African Virtual University (AVU) Monitoring and Evaluation Officer Job

Vacancy: Monitoring and Evaluation OfficerIntroduction
The African Virtual University (AVU): The AVU is a Pan African Intergovernmental Organization established by charter with the mandate of significantly increasing access to quality higher education and training through the innovative use of information communication technologies.
A Charter, establishing the AVU as an Intergovernmental Organization, has been signed so far by nineteen (19) African Governments - Kenya, Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire, Tanzania, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin, Ghana, Republic of Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger, South Sudan, Sudan, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Ethiopia and Cape Verde.
The AVU has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and a Regional office in Dakar Senegal with Host-Country Agreements and Diplomatic Status with the two governments.
The AVU Business Plan 2009-2014 has two main thrusts:
(a) Educational and support services provided on a fee basis; and
(b) Not-for-profit development services.
The Not-for-profit development services aims at building the capacity of AVU Partner Institutions (PIs) with an objective of increasing access to quality education through the following activities:
Updating and developing content; Open Educational Resources (OER) Development; AVU Capacity Enhancement Program (ACEP); set up/upgrade ODeL centers; developing professional networks through Communities of Practices; Research and Development; and Quality Evaluation and Benchmarking.
Some of the not-for-profit development services were delivered from 2005 to 2011 through the AVU Multinational Project I, funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and implemented in 10 African countries with 12 participating institutions.
The AfDB-funded Multinational Support Project: The AfDB is funding a second phase of the Multinational Project which will build on the first phase and will extend its benefits to more countries.
The overall objective of the AVU Multinational Project II is to strengthen the capacity of the AVU and a network of 27 institutions to deliver and manage quality ICT integrated education and training opportunities in 21 African countries.
The project has the following activities:
(1) Establishment of new Open Distance and eLearning (ODeL) Centres and/or upgrading of exiting AVU Learning Centres as well as Internet connectivity provision at AVU Partner Institutions;
(2) Development and/or improvement, and delivery of four ICT integrated Programs: AVU Capacity Enhancement Program (ACEP); Teacher Education, Computer Science, and Peace and Conflict Resolution;
(3) Gender Mainstreaming
(4) Research and Development;
(5) Promotion and development of Open Education Resources (OERs); and
(6) Enhancement of AVU Capacity .
The AVU Multinational Project II is being implemented in 27 AVU Partner Institutions in the following 21 countries: nine (9) Francophone African Countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal; four (4) Lusophone African Countries: Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique; and eight (8) Anglophone African Countries: Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sudan, and Tanzania.
To successfully implement these activities the AVU wishes to engage a Monitoring & Evaluation Officer who will be based in Nairobi, Kenya.
Under the overall guidance of the AVU Rector, the M&E Officer will be responsible for ensuring that AVU’s activities and those of the Phase II Project maintain their overall objectives and that these activities result in the achievement of the intended outputs in a timely manner.
Recently, in 2014, the AVU adopted Results Based Management as the system to plan and monitor and evaluate the work of the organization.
The M&E Officer will be responsible for the execution of the system within AVU corporate operations and within its projects and initiatives.
Overall Objectives of the Monitoring & Evaluation Officer
The primary objectives of the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer are:

Provide assistance to the AVU in all areas related to M&E;

Monitor implementation and track progress toward the achievement of corporate and project objectives;

Assess outcomes and the effectiveness of corporate and project interventions;

Contribute to the empowerment of primary stakeholders (staff, partners and members) by enhancing skills in M&E and in promoting participation in monitoring and evaluation.It is intended that the M&E Officer will help collect data to facilitate key operational and strategic decisions in terms of corporate and project planning and to provide insights on achieving better results.
Activities of the M&E Officer
The activities of the M&E Officer are to:

Provide the AVU staff and inside and outside project staff and stakeholders with regular information on implementation and outputs;

Identify bottlenecks and impediments in the implementation of plans and strategies;

Ensure that all the activities are implemented in compliance with the requisite regulations;

Provide support and information to the AVU to help determine to what extent the AVU and its projects and initiatives achieve goals and objectives, and how these affect the intended beneficiaries’ social conditions and capacities;

Maintain acceptable performance standards in line with protocols and regulations.

Ensure that the staff is familiar with and use the monitoring and evaluation procedures and relevant tools.

More technically, the M&E Officer will have responsibilities in the following:

Execution and process monitoring – The purpose of this component is to monitor implementation and track the ongoing progress of activities within corporate or project plans. Primary data collection is based on existing data and documents.

Evaluations – The purpose of this component is to assess the extent to which the intended outcomes are achieved within corporate and project plans. At specific times undertake impact evaluations to provide qualitative assessment of the impacts of strategies and initiatives.

Participatory Monitoring & Evaluation (PME) – The purpose of PME is to empower primary beneficiaries by directly engaging them in monitoring processes and results.

In practical terms, PME is the application of participatory tools and methods for measuring, assessing, reporting on, and ultimately improving performance through a process of shared learning.

Other areas as assigned by the AVUScope of Work
Specific tasks that need to be undertaken by the M&E Officer are as follows.

The M&E Officer will consult relevant stakeholders and review documents and data to provide the AVU with the information required to improve performance.

The M&E Officer will assist in the development of the annual plans.

Attend meetings with staff and as instructed by the AVU.

Gather data from various sites and through meetings with the aim of drafting the quarterly report for review by the AVU.

Design tools for data collection

Provide all data relevant to the conduct of the any monitoring or evaluation activity whether internal or external.

Support special studies as instructed by the AVU

Perform other functions relevant to and in support of the M&E activities for the AVU.Qualifications for Officer
M&E Officer should possess:

At least 6 years of experience in monitoring and evaluation and in project management.

The Officer should have Information Technology (IT) in particular MS Excel and MS Access as well as data, collection and analysis skills in particular some experience with conducting surveys and interviews.

A university degree in social science or other relevant discipline such as economics or statistics.

The Officer must possess diplomacy, tact, ability to influence and convince senior officers and partners and a superior verbal and written communication capability.

Strong analytical skills, not just in data analysis but in data interpretation.Accuracy and Errors: This is a sensitive position requiring discretion and attention to detail.
Reporting Requirements: The M&E Officer will report to the AVU Rector or such other person as he organization may appoint from time to time.
Modalities of Work: The officer will work full time dedicating 8 hours in a day for 5 days a week.
Duration: 24 Months
Payment: Payment will be a fixed monthly rate commensurate with the experience and qualifications of the Consultant.
How to Apply
The African Virtual University (AVU) is an equal opportunity employer.
The successful candidate will be appointed for 2 years.
Application must include an application letter and a detailed curriculum vitae with: a telephone number; email and residential addresses; and names with contact addresses of three professional references.
Applications should be sent to job@avu.org and must have Monitoring and Evaluation Officer as the email subject All inquiries should be sent to avuhr@avu.org
The successful candidate will be based at the AVU Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.
The closing date for this application is January 2nd 2015 at 18:00 East African Time (UTC/GMT + 3)
Note: ONLY shortlisted candidates will be contacted
Website: African Virtual University (AVU)