to embrace changing circumstances.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organisation.

If you want a challenging career while improving the lives of children around the world UNICEF, the leading children's rights organization, would like to hear from you.

Visit us at www.unicef.org/about/employ to register in our new e-Recruitment system and apply to this and other vacancies, quoting E-VN-2011-001816. Applications must be received by 28 October 2011.

Please note that only candidates who are under serious consideration will be contacted.

In the selection of its staff, UNICEF is committed to gender balance and diversity without distinction as to race, sex or religion, and without discrimination of persons with disabilities: well qualified candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.