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Evaluation Officer

Rome

  • Organization: IFAD - International Fund for Agricultural Development
  • Location: Rome
  • Grade: Mid level - P-3, International Professional - Internationally recruited position
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Monitoring and Evaluation
  • Closing Date: Closed

Vacancy Announcement Number 2046
Date of Issue 26/02/2021
Deadline for Applications 14/03/2021
Organizational Unit Office of Evaluation
Level P-3
Duty Station ROME
Duration of Assignment Rome

Organizational context

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes, and  advocates at the local, national and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation.


Post's organizational accountability

As per the IFAD Evaluation Policy, the Independent Office of Evaluation (IOE) reports directly to the IFAD Executive Board (EB). The Evaluation Policy established that the evaluation function at IFAD will operate in line with internationally accepted principles for the evaluation of development assistance. Foremost among these are Independence, Accountability, Partnership and Learning. The IFAD Evaluation Policy also states that the IOE Director will ensure that IOE is staffed by independent, experienced evaluators.

Under the overall policy and management guidance of the IOE Director as well as the direct supervision and guidance of the Lead Evaluation Specialist, the Evaluation Officer is responsible for the full programme/project evaluation cycle of work. The Evaluation Officer’s accountabilities/key results are:

  • Project Evaluation
  • Contribution to Higher Plane Evaluation
  • Knowledge Management
  • Reporting

Key results expected / Major functional activities

1. PROJECT EVALUATION: The Evaluation Officer enhances IFAD’s success in advocating for the amelioration of rural food security and nutrition and the enabling of poor rural men and women to overcome their poverty through the conduct of project completion report validations and project performance evaluations and prepare reports in accordance with the Fund’s evaluation policy and evaluation manual. Activities include but are not limited to:

  1. Managing the entire evaluation process including developing the Approach Paper, desk reviews, organizing the evaluation mission;
  2. Liaising with country programme managers (CPMs) and other concerned stakeholders, leading or contributing to the fieldwork and guiding and managing consultants including assessing their performance; and
  3. Organizing in-country workshops/meetings, and making presentations on evaluation findings.

2. CONTRIBUTION TO HIGHER PLANE EVALUATION: The Evaluation Officer enhances IFAD’s ability to achieve its mandate by contributing to country strategy and programme evaluations, corporate level evaluations and evaluation syntheses. Activities include but are not limited to:

  1. Reviewing key documents, providing data analysis, drafting desk reviews and working papers on selected evaluation criteria;
  2. Interacting with CPMs and other stakeholders, conducting field work and presenting emerging findings to the Government and other key stakeholders in the country;
  3. Participating as requested in project and policy development teams and similar fora (e.g. Gender Policy Reference Group, OSC) to ensure that lessons learned from IFAD’s experience are incorporated in the proposed projects//policy design; and
  4. Preparing IOE comments on selected new IFAD policies for presentation to the evaluation committee.

3. KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: The Evaluation Specialist is accountable for contributing to the institutional understanding of evaluation both as an accountability as well as a learning process in order to promote and build on lessons learned and best practices. Activities include but are not limited to:

  1. Using evaluation findings as a source of knowledge on rural development issues that must be systematically communicated and disseminated to partners;
  2. Developing customized communication products as required, to be posted on IOE’s home page;
  3. Participating in IOE internal peer reviews of selected evaluations such as reviewing draft evaluation approach papers, synthesis reports on cross-cutting issues and regular reports and providing written comments for the purpose of enhancing the overall quality of the evaluations; and
  4. Documenting innovation and lessons learned and documenting pro-poor innovations emanating from the experience of IFAD projects.

4. REPORTING: The Evaluation Officer is accountable for drafting and finalizing regular as well as periodic reports and documents to ensure complete and pertinent information and data is available at HQ for strategy and policy development. Major activities include but are not limited to participate in IOE delegations to international evaluation related meetings, preparing concise, reader-friendly and yet analytically rigorous evaluation reports and present them in-house and to the EB’s Evaluation Committee.

