Child Safeguarding:
The Research, Evaluation, Accountability, Learning and Monitoring (REALM) Manager will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work in country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.
ROLE PURPOSE:
The REALM Manager will ensure that the Multi-Year Resilience Programme has a well-established, robust REALM system. His/her leadership will ensure that quality and accountability standards and learning are integrated into programme design.
By promoting participation and contextual data analysis, the REALM Manager will support the project teams to strategically adapt activities/strategies to ensure efficacy and efficiency of programming, and maximise the positive impact of the MYRP Project.
Building on the Phase 1 Lessons Learnt and previous experience, and promoting the capacities of the Education Team, the REALM Manager will ensure that results based planning is integrated into programming. S/he will seek opportunities to ensure impact measurement, documentation and dissemination of lessons learnt.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Multi-Year Resilience Programme (MYRP) Chief of Party
Staff directly reporting to this post:
Indirect: REALM Coordinator, MYRP Consortium REALM Focal Points from the ECW Consortium Grantees, Technical and Implementing Partners.
Budget Responsibilities:
No budget holder roles, but the REALM Manager will be required to provide oversight on the Research, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning budget within the National Consortium Unit (NCU). This will be in close collaboration with the Chief of Party to ensure resources needed to sufficiently fund quality data and communications are accurately reflected in budget planning.
Role Dimensions:
Save the Children International (SCI) South Sudan through the Multi-Year Resilience Programme is in its second phase of implementation and will be covering 6 States and 2 Administrative Areas of South Sudan i.e. Eastern Equatoria, Jonglei, Lakes, Unity, Upper Nile and Warrap States in addition to Abyei and Pibor Administrative Areas.
Competencies:
Working effectively with others, problem solving and decision making, applying technical and professional expertise, networking, innovating and adapting to new ways of working.
Key working contacts:
The Role will work closely with the Technical Team within the NCU and Programme Development and Quality, closely coordinate with the consortium managers from the grantee agents (Norwegian Refugee Council and Finn Church Aid) and the Implementation Team of the MYRP/GPE project.
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY
Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting:
- Refine and update the project’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) framework and develop and regularly update detailed REALM plan covering the project under the National Consortium Unit.
- Ensure that quantitative and qualitative monitoring tools are systematically developed and implemented by the teams, in cooperation with the National Consortium Unit.
- Coordinate the programme evaluations for the project by collaborating closely with the External Evaluators, including an extensive review of all associated documentations, from tool design to all drafted reports.
- Ensure that programming data and feedback are valid, verifiable, timely and compliant with donor guidelines and is regularly used to inform programming decisions in order to support reporting.
- Conduct quantitative and qualitative data analysis as part of the project’s monitoring routine, and produce regular monitoring reports to present and disseminate information to inform programme management.
- Contribute to the quarterly and annual donor reporting requirements, ensuring accuracy and quality of reporting data.
- Ensure that all assessment/evaluation reports meet the donor’s quality criteria, and promote the integration of recommendations and lessons learnt in project planning and future programming.
- Work with the Country Office REALM team to facilitate standardisation of project monitoring tools, dissemination of lessons learnt and maximise opportunities for capacity building.
- Establish and design, using input from technical education project staff, the mobile based monitoring tools and ensure they are functioning within the electronic online data collection platform.
- Contribute to child-focused programme implementation, by promoting child-friendly REALM methodologies and children’s participation in monitoring.
- Identify monitoring and evaluation gaps and quality gaps, and actively address their causes through training, field visits, and proposal of solutions to address the gaps.
- As the Focal Point for the Results Framework reporting, ensure that the Results Framework is updated timely as part of MYRP Reporting requirements. Coordinate the reporting from the Implementing, Technical Partners and the Grantee Agents.
- Support the MYRP Chief of Party during the MYRP reporting period through the compilation of the Results Framework harmonized with the Narrative and Financial Report.
Accountability and Participation:
- Assess, design and monitor methods to ensure participation at all stages of the Multi-Year Resilience Project cycle; with a specific focus on promoting the participation of children.
- Ensure that participation activities are planned and well documented and learning is shared within the wider Save the Children South Sudan programme, Consortium Partners and Save the Children Members.
- Ensure that MYRP project activities (including partners) have functioning feedback and response mechanisms and include systems to effectively manage complaints, ensuring timely and appropriate feedback.
- Regularly review REALM practice and assess how beneficiaries can best be involved at every stage of the programme cycle.
- Support the regular review of activities ensuring a Value for Money analysis of activities and documentation of findings.
Research and Evidence Building
- Guide and take leadership role on research and evidence building for the Multi-Year Resilience Programme (covering both Education Cannot Wait and Global Partnership for Education projects).
- In liaison with the Head of Research, Evaluation, Accountability, Learning and Monitoring (REALM), contribute to the country office Thematic Learning Agenda, through project evaluation/research design.
