I. Job Title. MEL Specialist

II. Project Name and Scope. The USAID Pakistan Investment Promotion Activity, Contract Number 72039122C00001.  IPA is funded by USAID to support investment in Pakistan to promote a more stable, peaceful, and prosperous Pakistan by increasing private sector-led, inclusive economic growth to improve the business enabling environment. The Activity has four principal objectives. These include addressing the business enabling regulatory environment for investment promotion, reforming institutional policies including the ease of compliance and doing business in the country and increasing transparency. IPA’s objectives also include improving U.S.-Pakistan bilateral trade and investment relations and mobilizing foreign direct investment into the country. We will use a problem-driven iterative adaptation (PDIA) implementation approach to achieve these objectives by focusing on problem identification with selected institutions and firms to identify root causes, adapt using local solutions, apply iterative learning, and build capacity to solve problems. Implementation will be data-driven and identify partner institutional, reform, and capacity needs; monitor behavior change using institution, FDI, and trade metrics; and gather feedback from investors and business groups for adapting efforts through USAID’s collaborating, learning, and adapting approach.

III. Position Classification. Long-Term Local Professional Staff.

IV. Estimated Duration of Assignment and Location. Long-term. Duration of IPA contract, this position will be based in Islamabad, Pakistan.

V. Reporting Responsibilities.  Ultimate day to day field supervision and authority for all project personnel and all aspects of project activities rests with the Chief of Party or his designee, and in the Chemonics headquarters, with the project management unit (PMU) Director. The individual holding this position shall take no managerial or technical direction from any individual who is not formally employed in the chain of command between the individual and the Chief of Party, the Chief of Party’s designee, or the PMU Director.

For all routine responsibilities and duties, either directly or indirectly related to this position description, the individual holding this position shall report directly to, and be supervised by, the Chief of Party or his/her designee.

This position directly oversees day-to-day responsibilities of the MEL Assistant (support staff).

VI. Position Objective and Specific Tasks.

As directed by the Chief of Party or his designee, the MEL Specialist shall perform the following functions: 

• Update AMEL Plan for USAID’s approval. AMEL Plan should include the following at minimum:

