1. Introduction

Large mixed migration movements continue to top the global political agenda, as reflected in the 2016 UN New York Declaration, and remain at the forefront of concerns, discussions, and collaboration across the multilateral system and beyond. These movements create considerable challenges for countries of first asylum, transit, and destination, as well as countries of origin, including through impact on socio-economic environments, such as labour markets of host countries, particularly where these may have already been under pressure, and there is high unemployment. The majority of refugee populations are hosted by low- and middle-income countries. As displacement has become increasingly protracted, responses are becoming more focused on durable solutions to support more dignified, inclusive, and comprehensive programmes for refugees and the communities that host them to facilitate self-reliance and empowerment and strengthen social cohesion.

In this context, the Government of the Netherlands has launched a new partnership initiative in 2018– the PROSPECTS Partnership Programme– built on the combined strengths, experience, and values of specific development and humanitarian organizations to develop a new paradigm in responding to forced displacement crises. The partners include: the Government of the Netherlands, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the ILO, the UNHCR, UNICEF, and the World Bank. Grounded on results-based and country-led approaches (“bottom up”) in two identified regions of MENA and the Horn of Africa, the Partnership aims to help transform the way governments and other stakeholders, including the private sector, respond to forced displacement crises – and in particular: (1) to enhance the enabling environment for the socio-economic inclusion of forcibly displaced persons (to mitigate their plight during years of exile and to best prepare them for their return); (2) to enhance access to education and child protection for vulnerable children on the move; and (3) to strengthen the resilience of host communities through inclusive socio-economic development that also benefits forcibly displaced persons.

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Large mixed migration movements continue to top the global political agenda, as reflected in the 2016 UN New York Declaration, and remain at the forefront of concerns, discussions, and collaboration across the multilateral system and beyond. These movements create considerable challenges for countries of first asylum, transit, and destination, as well as countries of origin, including through impact on socio-economic environments, such as labour markets of host countries, particularly where these may have already been under pressure, and there is high unemployment. The majority of refugee populations are hosted by low- and middle-income countries. As displacement has become increasingly protracted, responses are becoming more focused on durable solutions to support more dignified, inclusive, and comprehensive programmes for refugees and the communities that host them to facilitate self-reliance and empowerment and strengthen social cohesion.

In this context, the Government of the Netherlands has launched a new partnership initiative in 2018– the PROSPECTS Partnership Programme– built on the combined strengths, experience, and values of specific development and humanitarian organizations to develop a new paradigm in responding to forced displacement crises. The partners include: the Government of the Netherlands, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the ILO, the UNHCR, UNICEF, and the World Bank. Grounded on results-based and country-led approaches (“bottom up”) in two identified regions of MENA and the Horn of Africa, the Partnership aims to help transform the way governments and other stakeholders, including the private sector, respond to forced displacement crises – and in particular: (1) to enhance the enabling environment for the socio-economic inclusion of forcibly displaced persons (to mitigate their plight during years of exile and to best prepare them for their return); (2) to enhance access to education and child protection for vulnerable children on the move; and (3) to strengthen the resilience of host communities through inclusive socio-economic development that also benefits forcibly displaced persons.

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PROSPECTS Programme

The PROSPECTS Programme aims to achieve the overall impact of Inclusive Policy environments and improved sustainable living conditions for women, men, girls and boys in refugee and vulnerable host communities in Sudan by 2027, through focusing on strengthening the socio-economic enabling environments for the communities that host different forcibly displaced populations (IDPs and refugees) to ensure sustainable decent work, training and education opportunities, as the policy, legislative and regulatory frameworks facilitate this integration process. In Sudan, the PROSPECTS will focus on interventions responding to the provision of adequate access to livelihood opportunities and durable solutions for the return and local integration of IDPs, refugees, and host communities.

Considering the position is based in Sudan, where the PROSPECTS partnership seeks to operationalize the country-specific pathways of change which resonate with the global PROSPECTS theory of change, the role directly contributes to advancing the objective of improving the living conditions for forcibly displaced persons and vulnerable host communities. By creating economic opportunities, supporting government-led systems, and enhancing community-based structures, the programme aims to strengthen self‑reliance, resilience, and long‑term inclusion of displaced populations and their hosts within national systems and local economies.

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To ensure that this is realized and that the PROSPECTS 2.0 systemic changes and outcomes are successful, two overarching policies are critical. These are:

Policy 1 - Transformation of refugee camps into sustainable (urban) settlements, which will provide a pathway into inclusive national educational and employment support services, including social protection.

