Monitoring & Evaluation Associate

Colombo

Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
Location: Colombo
Grade: Consultancy - SB-3 (SC6/SC7), Service Contract, Local Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Operations and Administrations
- Monitoring and Evaluation
- MONITORING AND EVALUATION
Closing Date: Closed

Background

UNDP in Sri Lanka is reorganizing internally and moving to an integrated collaborative business model. Internally, an energetic and innovative team will converge around the planning, design, implementation and quality assurance of an integrated programme in a fast-paced environment. Fostering strategic partnership and alliances with different stakeholders will require a team which consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude and has a strong client orientation. Strong UN partnerships are valued for Delivering Together in a true spirit of collaboration and teamwork.

Sri Lanka’s recent economic gains, following the end of a debilitating 30-year war and the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, are being threatened due to its increasing vulnerability to climate change, which is characterized by increasing temperatures and unpredictability of rainfall. Over 80% of poor Sri Lankans live in the rural areas and depend on agriculture for food and income. IPCC’s fifth assessment report predicts that South Asia, including Sri Lanka, is vulnerable to drought, flood, food shortages and heat-related mortality. The country has been experiencing severe shifts in its seasonal rainfall patterns accompanied by increased flood and drought in the last decade directly impacting rural food security and incomes, especially in the dry zone.

The impacts of climate related rainfall variability and extreme weather events directly affect incomes and food security of Dry Zone farmers and compounds existing vulnerabilities owing to poverty, low incomes, and recovering from three decades of conflict. Recurrent hydrological disasters have eroded the coping capacity of Dry Zone communities making them even less able to plan for and overcome climate-related variabilities in water availability. Climate-change induced droughts also impact access to reliable drinking water as they reduce the sufficiency of water supply and falling water volumes increase the concentration of pollutants. Floods also affect the water quality of drinking water sources, by directly polluting the sources as well as by destroying village irrigation reservoirs that provide a source for drinking water. Farmers in the Dry Zone are also increasingly exposed to water related chronic illnesses such as kidney disease. High rates of morbidity and mortality among young male farmers are reported in the north central and northern provinces.

In this backdrop, Government of Sri Lanka, with the assistance of UNDP, has secured funding from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for “Strengthening the resilience of smallholder farmers in the Dry Zone to climate variability and extreme events through an integrated approach to water management”. The objective of the project is to strengthen the resilience of smallholder farmers, particularly women, in the Dry Zone through improved water management to enhance lives and livelihoods. The expected key fund level impacts are increased resilience of health and well-being, and food and water security and increased resilience and enhanced livelihoods of the vulnerable smallholder farmers in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka. The primary measurable benefits include approximately 770,500 direct and 1,179,800 indirect beneficiaries, who will gain from improved water management, resilient agriculture practices, and provision of climate and weather information. The objective will be achieved through following three components:

Component 1: Rehabilitating and upgrading of 325 village irrigation systems and scaling-up climate-resilient farming practices in three river basins of the Dry Zone.

Component 2: Implementation of 35 community water supply schemes, 125 water purification and filtration systems, and 4,000 rainwater harvesting units to enhance climate-resilient, decentralized water supply and management solutions to provide year-round access to safe drinking water to vulnerable communities.

Component 3: Establishment of early warning and forecasting systems and climate advisory services to enhance water management and adaptive capacity of smallholder farmers to droughts and floods.

The Project focuses on the small holder farmers living in three climate vulnerable river basins in the Dry Zone, namely: Mi Oya, Yan Oya and Malwathu Oya. This is the first time that an integrated approach to water management is being advanced in the country incorporating climate change concerns, understanding linkages across river basins/sub-river basins, and including multiple uses of water. Therefore, integrated nature of the above components is respected in project implementation.

The project commenced in 2017 and will be implemented over a period of 07 years with a total budget of US $ 52.084 million in - North Western, North Central, Northern and Eastern Provinces, focusing on GN divisions that fall within Mi Oya, Malwathu Oya and Yan Oya river basins. Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment will serve as the implementing partner while the following agencies will act as responsible parties for different components of the Project.

Department of Agrarian Development (DAD)

Department of Agriculture (DoA)

Department of National Community Water Supply (DNCWS)

National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB)

Ministry of Disaster Management (MDM)

The Project implementation modality includes a Project Management Unit established under the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment with a Project Director, Deputy Project Director, Project Accountant and other project staff. UNDP provides technical assistance to implement the Project and delivers the quality assurance function. Under this, the service of a team of technical specialists is provided by UNDP to facilitate the implementation of the Project.

Against this backdrop, UNDP aims to recruit a Monitoring & Evaluation Associate to work under the overall guidance and supervision of the Chief Technical Advisor (DRR/CCA) and in close collaboration with the UNDP CO and Project Management Unit, Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

Support the development and operationalization of effective monitoring and evaluation systems which focus on project results and contributes to programmatic learning and reflection

Support the preparation of high quality donor reports and other communication products with the provision of evidence-based, results and analysis

Support in design and roll out of studies and assessments as and when the need is identified and provide critical guidance and feedback

Support the development and operationalization of effective monitoring and evaluation systems which focus on project results and contributes to programmatic learning and reflection

Support the formulation of M&E plans in line with the broader results framework and objectives of the Climate Resilient Integrated Water Management Project.

