MEAL Coordinator

The International Rescue Committee began responding to the growing humanitarian crisis in Honduras since 2018. IRC Honduras has reached more than 243,745 people with integrated services including research-driven education interventions, gender-based violence response programs, child protection services, protection coordination, cash for families in crisis and increased access to trustworthy information. The IRC serves individuals and families who are internally displaced, returned asylum seekers and refugees, and survivors of violence especially women, girls, and the LGBTQ+ population. Where there are gaps in the delivery of humanitarian assistance for people identified as most at risk of harm, IRC delivers direct services and works to strengthen national systems.

Scope of work

The IRC seeks a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Coordinator for an anticipated five-year USAID Improved (Re)Integration Services activity. The project will increase sustainable (re)integration of returned Honduran migrants and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to reduce irregular migration to the US and ensure that returnees and IDPs find safety, as well as satisfactory social services and economic opportunities, within communities of origin. The $15.5M Improved (Re)Integration Services Activity will focus on empowering and enabling existing local government and NGOs to provide better services with more uniformity in the quality of services across the country, suggestions for policy improvement and execution related to inclusive services for returnees and IDPs, including case management, and improve community outreach interventions.

Role description:

Under the supervision of the Chief of Party (COP), and in close collaboration with the Regional Measurement Advisor (RMA), the MEAL Coordinator provides the strategic guidance, vision, and management to ensure that the Project’s MEAL function is implemented effectively and in compliance with relevant Donor and institutional standards. This individual works closely with senior project leadership and ensures the strategic and functional integration of all MEAL activities and active collaboration with the Donor, local partners, and other implementers. The MEAL Coordinator oversees MEAL activities, elaborates annual plans, provides technical direction and support, and ensures the capture of learning and results throughout the life of the project. This is anticipated to be a full-time position based in Tegucigalpa, Honduras for about 5 years.

Responsibilities

• Responsible of the project MEAL function, ensuring that plans, processes, routines, and projects yield high-quality data and insight necessary to track project performance, facilitate programmatic decision-making, uncover risks, while ensuring compliance with industry’s best practices, and project documents, as well as donor and IRC policy.

• Provide technical leadership in establishing an effective and efficient MEAL system in close collaboration with project teams and implementing partners.

• In coordination with the Regional Measurement Advisor, ensure the project’s MEAL Plan is periodically revised to align with programmatic and contextual changes.

• Lead and supervise internal and external evaluation activities, ensuring that methodologies are sound, workplans are followed, results are substantiated, and reports follow IRC and donor institutional expectations.

• Lead and facilitate learning activities, processes, and routines in accordance with USAID Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) framework and IRC’s Project Cycle Meetings (PCM) guidelines.

• As needed, builds and strengthens MEAL capacities in project staff and partners to ensure proper implementation of the function in the project.

• Support the project team in the generation of crucial project deliverables during the life of the project: annual workplans, quarterly and annual reports, etc., by providing leadership in the generation of valid and accurate project performance data as well as any MEAL narrative sections.

• Lead the development of standardized data collection tools, processes, and routines ensuring that relevant teams and partners are sufficiently trained and supported to carry out MEAL activities.

• In coordination with relevant IRC colleagues, establish solid and secured databases and dashboards for data visualization ensuring a robust information management system for secure and accurate documentation, presentation, storage, and use of collected information on vulnerable populations.

• Ensures that data is aggregated by IRC staff and partners in reports and databases for the program.

• Serves as the main point of contact for MEAL function in front of the Donor, implementing partners, other USAID implementors, special events, etc.

• In coordination with the MEAL Manager in Northern Central America (NCA) and the Client Responsiveness Advisor, establish structures to ensure that project participants can communicate their questions, concerns, complaints, and praises to staff and that their input is properly processed via internal channels.

• Provide ad hoc data analysis reports and reflections as required by the CoP and/or DCoP.

• Participates and coordinates monitoring visits to project sites as needed.

• Provides day-to-day supervision and leadership to the projects’ MEAL team.

Requirements:

• A University degree in any of the following or related fields: social sciences, international development, evaluation research, statistics, economics, quantitative methods. Master’s degree preferred.

• At least five (5) years of experience implementing MEAL for USAID-funded activities.

• Leadership experience in quality MEAL system set-up, maintenance and oversight from inception to close-out that leads to evidence base decision-making and strategic planning.

• Demonstrated technical experience in statistics, electronic data collection, sampling, evaluation, and research methodologies.

• Knowledge of statistical software packages (SPSS, STATA, R), data collection platforms (CommCare, SurveyToGo, Kobo), and data visualization software (PowerBI, Tableau)

• Previous experience and knowledge of migration & reintegration issues, community development, governance, and systems strengthening (preferred).

• Experience in designing and implementing tools and plans for data collection, analysis, and preparation of reports.

• Proven experience implementing USAID’s Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) framework.

• Technical skills in mixed methods analysis (quantitative and qualitative), with excellent organizational, oral, and written communication skills in English.

• Professional fluency in Spanish and English is required.

Equal Opportunity Employer: IRC is an Equal 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, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.