Company Overview:

The Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) strengthens democracy around the world through private enterprise and market-oriented reform. CIPE is one of the four core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy and is an affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Since 1983, CIPE has worked with business leaders, policymakers, and civil society to build the institutions vital to a democratic society. CIPE’s key program areas include Enterprise Ecosystems, Democratic Governance, Business Advocacy, Anti-Corruption & Ethics and Trade.

Position Title: Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Manager
Reports To: Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (Headquarters) and dotted line to Regional Hub Director
Location: Africa Regional Hub, Lagos, Nigeria

Scope: The Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Manager supports the implementation of CIPE’s programs in the Africa region by providing MEL technical and management support with a focus on tracking performance, measuring impact, facilitating applied research and learning, and ensuring accountability to stakeholders and donors. In coordination with CIPE’s DC MEL team, this role will design MEL frameworks and data collection tools, plan and implement MEL activities to monitor progress towards project outcomes and impact, provide timely, evidence-based insights to inform project managers, facilitate knowledge management, implement applied research initiatives, and contribute to learning and strategic decision-making.

The MEL Manager works closely with Africa Hub and DC program staff, partners, and CIPE’s global MEL team to ensure that monitoring, evaluation, and learning systems are effectively integrated into program planning and implementation.
 

Responsibilities:
I. MEL Plans/ MEL Framework Design

• Develop MEL plans/frameworks for CIPE projects in Africa in alignment with CIPE’s organizational measurement frameworks and donor requirements.
• Design project-level results frameworks, logic models, and theories of change
• Elaborate performance indicators, including indicator specifications and indicator data collection processes.
• Input project MEL frameworks, indicators, and operationalize indicator tracking on CIPE’s MEL platform system (DevResults)

• Design and operationalize data collection tools, tailored to program activities (e.g., draft and edit survey instruments/ assessment forms/ checklists and program them on online platforms, develop and streamline data entry templates, develop qualitative interview and focus group guides, etc.).
• Coordinate and oversee the collection of quantitative and qualitative data from CIPE programs and partners, including participating in conducting evaluation interviews, notetaking and producing interview and focus group summaries.
• Contribute to the development of an applied research agenda that supports CIPE’s Africa Hub and its strategic objectives in emerging policy issues.
• Design and lead research activities to generate actionable insights to inform program design, policy engagement, and learning within CIPE Africa’s programs.
• Translate research findings into practical knowledge products such as briefs, case studies, data driven analysis to support evidence-based decision-making and strategic communications.
• Perform data cleaning, data coding and recoding, data processing, and other functions related to data analysis and maintaining large databases of M&E and indicator data.
• Ensure data quality through training, supervision, and validation procedures.
• Manage the process of inputting and updating indicators and other performance data on the DevResults platform (or external datasets/databases where applicable) to track project indicators towards outputs, and outcomes.
• Perform data analysis and data visualizations to identify trends, interpret progress against targets, and suggest areas for improvement.

• Prepare periodic M&E reports, dashboards, and data visualizations to communicate program results, as needed, for internal and external audiences.
• Contribute to donor reports by providing timely and accurate M&E data and impact narratives.
• Work with program teams, CIPE strategy & impact directors, and knowledge management to integrate MEL findings into strategic planning and program design.
• Document lessons learned, best practices, and success stories for broader dissemination.

• Train CIPE regional staff and local partners on MEL methods, tools, and reporting requirements and support partners in developing and strengthening their own M&E systems.
• Support evaluation consultants or third-party evaluators during midterm or final evaluations as needed, including drafting evaluation statements of work and contributing to the recruitment of external evaluators and research/evaluation vendors.

• Foster a culture of results-based management and learning across the region.
• Promote learning by organizing reflection sessions and contributing to CIPE’s knowledge management efforts.  
• Stay up to date with global MEL best practices and apply innovative approaches when relevant.
• Support compliance with donor requirements, ethical standards, and data protection protocols.

Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in International Development, Economics, Public Policy, Social Sciences, or a related field. Master’s degree preferred.
• Minimum of five (7) years of experience in M&E and/or applied research roles, preferably within international development space such as at development finance institution or international non-profit organizations.
• Strong knowledge of MEL donor frameworks, tools, and methodologies.
• Extensive experience with data management, analysis, and quality assurance. Familiarity with relational databases and data management practices, preferred.
• Demonstrable experience in applied research and analysis.
• Experience working with donor-funded programs (e.g., US State Dept, EU, FCDO, GIZ, SIDA or other major donors).
• Strong quantitative and qualitative data skills, including in the design of data collection tools, analysis, and interpretation of data findings.
• Strong Proficiency in MS Office Suite, and at least one statistical analysis program (e.g., R, Stata, SPSS), at least one data collection/survey program (e.g., Qualtrics, SurveyCTO), at least one dashboard program (e.g. Power BI, Tableau) and experience with one or more digital M&E platforms (e.g., DHIS2, DevResults).Familiarity  with qualitative tools like Dedoose, or Nvivo, a plus.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English; fluency in additional relevant languages for the Africa portfolio, is a strong asset.
• Strong organizational skills, capacity to work independently, critical thinking, attention to detail, and ability to meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Knowledge of specific content areas related to CIPE’s work (e.g., democratization, good governance, advocacy and policy reform, business association capacity-building, anti-corruption approaches), a plus.
• Experience working across cultures and collaborating with diverse stakeholders.