Program Manager I - MEAL (Kenyan Nationals Only)

About the role

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is hiring a Program Manager I for its MEAL function in Nairobi, open only to Kenyan nationals. The role acts as technical advisor and process lead for quality Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL), overseeing the design, implementation and continuous improvement of the project's MEAL system so that performance, participant feedback and learning information are available in time to monitor implementation, measure results, meet donor and CRS requirements and support adaptive management.

Key responsibilities

• Provide leadership, management and technical oversight of the project's MEAL system.
• Supervise project MEAL staff and work with project leadership, technical teams, implementing partners and other stakeholders to strengthen MEAL capacity and promote evidence-based decision-making.
• Ensure high-quality performance, participant feedback and learning information is used to monitor implementation, measure results and strengthen accountability.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Statistics, International Development, Public Health, Food Security, Economics, Social Sciences or a related field; additional experience may substitute for some education.
• Minimum of seven years of relevant field-based experience, including progressive responsibility for designing, managing or strengthening MEAL systems for moderately complex donor-funded programs, preferably with an international NGO.
• Demonstrated experience managing integrated MEAL systems, designing or managing assessments, baselines, endlines, evaluations and other learning studies, and supervising staff and building teams.
• Experience working with implementing partners, strengthening their MEAL capacity, and engaging communities through feedback and complaints mechanisms.
• Preferred: Master's degree in a relevant field, experience with institutional donor-funded programming (food security, nutrition, resilience, humanitarian assistance), commodity and food distribution tracking systems, and MEAL leadership for large-scale, multi-partner programs.

Required skills

• Strong analytical, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, interpreting qualitative and quantitative evidence.
• Data management, database and data quality assurance skills.
• Quantitative and qualitative methods, indicator management, data analysis and data-quality assurance.
• Digital data collection, participant registration, management information systems and data-visualization or reporting tools.
• MS Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), SPSS, Stata or R, and web conferencing applications.