Policy 2 - Social and child protection policies and systems strengthened to improve access to services and for inclusion of FDP and vulnerable HCs.

The collaboration of the five nexus partners, EKN, and advocacy with government at all levels on these two policies will be critical. These policies will directly impact the short and intermediate outcomes of Pillars 1, 2, 3, and 4 pathways. Sudan’s GCR pledges form the basis of implementation and the government and other actors’ delivery of verifiable and reliable refugee and host community data that measures results. The identified pillars for intervention are aimed at the realization of the policy priorities with enhanced access to learning, skills development, economic inclusion, social protection, and protection of FDPs.

This theory of change for PROSPECTS Sudan will be realized through the programme results in:

• An increased number of women, men, girls, and boys in refugee and host communities with quality education, relevant skills, and knowledge for school, life, and transition to decent work.
• An increased number of women and men in refugee and host communities with enhanced livelihoods and/or employment in safe/decent work
• Increased social protection and inclusion for women, men, girls, and boys in refugee and host communities.

Main purpose

The incumbent will be responsible for:

1. Monitoring and collecting data on key performance indicators (KPIs) and coordinating data collection exercises while ensuring data quality, which will facilitate knowledge sharing.
2. Supporting and assisting in project planning, preparation, and consolidating progress reports that highlight progress made, challenges, and lessons learned.
3. Supporting the ILO Programme and Budget reporting based on Country Programe Outcomes.
4. Monitoring the performance of implementing partners and training them on the ILO PROSPECTS MEL system.
5. Coordinating the preparation for the MEL Sessions and the drafting of the outcome document with the other PROSPECTS partners.
6. Providing targeted inputs for the ILO learning portal and other global learning products,
7. Co-organising learning events and exchanges according to learning opportunities.
8. Preparing and leading evaluation exercises as needed.

Additionally, the role involves participating in regular MEL meetings with ILO stakeholders to ensure alignment with broader ILO and UN goals.

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Within the ILO, the primary internal contacts will be the National Programme Coordinators of the PROSPECTS Programme in Sudan, who are coordinating the implementation of various thematic interventions, including skills development, enterprise promotion, youth engagement, labour-based works, communication, digitalisation, and social protection. Further internal contacts will include the ILO Country Office Addis Programme Unit, which coordinates ILO’s Programme and Budget interventions in the Country Office, as well as the ILO Global M&E and Learning and Knowledge Management Officers for the PROSPECTS Programme and other M&E colleagues within the Country Office who work on different Technical Cooperation Projects.

Externally, the position requires engagement with partner agencies such as IFC, UNICEF, UNHCR, and the World Bank, all of which are part of the PROSPECTS Programme, with the expectation that the official will coordinate ILO data input into the joint annual report and participate in the planning of joint monitoring and learning missions. Additionally, there will be contact with UN Working Groups, including the UNICF M&E Working Group, where the official serves as the focal point for ILO, ensuring the quality of ILO representation, as well as engagement with ILO Implementation Partners under the PROSPECTS Project, including constituents and national and international consultants.

2. Reporting lines

The position works under the supervision of the PROSPECTS Chief Technical Advisor for Ethiopia and Sudan who is leading country-level implementation of the PROSPECTS programmes and will receive further technical guidance from Deputy Programme Manager based in Sudan, DWT relevant specialists, Global M&E Officer of the PROSPECTS Programme, Global Learning and Knowledge Management Officer of the PROSPECTS Programme and from the Country Director, ILO CO Addis Ababa.

3. Main duties and responsibilities

The Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Officer will have the following duties and responsibilities:

• Develop the Country MEL Work Plan based on the Global MEL system for ILO PROSPECTS, including the development/adjustment of MEL tools/templates in collaboration with the PROSPECTS Global M&E and Learning and Knowledge Management Officers.
• Collect data on a regular basis to support the monitoring & evaluation of the programme’s KPI, using primary or secondary data sources, including undertaking regular field visits to support implementation of monitoring and evaluation activities.
• Contribute to inception meetings with new Implementing Partners, helping them understand PROSPECTS MEL expectations and requirements.
• Support knowledge identification and exchange within the country, and between PROSPECTS country teams on shared areas of interest through learning events, reflection workshops/ webinars, and exchange visits.
• Provide timely review and coordination of Sudan’s inputs to PROSPECTS global learning products, and coordinate and ensure the quality of annual surveys, midline and end‑line studies for key project performance indicators (KPIs), including developing a strategy to collect missing data so that all KPIs and learning questions outlined in the global data‑collection strategy for ILO PROSPECTS 2024–2027 are fully informed and documented.
• Develop data quality assurance processes to ensure data reliability, validity, timeliness of data entry and analysis, and the harmonization of all data collection systems. Update and maintain the M&E database, analyse data, and identify findings for reporting purposes.
• Develop and keep track of a beneficiary database, based on key programme outputs, using tools to avoid double-counts, and ensuring timely data entry.

