MEAL ADVISOR -SUDAN

CARE is an international NGO with local staff and community partners in more than 90 countries. We create local solutions to poverty and inequality and we seek dignity for everyone every day and during times of crisis. These solutions have a broad range, from clean water to access to education; from microfinance to ensuring that everyone has nutritious food; from agriculture and climate change to disaster response. CARE puts women and girls at the center of everything we do because they have proven to be the best hope for creating lasting change in the world. Our staff live where they work, which makes us effective at understanding the challenges they face. We’ve been doing this for over 70 years, since World War II. It started with the world’s first CARE Package® of food for the post-war hungry in Europe. Our work today is as important as ever, we believe that poverty and inequality are historic injustices that we can end within a generation, for good. If you share our core beliefs: poverty is an injustice; poverty is solvable; and together, we have the power to end it, join us, and fight with CARE

CARE has been operating in Sudan since 1979, implementing humanitarian and development programs focused on women’s and girls’ empowerment, gender justice, humanitarian action and resilience building. With an average annual budget of 10,000,000 USD, CARE is currently working across six states: East Darfur, South Darfur, South Kordofan, Kassala, Gedaref, and Khartoum. CARE works in partnership with seven national NGOs, line ministries and community-based organizations. CARE has over 176 staff members located across 13 sub-offices in the aforementioned states. In the last-ended fiscal year (June 20 – July 2021), CARE reached 1,933,973 direct people across Sudan, of which 1,494,032 were reached through our humanitarian work.

CARE is looking for a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEAL) Expert who will be responsible for functionality of country level monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning (MEAL) system, knowledge management and oversight of program quality, supporting business development and program adaptation, and the feedback and accountability mechanism. The MEAL expert is a temporary 6-month position that is tasked with leading the implementation of a MEAL improvement plan that will ensure that CARE Sudan reaches full compliance with CARE’s global standards for MEAL and Feedback and Accountability Mechanism. Under the leadership of the MEAL Expert, CARE Sudan’s improved MEAL function should ensure that CARE is able to demonstrate – with evidence – what is the impact of its work in Sudan, improve responsiveness and accountability to the populations it serves, and generate the data for organizational learning and program adaptation. The MEAL expert will oversee investments in the MEAL system, including by expanding and capacity building of MEAL teams at headquarters and field teams. At the end of the deployment, the MEAL Expert will hand-over to a MEAL-Coordinator and her/his team.

The MEAL Expert will report directly to the Deputy Country Director – Programs. S/he has supervisory responsibility over the Khartoum-based MEAL-team (currently 1 staff member, to be expanded to 3), and functional oversight over 5 field-based MEALOfficers. S/he will collaborate closely with Head of Programs and Operations in field-offices and Program Managers, liaising with Program Quality Colleagues in CARE International’s Regional and Global teams as well.

As a CARE ambassador, the MEAL Expert is required to ensure gender equity and diversity (GED) within the team and nurture CARE’s core values and code of conduct. S/he will also play a leadership role in identifying and implementing initiatives that enhance CARE’s commitment to gender and diversity.

RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Functional country level MEAL System

• Review of strengths and weaknesses of current MEAL system and practices in CARE Sudan
• Update CARE Sudan’s MEAL strategy that describes how CARE operationalizes MEAL in Sudan is produced. The strategy should clarify roles and responsibilities of different teams, between the Khartoum-based HQ and field teams as well as between different teams within field offices.
• Ensure that MEAL plans are in place and operational for all grants, including usage of standard set of data collection tools, and processes for collection, storage, analysis, reporting and verification of data.
• Ensure Management Information System and MEAL database is in place, and up to date with accurate and verifiable data stemming from CARE’s projects.
• Perform MEAL audits of field offices and individual grants, putting in place and following up on improvement plans in response to identified gaps
• Ensure that CARE’s quality markers and relevant standard indicators are well understood and embedded into the Theory of Change and Results Frameworks for all programs

2. Team Leadership and Capacity Building

• Review and update structure of MEAL team, including roles and responsibilities within the team and between MEAL and Program Teams
• Capacity building to ensure that key staff across teams understand their role within MEAL, and have the tools and knowledge to fulfill their roles.
• Recruitment, induction and line management of (new) staff.
• Establish a MEAL Community of Practice among MEAL staff to promote strengthening common practices and standards.

3. Feedback and Accountability Mechanism

• Ensure Feedback and Accountability Mechanism (FAM) is strengthened and well functioning, for all projects as well as consolidated at CO level, proving well-informed targeted communities with access to multiple and responsive feedback channels.
• Update and roll-out a guideline of CARE Sudan’s FAM, compliant with CARE International guidelines.
• Confirm and appoint FAM Focal points, ensuring all grants in all states are covered by CARE’s Feedback and Accountability Mechanism.
• Review and update database / recording sheet for feedback, compliant with CARE International guidelines.
• Support and oversee field teams to correctly record, act upon and close feedback and complaints.
• Produce monthly FAM report produced, used to track compliance with FAM standards, as well as corrective management.

4. Research, Learning, adaptation and new program design

• Put in place and manage a learning agenda for research, assessment and evaluations.
• Provide leadership, oversight and quality assurance for all baselines, mid-term reviews, end-lines and impact evaluations. Build capacity to do research and evaluations in-house.
• Support Program Teams to use findings and evidence from research and MEAL for programmatic learning and adaptive management, facilitating that MEAL data and studies are systematically made available to review and adapt programming.
• Support business development and new program design by providing relevant contextual information and credible evidence from current programs to enrich design.
• Ensure that MEAL is properly resourced across all new program designs allocating approximately 10% of their total budgets as MEAL related resources.

QUALIFICATION

1. Masters degree – in Social Science, Impact measurement, Project management or any other relevant field.
2. At least 8 years experience in senior management positions in monitoring and evaluation and program quality in development programs in at least two of the following areas; Gender, WASH, Health and Nutrition, Women Economic Empowerment, Peacebuilding and Governance interventions, combined with staff management
3. A minimum of 10 years of relevant experience with reputable organisations in humanitarian and/or development fields
4. Demonstrable experience with the development and implementation of MEAL systems and plans
5. Demonstrable experience with the development and implementation of Feedback and Accountability Mechanisms
6. Demonstrable experience with the management and implementation of evaluations and research
7. Excellent written, verbal English and presentation/communication skills.
8. The ability to coordinate effective team work and to work effectively within a team
9. Diplomacy, tact and negotiating skills
10. Skills in using relevant data analysis software like Nvivo, Power BI, SPSS and/or STATA
11. Knowledge of and demonstrated personal commitment to relevant organizational codes of conduct for emergencies, including anti-fraud and anti-corruption, safeguarding etc.
12. Professional training and experience in gender equality, women and girls’ empowerment
13. Professional experience in working with young people (youth) and refugee communities
14. Professional training in research, evaluation, analytical writing, policy and advocacy work
15. Experience in gender transformative approaches, including specific experience in working with and empowering women and girls in emergency and development settings.
16. Experience in networking and strategic relationships management and engagements.
17. Organizing skills and capacity to multi-task in rapidly changing & fast-paced environments.