Research & Evaluation Specialist

The key purpose of the job is to provide technical and managerial leadership to social policy section’s research and evaluation portfolio and work closely with in house and external stakeholders i.e., academia, Government Depts. Think thanks on strategic evidence generation and research issues. The said post will also support CO accountability on IMEP and PRIME with timely implementation and management updates. The post shall work with Depts. At national and federal level to enhance institutional capacities, existing practices to strengthen research usability culture.

 Plan for Research and Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation (PRIME):

• Ensure that the Country Office and national partners use a well-prioritized and realistic plan of research, monitoring and evaluation activities that will provide the most relevant and strategic information to manage the Country Programme toward achieving expected results and towards coping with potential and actual emergencies.
• Prepare PRIME and regularly track progress and report to senior management. Enhance the culture of evidence generation and use and make professional contributions to and provide technical assistance for the planning and establishing of major research, monitoring and evaluation objectives, priorities, and activities in UNICEF’s multi-year and annual PRIME exercises in consultation with all programmes and relevant partners. Ensure that the Plan is clear, practical and approved by the CMT and is managed properly taking into account any modifications that are necessary due to changes in the programme plans.
• Likewise, support the development of UNDAF M&E Plans that UNICEF is engaged in, from a sound results-based programming process.

Identify the MER objectives, priorities, and activities required for effective CO and partner Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans. In humanitarian response situations, adjust the prevailing PRIME plan in accordance with MER guidance for emergency situations. Likewise, adjust the PRIME in accordance with the transition through the stages of transition and recovery.

Identify gaps in knowledge and work with sector specialists to ensure these are addressed in planned evidence activities. Facilitate cross-sectoral collaboration in research and data collection activities.

Provide technical support to ensure that a set of programme performance indicators is identified and adjusted as necessary in the context of the multi-year and annual PRIMEs and associated office-wide management plans and work plans.

2. Evaluation Function

Ensure that UNICEF-supported evaluations are designed and implemented to established UN quality standards, and the results are disseminated in a timely fashion to stakeholders in order to improve programme performance and contribute to wider learning:

• Guide the office and partners to identify priority evaluation topics in accordance with the coverage guidelines of the UNICEF Evaluation Policy, and in accordance with the commitments contained in UNICEF’s Strategic Plan and in the agreed country programme.
• Support development of national policy or policies (e.g., by sector) on evaluation by public, civil, and private partners. Support country-led evaluations of policies and programmes and the consideration of the results by partners. These country-led exercises may examine aspects of the UNICEF-government programme of cooperation, or may look at entirely national efforts.
• For UNICEF-supported evaluations, guide UNICEF programme specialists and programme partners to formulate Terms of Reference and evaluation designs of high quality. Manage the recruitment of appropriate and highly qualified consultants. Work closely with external evaluation consultants/teams to enable them to deliver results according to the agreed Terms of Reference. Take timely action and/or alert stakeholders to quality concerns, and suggest actions to remedy any problems.
• Review draft and final evaluation reports, and gather inputs from stakeholders in order to deliver feedback to the evaluators. Develop and implement a multi-method communication plan to disseminate the evaluation report to intended audiences via user-friendly methods. Support stakeholders to prepare a formal management response that reflects their reaction/views on the evaluation recommendations.
• Upload completed evaluations into the global Evaluation and Research Database to allow sharing and final quality review. Monitor and report on the implementation of agreed management response actions, including entering information in the designated corporate data base(s).