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• Ensure the programme’s planning tools (e.g., work plans, financial forecasting, etc.) and its processes are adequate and support the programme team to develop their work plans and monitor their progress efficiently.
• Support reflection meetings with implementing partners at regular intervals and ensure action points from reflections are captured and communicated with the project team and support adaptive management responses.
• Initiate preparation of drafting / producing consolidated semi-annual progress reports, including identification of problems, causes of potential bottlenecks in implementation, and lessons learned. Provide specific recommendations based on lessons and ensure timely submission of reports in accordance with approved deadlines and reporting formats.
• Conduct regular monitoring & evaluations of implementing partners/service providers’ performance and delivery, train them to fill any knowledge gap on MEL tools and templates, and identify best practices and develop case studies to capture and promote qualitative results of the programme.
• Support the coordination of MEL Sessions and the drafting of the MEL outcome document with PROSPECTS partners, while using and updating the tools necessary to calculate indirect beneficiaries reached in Sudan.
• Prepare the programme for the mid-term and final evaluations, and provide all required support to ensure a smooth process and lead in coordination and implementation of the learning agenda, and support the project team to maintain a sound knowledge management and sharing of the programme, with other ILO participating countries and other Implementing Agencies of PROSPECTS
• Monitor the implementation of midterm evaluation recommendations with the Projects Team, and participate in regular MEL meetings with other ILO focal points and the global M&E and Knowledge Management Officers to share progress, challenges, and solutions, while supporting Sudan’s M&E needs, including within the Decent Work Country Programme and the UN Interim Cooperation Framework.
• Perform other relevant duties as assigned by supervisor and or Country Office Director.

4. Qualifications required

Education:

First-level university degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Development, Statistics, ICT, Social Science, Economics, Education, Labour, or related field, and strong knowledge of Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning on Forced Displacement, preferably in the Horn of Africa region with focus on enterprise, skills, and livelihoods interventions.

Experience:

• At least three years of professional experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, and learning within the international development context.
• Experience with project and results-based management tools.
• Experience in developing and managing Monitoring and Evaluation systems.
• Expertise in analysing data using statistical software and managing databases.
• Capacity to produce high-quality briefs and analytical reports that demonstrate critical thinking, in English.
• Experience in planning, managing, and providing technical backstopping to surveys and other data collection methods.
• Experience developing and refining data collection tools.

Technical requirements:

Good knowledge of development, economics, as well as economic poverty reduction, and social policies. Knowledge of developing Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning tools, methodologies of conducting surveys including tracer studies, and developing knowledge products from evaluation reports is an added advantage to the position.

Languages:

Excellent command of English. Working knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

Competencies:

• Excellent team building and collaboration.
• Excellent knowledge of results-based management.
• Excellent knowledge of monitoring and evaluation concepts and practice, including the Theory of Change approach in planning, monitoring, and evaluation.
• Excellent knowledge of PC software (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and good knowledge of Kobo Toolbox/ONA, Stata, R, Power BI, and other data analysis and presentation software.
• Good research and analytical skills.

In addition to the ILO core competencies [Integrity and transparency, Sensitivity to diversity, Orientation to learning and knowledge sharing, Client orientation, Communication, Orientation to change, takes responsibility for performance, Quality orientation, Collaboration], this position requires:

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• Ability to interpret and work within applicable rules, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Ability to identify and analyse information needs and classify them according to ILO standards.
• Good drafting and editing skills.
• Ability to maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders.
• Attention to detail and skills in design, layout, formatting, and editing documents.
• Ability to foster effective two-way communication, understanding, manage, and disseminate information to a varied audience.
• Ability to adapt quickly to new software and systems.
• Ability to manage competing priorities.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment and to demonstrate gender-sensitive and non-discriminatory behaviour and attitudes.