Background
UNDP supports stabilization, state building, governance and development priorities in Afghanistan. UNDP support, in partnership with the Government, the United Nations system, the donor community and other development stakeholders, has contributed to institutional development efforts leading to positive impact on the lives of Afghan citizens. Over the years UNDP support has spanned such milestone efforts as the adoption of the Constitution; Presidential, Parliamentary and Provincial Council elections; institutional development through capacity-building to the legislative, the judicial and executive arms of the state, and key ministries, Government agencies and commissions at the national and subnational levels. UNDP Programmes in Afghanistan have benefited from the very active support of donors. UNDP Afghanistan is committed to the highest standards of transparency and accountability and works in close coordination with the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan and the UN system as a whole to maximize the impact of its development efforts on the ground.
The Government of Afghanistan developed the Afghanistan Peace and Reintegration Programme (APRP) following the endorsement of the programme concept at the London conference. The programme was also endorsed by the Consultative Peace Jirga (national consultation process) and the Kabul Conference. A Peace and Reintegration Trust Fund (P&RTF) to finance the Afghan-led APRP has also been established. The P&RTF is a source for channeling donor and Government funding as applicable towards the APRP activities implemented through different authorities and institutional entities, including: Line Ministries, Provincial, District Authorities and Local Communities as well as NGOs and UN agencies, etc.
UNDP, as one of the key partners of the Government of Afghanistan in regards to the APRP, is responsible for managing one of the three windows of the Trust Fund in addition to supporting the implementation of the programme. As requested by the Government, UNDP will provide support and technical assistance to the Peace and Reintegration Programme both at the national and sub-national levels.
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the overall guidance of and reporting to the Project Manager/CTA the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist undertakes duties and responsibilities that are focused on Project Monitoring, Evaluation and reporting, implementation of project strategies and capacity building. She/he will work as part of the team focusing on the following key areas.
Summary of Key Functions:
- Active participation in project Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting plan;
- Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing;
- Establishment of appropriate monitoring system;
- Establishment of Standardized reporting mechanism, and ensure effective & Timely reporting;
- Facilitation of project planning and development of annual and quarterly work plans.
Active participation in planning phase of the project by focusing on achieving the following results:
- Support and provide advice to the project management team including Field Offices in preparation of annual work plans, budgets and other required documentation in respect of projects;
- Monitor implementation of the Work Plan through collection and analysis of information;
- Preparation of analytical reports using relevant information available from project to advise the Project Manager/CTA on the implementation of the Work Plan;
- Advise the Project and stakeholders on the progress of the Work Plan and contribute to analysis of deviation between planned and actual achievements;
- Encourage common data collection strategies between and within projects where appropriate;
- Continuously review information available on indicators and targets to assess progress and identify constraints and gaps in implementation;
- Provide inputs and recommendation on constraints on implementation of the Work Plan and the impact of the Project activities.
Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing focusing on achievement of the following results:
- Identification and documentation of success stories, achievements, lesson learned and document recommendations to be integrated into broader knowledge management efforts;
- Contribution to the implementation of Knowledge Management and Learning Strategy;
- Collaboration and coordination with other UN agencies, government agencies, NGOs, and other organizations on monitoring issues;
- Liaise with relevant officials in development partners, especially government stakeholders and partners for exchange of information and promote partnership;
- Organization and conduct of results-oriented trainings in the relevant areas;
- Participation in monitoring of development and professional norms, standards, tools and methodologies.
Establishment of appropriate monitoring and Evaluation system in the project:
- Develop internal system to monitor and follow up of project cycle Phases;
- Manage the Results Based Management Tool and the Results Management GOAL;
- Quality control and proof read of project documentation, strategic products developed by projects and mid-term and final evaluation reports;
- Development of suitable and innovative solutions and tools for improving project monitoring and reporting;
- Develop and support solutions to improve ATLAS (ERP) reporting to highest satisfaction of UNDP and stakeholders;
- Support continuous review, monitoring of projects, and make regular field visits along with project colleagues to obtain feedback;
- Participate in programme and project reviews, monitoring of projects, review of focus areas, methodologies, strategies, etc., including those requested by Country Office and the Government partners;
- Develop and institute, in consultation with partner agencies and for approval by the Project Management Team, the Project’s M&E system;
- Develop indicators for measuring results of project implementation;
- Develop tools for evaluation and impact assessment of the project;
- Plan and implement regular project monitoring and evaluation and Reporting activities (periodical meetings, annual assessment conferences, etc.) among key institutional actors, partners and stakeholders to provide up-to-date information, feedback on the status of project implementation;
- Assist the Project Manager in the preparation of yearly and quarterly work plans, reports, project presentations and other project M&E-related documents and correspondence;
- Prepare high quality reports/ project documentation for dissemination to the stakeholders;
- Assist Project Manager in extracting critical lessons learned and good practices from final evaluation, audit and monitoring reports.
