Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist

Myanmar

Myanmar is one of UNOPS’ leading offices in Asia, acting as fund manager for some of the largest development programmes in the country. In addition, UNOPS is Principal Recipient for the Global Fund in Myanmar and for the Global Fund’s regional artemisinin-resistance initiative targeting drug-resistant malaria in the greater Mekong sub-region. UNOPS also provides procurement, infrastructure and project management services to a wide range of organizations in the country, including international development partners, other UN agencies, NGOs and INGOs. UNOPS plays a critical role in ensuring that the quality of services provided to its partners meets stringent requirements of speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.

Project Information

The World Bank (WB) has established the Community Resilience Project with a project duration of 3.5 years, starting in the latter half of 2025. The project aims to help targeted communities in 5-6 states to cope with and recover from the various on-going crises in the country, and to prepare for and strengthen their ability to withstand future shocks. The project will strengthen the capacity of vulnerable communities to address short- to medium-term development priorities through training, facilitation support, community-based infrastructure, and livelihoods assistance provided through block grants.

The project will be managed by UNOPS and delivered through a network of experienced Implementing Partners (IPs), through two components. The first component will finance the repair or renovation of small-scale, climate-resilient social and economic infrastructure (roads or irrigation canals, water and sanitation structures, schools or health clinics) and basic livelihoods support (seeds and tools for agriculture production, community revolving funds, and basic training). All needs will be identified through a participatory process. It also includes emergency top-up grants to the targeted townships in the event of a natural disaster or crisis. The second component will support capacity strengthening of the communities, which includes training and assistance in participatory problem analysis and planning, household and community vulnerability mapping (including climate change and disaster risks), simple financial management and procurement procedures, application of simplified environmental and social risk standards, inclusion of women and marginalized groups, and technical training and guidance.

Job Specific

Key Functions:

1. MEAL Design and Planning

2. Partnerships Building and Partner Support

3. Capacity Strengthening and Knowledge Management

4. Monitoring and Reporting

5. Risk Mitigation

MEAL design and planning: 

• Work closely with the Senior Programme Manager and M&E Retainer to develop the MEAL Framework and Work Plan. 

• Provide and coordinate technical support to projects on the development of their project MEAL frameworks and associated tools to ensure that partners meet the Project M&E requirements, including developing and updating the results framework and MEAL plan, including KPI´s for existing and new projects. 

• Coordinate periodic reviews of M&E tools, guidelines, and processes - consolidating recommendations for necessary updates for review by Senior Programme Manager and M&E Retainer and undertaking follow-up actions, as required. 

• Lead project planning processes related to MEAL work plan and budget. 

• Establish and/or maintain a reliable MEAL framework according to the donors’ requirements and UNOPS policies and principles to ensure quality and compliance. 

• Monitor operations and ensure quality deliverables. 

Partnerships Building and Partner Support: 

• Become familiar with the project teams’ objectives, challenges, and methods to understand and provide relevant information and advice. 

• Create dynamics to regularly meet and participate in relevant discussions within the teams to constantly learn about their performance and needs.  

• Coordinate closely with the team leads to ensure constant communication and fluent interaction between both parties. 

• Liaise with HQ when necessary for benchmarking, networking, and/or capacity-building purposes. 

• Become a trusted advisor for the project team and UNOPS. 

• Conduct comprehensive and ongoing assessments of partner’s MEAL systems and identify areas for capacity development to improve the overall quality of data reported to the project. 

• Participate in project field visits to review implementing partner MEAL systems and conduct data quality reviews. 

Capacity Strengthening and Knowledge Management 

• Guide  relevant project personnel on the utilization of the project framework implementation tools to ensure consistency in their application across the Project.

• Support project staff with training and mentoring on routine monitoring procedures and monitoring techniques. 

• Provide coaching, mentoring, and on-the-job training to the project team to improve their skills and constantly raise the bar. 

• Organize annual re-skilling and up-skilling sessions with the project team.

• Support in developing KM mechanisms and processes for the project. 

• Establish practices to incorporate project studies’ findings, lessons learned, achievements, and gaps, to ensure knowledge management. 

• Facilitate process review and lessons learned exercises, including data collected to assess improvement opportunities and act upon them. 

• Conduct relevant M&E training and related capacity development activities to ensure implementing partner MEAL systems are fully operational and in compliance with the Project's MEAL standards. 

Monitoring and Reporting 

• Oversee implementation of day-to-day M&E activities and raising issues affecting implementation and proposing subsequent actions to the Senior Programme Manager in a timely manner. 

• Oversee the collection and timely reporting of data and statistics. 

• Lead the regular reporting process for the Programme and work closely with the Project teams to ensure alignment and quality/reliable data. 

• Consolidate and draft inputs for regular reporting exercises. 

• Create an effective, efficient, and reliable framework for data reporting. 

• Establish reporting parameters with the Senior Programme Manager and M&E Retainer, to ensure timely compliance of reports requirements and deliverables. 

Risk Mitigation 

• Identify and mitigate risks related to the Programme´s performance and proactively communicate them. 

• Identify risks affecting the implementation of Programme M&E activities, raising these risks and proposing subsequent actions to the Senior Programme Manager and M&E Retainer in a timely manner; 

• Ensure putting in place the right mechanisms to identify and act on risk management, considering the Programme's processes and UNOPS policies and principles. 

• Create a risk management culture within the Project MEAL team, to enhance proactivity and safeguard the Programme's interests.

Education:

• A Master’s degree preferably in social sciences, statistics, international development, public administration, sociology, or similar is required. 
• A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s) in the above fields with an additional 2 years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of a Master’s degree.

Experience: 

• Minimum 5 years of experience in monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) at the programme level, preferably in rural or community development, livelihoods, climate, or related fields, is required. 
• Minimum 2 years experience in designing, implementing, and overseeing monitoring and evaluation system is required. 
• Experience with quantitative and qualitative M&E methodologies is required. 
• Experience in coordinating or managing diverse stakeholders is required. 
• Experience in leading or coordinating teams is required. 
• Previous experience designing and implementing gender-sensitive or disability-inclusive M&E would be a distinct advantage. 
• Demonstrated experience in mainstreaming MEAL practices within large-scale development projects is highly desirable. 
• Experience working with the UN or international organizations is highly desirable.
• Experience with database management would be an advantage.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English and Myanmar is required.
• Knowledge of an additional UN language is desirable.
• Knowledge of other languages spoken in Myanmar would be an advantage.

Contract type: LICA Individual Contractor Agreement (LICA)
Contract level: LICA Specialist-10
Contract duration: Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance. 

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• This position is based in Yangon, Myanmar which is a non-family duty station.

Terms and Conditions 

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 

• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses ( they take around 4 hours to complete)  in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.