World Vision Uganda (WVU) is a Christian relief, development and advocacy non-government organisation dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. We currently work in 43 districts and have 48 Area Programmes implementing projects in health & nutrition, water, sanitation & hygiene (WASH), livelihoods & resilience, education and child protection. World Vision (WV) is committed to the protection of children and adult beneficiaries from exploitation and abuse and will not employ people whose background is not suitable for working with these beneficiaries. All employment is conditioned upon the successful completion of all applicable background checks, including criminal record checks where possible.

Due to expansion in scope of our programmes, we are now seeking for a qualified and passionate individual willing to share in our vision and join the team in the following role.
Position: Regional MEAL Specialist – Northern Region
Report to: Regional Programme Manager
Location: Gulu District.

Purpose of the Position:
To plan, develop and manage programme performance, monitoring, evaluation, accountability & learning systems and research for World Vision Uganda Regional Programmes in line with the National Office Strategy and establish a knowledge base through using M&E data/information as evidence for accountability and informing decision-making for management purposes, course adjustments, & future designs.

Key Outputs/Responsibilities.
Capacity Building of staff
• Develop capacity of staff to utilize existing MEAL tools for proper tracking and reporting in line with World Vision Uganda MEAL Framework (LEAP), including coaching and mentoring for staff, partners and other stakeholders on Design, monitoring, evaluation & research.
• Provide technical guidance and direction related to MEAL plans and systems, performance management at Regional Level.
• Develop a capacity building and mentorship program for the MEAL team aimed at enhancing their capacity and skills to assume increased MEAL and programming responsibilities in line with WVU MEAL frame work
• Guide staff in preparing progress reports in accordance with approved LEAP reporting formats and ensure their timely submission. This includes monthly reports, quarterly progress reports, annual reports etc.
Monitoring, accountability and Reporting
• Develop and lead the implementation of the overall regional MEAL framework including annual project reviews, participatory impact assessments, process monitoring, operations monitoring and lessons-learned workshops
• Analyze program data and periodic reports from different APs at Regional Level into periodic management reports usable for demonstrating evidence towards progress on National Office Strategy
• Support all APs at Regional Level including Regional Grants/PNSFs to undertake activity tracking and results based monitoring of outputs and outcomes using standardized reporting templates/ formats, protocols, guides, dashboards and databases ensuring contribution to the National Office Strategy
• Provide leadership and guidance in roll out of accountability mechanisms for all APs and projects in the region. This includes routine monitoring & reporting on accountability mechanisms within the region
Evidence based Learning and Reflection
• Promote evidence based learning through undertaking assessments, baselines and evaluations including operations research and documentation at National and program level
• Analyze and provide monitoring data generated from MEAL systems and used for management purposes in line with appropriate decision making, course adjustments and future designs through reflection and learning forums organized on a regular basis.
• Support all APs in the region including grants/PNSFs in documenting and disseminating innovations and new research findings related to MEAL
• Synthesize and summarize trends in AP monitoring data and data generated from evaluations APs at the region that can be used to inform national level programming
• Take lead on disseminating Evaluation and Outcome Level findings and track Programme/Project utilization of Evaluation findings
• Work with Programme/Project teams in organizing for annual Evidence Day Celebrations at Regional Level by providing technical leadership and guidance in the process
Design, Planning and Resource acquisition
• Coordinate the AP Annual Review and Planning process for region
• Participate in designing of grants/proposals and ensure alignment of grants to the national office strategy and LEAP frame works
• Support resource acquisition through development of concepts, proposals and response to RFA
Assessments, Evaluations and Research
• Provide technical guidance in conducting assessments, baselines and Evaluations in line with established LEAP or donor related guidelines.
• Support and strengthen adoption and use of Lot Quality Assurance Sampling (LQAS) methodology using Open Data Kit (ODK) or any emerging recommended software for annual monitoring of grants projects outcomes, assessments, evaluations or baseline surveys
• Contribute to all program development, research and needs assessments by monitoring the changing needs of target communities, identifying opportunities in line with WV Uganda mission & strategy and monitoring international best practices and development trends
• Monitor and follow up on utilization of recommendations from evaluation surveys across all APs in the region
• Conduct meta evaluation of all completed program evaluations to establish key learning and recommendations to inform future evaluations
Data Quality Assurance
• Perform periodic data quality assessments to ensure validity, integrity, precision, reliability and timeliness of all performance data; identify any deficiencies and suggest corrective actions; and assist the technical team members to maintain electronic and hard copy files.
• Provide technical support to field staff for all APs in the Region on integration of the strategy standard indicators into ongoing or new programs/projects.
• Plan for and implement program planning and review meetings in line with the national strategy detailed implementation plan/National Annual Operating Plan
• Track timely implementation and reporting of programs plans
• Support grants in reviewing management reports as well as other MEAL reports to ensure validated MEAL data and MEAL compliance with recommended guidelines, formats and standards.
• Provide technical review and input to MEAL deliverables in the region across all APs and or grant projects.
Information Management Systems
• Provide technical guidance to MEAL teams in the region in line with utilization of national MIS systems (Horizon, GIS, OVC databases, WASH MIS, Automated Database etc.
• Roll out partnership initiatives from the EARO and Global Centre such as Horizon, GIS etc. in the region
• Provide meaningful data summaries and visualization to demonstrate impact of WV interventions in the region
• Support application of statistical software for results based monitoring and evaluation such as SPSS, EPIDATA, EPIINFO, STATA, GIS, ODK etc

Qualifications: Education/Knowledge/Technical Skills and Experience.
• A Master’s degree in Monitoring & Evaluation, Statistics, Public health, Demography, Biostatistics, or a related field is required.
• Minimum of five years of work experience in managing data intensive programs in designing, monitoring, and evaluation methodologies is highly desirable.
• Experience in proposal writing and development, grants management, Report writing, research, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative M&E data collection and analysis methods, including tracking outcome indicators, is desirable.
• Knowledge of designing and managing M&E systems at a national level for effective generation of monitoring data used in tracking Programme and improved service delivery and support related to development programming
• Experience in designing M&E methodologies and tools, and the ability to coach and train others in their use is desirable.
• Excellent command of MS Excel, and working knowledge of at least two statistical data management packages/software’s (quantitative & qualitative) e.g., SPSS, Nvivo/Nudist, EPIINFO, STATA etc
• Demonstrated experience in analyzing, interpreting, and reporting on M&E results so that lessons can be learned and incorporated into programming is desirable.
• Ability to work with inter-disciplinary teams and a wide range of program/project activities
• Proactive personality, self-driven and strongly motivated
• Capacity/potential in leadership, relationship management/networking, and coordination.
• Spiritual maturity, interfaith knowledge and a biblical worldview – ability to articulate and model our Christian identity and mission in an inclusive way.
• Good interpersonal skills, team player, facilitation skills and strong communication skills, both verbal and written
• Proven conceptual & analytical skills, ability to take an evidence-based approach to programming
• Strong report writing and communication skills
• The position requires ability and willingness to travel domestically up to 30% of the time, plus occasional international travel