Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)/Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) Director

SCOPE OF WORK

Strengthening Regional Peace and Stability in West Africa Program

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The Strengthening Regional Peace and Stability (SRPS) in West Africa Program is a five-year, USAID-funded program implemented by DAI. The program supports the efforts of West Africans to address the risks of instability from democratic backsliding and from conflict, and prioritizes targeted governance, conflict and violence prevention, peacebuilding, and preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) interventions across the region. The program will engage with regional partners and with governments that demonstrate commitment to power-sharing and resource redistribution, both of which are crucial for reducing exclusion, violence, and conflict. Program interventions will address causes of fragility, and focus on good governance approaches, conflict prevention and response, and P/CVE interventions across select target countries in the Sahel and coastal West Africa.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)/Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) Director will oversee all aspects of program research and MEL processes, including the development of activity indicators. The MEL/CLA Director will garner their technical expertise in MEL/CLA in stabilization and P/CVE programming to track program activities for SRPS and progress towards achieving the key results of the program. The MEL/CLA Director will also be responsible for promoting collaboration and effective knowledge exchange among the SRPS program’s local partners and external stakeholders. S/he will ensure that SRPS produces and disseminates high quality knowledge, tools, and lessons learned through routing monitoring and evaluation and implementation. The MEL/CLA Director will oversee a MEL technical team which includes an M&E Research Manager, CLA Specialist, Geospatial Information System (GIS)/Activity Database Manager, and Communications Specialist.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide technical and training assistance to country- and regional-level activity design, research, and capacity-building efforts.
• Design, implement, and revise the MEL Plan.
• Leading indicator monitoring and data analysis, data visualization, and reporting processes.
• Responsible for quality and accuracy of M&E sections of quarterly and annual reports
• Lead the timely production of weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual reports enhanced with GIS visualization.
• Oversee the MEL and reporting team and ensure timely reporting progress toward achieving key results per the MEL Plan.
• Supervise a team of MEL/CLA and other research experts.
• Support grantees and partners in developing reporting requirements and build local partner capacity on MEL reporting.
• Organize and analyze lessons learned from SRPS interventions including grantee and partner activities throughout the life of the program.
• Identifying and designing program research opportunities and initiatives, context monitoring and analysis, adaptive management processes in collaboration with the DCOP-Technical, Country Directors, and GESI Lead.
• Ensure that the program’s MEL systems are efficient and effective and will promote collaboration and effective knowledge exchange within the program team, between the team and external partners and among external stakeholders.
• Provide technical guidance to the subcontracting research partner in designing research methodology and providing oversight of work implemented. In collaboration with DCOP-Technical, review all deliverables completed by the subcontracting research partner.
• Coordinate with the communication team to generate results at the output and impact levels of the program in video, audio and success story formats.
• The MEL/CLA Director will develop and implement risk mitigation strategies to ensure safe and effective data collection and analysis in conflict-affected and unstable environments, while managing stakeholder expectations and ensuring the integrity of program data.
• Ethics and Compliance: The Director will ensure full adherence to USAID ethical guidelines and MEL standards, with a focus on safeguarding data privacy and maintaining ethical practices in handling sensitive information, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected settings.
• The Director will promote continuous improvement in MEL/CLA strategies by integrating innovative data collection technologies, adaptive learning frameworks, and regular reviews of the MEL plan to enhance program effectiveness and adaptability.
• The MEL/CLA Director will establish and track key performance indicators (KPIs) aligned with program goals, including but not limited to improvements in community resilience, reductions in conflict incidents, and increased capacity of local partners, ensuring measurable progress toward achieving program impact.

QUALIFICATIONS

• At least 8 years of experience in MEL/CLA for international development activities; experience with conflict mitigation, P/CVE, and/or peacebuilding programming strongly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in social science, research, political science, business management, or other relevant field required; advanced degree preferred.
• Significant experience in the West Africa region on USAID-funded programs preferred.
• Prior experience in evaluation of regional projects using qualitative and quantitative tools and analyses.
• Experience applying complexity-aware MEL and experience in survey design, activity, and context monitoring, and program evaluations.
• Strong writing and reporting skills.
• Bilingual fluency in English and French would be a strong advantage.

About DAI:

DAI is a global development company with corporate offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, EU, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Palestine and project operations worldwide. We tackle fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability.

DAI works on the frontlines of global development. Transforming ideas into action—action into impact. We are committed to shaping a more livable world.

DAI and its employees are committed to confronting racism and holding ourselves accountable for positive change within the company and in the communities, cultures, and countries in which we live and work. DAI is committed to attracting and retaining the best employees from all races and backgrounds in our continued effort to become a better development partner.

DAI upholds the highest ethical standards. We are committed to the prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment as well as other ethical breaches. All our positions are therefore subject to stringent vetting and reference checks.