Senior MEL Advisor, LHSS Nigeria at Abt Associates

Job Description

Opportunity

The Local Health System Sustainability (LHSS) Project is a 5-year, $209 million global task order that works to strengthen health systems as a means to achieve universal health coverage and improve population health and well-being. Interventions will focus on reducing financial barriers, holding health services accountable for meeting all clients’ needs and making sure that the care patients receive meets minimum standards. LHSS’s Nigeria activity will support the Government of Nigeria at the Federal level and in three states (Nasarawa, Plateau and Zamfara) to expand sustainable pro-poor health financing options to reduce health inequalities, improve access to essential health services for the most vulnerable populations, and increase government expenditure on health services for greater sustainability of health service delivery. The project will also support HIV/AIDS and TB financing in Lagos State. The activity has five objectives to accomplish in collaboration with Nigerian counterparts:

1. Increase financial risk protection
2. Improve population health coverage
3. Increase number of fully functional facilities
4. Increase utilization of state health insurance schemes for HIV/AIDS and TB services
5. Increase government funding for HIV/AIDs and TB services

Key Roles and Responsibilities

The Senior MEL Advisor will have the following duties and responsibilities:

• Lead the design, development, and implementation of the project MEL plan, indicators, and learning agenda, including developing relevant indicators for the LHSS Nigeria team and measurable milestones within the team’s sustainability plan. Update the MEL plan as needed throughout the project’s implementation.
• Develop and establish monitoring and evaluation tasks, tools, and reporting processes, support assessments and all data collection and data management-related activities, oversee the progress of the learning agenda, and ensure data quality assurance. 
• Work with MEL stakeholders in Nigeria and the LHSS Home Office MEL team to create LHSS’s results framework for Nigeria that establishes a causal pathway from activities and outputs to intermediate results, and ultimately to the program’s desired outcomes and impact.
• Manage a rigorous approach to MEL to measure performance toward specific goals and objectives, including quantitative, qualitative, and participatory methodologies.
• Design data collection tools, schedules, and analysis methods in line with global project’s work plan management and monitoring system.
• Ensure data accuracy for reporting indicators across the LHSS Nigeria Activity, and timely reporting on indicators against expected project results.
• Lead efforts to strengthening a culture of learning at project-level and with local stakeholders, including during trainings and other facilitated stakeholder engagements. 
• Coordinate quarterly strategy reviews as well as drafting core components of program progress reports to USAID.
• Drive the project’s overall learning agenda to derive lessons learned and best practices from project activities and contribute to quarterly program reporting.
• Support the interpretation of MEL findings for project planning, decision-making, course-correction, and communication of implementation successes and challenges.
• Collaborate with the LHSS Home Office MEL team to ensure alignment with project-wide MEL processes and reporting requirements.
• Provide technical guidance, training, and mentorship to LHSS Nigeria project staff on MEL.
• Ensure timely and accurate reporting on MEL indicators, and successful implementation of MEL systems at all levels of the project.

Within the LHSS project, the Senior MEL Advisor will report to the Chief of Party and will be supported by LHSS home office-based technical expertise.

Preferred Qualifications 

• Advanced degree in statistics, social science, development economics or a related field and experience in data management and analysis for M&E, learning, and adaptive management.
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing MEL systems on complex donor-funded development projects. Experience implementing MEL activities on health system strengthening projects is desirable. USAID program experience is desirable.
• Demonstrated expertise in both quantitative and qualitative research methods, and experience conducting statistical analysis.
• Experience leading and managing research projects that adhere to rigorous methodological and ethical standards.
• Skills in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis, synthesis and data visualization (knowledge and proficiency in any visualization software is a plus), and establishing adaptable and nimble MEL systems. Demonstrated ability to lead baseline data collection and analyses
• Knowledge of and experience with M&E frameworks, and reporting systems.
• Expertise in adaptive management, organizational learning/development, systems mapping, development of Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA)-related tools, CLA thought-leadership, and providing inputs on how CLA may lead to improved development outcomes
• Proficiency in Excel, Word, and other MS Office software; data analysis software such as SPSS, R, or Stata.
• Demonstrated leadership skills and ability to work collaboratively and independently. Strong communications, interpersonal, and presentation skills required. Ability to communicate program data and results to a variety of stakeholders, including program management staff, donors, and researchers. 
• Proficient English writing/speaking skills required.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree + Twelve years of relevant experience, or Master’s Degree + Ten years of relevant experience, or PhD+ Eight years of relevant experience

Abt Associates is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse workforce. Abt Associates provides market-competitive salaries and comprehensive employee benefits. Local candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

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