Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Lead

Action Against Hunger leads the global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change, and reach 28 million people every year with proven hunger prevention and treatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across 55 countries, our 8,990 dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes of hunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. We strive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.

Action Against Hunger USA is part of the Action Against Hunger International network. Action Against Hunger USA currently manages operations in 8 countries: Kenya, South Sudan, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia and Haiti.

1. Job Summary

Action Against Hunger is seeking a qualified Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Director for the upcoming USAID-funded BHA Uganda Resilience Food Security Activity (RFSA). This role is pivotal in designing, implementing, and overseeing the monitoring, evaluation, and learning components that support the program’s goals of improving and sustaining the food and nutrition security of vulnerable populations through multi-year resilience and food security activities.

Purpose:

The MEL Director will develop and manage comprehensive MEL systems to track program progress, measure impact, and apply learning to enhance program effectiveness and sustainability.

Engagement:

The MEL Director will engage with internal teams, USAID, implementing partners, and stakeholders to ensure alignment of MEL activities with program objectives and compliance with USAID standards.

Delivery:

This role will ensure the integrity of data collection, analysis, and reporting processes, and foster an environment of learning and adaptation within the program team and among stakeholders.

1. Essential Job Duties

• Develop and implement the program’s MEL framework and plan, including systems for capturing and utilizing data for decision-making and reporting.

• Lead baseline, midterm, and end-line evaluations, and oversee regular operational monitoring activities.

• Design and manage information systems to track and report on program indicators across various components and objectives.

• Facilitate learning through regular data reviews, promoting adjustments in program strategies and approaches as necessary.

• Build capacity of staff and partners in MEL principles and practices, ensuring consistency and quality in all data management activities.

• Supervise MEL staff, providing guidance and professional development support.

• Coordinate with external evaluators and ensure compliance with all USAID evaluation requirements and standards.

• Prepare and deliver high-quality reports on program progress and impact for USAID and other stakeholders.

• Cross-Sector Integration with Protection Mainstreaming: Collaborate with project teams to ensure the seamless integration of social protection strategies and the Graduation Approach across all program activities. Employ basic knowledge of protection mainstreaming to enhance alignment with national frameworks and boost the resilience and food security of target communities.

III. Supervisory Responsibilities

Oversee the MEL team, ensuring effective implementation of the MEL activities and professional growth of team members.

IV. Fiscal Responsibility

Manage the budget related to MEL activities, ensuring efficient use of resources.

V. Physical Demands

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to sit for long periods and to concentrate on work, including typing, and turn out heavy volumes of work accurately, within short time frames under stressful situations in the context of a moderately noisy office with interruptions.

• To travel to the field, the employee must attest to a level of physical fitness capable of enduring physically difficult, highly stressful situations which may include the necessity to walk long distances, to eat a limited diet and/or to reside in potentially uncomfortable housing or tents.

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

VI. Working Conditions, Travel and Environment

• The duties of the job require regular job attendance at least five days per week. Must be available to work outside normal office hours or on the weekends as required by project needs.

• Must be able to travel as required for standard domestic and international business purposes as well as to project locations across Uganda. While visiting the field, the employee may be exposed to precarious settings under high security risks and/or very basic living conditions and outside weather conditions, as well as to infectious diseases.

VII.     Gender Equality Commitments & Zero Tolerance to Abuse

• Foster an environment that reinforces values of people of all genders equal access to information.

• Provide a work environment where people of all genders must be evaluated and promoted based on their skills and performance.

• Promote a safe, secure, and respectful environment for all stakeholders, particularly for children, beneficiaries, and members of staff.

• Help to prevent any type of abuse including workplace harassment and sexual abuse and exploitation.

• Respect beneficiaries’ women, men, children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sex orientation, disability, religion, race, color, ancestry, national origin, age, or marital status.

• Value and respect all cultures.

VIII. Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree or above in a quantitative or relevant field such as evaluation, economics, agricultural/development economics, statistics, biostatistics, nutrition, social science or international development, with significant training in quantitative methods.

• Minimum of eight years of professional experience in MEL roles, with substantial experience in managing MEL activities for USAID-funded or similar international development programs, with at least five years in similar international humanitarian and development contexts

• Demonstrated experience in leading the M&E of large, multi-sectoral awards, including knowledge of Theories of Change, logic models, food security indicators, M&E plans, data quality assurance, data utilization, and integrating gender and youth considerations into M&E activities.

• Experience with randomized controlled trials (RCT), either as a member of an implementing organization evaluated by an RCT or as a member of a research team conducting an RCT is strongly preferred.

• Experience with USAID Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) approaches, policies and guidelines.

IX. Required Skills & Experience

• Demonstrated expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methods, MEL system design, impact evaluation, survey and sample design, and experience with M&E for graduation, adaptive social protection, or other multi-sectoral programs.

• Proven ability to lead a team in a multi-disciplinary and multicultural environment.

• Strong analytical and communication skills, with proficiency in statistical software and MEL technology platforms.

• Experience in training and capacity building in MEL.

• Fluency in English is required; proficiency in other languages spoken in Uganda is an advantage.

• Willingness to be based in the closest major city to the implementation area and spend approximately 50% of the time in the RFSA implementation areas, ensuring routine visibility on programming.