Vacancy Announcement
ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AGENCY
Position: Senior Technical Expert- Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting for PMU
Term of Employment: Fixed
Duty Station(s): Addis Ababa
Required Number: One
Salary & Benefits: Competitive
Application Deadline: October 30, 2017
BACKGROUND:
The Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) has been established by the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) to identify and address systemic bottlenecks to Ethiopia’s agricultural development. The Agency does this through problem-solving, implementation support, and capacity building of stakeholders involved in implementation of interventions that address the systemic bottlenecks. The Agency reports to the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and is Secretary to the Transformation Council chaired by the Prime Minister.
The programmatic focus of the Agency responds to a core set of needs identified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and the Transformation Council. Within the Agency, issues are divided into four different pillars: Crops & Natural Resources which includes Inputs and Plant Protection, Livestock, Soil Health & Fertility, Irrigation and Drainage, and Mechanization; Cross Cutting Initiatives, which includes Inclusive Growth, Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation, and Planning and MLE; Livestock, which includes Animal Health and Genetic Improvement and Feed & Feeding; and Agribusiness and Markets including Market Development, Rural Finance, ICT, Private Sector, and Organizational and Human Capacity. In addition, the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters Initiative is another critical focus area for the Agency. Across the programs, the ATA engages public, private and non-governmental stakeholders to support strategic planning, manage and strengthen implementation capacity and test innovative models..
Our Culture
We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results. Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great team work to achieve excellent results.
At ATA, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training. We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Senior Technical Expert (STE) - Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting will report to the Director of the Performance Management Unit (PMU), and contribute to the team's activities across the following main areas of focus: planning and reporting of Agricultural Transformation Agenda deliverables across various government partners, impact evaluation of ATA-managed projects, supporting accountability for project performance through on-the-spot checks and deliverable tracking, building capacity of ATA staff on planning, monitoring and reporting of results, and disseminating MLE learnings for ATA-managed projects. The STE will support all PMU activities related to one of the ATA’s verticals/program teams.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES:
· Support PMU team in the design of performance management processes and tools and impact evaluation activities
· Support PMU team on planning and reporting with ATA staff and relevant stakeholders, including quarterly reports to Parliament and the Transformation Council (chaired by the Prime Minister)
· Support PMU and Program teams on impact evaluation of ATA projects
· Communicate frequently with ATA program teams to collect high quality performance-based data and analyze for reporting and insights
· Organize training on planning and reporting and MLE processes and tools
· Coach and guide teams on defining measurable targets and indicators for tracking and reporting
· Prepare result measurement frameworks for the Transformation Agenda and evaluation plans for ATA projects
· Organize & lead monitoring visits jointly with ATA teams (and partners as necessary) and coordinate data collection, analysis & reporting
· Manage documentation for planning and reporting on Transformation Agenda deliverables and impact evaluations of ATA projects
· Ensure forward integration of undelivered targets, recommendations and lessons learnt during implementation
· Work closely with PMU and Program teams to flag key issues and suggest ways on how to address them
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
· BSc/BA or MSc/MA degree in development evaluation, development studies, economics/ agricultural economics, agricultural science, statistics or other relevant fields
· At least 6 years hands-on experience for MSc/MA candidates and 8 years for BSc/BA candidates in managing a monitoring and evaluation system and/or impact evaluation, preferably in the field of agriculture or rural development
· Experience with and theoretical understanding of planning, program design, monitoring and impact evaluation, including planning frameworks such as logical framework, results framework and outcome mapping
· Ability to thrive in a fast-moving, start-up environment, with an emphasis on high performance, teamwork, accountability and results
· Highly facilitative and collaborative working style
· Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and data gathering skills
· Excellent oral and written communication skills
· Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty and desire to be of service
· An understanding of Ethiopia’s agricultural system, with a broad perspective on how the entire system operates and how public, private, NGO and informal actors operate within the system
· Hands-on experience with data management and analytical software such as SPSS/Stata
· Fluency in English and Amharic