Research Management:

• Ensure that the Country Office has a high-quality research function and the research and studies are designed and implemented according to established UNICEF policies and procedures, and the results are disseminated in a timely fashion to stakeholders in order to improve programme performance and contribute to wider learning.
• Establish and facilitate research quality assure processes at the CO level in accordance with the UNICEF Policy on Research. Ensure that the Standard Operating Procedures outline the quality assurance process for research and that checklists, guidance and other tools are available to research project managers from all sectors.
• Convene the CO internal Research Steering Committee.
• Technically support UNICEF programme specialists and programme partners to formulate Terms of Reference for high quality research projects.
• Review the Terms of Reference for upcoming research projects and drafts of research reports.
• Assist with the peer review process of major research projects and coordinate feedback to Supervisor/CMT/stakeholders to ensure quality and compliance with the UNICEF Policy on Research and country office research priorities.
• Assist with the recruitment and selection of appropriately qualified research consultants, ensuring that the selection process is in compliance with UNICEF standards for performance, accountability, transparency and ethics.
• Assist research project managers from all sectors with the development of a multi-method communication plan to disseminate research findings to intended audiences via user-friendly methods.
• As part of Country Office Reporting, upload completed research reports to the global Evaluation and Research Database to allow global sharing and final quality review.
• Ensure all research follows the ethical principles and standards outlined in the UNICEF Procedure for Ethical Standards in Research, Evaluation and data Collection and Analysis.

Evaluation & Research Capacity Strengthening:

• Ensure that the evaluation and research capacities of the Country Office staff and national partners – including government and civil society – are strengthened, enabling them to increasingly engage in and lead evidence generating processes. Ensure that the UNICEF office is effectively linked to wider UNICEF E&R developments in a way that both contributes to and benefits from organizational learning on effective E&R management:
• Lead on the National Evaluation Capacity Development and Use among public sector partners to support long term system strengthening through development of evaluation policies for enhancing accountability and learning.
• Support the implementation of the signed Rolling Workplan with MoPD&SI.
• Support the evaluation and research taskforce in the CO in building their E&R capacity and making sure that the completed research /studies are disseminated through different sources including UNICEF webpage to make sure utilization of the results.
• Ensure that sufficient systems and procedures are in place at the Country Office to enable an appropriate ethics review of all UNICEF-supported evidence activities (evaluation, research, studies) as per the UNICEF Procedure for Ethical Standards in Research, Evaluation and Data Collection and Analysis.
• Implement capacity building initiatives, to enhance the competencies of a wide range of internal and external partners/stakeholders organizations to build their E&R policies, procedures, tools and systems. Encourage staff and partners to complete available e-modules on evidence activities and participate in workshops of research management, impact evaluation, uptake, ethics, etc.

 Coordination, Networking and Partnership Building:

• Ensure that the UNICEF office is effectively linked to wider UNICEF research and evaluation networks in a way that both contributes to and benefits from organizational learning on effective programme planning and M&E and research management. Also ensure that UNICEF work with regard to SDGs is well coordinated with UN and government partners.
• Build and strengthen strategic partnerships through networking and advocacy with local/national governments, UN system agency partners, donors, NGOs, funding organization, research institutes, including universities, and the private sector to reinforce cooperation and/or pursue initiatives.
• Collaborate with Regional Evaluation Adviser and HQ Evaluation Office as well as UNICEF Office of Research for overall coordination of priority research, monitoring and evaluation activities, especially those of regional scope requiring the coordinated effort of multiple countries.
• Partner with the Regional Evaluation Adviser to ensure that current and accurate evaluation data and results are included in regional reports, multi-country studies, and knowledge sharing networks.
• Coordinate with RCO and other UN agencies and public sector organizations to facilitate UNICEF programmes work on SDGs for children.
• Undertake lessons-learned reviews on successful and unsuccessful Monitoring & Evaluation practices and experience at the national level, and ensure they are shared as appropriate. Similarly, pay attention to Monitoring & Evaluation and research knowledge networks to identify innovations and lessons learned that may be relevant for the CO and partners to improve their Monitoring & Evaluation and research functions.
• Participate in strategic discussions, meetings and other international/national meetings and workshops. Exchange information and ideas to facilitate policy formulation, discussion and agenda setting on Evaluation & Research related issues.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree in social sciences, economics, statistics, or in research methods is required.
• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in the Evaluation & Research of programmes and socio economic and other related issues at the international level some of which preferably were served in a developing country is required.
• Fluency in English is required.

Source:  https://jobs.unicef.org/cw/en-us/job/576476