Senior MEAL Officer at Street Child

Street Child is a UK charity working to protect vulnerable children and improve access to education in some of the poorest communities in the world. We work in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nepal and since November 2016, Street Child has been involved in the Humanitarian response in North East Nigeria.

Street Child works in the fields of education, child protection and livelihoods, working to deliver sustainable solutions and create maximum impact. Our work combines counselling, family mediation, business support, school building, teacher training and child protection. We were a key player in the Ebola crisis and led the global response for children orphaned by Ebola in Sierra Leone and Liberia. We deliver all our programmes through local partners and, since 2008, together we have built/renovated over 200 schools and are now helping to educate over 40,000 young people.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Senior Officer

Locations: Maiduguri, Borno (including frequent field visits)
Job Schedule: Full time
Job Category: Policy & Development
Reports To: Country office MEAL Manager
Contract Term: 1-year fixed term with possibility of extension
Working Hours: Monday to Thursday 8:30am - 5:15pm, Friday 8:30am - 1:30pm

Role Purpose

The Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Senior Officer is responsible for supporting MEAL planning, implementation, and the follow up on projects as part of the implementation team.
The post holder is responsible for providing support in the development and execution of annual MEAL plans; development and/or adaption of MEAL tools; training of staff, communities and partners in key MEAL concepts and skills; documentation and dissemination of key learnings from MEAL and research results in support of the project objectives and outcomes; and ensuring that all projects are accountable to beneficiaries and other stakeholders in line with Street Child Nigeria and donor policies and practices.
The Senior MEAL Officer undertakes this role in close collaboration with the Programmes staff and key stakeholders and partners in consultation with the MEAL Manager.
In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

Key Areas of Accountabilities
Key Area 1 - Set Up of MEAL Systems:

Provide Monitoring Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning related support to downstream partners in the projects.
This includes coordinating routine monitoring and training of relevant partners in MEAL methodologies and tools (including sampling techniques, data collection tools and techniques, data analysis and reporting).
Participate in the initiation and conduct of the baseline, and end term evaluation of the project.
Support in updating.
Management Information System (data base) and relevant tools for the project.
Make sure that all projects are connected to the newly digitalized MEAL system.

Key Area 2: Ongoing Monitoring and Evaluation:

Contribute to the quarterly output performance reports.
Provide feedback for field-based partner project staff in the project impact areas through regular contact, field visits and meetings; and undertaking data quality assurance (DQA) and the use of the Quality Benchmarks.
Implement and execute the MEAL frameworks for the projects.
Develop and implement quarterly and annual Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning Plans for projects.
Provide ongoing support in reviewing the MEAL framework, plans and tools for projects.

Key Area 3: Accountability and Learning:

Provide support in regular documentation and sharing/dissemination of lessons learned, case studies, and best practices (through monthly, quarterly and annual reports, presentations etc.) to inform on-going implementation, advocacy and future programming.
Promote accountability in general and to children in particular, among all staff, community, and district levels in the project impact areas, through: training, coaching, and follow up, facilitating establishment and utilisation of appropriate feedback mechanisms to improve programming and enhance accountability.
Support consistent and systematic integration of MEAL issues into the WB projects (identification of gaps in the implementation and facilitation in of the process of identifying solutions to enhance quality implementation.)
Maintain coordination and effective relationships with the team, colleagues, external partners and supporters, relevant Government departments, and other NGOs.
Follow up on the implementation status of project activities based on review recommendations.
Facilitate downward and upward accountability of downstream partners by compiling monthly, quarterly, and annual output performance reports including best practices stories for project learning.
Provide ongoing technical assistance to programmes to ensure that these systems are optimally utilized.

Key Area 4: Development and Reporting:

Contribute to the various data reporting systems, tools, and templates to:
- Generate quality evidence throughout the various programme levels (monitoring of inputs, outputs, outcomes, etc.)
- Enable and enhance regular monitoring of outputs and programme quality in emergency response,
- Ensure use of data for decision making processes, etc. Responsible for the implementation of MEAL plans, including working with projects teams and partners to support tools and data for the plans.

Key Area 5: Child Safeguarding:

In relation to receiving child safeguarding concerns and complaints:
- Attend all local strategy meetings / discussions held under these procedures.
- Discuss subsequent action required, to ensure the safety and welfare of individual children (in cases of internal abuse); and to the extent that is appropriate and practical, for cases of external abuse (as outlined in Local Procedures).
- Monitor the progress of all child safeguarding cases, with the possible exception of those of internal abuse (where the need for confidentiality may require this task to be undertaken by the Country Director or designate.
- Attend or initiate regular e.g. monthly, review meetings with Country Director/ national level as Child Safeguarding Focal Point for WB Field office, to examine all open cases.
In relation to providing overall support to the wider implementation of the Child Safeguarding Policy:
- Facilitate regular opportunities to discuss concerns about practice within teams or with other colleagues to help develop a safe working environment and an open and supportive management culture.
- Support Quality and Compliance manager to work with programme managers and staff to ensure that programmes at operational sites are integrating child safeguarding into all activities so as to prevent (or address) a situation where children may be put at risk of harm, abuse or exploitation due to the way the project/programme is designed or implemented.
- Co-arrange for ongoing capacity building of staff in general child safeguarding issues, through formal training, discussion of case studies, refresher sessions, etc.
- Co-work with programme managers to ensure that awareness is regularly raised amongst beneficiaries including children, about the Child Safeguarding Policy, Code of Conduct, complaints mechanisms, etc.
- Work with programme managers in their operational area to ensure that M&E activities are incorporating a specific child safeguarding component, for example monitoring for:
  - Child safeguarding risks associated with the design and implementation of the project
  - Beneficiary (especially children's) knowledge of the Child Safeguarding Policy and mechanisms for raising concerns/complaints about staff or safeguarding risks
  - Staff conduct with beneficiaries.
- Provide child safeguarding advice locally.