MEAL Specialist, Malawi USAID/ Enhancing Community Engagement in Teaching & Learning Material Utilization and Management

Summary

Save the Children is seeking a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Officer for an anticipated five-year USAID-funded Teaching and Learning Materials project in Malawi. This activity aims to strengthen the community’s role in ensuring oversight, transparency, and accountability in the management and utilization of Teaching and Learning Materials (TLM’s) in Malawian public schools and communities. 

The MEAL Officer is responsible for ensuring development and operationalization of high-quality MEAL systems and reporting on a large-scale USAID-funded Teaching and Learning Materials project. The MEAL Officer will strengthen the operationalization of the results framework, develop indicator definitions, and lead monitoring and evaluation planning and execution. This position is responsible for data collection, entry, analysis, quality assurance, and interpretation.

The MEAL Officer reports directly to the project’s Chief of Party (COP). The MEAL Officer will also lead the utilization of MEAL data to inform learning, assess performance, and identify required activity adjustments.

This position is contingent upon donor approval and funding.

What You'll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

• Lead the development and implementation of M&E systems, methodologies, plans, and tools that will enable the project to capture, assess, and use data on activities, beneficiaries, outputs, outcomes, and impact to inform program implementation.
• Ensure indicators are aligned to program activities and strategies and reasonable targets are set for the project to achieve.
• Effectively rollout M&E systems and tools to all staff and partners, providing training and ongoing mentoring to ensure appropriate use.
• Provide on-going support to maintain M&E systems; identify skill gaps and build capacity among project team.
• Prepare high-quality, accurate and timely reports for USAID, the Government of Malawi, and Save the Children, as required. 
• Design methodology and coordinate research activities for project operations and assessments. 
• Support all project reviews and evaluation activities, including coordinating mid-term and final evaluations, and supporting donor and external reviews.
• Contribute to the development of project learning and apply Save the Children's Code of Conduct.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in statistics, mathematics, economics, international development, or related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of experience designing and implementing MEAL programs in complex settings with significant research experience in education or literacy.
• Prior experience overseeing and ensuring the success of MEAL systems in USAID education projects including ensuring approval of MEAL plan, reporting on approved indicators, and successfully completing annual data quality assessments (DQAs).
• Demonstrated success developing and managing MEAL databases for USAID projects.
• Strong analytical skills and an understanding of monitoring, evaluation, and assessment tools to promote evidence-based learning.
• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing facility and community-based monitoring systems.
• Demonstrated experience conducting research and evaluations, especially for education programs.
• Strong quantitative and qualitative research skills.
• Ability to analyze complex data and summarize it for a range of audiences.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to lead and work effectively in teams.
• Creative problem-solving skills with the ability to work effectively in resource-constrained environments.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with the political, social, and cultural context of Malawi.
• Experience in qualitative research techniques, including analysis software.
• Advanced training in quantitative methodologies, including database management.
• Prior work experience utilizing statistical analysis software required and prior experience assessing student learning outcomes a plus.

Qualified local candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

About Save the Children

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.   

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom Save the Children is in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse. In addition, it is Save the Children’s policy to create and proactively maintain an environment that aims to prevent and deter any actions and omissions, whether deliberate or inadvertent, that place children at the risk of any kind of child abuse. All our representatives are expected to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with this commitment and obligation. Any violations of this policy will be treated as a serious issue.   

 We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Save the Children complies with all applicable laws.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)