Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Assistant

The Organization

The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (www.ciat.cgiar.org) is a CGIAR research center for tropical agri-commodities, systems and landscapes in the developing world. It is the lead Center for CGIAR-wide climate change research and Big Data platform. CIAT operates in nearly 60 countries around the world, from its global headquarters in Cali (Colombia). CIAT is a member of the CGIAR Consortium (www.cgiar.org), a global partnership that unites organizations engaged in  research for a food secure future.

CIAT’s regional office for Asia, based in Hanoi, currently works on five key themes: 1) cassava value chains, 2) forages and livestock, 3) agricultural systems and landscapes, 4) climate change and ecosystem services, and 5) food systems and value chains. It engages with a broad range of institutions and groups for collaborative research, capacity building and knowledge networking in Southeast, East and South Asia.

The Position

CIAT Asia is seeking an experienced Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MLE) Assistant to provide support and advice to a growing team of scientists in the design and implementation of high quality MEL systems and tools at project and program levels. The incumbent will support the overall M&E and learning needs of ongoing and future projects, and will foster the development of an evidence-based and learning culture across CIAT regional staff and partners. The incumbent will also play a significant role in synthesizing, promoting and disseminating research outputs and outcomes to inform CIAT’s Asia-wide knowledge management and learning processes. Finally the MLE assistant will support capacity building activities on M&E and learning across different CIAT Asia stakeholders.

The successful candidate will be directly supervised by the Impact Assessment and M&E Specialist, and co-supervised by the Regional Program Management Officer. He/she will also work closely with the Communications Coordinator and Statistics/Data Management Assistant, in providing overall regional program management support to CIAT Asia.

Key Responsibilities

The position assists in:

1. Project Monitoring & Evaluation

  • Developing general guidelines and tools to support project teams in formulating impact pathways and M&E frameworks and plans.
  • Coordinating M&E support to on-going projects such as: finetuning performance (output/outcome) indicators; identifying sources of data, collection methods and resources requirements; and reviewing and providing feedback to programmes on the quality of data and methodologies established to collect monitoring and evaluation data.
  • Maintaining cross-project M&E-related datasets to meet documentation and reporting needs.

2. Institutional Learning

  • Maintaining management information systems, drawn from M&E findings, to inform CIAT Asia program-wide planning and priority-setting.
  • Facilitating institutional mechanisms for learning and sharing among colleagues and teams, and with partners/stakeholders.
  • Undertake meta-analysis of M&E-derived data towards supporting institutional planning, program development and external communications.
  • Promote institutional culture of learning-oriented M&E among CIAT staff and partners.

Qualifications

  • Academic and Professional Background
    • Bachelors’ degree in social sciences, development studies, statistics, economics or related fields; masters’ degree preferred
    • Excellent knowledge and understanding of project monitoring, evaluation and learning
    • Broad understanding of M&E trends and practices locally and in Southeast Asia/internationally
  • Work Experience and Skills
    • Minimum 2 years of general M&E-related work experience with projects/organizations in the agriculture and rural development sector
    • Proven skills in in M&E planning and implementation including mixed-methods and tools in planning, data collection-analysis, and reporting
    • Familiarity with statistical and data management softwares along with general MS Office applications
    • Work experience in an international institutional/ program setting is highly desirable
    • High-level English proficiency both written and orally, in addition to Vietnamese
  • Others
    • Willingness to work beyond regular office hours and to travel to field sites
    • Capacity to work with minimum supervision and to meet tight work deadlines
    • Adaptability to work in culturally diverse, multi-disciplinary teams

Terms of employment

The position is nationally recruited and will be based at the CIAT Asia regional office in Hanoi, Vietnam

The initial contract will be for one (1) year, subject to a probation period of three (3) months, and is renewable depending on performance and availability of resources. CIAT offers a multicultural, collegial research environment with competitive salary and excellent benefits. CIAT is an equal opportunity employer and strives for staff diversity in gender and nationality. Woman candidates are particularly encouraged to apply.

Applicants are invited to send a cover letter illustrating their suitability for the above position against the listed work responsibilities and qualifications together with a detailed curriculum vitae, including names and addresses of three referees knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience.

All correspondence should be addressed to the CIAT Human Resources Office c/o Ms. Thuy Khuong ([email protected]) and should clearly indicate “Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Assistant – Asia”. For pre-application inquiries, contact Dr Grazia Pacillo ([email protected])

Closing date for applications is 30th September 2017 or until a suitable candidate is identified.

Job Details
Organisation Name: 
CIAT Asia
Location: 
Hanoi
Application Deadline: 
Sat, 2017-09-30