Senior Project Officer (MEAL)

Position Title: Senior Project Officer (MEAL)

2025-01-18 Herat Full Time 28

Job Location:	Herat
Nationality:	Afghan
Category:	Program
Employment Type:	Full Time
Salary:	As per CR salary scale
Vacancy Number:	CRS/HRT-DKN/25/10
No. Of Jobs:	1
City:	Herat or Daikundi-Nili

Organization:	CRS
Years of Experience:	• Minimum of 4 years of work experience in project support, ideally in the field of MEAL and for an NGO and INGO would be a plus. • Demonstrated skills in data collection, analysis, visualization, and interpretation. • Additional experience may substitute
Contract Duration:	1 year with possibility of extension
Gender:	Male/Female
Education:	• Bachelor's Degree required. Degree in International Relations, Statistics, Data Sciences, or a similar field would be a plus.
Close date:	2025-01-18

About CRS:

Important Note: This position is contingent upon donor funding.

About CRS:

CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work are accomplished through programs of emergency response, health, agriculture, education and peacebuilding.

Background:

CRS has been working on behalf of Afghan communities since 2002, with hundreds of experienced Afghan staff working in offices across the country. We provide emergency relief, inclusive education, improved agricultural techniques, and other life‐enriching services to tens of thousands of households. The country’s long conflict has left many families displaced and impoverished, but the war’s end in 2021 has opened the exciting possibility of reaching many previously inaccessible communities.

CRS is currently implementing programs in the provinces of Bamiyan, Daykundi, Ghor, Herat, and Kabul, and is exploring additional expansion. CRS maintains five main offices in the country as well as several sub-offices that support the direct implementation of program activities. With over 200 staff, the Country Program is growing to meet new needs throughout the country.

CRS has invested significantly in improved livelihoods in Afghanistan, with a focus on supporting agricultural livelihoods as well as developing and alternative livelihoods. CRS provides livelihoods recovery and development support to vulnerable and shock-affected groups in Afghanistan, integrating disaster risk reduction and climate resilience elements to strengthen the resilience and sustainability of improvements to livelihoods.

Job Descriptions:

As a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Senior Project Officer (SPO) for a livelihoods and disaster risk management project, you will facilitate the achievement of project objectives through coordinating and reporting on all project MEAL activities and providing MEAL-related technical guidance and advice to staff and partner organization, advancing CRS’ work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your coordination and relationship management skills will ensure that the project for which you are responsible applies best practices in MEAL and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

Organize and lead the implementation of all assigned project MEAL activities as outlined in the detailed implementation plan in line with CRS program quality principles and standards; MEAL policies, procedures, and practices; donor MEAL requirements, and industry good practices.
Lead the development, implementation, and adaptation as needed of the project MEAL system, including logical framework, MEAL plan, data collection plans, data collection tools, FCRM SOPs, the project learning plan, and stakeholder communication plan.
Supervise and perform ad hoc inspections of various MEAL processes and resources at project sites to ensure timely project activities implementation and adherence to established process standards and procedures. Ensure proper tracking of resource use for project MEAL activities through participating in periodic budget reviews.
Lead the roll-out and implementation of the project’s feedback, complaint and response mechanism (FCRM), ensuring that communication channels are safe, accessible, and preferred by target communities. Support actively seeking and responding to feedback from all members of targeted communities and other stakeholders as defined by the FCRM, and ensure that all project team members are trained to receive, document, and escalate feedback and complaints. Facilitate period reviews of FCRM data.
Effectively manage the cloud-based databases to ensure the data protection protocols are properly adhered with all project team according to the CRS policies and procures for data management, privacy, and protection.

Ensure timely project documentation for assigned MEAL activities is complete with all required documents and is filed per agency and donor requirements.
Prepare trends analysis reports and documentation of case studies and promising practices as required; and contribute to monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual reflections on project progress towards targets.
Support and coordinate capacity building and technical support activities to ensure assigned project activities are implemented per project guidelines and standards.
Conduct regular qualitative and quantitative data analysis and data quality checks among the team according to the project need and sharing results with project team for learning and adaptive management. Support the Program Manager in the analysis of project progress towards indicators and present results in both narrative and visualized models.

