MEL DIRECTOR x1

JOB ADVERT

MEL DIRECTOR x1

National

Project Description:

ACHIEVE is a USAID-funded global project whose primary goal is to reach and sustain HIV epidemic control among pregnant and breastfeeding women, adolescents, infants, and children. To reach this goal, ACHIEVE supports orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and DREAMS service delivery, provides technical assistance to strengthen social welfare systems and improve service quality and reach, and supports capacity development for local partners to sustain services at the community level. ACHIEVE is led by Pact, in partnership with Jhpiego, Palladium, No Means No Worldwide, and WI-HER. ACHIEVE also has a network of resource partners, that are engaged on an as needed basis for technical support.

Within South Africa, ACHIEVE continues to expand on USAID/PEPFAR investment. Current activities can effectively be categorized into four service streams: OVC comprehensive,  OVC DREAMS Family Strengthening, DREAMS Intensive Economic Strengthening (IES) and above site technical assistance. This includes a heightened focus on direct services to OVCAY, including monitoring and evaluation (M&E) activities to effectively record and report on service outcomes.   

Position Description:

The Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Director provides strategic guidance, vision, and management for successful monitoring, evaluation, and learning of the program. This individual also supervises MEL staff and ensures the strategic and functional integration of MEL activities as well as active collaboration with sub-awardees and USAID. The MEL Director oversees all MEL activities, provides technical direction and support, ensures the accurate reporting of results for program activities, and ensures the program aligns with PEPFAR and USAID requirements and Pact’s quality standards.

Minimum Key Responsibilities and duties:

1. Lead the design and execution of the project’s comprehensive Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Plan and ensure the timely collection, management, analysis, and reporting of quality data that meet PEPFAR and USAID reporting requirements;
2. Design monitoring and evaluation tools and develop strategies for data capture, data analysis, and reporting for the project’s four implementation streams: OVC Comprehensive Case Management, OVC Above Site, DREAMS Family Strengthening, and DREAMS Intensive Economic Strengthening activities;
3. Develop, measure, and report output, outcome, objective, and goal-level performance indicators, including PEPFAR MER indicators and USAID custom indicators;
4. Ensure MEL reporting requirements are met, including semi-annually into PEPFAR’s DATIM system and monthly to USAID South Africa;
5. Design a robust data quality assurance plan and processes, and oversee rigorous Routine Data Quality Assessments (RDQAs); systematically document gaps and ensure implementation of corrective actions to ensure data quality and accountability of staff;
6. Oversee the project’s use of the USAID Community-Based Intervention Monitoring System (CBIMS) database, including processes for populating the database, developing dashboards and analytics, data cleaning, and running data exports for further analysis and reporting;
7. Lead adaptive management processes and ensure strategic data use for decision-making at all levels, including by the senior management team, by providing real-time, analytical monitoring data in regular data review meetings.
8. Develop and lead the implementation of a robust learning agenda for continuous collaborating, learning, and adapting (CLA);
9. Promote coordination and effective collaboration within the MEL team and across units within the organization.
10. Participate in Pact South Africa’s senior management team, contributing to overall organizational leadership, strategy, and staff performance;
11. Provide leadership and represent ACHIEVE in MEL-related interactions with project stakeholders including USAID, Government of South Africa, Tulane University (for CBIMS), and other implementing partners

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Master’s Degree or higher in Public Health, Social Sciences, or other relevant discipline.
• Minimum eight years working on monitoring, evaluation, and learning in the social welfare, health, and/or HIV/AIDS sector, preferably in PEPFAR and USAID-funded programs;
• Demonstrated track record of successfully building and effectively managing diverse teams of employees at national, provincial, and community levels;
• Demonstrated experience designing and managing data-intensive programs and designing M&E methodologies and tools, with progressively increasing responsibility;
• Familiarity with PEPFAR and USAID indicators and reporting requirements and experience using DATIM;
• Excellent communication skills in English, including report-writing and oral presentation skills;
• Extensive experience designing dashboards and analytics and using data for decision-making;
• Expertise designing and implementing learning studies, producing thought leadership products, and disseminating results;
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs, i.e., Excel, Word, PowerPoint, etc., and the ability to use various commercially available statistical software programs and data visualization software;

1. Ability to travel within South Africa up to 40% of the time.
2. Valid South African driver’s license
3. Eligibility to work in South Africa  

Only applicants possessing the prescribed minimum qualifications and experience are invited to submit their electronic CVs and application letters with a subject line “MEL DIRECTOR ” to merlapps@pactworld.org    

Closing Date:  12 September 2024

Pact reserves the right to verify all information provided by candidates including credit rating. Please note that correspondence will be limited to short listed candidates only and if you do not hear from us within 3 weeks after the closing date kindly accept that your application was unsuccessful.