MEAL Coordinator for the RCS in the Eastern Partnership Region regional project

Organization - People in Need

Job Title – MEAL Coordinator for the Resilient Civil Society in the Eastern Partnership Region regional project     

Duty station - PIN officeChisinau

Salary gross - EUR 1,155.00

Type of contract - Employment contract; Part-time;

Expected Duration of Assignment - Mid-May 2025 to March 31, 2026

Availability: Mid-May, 2025

• 28 days of paid leave annually
• Monthly mobile communication cost coverage

The applicants will be invited for interviews on a rolling basis. The application process might be stopped earlier if a suitable candidate is identified before the application deadline.

About the project

Resilient Civil Society in the Easter Partnership Region is a regional project funded by the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) and co-funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic (Czech MFA) under the Transition Cooperation Programme. The project is aimed to strengthen the role of CSOs as resilient, inclusive and trusted governance actors advancing the democratisation process in the Eastern Partnership region. The project aims to empower CSOs to become more effective protectors of civic space and drivers of democratisation, reform and recovery processes in the Eastern Partnership region. The 24-month action will target at least 45 CSOs in the region.

About the role

The MEAL Coordinator will lead the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) efforts for a regional project. Reporting to the Regional MEAL Advisor, the MEAL Coordinator will be responsible for designing, implementing, and managing a comprehensive MEAL system that provides accurate insights, drives accountability, and fosters learning. This role includes overseeing data collection and analysis, coordinating with project teams and stakeholders, and supporting capacity building among MEAL and project staff across the countries of implementation.

Duties & responsibilities

• MEAL planning:

o   Develop a project MEAL plan ensuring compliance with donor requirements and internal MEAL protocol;

o   Lead the development of Results Frameworks and Indicator Tracking Table (RF and ITT) to monitor progress across countries of implementation; regularly follow up on the updates of the ITT and adjust the RF accordingly;

o   Establish MEAL work plans, schedules, and data collection protocols, ensuring timely data gathering and reporting;

• MEAL implementation:

o   Coordinate baseline, interim and endline studies, surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs), and key informant interviews (KIIs);

o   Coordinate and oversee evaluation processes, including planning, preparing Terms of Reference (ToRs), participating in the selection process, and following up on evaluation outcomes to ensure effective project assessment and accountability;

o   Prepare and maintain high-quality data collection tools, train enumerators (when necessary), and ensure that in-country MEAL staff and target CSOs adhere to data collection protocols;

o   Lead quantitative and qualitative data analysis, ensuring the timely preparation of monitoring reports and insights for adaptive project management;

o   Oversee Data Quality Assurance (DQA) of all assessments/evaluation studies;

o   Maintain the project feedback tracker and ensure all feedback from all in-country MEAL activities are followed-up in a timely manner;

o   Compile regional-level MEAL insights and reports, incorporating inputs from Country Programmes (this may include consolidated OCAT reports, total beneficiary targets reached, and other relevant metrics);

o   Organize regular MEAL coordination calls with in-country MEAL teams to review plans, address challenges, discuss potential improvements, and provide necessary support.

• Accountability and feedback mechanisms:

o   Ensure that Community Feedback and Response Mechanism (CFRM) is established and fully operational within Country Programmes to collect and address beneficiary and stakeholder feedback;

o   Ensure that in-country MEAL and project staff implement accountability mechanisms and follow up on feedback collection, analysis, and response;

o   Establish feedback reporting systems, integrating responses into project adaptations and improvements.

•  Learning and adaptation:

o   Facilitate internal learning sessions, documenting lessons learned, best practices, and case studies across countries of implementation;

o   Facilitate the sharing of findings and recommendations, organizing feedback sessions with project and management teams;

o   When necessary, assist in-country MEAL staff in supporting target CSOs in strengthening their own MEAL capacities, providing training on data protection and collection, accountability, and reporting;

o   Provide actionable recommendations for project adjustments to optimize impact and address emerging challenges;

o   Implement mechanisms to share MEAL findings with project and MEAL teams across countries of implementation, using interactive dashboards or similar tools;

o   Maintain an organized repository of MEAL documentation, including survey tools, data sets, and analytical reports;

o   Maintain living inventory of evaluations/other research activities completed at the project level, including summary of recommendations, lessons learned and the best practices for each sector for use in future programming;

•  Accountability and Safeguarding Including Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment (SEAH)

o   Carry out the duties in accordance with the PIN Code of Conduct and Key policies;

o   Participate in training and awareness raising (CoC and KP, Safeguarding, etc.);

o   In close collaboration with Safeguarding Advisor implement Safeguarding measures throughout the project cycle. Conduct a risk analysis related to SEAH and Child protection at the project/program level and develop a mitigation plan accordingly. Ensure that due diligence and/or capacity assessments of partners include an assessment of implementation of key safeguarding and risk policies including the prevention of SEAH;

o   Create and maintain a fulfilling and protective environment;

o   The employee is obliged to follow PIN Policies, National Staff Policy and internal working rules, safety and security, fire safety regulations and other obligatory procedures and regulations related to her/his work.

o   Employee shall always maintain confidentiality of all information gained from employment which is not publicly available. S/he shall represent and uphold the values of People in Need and always behave in appropriate manner and at all places;

• Other:

o   Perform additional tasks relevant to the position as needed, including support for in-country MEAL teams when required

Required experience and competencies:

o   Demonstrated experience in independently initiating, designing, planning, executing, and concluding monitoring and evaluation activities. Skilled in coordinating, managing, and planning MEAL activities in alignment with agreed objectives, budgets, and timelines, ensuring adherence to donor requirements and internal policies;

o   Minimum of 2 years of relevant professional experience in conducting studies, baseline and endline assessments, and evaluations;

o   Strong ability to analyze and present data clearly;

o   Excellent skills in translating findings into reports that document quantitative and qualitative insights, and actionable recommendations for program teams;

o   Competent in using relevant technology and software for data collection, analysis, storage, and dissemination;

o   Experience in the civil society development programming within an NGO/INGO setting is preferred;

o   Proven experience in research design, development of data collection tools, and coordination of field research, including both quantitative (e.g., surveys) and qualitative (e.g., interviews, focus group discussions) data collection. Skilled in data analysis using a range of methods and tools;

o   Excellent command of English.

Required education:

Higher education degree in social sciences (e.g., sociology, statistics) or related fields, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant work experience.

Interested applicants must submit the following:

o   Cover letter (in English);

o   Full CV (in English);

o   Contacts of three references (one should include the supervisor in the most recent work assignment).

The applicants will be invited for interviews on a rolling basis. The application process might be stopped earlier if a suitable candidate is identified before the application deadline.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for the interview. No phone calls or inquiries are allowed.

People in Need is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behavior at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct and committed to promoting the welfare of children and adults with whom People in Need engages /is in contact with. People in Need expects all staff to perform job duties and responsibilities in accordance with People in Need code of conduct and key policies (available at: https://www.peopleinneed.net/key-policies-4142gp). People in Need Staff will undertake the appropriate level of training.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks.

We are committed to ensuring diversity (people from different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc.) within our organization and encourage interested candidates to apply.

By sending their CV and other documents to the aforementioned link the candidate implicitly consents to their personal data appearing in the CV and such other documents being held and processed by PIN exclusively with the view to analyzing the candidate’s suitability for the position and keeping such data in our files for a reasonable period of time in accordance with the PIN's Data Protection Policy. The candidate can revoke such consent anytime by sending an according notice. Kindly refrain from including any special personal data, whose processing, as per applicable law, requires the express written consent of the subject of such data.