Establishment of standardized reporting mechanism, and ensure effective and timely reporting to senior management and stakeholders:
- Under the guidance of Project Manager and in coordination with Program Office, monitor, review, assess and report on all dimensions of project components;
- Facilitate compilation of data and information from different project components for development of comprehensive project report;
- Ensure that programme and donor-funded project reporting processes are systematized;
- Ensure that all project periodic reports i.e. monthly, quarterly, annual, final and donor specific reports are compiled in a timely manner capturing project impact against the Results Framework;
- Ensure that reports are developed using the most professional business writing and formatting with comprehensive analytical presentation of information;
- Develop clear and concise reports and power-point presentations for various meetings, workshops, conferences, etc., including the Project Board meeting and donor briefings;
- Provide updates to the Project Manager on overall project progress;
- Develop different standard reporting formats for collection of project related information from the field including project progress and monitoring reports besides formats for collection of project success stories in consultant with Country Office Communications Unit;
- Continuously capture and compile lessons learnt for utilization in future besides keeping track of the risk and issue logs for reporting purposes;
- Communicate with donors for collection of feedback on quality of reports for future quality improvement, in coordination with the project and Country Office programme unit,
- Work closely with the project team for impact oriented reporting.
Contribute substantially to the proposal development process:
- Review reports submitted by Field Offices in respect of designated projects, and maintain information for use in proposal development;
- Assist with information in formulation and drafting of project proposals, log-frames, budgets and work-plans for submission to donors; and
- Perform other tasks and responsibilities assigned by the supervisor.
Impact of Results:
Well-articulated planning and indicators ensures that activities support the desired objectives of the project. Accurate collection and analysis of programme data facilitates sound decision making by management. Timely reporting enhances UNDP position as a strong development partner.
Competencies
Functional Competencies:
Advocacy/Advancing A Policy-Oriented Agenda: Analysis and creation of messages and strategies
- Creates effective advocacy strategies;
- Performs analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses.
Results-Based Programme Development and Management: Contributing to results through provision of information
- Provides information for linkages across programme activities to help identify critical points of integration;
- Provides information and documentation on specific stages of projects/programme implementation;
- Provides background information to identify opportunities for project development and helps drafting proposals
- Participates in the formulation of project proposals.
Building Strategic Partnerships: Identifying and building partnerships:
- Effectively networks with partners seizing opportunities to build strategic alliances relevant to UNDP’s mandate and strategic agenda;
- Identifies needs and interventions for capacity building of counterparts, clients and potential partners;
- Promotes UNDP’s agenda in inter-agency meetings.
Innovation and Marketing New Approaches: Developing new approaches:
- Seeks a broad range of perspectives in developing project proposals;
- Identifies new approaches and promotes their use in other situations;
- Creates an environment that fosters innovation and innovative thinking;
- Makes the case for innovative ideas from the team with own supervisor.
Resource Mobilization (Field Duty Stations): Implementing resource mobilization strategies:
- Analyzes information on potential bilateral donors and national counterparts to recommend a strategic approach;
- Identifies and compiles lessons learned;
- Develops a resource mobilization strategy at the country level.
Promoting Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing: Developing tools and mechanisms:
- Makes the case for innovative ideas documenting successes and building them into the design of new approaches;
- Identifies new approaches and strategies that promote the use of tools and mechanisms.
Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise: In-depth knowledge of the subject-matter:
Understands more advanced aspects of primary area of specialization as well as the fundamental concepts of related disciplines
- Keeps abreast of new developments in area of professional discipline and job knowledge and seeks to develop him/herself professionally;
- Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments;
- Demonstrates comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the current guidelines and project management tools and utilizes these regularly in work assignments.
Global Leadership and Advocacy for UNDP’s Goals: Analysis and creation of messages and strategies:
- Performed analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses;
- Uses the opportunity to bring forward and disseminate materials for global advocacy work and adapts it for use at country level.
Client Orientation: Contributing to positive outcomes for the client:
- Anticipates client needs;
- Works towards creating an enabling environment for a smooth relationship between the clients and service provider;
- Demonstrates understanding of client’s perspective;
- Solicits feedback on service provision and quality.
Core Competencies:
- Promoting ethics and integrity, creating organizational precedents;
- Building support and political acumen;
- Building staff competence, creating an environment of creativity and innovation;
- Building and promoting effective teams;
- Creating and promoting enabling environment for open communication;
- Creating an emotionally intelligent organization;
- Leveraging conflict in the interests of UNDP & setting standards;
- Sharing knowledge across the organization and building a culture of knowledge sharing and learning. Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing are the responsibility of each staff member;
- Fair and transparent decision making; calculated risk-taking.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Master’s Degree or equivalent in Communication, Economics, Political Sciences, Social Sciences or related field.
Experience:
- Minimum five (5) years of professional work experience at the national or international level in design, Monitoring, Evaluation and reporting in large scale development projects;
- Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages, experience in handling of web based management systems.
Language Requirements:
- Fluency in English language. Knowledge of duty station languages will be an asset.
Note:
- Interested and qualified international candidates should apply on-line through the UNDP Jobs site at UNDP Afghanistan Vacancy Announcementand please ensure that to fill up and upload Personal History Form-P.11 which is available at UNDP Personal History Form (P.11 Form);
- Incomplete applications or applications received after the closing date will not be given consideration. Please note that only applicants who are short-listed will be contacted;
- For more detailed information about UNDP Afghanistan please visit our website at www.undp.org.af ;
- Successful candidates must be prepared to start work within 6 weeks of the offer of appointment;
- Internal candidates who have served a minimum of 12 month in the current assignment are invited to apply;
- Qualified female candidates are highly encouraged to apply.