MEAL Specialist

ANNOUNCEMENT OF RECRTUITMENT TO CARE INTERNATIONAL MEAL SPECIALIST CONSULTANCIES – FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT

CARE In The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Caucasus and Balkans Regions

CARE in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Caucaus and Balkans is seeking highly-skilled Monitoring Evaluation Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Specialists who are willing to work with CARE for a long-term basis under a ‘Consultancy Framework Agreement.’ The Consultancy Framework Agreement is an arrangement that permits CARE to retain one or more qualified individual consultants for multiple consultancy assignments within a 24-month period. After a competitive procurement process, one or several consultants will be recruited to the Framework Agreement under a generic Terms of Reference (See below TOR) that broadly define the nature and scope of services required for the duration of the MEAL Specialist Framework Agreement.The criteria for selection is predicated on the below points:

1. These consultants would be required to respond to potential consultancies within in five working days – either to express interest or disinterest – and to deploy when CARE’s organization needs demand in the MENA, Caucasus and Balkans regions that fall under CARE’s regional model.
2. These consultants would be required for short-term (1-3 weeks) and medium-term (4-12 weeks.) deployments.
3. These consultants will be hired under the Framework Agreement for the period of 24 months initially, which could be extendable1
   The Terms of Reference for MEAL Specialist is below:
4. Overview:
   CARE USA is one of the world’s leading multi-mandate aid agencies, fighting poverty and injustice in over 104 countries worldwide and helping 65 million people each year find routes out of poverty, with a specific focus on the empowerment of women and girls.
   1 Upon mutual agreement of CARE MENA RMU and Consultant, the term of this agreement may be extended for another 24 months. Such extension may be made subject to the terms and conditions in the framework agreement signed by each consultant.
   In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) CAucaus and Balkans Region, CARE operates in 11 countries or sub-regions, which include: Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia), Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia), Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territories (West‐Bank & Gaza), Syria, Turkey, and Yemen. While the size and scope of programming vary considerably from one country office to another, sectors that are consistently targeted in MENA include in humanitarian responses and development programs: sexual and reproductive health; water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH); shelter; food nutrition security, women and youth’s economic empowerment, gender-based violence (GBV), a life free from violence, gender equality, and women’s voice; climate justice, inclusive governance, and building resilience. CARE has a global approach for MEAL that recognizes the work we do in dynamic and complex contexts, where lasting social change does not follow a linear timeline or a single pathway, where multiple stakeholders interact and influence each other as well as our interventions, and where there are constant adjustments in social, economic, structural, environmental or other dimensions that we must be critically aware of and adapt to.
   This means, MEAL systems have to continuously generate comprehensive explanations and evidence on the way we think about a situation or problem and its underlying causes; a process of desired social change; how CARE’s interventions contribute to that change, and how other factors and critical preconditions take place in society in order for that change to happen. With evolving contexts in the region, CARE country presence and RMU from time to time need MEAL support to either fill capacity gaps or provide additional technical support to meet the project/ program requirements.
5. Responsibilities:
   The overall objective of this assignment is to support the MEAL systems at CARE, ensuring that high-level quality tools and frameworks are developed, maintained, and implemented; meaningful and verifiable data is collected for the monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning needs of country presence, programs, and projects.
   The specific objectives below describe the overall scope of work for possible assignments under the MEAL Specialist Consutancy Framework Agreement. The overall scope of work below serves as an “umbrella” of possible future assignments brought to the MEAL Specialist Consutancy Framework Agreement. Consultants are expected to touch on one or more of the relevant sub-categories included in the Framework Agreement. The list below describes the overall scope of work that is inclusive of all future
   assignments. The deadlines for these assignments depend on the assignment’s nature and the project timeline the assignment is associated with. Expected roles and responsibilities 1 Capacity building on MEAL topics for CARE and partner staff
   MEAL staff capacity needs assessment and MEAL system assessment 2 MEAL framework development
   A country presence, program, or project Theory of Change/Logic Framework Program/project measurement framework/MEAL system Indicator development and definitions
   MEAL plan/system for programs/projects Improved indicator measurement guidance document
   Program research agenda and learning priorities 3 Remote monitoring and conflict-sensitive monitoring and evaluation approaches
6. Developing and using digital tools (ICT) for MEAL, including but not limited to Kobo, ODK, CommCare, PowerBI, SPSS, Nvivo, GIS, etc. 5 MEAL database management and responsible data management.

7. Measuring program data quality 7 MEAL for advocacy work

8. Required Skills and Requirements: At least eight years of relevant professional experience (designing and implementing M&E systems) in the MENA region or countries, especially in protracted crises, and those are vulnerable to natural hazards and economic shocks • Extensive experience at the international level in planning/design, monitoring, results measurement, evaluation, accountability, information/knowledge management, and reporting

9. • Strong experience in donor requirements and expectations for MEAL, particularly USAID, ECHO, AFD, FCDO, AUSaid, etc. • Extensive knowledge of international humanitarian architecture, core humanitarian standards, cluster mechanism including UN agencies, NGOs, and other partners • Good interpersonal and communication skills. English is a must (Arabic would be a plus);

10. How to Apply:
    In order to apply to the Framework Agreement, CARE kindly requests the interested individuals to send a) a cover letter b) an updated CV c) a daily rate in USD for 20 working days deployment and d) a daily rate for more than 20 days up to 90 days (if it is different and more competitive daily rate for long term
    deployment) to [email protected] with a subject line: MEAL Specialist on or before May 9th, 2022.
    Successful applicants will be contacted and invited for an interview to further clarify terms and conditions of employment under this Framework Agreement for MEAL Specialists.