- Ensure evidence generated through programming and research has advocacy & external engagement applications for the project and the Country Office.
- Support the National Consortium Unit develop reports and publications for advocacy that utilizes new evidence.
- Gather and increase use of evidence (documents, studies, etc.) to advocate for replication and scale up of programs proven to be impactful for children, and lessons learned for programs.
- Oversee priority research initiatives, working with SC teams and researchers to ensure that evidence generation and evaluations are of high quality and produce valid, reliable, and relevant outcomes towards learning objectives.
- Collaborate with donors on request for research and studies on Aid Effectiveness.
Learning and Advocacy
- Ensure that REALM methodologies and findings support advocacy and campaign interventions within the Education Sector.
- Promote learning throughout the organisation and MYRP partners, particularly on issues of programme quality, policy analysis and advocacy.
- Bring together data and findings from across the project to form a coherent basis for analysis of impact which promotes learning and strategy development for the whole organisation.
- Coordinate with program staff to create a feedback loop so lessons learned are incorporated into program implementation and development.
- Ensure that findings and lessons learned from project implementation and accountability are shared with children, partners, and other stakeholders in a meaningful and appropriate way.
- Work with technical and field teams to identify key methodologies to enable advocacy and campaigning impact measurement.
Capacity building
- Map learning and training opportunities for project and partner staff and, in consultation with National Consortium Partner Technical Leads, develop a REALM training plan for key programme and partner staff.
- Provide on-the-job supervision to REALM field teams, overseeing all REALM related activities.
- Ensure that local stakeholders and local partners are provided and included in REALM training opportunities when appropriate and ensure they are well coordinated with wider SCI REALM team.
- Seek opportunities for information sharing and learning exchanges with local actors/INGOs to promote learning and coordination at national and sub-national level.
General
- Comply with Save the Children policies and practice with respect to child protection, code of conduct, health and safety, equal opportunities and other relevant policies and procedures.
- Undertake any other reasonable duty as may be assigned by line manager.
In case of emergency
- Promote children rights, contributing for children wellness and protection during emergencies, guided by the humanitarian principles and the Save the Children code of conduct
- Be prepared to support Save the Children interventions in response to emergencies within the roles deployed.
Child Safeguarding
- Support the process of ensuring that child safeguarding mainstreaming are integrated into all REALM frameworks through measurable output and outcome indicators; and support the process of piloting and scaling up local level beneficiary complaints’ mechanisms in relation to staff conduct, with an emphasis on the Child Safeguarding Policy and measure to prevent sexual exploitation of women and children.
SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)
Accountability:
- Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values.
- Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
Ambition:
- Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same.
- Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others.
- Future orientated, thinks strategically.
Collaboration:
- Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, members and external partners and supporters.
- Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength.
- Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.
Creativity:
- Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions.
- Willing to take disciplined risks.
Integrity:
- Honest, encourages openness and transparency.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Degree in Statistics, M&E, Social Sciences, Development programming or relevant equivalent, with at least significant coursework in quantitative or qualitative research methods.
EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS
Essential (all mandatory):
- Significant experience of undertaking a similar REALM related role for education programming.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to interact well with people of all backgrounds, excellent relationship building skills.
- Demonstrated strong monitoring and evaluation skills, including planning and participating in evaluations.
- Experience of working in all aspects of planning, monitoring and evaluation, including: system design, programmatic quality audits, systematic tracking and analysis, evaluations, surveys, assessment systems, capacity building and training
- Thorough knowledge of results based monitoring frameworks, including previous experience implementing longitudinal studies/cohort monitoring.
- Experience of integrating quality standards in programmes and of implementing accountability initiatives, such as child participation, information sharing and complaints response mechanisms.
- Experience of, and commitment to working through systems of community participation and accountability.
- A good understanding of and experience in addressing gender related challenges in education.
- Proven capacity to supervise, train and coach staff.
- Ability to work both in an advisory and a hands-on implementation capacity.
- Previous experience working with external consultant(s).
- Ability to write clear and well-argued assessment and project reports including data analysis and triangulation.
- The capacity and willingness to be extremely flexible and accommodating in difficult and sometimes insecure working circumstances.
- Excellent interpersonal communication and leadership skills.
- Commitment to the aims and principles of SC. In particular, a good understanding of the SC mandate and child focus and an ability to ensure this continues to underpin and support our work.
- Fluency in written and spoken English.
Desirable
- Previous experience working in South Sudan or a similar context.
- Specific experience of designing and implementing projects funded by ECW and/or GPE.
- Significant experience of REALM approaches.
- Significant experience research and quantitative/qualitative study designs.
Additional job responsibilities
The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties in line with the programme by the supervisor.
Equal Opportunities
The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.
Child Safeguarding:
Behave towards children in a way which reflects the Code of Conduct and Safeguarding Policy.
Health and Safety
The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.