Lead the development of results based M&E system for the Project, including data collection formats and data gathering and archiving system

Liaise with the Project team, relevant consultants and partner agencies to compile the project’s baseline report

Support data collection and analysis and maintenance of databases where necessary towards facilitating evidence-based information/knowledge management and timely reporting.

Support in the design, pilot and roll out simplified/innovative tools to support the project monitoring process at the field level.

Support the Project teams to put in place processes for data gathering; provide regular technical support to carry out proper data collection and information management.

Work closely with Project teams and partners to strengthen systems for qualitative data gathering and analysis.

Ensure accuracy and consistency of information collected and carry out regular verification of reported information for accuracy.

Undertake regular visits to the field to support implementation of results-based programme and project monitoring.

Support to ensure that proper field level context, gender, conflict and risk analyses are conducted, as necessary.

Support for reviewing the M&E strengths and weaknesses of implementing partners and devising means for improvement.

Assist the Project team to organize and conduct quarterly and annual progress meetings with partner agencies

Assist in drafting the terms of references and procurement of individual consultants and consultancy services companies to obtain specialist inputs to develop and implement Project’s M&E framework

Support the Project team, UNDP, any other government missions undertaken in the country, and support any ad-hoc checks or ex post evaluations that may be required by the project.

Conduct training needs assessments of partner agencies and project staff and assist in developing and conducting M&E related training programmes for the project staff and partner agencies.

Review quarterly and annual progress reports submitted by the partner agencies and provide recommendations to improve the project implementation

Support the preparation of high quality donor reports and other communication products with the provision of evidence-based, results and analysis

Compile field-based data and analytical information for the preparation of Annual Performance Reports, and project level reporting

Prepare project data/information required for UNDP’s corporate reporting requirements such as Results Oriented Annual Report, Integrated Work Plan updates, etc as required

Develop visual presentations aids of data trends and/or results for incorporation into reports, knowledge and/or outreach products.

Identify the lessons learnt and best practices and assist the Communication Specialist of the Project and UNDP CO Communication’s team to develop case studies and other communication materials to communicate project results to relevant audiences.

Support in design and roll out of studies and assessments as and when the need is identified and provide critical guidance and feedback

Support evaluations (where relevant), including through the use of innovative evaluation methodologies/practices, working in close consultation UNDP M&E Specialist and relevant project managers and UNDP CO staff.

Support in identifying innovative methods to carry out assessments

Support in developing dissemination products based out of studies and assessments conducted

Impact of Results

Effective and efficient Project management is also enabled through the implementation of clear results-based monitoring, evaluation and reporting processes. Knowledge management and outreach processes are integrated in to the Project, contributing to wider organizational and partner learning, also contributing to the better positioning of UNDP as Sri Lanka’s leading development partner.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards
Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of UNDP
Displays cultural, gender, religious, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
Treats all people fairly without favouritism

Functional and Behavioural Competencies:

Strong conceptual and research/analytical skills, coupled with the ability to think strategically and to rapidly analyse and recommend corrective steps to either fill the gaps or dovetail the processes to achieve the set objectives
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
Actively learning and sharing knowledge and encouraging the learning of others. (Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing is the responsibility of each staff member)
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities
Proven networking, organizational and communication skills and be an effective team player
Strong organizational and time management skills
A self-starter with capacity to work under pressure and to meet strict deadlines
Willingness to undertake frequent visits outside of duty station

Technical Competencies:

Ability to use both qualitative and qualitative data/information collection tools in innovative ways
Substantive knowledge of and experience in at least one of the core thematic areas of the Project; i.e. disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, climate resilient agriculture, drinking water supply, water resource management, community development and/or gender empowerment
Ability to work with the community, local civil society organizations and government agencies
Ability to identify monitoring and evaluation related risks and opportunities and provide timely feedback to rectify/fill the gaps
Ability to mainstream gender dimensions into the project implementation.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Experience

Secondary education (G.C.E. Advanced level) with 7 years of experience OR Bachelor’s Degree in statistics, agriculture, social sciences and /or relevant field.
Minimum of 7 years of progressive experience with Secondary Education or minimum of 2 years of of progressively responsible finance and administration experience with Bachelor’s degree is required.

Other Experiences:

Proven experience with the logical framework approach and other strategic planning approaches
Planning and implementation of results-based M&E systems, quantitative and qualitative M&E methods and approaches, usage of M&E tools, information analysis and report writing
Fully proficient computer skills and use of relevant software and other applications, including MS Office, database packages, etc. Experience with web-based data management systems, GIS and SPSS is desirable
Prior working experience in UN or International organizations is an added advantage.
Experience in dealing with a diverse range of partners would be an advantage.
Strong diplomatic skills in handling counterpart relations.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English and Tamil and/or Sinhala with excellent written and oral communication skills is essential

Disclaimer

Important applicant information

All posts in the SC categories are subject to local recruitment.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Workforce diversity

UNDP is committed to achieving diversity within its workforce, and encourages all qualified applicants, irrespective of gender, nationality, disabilities, sexual orientation, culture, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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This vacancy is now closed.
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