Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist

VIETNAM FORESTS AND DELTAS PROGRAM

RECRUIT

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Specialist (Full-time staff)

1. Background:

The Vietnam Forests and Deltas (VFD) Program is a technical assistance project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Winrock International in partnership with MARD, provincial governments and other partners. Since late 2012, VFD has been supporting communities and the Government of Vietnam to transition towards climate-resilient and low-emission sustainable development.

In 2018, the project began a new phase to provide further support for the advancement of payment for forest environmental services (PFES) in Vietnam. During this phase, VFD works in cooperation with local partners in three key areas of PFES implementation:

• Expanding PFES in key sectors, with a focus on PFES for the carbon sequestration and storage services of forests;
• Strengthening PFES monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems, and
• Developing innovative digital payment mechanisms for more transparent and efficient distribution of PFES benefits

2. Position description:

The M&E Specialist has two main roles:

1. Management and implementation of the program’s comprehensive M&E system to track program activities in accordance with the project’s Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Plan. The M&E Specialist will lead the collation of data that measures progress, track effectiveness, and provides continuous assessment of progress toward project targets and benchmarks and ensure quality control and rigorous monitoring and evaluation. The M&E Specialist will mobilize field teams to monitor on-the-ground performance and ensure achievement of project results and objectives.
2. Lead M&E system development and implementation with VNFF and provincial funds for VFD Phase 2 PFES M&E activities. This will include designing and leading training for provincial fund staff and local partners on system use and application. The M&E Specialist will be responsible for supervising one M&E Junior Officer, who provides assistance in the above two areas.

The position is a full-time staff, based in Hanoi with travel to field offices and/or field location sites within the project area. This is cross-cutting position that works in close collaboration with other project staff, partner organizations and USAID.

3. Key responsibilities:

• Responsible for oversight of all program M&E, data collection and monitoring of program activities in accordance with the program MEL Plan, including:
  
  • Support all relevant partners to follow all M&E procedures/ forms/ tools/mechanisms,
  • Develop monitoring forms for completion by senior management, staff, and local partners who conduct monitoring activities;
  • Oversee the regular collection of implementation data and analyze collected data for reporting to the donor,
  • Frequently upload data to AID Tracker, TraiNet, and/or other donor systems,
  • Periodic provide information on progress of program for program management team,
  • Conduct periodic data quality assessments (DQAs),
  • Provide technical guidance, trainings, on M&E related for all relevant program’s members as well as related partners.
• In close cooperation with VNFF and provincial forest fund staff, lead development of M&E system for PFES:
  
  • Develop M&E frameworks (including indicators), tools/templates, guidelines, and M&E plans for provincial and national partners.
  • Work with technical service provide to develop innovative M&E Platform (planned to be in partnership with Microsoft) for use at provincial levels, and linking with national system.
  • Develop training materials and lead training efforts for provincial fund and VNFF staff on use and application of M&E System components and tools.
  • Coordinate closely with VFD technical staff to ensure M&E system links effectively with current and planned PFES policy and implementation needs.
• Work closely with technical staff and DCOP on project implementation plan and progress and synthesize into consolidated report to GVN following current procedures (monthly, quarterly, and/or annual).
• Take the lead in collaboration with program components to prepare for either internal or external (or work with service providers) evaluations based upon requirement of program management board or the donor.
• Responsible for consolidation of program’s annual work plan and quarterly/annual progress report tables and indicators reports in collaboration with components and other sub-contractors.
• Coordinate with the program’s operations team to frequently update:
  
  • The project’s MEL Plan to make sure all indicators meet requirements of the donor and capture all program interventions to monitor and evaluate,
  • Respond to donor’s requests related to indicators and DQA, integration of indicator data into the donor M&E systems, and
  • Ensure regular updates and completion of the DQA Sheets according to requirements of the donor and make sure all M&E approaches/ methods (data collection, data filling, data processing, data accuracy, etc.) are consistent with M&E practical works and documented.
• Other tasks as required from COP, DCOP, Winrock International HQ, and USAID.

4. Qualifications:

• At least Bachelor/University degree in social science, statistics, project management, environmental sciences, or related field. Advanced degree is preferred.
• Experience working on monitoring and evaluation of donor-funded projects in the area of forestry and natural resource management.
• Experience working with government, communities, and other stakeholders on Vietnam’s payment for forest environmental services (PFES) system is an advantage.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work well in a team setting.
• Creativity and enthusiasm to tackle new challenges.
• Able and willing to undertake periodic field travel.
• Strong experience working with MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) required.
• Strong database development and management skills are required.
• Strong English speaking and writing skills are required.

5. Supervisor:

The M&E Specialist works under direct supervision of the COP, but will also work closely with the DCOP for GVN reporting requirements and with technical staff on project activities – in particular PFES M&E work.

6. How to apply:

Interested candidates with the right qualifications and motivation are invited to send letter of interest, a full CV in English to the following email address: [email protected] with subject line of “VFD Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist_your full name” no later than May 23rd, 2019.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interview.