• Logic Model that is aligned with the approved USAID/Pakistan CDCS with a clear indication of the project’s contribution to relevant Development Objectives and use of relevant CDCS indicators.
• Theory of change with critical assumptions;
• Performance indicators at various levels (from output to outcome, impact, and context) including baseline values and targets to show progress over time;
• Performance indicator tracking table that includes baseline, targets, baseline time frame, data sources, etc.
• Performance Indicator Reference Sheets for each indicator that include detailed description of performance indicators to be tracked, source, method and schedule of data collection, known data limitations, and planned actions to address the limitations;
• Evaluations, special studies, assessments and surveys that will be conducted as part of monitoring and evaluation of the project;
• A learning plan that identifies opportunities to generate new knowledge and evidence around identified and unplanned questions, to share findings with identified multi-level stakeholders to foster collaborative learning and partnership, and to course correct and respond to unintended effects and changing/emerging realities and priorities;
• Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning task schedule that includes routine tasks such as data collection, evaluations, assessments and reporting of results including roles and responsibilities;
• Use a CLA framework to adjust interventions or strategies, experiment with new ways of working, discontinue activities that are not working and scale activities that show promising results.
• Review the project contract, to understand MEL requirements, and produce reports per the stipulated schedule, including but not limited to updates to the MEL Plan, Life of Project (LOP) Activity including the LOP Logical Framework Analysis (LFA), and provide MEL related inputs in the Annual Work Plan, Annual and Quarterly reports, and other technical documents to be developed by the project team.
• Ensure the indicators requiring baseline figures have clearly established the source and collection methods for the LFA, and that and they are accurate and viable.
• Oversee baseline data collection using analysis and evaluation using project MEL staff or subcontracting to a local market research firm to collect baseline information through methods such as targeted surveys, focus groups, and observational analysis in collaboration with key IPA stakeholders.
• Supervise collection of data through project, partner, and government records, surveys, document reviews, and interviews on a quarterly basis.
• Conduct data quality audits every fiscal year to ensure data meets quality criteria of validity, reliability, timeliness, precision, and integrity.
• Semi-annually meet with the technical team leads to review the AMELP and ensure that the indicators still accurately measure progress. And engage technical staff monthly to continually engage them in AMEP data management and learning.
• Using CLA approach, design MEL processes and tools to enable project staff, USAID, government counterparts, and other stakeholders to continuously evaluate and adapt to changing contextual factors, use evidence-based decision-making to inform the strategic allocation of project resources, improve progress toward outcomes, and focus resources on activities that demonstrate impact.
• Facilitate collaborative, constructive dialogue to improve discourse and elicit suggestions for improvement, apply knowledge to improve implementation, share data and analyses with stakeholders to support managerial needs, and systematically share successes with the broader development community.
• Work with the project’s technical staff to strengthen counterpart MEL skills by helping them learn about and apply data collection tools, and methods, and participate in data analysis and application, to ensure counterparts’ contribution to the project’s M&E system and acquire useful M&E skills.
• Provide standard data collection tools/forms to technical staff, stakeholders, and train them on how to use these collection forms, and ensure they know how and when to submit them.
• Orient and train project staff, subcontractors, and grantees on the MEL framework, including objectives and indicators, on their responsibilities for the complete, accurate and timely collection and reporting of data and information.
  • Ensure that the technical staff and stakeholders know the specific interventions on which data will be collected and at what frequency.
  • Manage the IPA project’s Activity Monitoring Evaluation and Learning Plan, (AMELP), utilizing clearly defined objectives, activities, indicators, and results for each module in the implementation period, as and when required.
  • Guide and prepare the IPA team to comply with all current and future USAID reporting obligations.
  • Build the capacity of MEL team to address existing and emerging challenges and build the capacity of component teams in M&E reporting requirements and procedures.
  • Develop and deliver training sessions regarding MEL approaches/best practices to encourage knowledge-sharing and build capacity in MEL-related tasks across the project. 
  • Ensure effective implementation of the MEL system in a way that forecasts expected results for programs at the planning stage, reports against expected results as program activities are implemented, and then validates reported results in a well-documented and defensible manner (consistent with USAID regulations and industry best practices.) 
  • Review the contents of all program design documents, assign existing or new project performance indicators to these documents, and integrate the same with AMELP and LFA and Annual Work Plan accordingly
  • Manage the business user-end change control process for the MEL database system.
  • Build the capacity of IPA technical component teams in MEL reporting requirements and procedures, including collection and documentation of data for results (output and outcome).
  • Ensure that IPA’s gender-related objectives and indicators are properly integrated into the project’s MEL system. Beyond having specific measurements and indicators focused on women, the MEL system should disaggregate other indicators by sex whenever possible. Review the sex-disaggregated data quarterly to discuss with the technical teams the performance of their strategies for gender integration. 
  • Review and revise reporting requirements as and when required.
  • Develop systems to monitor the provision of project inputs grants and training activities and the beneficiaries receiving these products and services.
    • Perform other duties as required or assigned by the Chief of Party or the PMU which are consistent with the qualifications, scope of work, and general requirements of IPA.
    • Conduct all business in a manner that respects local culture
    •  Always maintain high ethical standards, avoiding any actual or perceived conflicts of interest
    • Abide by all local laws, USAID regulations, and US Embassy/USAID project directive

VII. Policy and Procedures.  With respect to all policies and procedures related to this position, written guidance in the form of the Project’s Field Personnel and Operations Policy Manual will be issued and updated from time to time that will clarify, modify, and/or establish Project policies and procedures that govern either directly or indirectly the duties and responsibilities of this position.  It is incumbent upon all Project employees to stay apprised of all policies and procedures in the Project’s Field Personnel and Operations Policy Manual, as updated. In addition, should at any time the individual holding this position shall be unclear as to the meaning of any policy and/or procedure presented in these files, or any verbal instructions given by the employee’s supervisor, the employee has the right to request written clarification from the Chief of Party or his/her designee.  By signing below, the individual holding this position confirms that the individual has read and understands the Project’s Field Personnel and Operations Policy Manual, as updated.

VIII. Educational Requirements and Qualifications.  The individual holding this position shall possess the following:

A. Qualifications.

• Master’s degree in business administration, economics, development studies or a related field preferred.
• Minimum of 4 years of MEL design experience on a donor-funded program.
• Ability to conduct technical analysis, and data visualizations.
• Ability to determine key indicators to measure project impact and to develop measurement systems for them
• Familiarity with qualitative and quantitative M&E data collection, verification and validation and analysis methods, including tracking outcome indicators and conducting program evaluations
• Well versed with handling database management systems
• A willingness to conduct field visits when necessary
• Strong commitment to Chemonics values including integrity
• Ability to foster and demonstrate a workplace inclusive of creating opportunity, serving others, building trust, innovation, and exceeding expectations
• Excellent communications and writing ability in English
• Advanced English and Fluent Urdu required