MEAL Specialist

Job Posting Organization:
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency of the UN that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Established in 1945, FAO's mission is to achieve security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">food security for all and ensure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With 195 Members, including 194 countries and the European Union, FAO operates in over 130 countries worldwide. The organization focuses on transforming agrifood systems to be more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable, contributing to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. FAO Country Offices provide policy advice and technical assistance, ensuring effective operations aligned with international standards of accountability and the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework.

Job Overview:
The MEAL Specialist will play a crucial role in supporting the planning, monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning activities of various projects implemented by the FAO Representation. This position requires a strong focus on gender-responsive and socially inclusive approaches to ensure that the objectives of the Country Programming Framework are met. The Specialist will be responsible for developing and managing project frameworks, conducting baseline assessments, and ensuring that data collection activities capture essential gender-disaggregated and social inclusion data. The role also involves guiding project teams in establishing effective monitoring systems and providing analytical information to inform project design and resource mobilization efforts.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The MEAL Specialist will provide guidance for overall MEAL and gender-responsive requirements, enhance project logical frameworks, and facilitate the selection of indicators and tools for measuring deliverables. Responsibilities include developing project Risk Management Matrices, conducting baseline assessments, ensuring data collection captures sex-disaggregated data, monitoring gender and youth inclusion outcomes, supervising beneficiary data collection, conducting gender-sensitive focus group discussions, documenting best practices, organizing field monitoring missions, maintaining databases for reporting, and supporting project teams with analytical information generated through MEAL processes.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess a Bachelor’s degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Statistics, Management Information Systems, Economics, Data Science, Agriculture, Nutrition, or related fields. A minimum of five years of relevant experience in MEAL, data analysis, and information management, particularly in agriculture and disaster risk reduction, is required. Candidates should also have a working knowledge of English at level C and be nationals of Sierra Leone.

Educational Background:
A Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as Monitoring and Evaluation, Statistics, Management Information Systems, Economics, Data Science, Agriculture, or Nutrition is mandatory. Higher educational qualifications must be obtained from institutions accredited or recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED).

Experience:
The position requires at least five years of relevant experience in monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL), data analysis, and information management, with a specific focus on agriculture and disaster risk reduction. Candidates should demonstrate experience in working with project logical frameworks and gender-responsive performance monitoring systems.

Languages:
A working knowledge of English (level C) is mandatory for this position. Proficiency in additional languages may be considered an asset but is not explicitly required.

Additional Notes:
FAO does not charge any fees during the recruitment process. Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted. Candidates must be medically fit for appointment and meet any residency or visa requirements. For additional employment opportunities, candidates can visit the FAO employment website.