5. Divisional management support (Work Programme and Budget and Human Resources): The Evaluation Officer will support IOE in the preparation of the Work Programme and Budget and in the management of IOE financial and human resources. This will entail: (i) contributing to the drafting of the work programme and budget document; (ii) supporting IOE management in the periodic monitoring of budget use; (iii) supporting IOE management in the division of labour and periodic monitoring of the same.

6. MANAGERIAL FUNCTIONS: The Evaluation Officer is accountable for integrity, transparency, and equity in the management of IFAD resources. This includes accountability for assigned financial and material resources and related processes including contracting.

 


Impact of Key results / Key performance indicators

Working as a seasoned professional, the Evaluation Officer contributes to IOE’s main objective of producing: (i) an evaluation of the performance and impact of IFAD supported projects, IFAD’s own performance as well as that of its partners; and (ii) learning effects and recommendations through evaluation work that lead to the improved performance of IFAD’s financed operations, IFAD’s policies and its strategies. Demonstrated technical expertise and credibility in country portfolio evaluation provides the foundation for validating and strengthening IFAD’s ability for country programme delivery. 


Representation / Work relationships

The Evaluation Officer contributes to the institutional understanding of evaluation as both an accountability and a learning process that must be conducted with an independent perspective and yet in close partnership with all stakeholders involved. Evaluation partners consist, inter alia, of counterparts in IFAD’s Programme Management Department, project field staff, government and non-government agencies in IFAD’s borrowing countries as well as other national and international development actors in rural development in these countries. Working across technical and functional activities, s/he works proactively and collaboratively to build effective partnerships in ensuring effective programming of the Fund’s resources.


Competencies

Organizational:

  • Strategic thinking and organizational development: Personal influence (Level 1)
  • Demonstrating Leadership: Personal leadership and attitude to change (Level 1)
  • Learning, sharing knowledge and innovating: Continuously seeks to learn, shares knowledge and innovates (Level 1)
  • Focusing on clients: Focuses on clients (Level 1)
  • Problem solving and decision making: Demonstrates sound problem solving and decision making ability (Level 1)
  • Managing time, resources and information: Manages own time, information and resources effectively (Level 1)
  • Team Work: Contributes effectively to the team (Level 1)
  • Communicating and negotiating: Communicates effectively: creates understanding between self and others (Level 1)
  • Building relationships and partnerships: Builds and maintains effective working relationships (Level 1)
  • Managing performance and developing staff: Manages staff and teams effectively (Level 1)

Technical/Functional:

  • Thorough knowledge of programme development and evaluation.
  • Field experience related to agricultural and rural development. 
  • Experience in using quantitative and qualitative methodologies applied to evaluation 
  • Capacity to communicate fluently with different counterparts (civil society, government authorities, local communities, project staff) to align partners and ensure programme improvements are implemented.
  • Writing skills: experience in writing analytical reports clearly, succinctly and convincingly.
  • Computer skills: full command of Microsoft applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and common Internet applications.
     

Minimum recruitment qualifications

 Education:

  • Advanced university degree from an accredited institution in rural development, agriculture, agricultural economics rural finance, development policy or related disciplines.

Experience:

  • At least five (5) years progressively responsible professional experience in programme evaluation with International financial institutions, development cooperation agencies. Demonstrated knowledge and experience of quantitative and qualitative methods for evaluation.  Experience in country programme design, supervision and loan/grant administration is a plus. 

Language requirements:

  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. Working knowledge of another official language (Arabic, French, or Spanish) is desirable.

Other information

Applicants should note that IFAD staff members are international civil servants subject to the authority of the President of IFAD. In accordance with IFAD's Human Resources Policy, staff members are subject to the authority of the President who can decide to assign them to any of the activities of the Fund. All International Professional staff members are required to be geographically mobile and positions in the professional category are subject to changes in location at any time in line with strategic priorities and reform initiatives in IFAD.  

In the interest of making most cost effective use of funds and resources, we are only able to respond to applicants who are short-listed for interview. Candidates who do not receive any feedback within three months should consider their application unsuccessful

Candidates may be required to take a written test and to deliver a presentation as well as participate in interviews.


This vacancy is now closed.
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