Ensure learning properly accompanies project activities throughout the project cycle. Analyze implementation challenges and report any inconsistencies and/or gaps to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules. Coordinate project review meetings at a minimum on a quarterly basis, as well as after-action reviews or learning-to-action discussions as required. Document learning and ensure that it is shared in accordance with the project’s stakeholder communication plan.

Job Requirements:

Bachelor's Degree required. Degree in International Relations, Statistics, Data Sciences, or a similar field would be a plus.
Minimum of 4 years of work experience in project support, ideally in the field of MEAL and for an NGO and INGO would be a plus.
Demonstrated skills in data collection, analysis, visualization, and interpretation.
Additional experience may substitute for some education.

Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, OneDrive, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams).

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Analysis and problem-solving skills with ability to make sound judgment

Good relationship management skills and the ability to work closely with community leaders and government representatives

Proactive, results-oriented and service-oriented
Attention to details, accuracy and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities.
Excellent communication and presentation skills
Strong sensitivity and respect for local cultures
Strong listening and interpersonal skills

Preferred Qualifications

Experience working with CommCare and/or Power BI, and strong Microsoft Excel proficiency.
Staff supervision experience a plus.

MEAL Competencies (for CRS MEAL Program Staff)

Each staff member in this position is expected to have solid knowledge and ability and can apply the following competencies with minimal or no guidance, in the full range of typical situations, while requiring guidance to handle novel or more complex situations:

Monitoring
Accountability
Learning

In addition, each staff member in this position is expected to have basic knowledge and ability and, with guidance, be able to apply the following competencies in common situations that present limited difficulties:

MEAL in Design
Evaluation
Analysis and Critical Thinking
ICT4MEAL
Management in MEAL

Supervisory Responsibilities: MEAL Field Officers

Key Working Relationships:

Internal: Program Manager, Senior Project Officers, MEAL Coordinator, Regional Technical Advisors for MEAL and ICT4D.
External: Project participants, partner organizations.

Required Languages – Fluency in Dari and working proficiency in English required.

Travel – The position may be based in Daikundi or Herat with anticipated 40% travel to target communities and CRS offices in Herat and Daikundi. The position may also require occasional travel to other CRS offices in Afghanistan for workshops and trainings.

CRS is committed to providing daily allowances for mahram who accompany female staff on day trips to the field, and per diem and accommodation for mahram who accompany female staff on work-related trips that require overnight stays.

Agency REDI Competencies (for all CRS Staff):

Agency competencies clarify expected behaviors and attitudes for all staff. When demonstrated, they create an engaging workplace, help staff achieve their best, and help CRS achieve agency goals. These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

Personal Accountability – Consistently takes responsibility for one’s own actions.
Acts with Integrity - Consistently models values aligned with CRS Guiding Principles and mission.
Builds and Maintains Trust - Shows consistency between words and actions.
Collaborates with Others – Works effectively in intercultural and diverse teams.
Open to Learn – Seeks out experiences that may change perspective or provide an opportunity to learn new things.

Agency Leadership Competencies:

Lead Change – Continually looks for ways to improve the agency through a culture of agility, openness, and innovation.
Develops and Recognizes Others – Builds the capacity of staff to reach their full potential and enhance team and agency performance.
Strategic Mindset – Understands role in translating, communicating, and implementing agency strategy and team priorities.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Protection Acknowledgment: CRS prohibits all forms of abuse and exploitation towards children and vulnerable adults. As a professional candidate, you commit to adhering to the Agency’s policy on protection, rights and dignity of children and vulnerable adults and to safeguard them from abuse and exploitation as defined in CRS’ Safeguarding Policy

Submission Guidelines:

Applications comprise a one-page cover letter to explain your interest and suitability for the post and your CV. Please do not attach your education documents and work certificates unless requested.

Dear Applicants!

The process of submitting a CV/Application has been changed to the online system. Therefore, interested candidates are encouraged to apply using the link provided below. Applications sent to any other email address or location will not be considered. Please ensure to rename your application file according to your name entered on the first page of the application forms.

Interested candidates can submit their applications by clicking on this link.

Please note that applications received after the closing date (i.e., January 18^th, 2025), will not be given consideration. Only short-listed candidates whose applications respond to the above criteria will be contacted for tests and interviews.