UNOPS Monitoring and Quality Assurance Specialist (Home Based) Job Vacancy

Purpose and Scope of Assignment

UNOPS Geneva Office is the legal and administrative host of the SUN Movement Secretariat. As part of these hosting arrangements UNOPS is also fund manager of the SUN Movement Pooled Fund. The team supporting the SUN Movement Pooled Fund is composed of one Pooled Fund Coordinator, one Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, one Grants Analyst and one Grants Management Officer. This team works in close collaboration and synchronization with the work undertaken by the SUN Movement Secretariat. The SUN Movement Coordinator oversees the work of the Pooled Fund and provides strategic guidance.

In order to expand the Pooled Fund’s capacity at decentralized levels, three regional Monitoring and Quality Assurance Specialists are being recruited. The proposed Monitoring & Quality Assurance Specialist(s) will work under the supervision of the UNOPS Geneva Office’s Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist and in collaboration with the Pooled Fund Coordinator and the Country Liaison Team at the SUN Movement Secretariat and the Grants Management Officers at UNOPS.

The postholder will be responsible for the implementation and maintenance of a functional monitoring, quality assurance and reporting system for the Pooled Fund Project at decentralized levels. S/he will be assigned to provide support to the Pooled Fund grantees covering 12 to 15 countries in the regions. S/he will directly work with the Pooled Fund grantees, project partners and stakeholders in all aspects related to project monitoring, quality assurance and reporting functions.

S/he will also support in-country SUN stakeholders to effectively collaborate and scale up their actions for nutrition. S/he will monitor and report on the progress of national and subnational SUN stakeholder collaboration – including how this can become more effective and what steps are needed to achieve this.

He/she will be a proactive, opportunistic and flexible colleague, fostering cross-team collaboration and encouraging innovative solutions to the challenges faced by SUN Countries. With strong communication skills – both oral and written – the postholder will build and maintain effective understanding and support productive exchanges. S/he will use a knowledge management system to ensure that stories, progresses, challenges, lessons learned from the grass-root level in SUN Countries are documented reaches to serve other SUN players.

Like all in the SUN Movement, the Monitoring & Quality Assurance Specialist(s) must always be vigilant that the SUN Movement’s principles are upheld everywhere and at all times.

S/he will work in close collaboration with Geneva based Pooled Fund team members and s/he will be expected to join weekly (or more frequently) meetings and report on progress on a regular basis. S/he will be required to undertake frequent field visits (field missions will be up to 50% of the assignment). In addition, s/he will be required to support the Country Liaison Team and other members of the SUN Movement Secretariat as and when needed.

The successful candidate(s) must be flexible and open to take on additional tasks as required to meet the evolving needs of SUN Countries

The position is reserved for nationals of or those with a valid residence permit in Cameroon, Rwanda or Burundi.

Functional Responsibilities
Implementation and maintenance of a functional monitoring and reporting system:

Support to implement and maintain a functional monitoring, evaluation and reporting system for the SUN Movement Pooled Fund in assigned countries.
Serve as a primary M&E contact point to the assigned Pooled Fund Grantees to support them in developing and implementing result-based M&E system in line with the SUN Movement Pooled Fund Global M&E Framework. Ensure that each grantee has functional result-based M&E system for the Pooled Fund Project.
Collect and maintain the M&E database assuring quality of incoming data, and make M&E information readily available for use.
Ensure that all the grantees submit structured progress reports in timely and regular manner with quality and disaggregated data and evidences.
Review the reports and information received from the grantees, provide adequate feedback and carry out follow up actions through appropriate methods including emails, skype/WebEx, telephone calls, site visits among others.
Conduct monthly status update calls with the grantees, and share minutes/findings with the Pooled Fund team, the SUN Movement Secretariat and grantees on time.
Regularly assess the implementation status of grants as well as progress by SUN stakeholders in each given country: advise the grantees, the Pooled Fund Team and the SUN Movement Secretariat on course corrections, document and report back on the status of national and subnational SUN stakeholder’s collaboration, and highlight where in-country capability needs to developed and/or strengthened.
Prepare monthly, periodic, and ad hoc programmatic progress updates for UNOPS, SUN Movement Secretariat and other key partners.
Assess grantees’ capacity on M&E – especially at sub-national level – and build their capacity as required so that the grantees can effectively develop and implement an M&E system for their Pooled Fund Project.
Perform quality assurance functions:
Develop tailor-made quality assurance tools (covering both programmatic and financial aspects) suitable to the grant recipient country/regional context.
Perform strong quality assurance functions to ensure that all the planned project activities and outputs agreed between UNOPS and the grantees on the project agreements are delivered on time maintaining quality and ensuring value for money (VfM).
Conduct field missions to the grant’s recipient countries to carryout direct programmatic and financial data verification as well as programmatic spot checks, and assess project progress, risk, challenges and lessons.
Review the drafts of key research reports, training modules, SUN national networks (civil society, business) Strategy Plans, workshop proceedings, IEC materials, etc. produced by the grantees, and provide constructive feedback to improve quality and clarity of those products.

Partnership facilitation, policy advice and knowledge management:

Serve as an initial contact point to the Pooled Fund Project in the field to identify and address day-to-day issues related to the project in consultation with the Pooled Fund team at the SUN Movement Secretariat and contribute to address them in a proactive manner.
Support the Country Liaison Team at the SUN Movement Secretariat by providing country information and intelligence, including – if required – through the preparation of visits by the SUN Movement Coordinator to SUN Countries.
Identify and inform the Country Liaison Team about the existence of regional bodies, nutrition hubs/initiatives, intergovernmental bodies, etc. in the region that could strengthen country efforts to reduce malnutrition.
Assist the SUN Movement Secretariat Pooled Fund team and UNOPS in the identification of potential implementation problems and bottlenecks and addressing them in a constructive manner.
Contribute to the overall SUN Movement Secretariat knowledge management through systemic documenting of best practices and lessons learned from the field and share them in a timely manner.

Any other tasks assigned by the supervisor.

Monitoring and Progress Controls

A work plan will be formulated and agreed with the line manager, with clearly defined outputs, milestones and reporting requirements.
Once recruited, specialists will start with an onboarding programme on the SUN Movement.
Successfully meeting deadlines based on work plan
Setting personal development objectives within Performance Evaluation Review