Background

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. IRC has been working in Ethiopia since 1999 and is implementing integrated, community-managed programs aimed at improving the quality of lives and recovery of livelihood of the disaster-affected population’s through promoting individual participation, strengthening institutions, and emergency response.

Position Overview

IRC is seeking a MEAL Assistant for the Resilience Expansion and Active Learning in Crisis (REAL) project - Lego Foundation-funded 18-months project in Ethiopia. The MEAL Assistant will work directly for the REAL Project under the day-to-day supervision of and report to the field-based M&E Officer, Education Manage (LF) based in Hawassa, and technical reporting to CPE MEAL Manager, MEAL Unite, Education Manager based in Addis. The MEAL Assistant will be responsible for routine monitoring of the project, digital data collection, quality assurance, design and implementation of key M&E tools, and establishment of client feedback channels. The MEAL Assistant will also be responsible for recording and monitoring feedback, and for ensuring that the loop is closed, and clients are informed of decisions taken.

In partnership with the LEGO Foundation, the IRC is implementing an 18-month project (beginning in October 2021) aimed at bringing play-based learning activities to children whose education and wellbeing have been disrupted and damaged by the COVID-19 pandemic. The project will target marginalized communities in the DRC, Ethiopia, and South Sudan. It will build on play-based social-emotional learning materials and approaches already developed in the region through the LEGO Foundation-supported Play Well and PlayMatters projects, led by the IRC in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania. The project aims to work closely with the full range of education stakeholders, including government ministries and education offices.

Duties and Responsibilities

Feedback Planning and Implementation

• Assist with the development, implementation, and assessment of monitoring framework for the project.
• Collect data and routinely monitor project implementation
• Work closely with Education Managers, Officers, and Coordinators to regularly
• Pilot and support in the contextualization of data collection tools
• Train staff and local officials in the correct use of digital data collection tools.
• Ensure data quality of routine monitoring and evaluation data.
• Support local management teams with ad-hoc data requests and analysis 
• Present statistics on monitoring data in clear formats to highlight feedback trends to the program team, as well as synthesize qualitative feedback in ways which provide the detail that the program team will need to design an appropriate response.
• Analyze key themes, challenges, and opportunities for program improvement.
• Support and train enumerators or data collectors as needed.
• Provide support to the M&E Officer to conduct ongoing monitoring and evaluation activities.
• Other duties as assigned by the supervisor to enable and develop IRC programs
• Collect feedbacks on use of developed contents to adopt learn through Play
• Work with the MEAL Officer and other MEAL Assistants to collect client feedback through various channels that IRC installs including community meetings, surveys, discussions, phone lines, suggestion boxes, SMS among others
• Support MEAL officer in updating the Feedback Registry and raise cases including breach of IRC code of conduct, allegations of child abuse or sexual exploitation and other major programmatic complaints
• Collect response from the program staff on the feedback and communicate back to client
• Work with other MEAL Assistant and the MEAL officer in the field office to analyze and compile feedback and complaints

Job Requirements

• 10 +3 Diploma and Zero years of experience BA/BSC in social science and other relevant field of studies
• Analyze and communicate data in a way that facilitates effective decision making
• Experience with digital data collection tools and the use of smart devices for data collection
• Driven and able to balance multiple tasks, commitments, and to work flexibly in a team
• Proactively engage with clients, local officials, and community members, acting as a community liaison focal point
• Creativity, curiosity and enthusiasm, and the ability to develop and test new ways of working and solutions to problems
• Strong oral and written communications in English, Amharic and local language is required

How to Apply

Candidates meeting the above qualifications are encouraged to apply only through the below IRC On-line recruitment website

IRC Careers Site

Please include 3 references from current and former employers.

Applications will not be returned. IRC discourages phone calls or personal visits.

Only applicants meeting the minimum qualification will be short listed and contacted.

Female candidates are highly encouraged to apply.

IRC is an equal employment opportunity employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Professional Standards: The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity Anti Retaliation and Combating Trafficking in Persons

Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols, and other supportive benefits and allowances