The Asia Business Unit seeks expressions of interest and recommendations for a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Specialist for the anticipated USAID/Laos Trade Integration and Competitiveness Activity (TICA). This $10-25M activity aims to strengthen the development and implementation of business-enabling policies tailored to the private sector’s needs in Lao PDR, fostering a more supportive environment for businesses growth. The activity will broadly focus on: promoting a more responsible and sustainable trade and investment environment, increasing sustainable employment creation in focused value chains, as well as advancing regional economic integration. This activity will be based in Vientiane, Lao PDR, and target provinces throughout the country.
The MEL Specialist will ensure development, oversight and implementation of the project’s monitoring and evaluation plan and provide general M&E support to core activities and country programs in collaboration with the Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party, and Technical Experts. This includes collaboratively designing the project’s MEL framework, data collection tools, reporting templates, as well as training staff and partners on MEL system operations and tools. This activity will be based in Vientiane, Lao PDR, and target provinces throughout the country.
Responsibilities include:
- Lead the development of the TICA’s MEL Plan, ensuring that it aligns with contract requirements and client objectives by providing overall technical leadership for all MEL activities and reporting, including routine process monitoring, data collection, data analysis, data quality, timeliness, and reporting.
- Ensure MEL activities are in line with the USAID Evaluation Policy and regularly provides as-requested MEL data to the client in a timely manner.
- Lead the design and operation of the program’s MEL systems to ensure standardization across country programs in indicators, data collection, and reporting.
- Oversee the collection of and reporting on program management, output, and outcome indicators by the country programs.
- Apply adaptive management strategies and facilitate learning activities to support staff to assess progress and continually refine programming
- Lead the strategy and design of the research agenda, support the field team in refining and finalizing the project’s results framework, theory of change, and development hypothesis during work planning sessions.
- Ensure the creation and dissemination of program learning through strategic communication.
- Serve as the primary MEL liaison to a diverse group of stakeholders, including the Chief of Party (COP), the Deputy Chiefs of Party (DCOPs), Lao PDR government counterparts, private sector associations, civil society organizations, and other key U.S. and Lao companies and organizations.
- Ensures sex-disaggregation of all person-level indicator to inform various project activity interventions.
- Develop budget estimates for MEL tasks and ensure that all Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs), services agreements, or other contractual arrangements with partners stipulate their responsibilities for data collection and monitoring.
- Supervise MEL Specialist to ensure execution of all MEL activities.
- Perform other duties as assigned by the Chief of Party.
Qualifications:
- A master’s degree or higher in statistics, research methods, information systems, or a related advanced degree.
- At least eight years of experience of M&E systems development and implementation across multiple countries and for complex projects.
- Expertise in quantitative and qualitative methodologies, research, management information systems, reporting, data quality assessments, and data analysis and visualization.
- Expertise in data analysis and using tools such as MS Excel and statistical packages.
- Experience managing and building capacity among a diverse team of professionals remotely and in-person.
- Ability to convey results to non-technical stakeholders, and to generate interest in the use of MEL results and help staff to make programmatic improvements desired.
- Demonstrated ability to establish and develop working relationships and a high level of trust with public/private organizations as well as prepare regular and ad hoc reports, activity documentation and briefing papers.
- Demonstrated experience in strategic planning and using innovative approaches to solve complex problems.
- Experience supervising staff and overseeing MEL activities for USAID funded contracts, across multiple countries preferred.
- Demonstrated versatility, leadership, and integrity.
- Good verbal and written communication skills in English and Lao.
Application instructions:
If you are interested in this opportunity, please submit your CV and a brief statement of interest to laosticarecruit@chemonics.com by 12/27/2024.
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