Consultant - Digitization of IRC Nigeria Database (ECHO PPP) at the International Rescue Committee (IRC)

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Consultant - Digitization of IRC Nigeria Database (ECHO PPP)

Requisition ID: req23143
Location: Maudiguri, Borno
Sector: Monitoring & Evaluation
Employment Type: Part-Time
Employment Category: Consultant
Open to Expatriates: No
Country Program:  Nigeria
Proposed Dates: Projected start and end date
Duration: December 15, 2021 to April 12, 2022 / 90 Days (excluding weekends)

Background of the Project 

• In partnership with the European Commission of Humanitarian Aid Operation (ECHO), IRC’s Education and Child protection sectors are implementing a project titled “Protective and adaptative Education Approach for Children in Emergency (PEACE) that is currently implemented across the lake Chad Region of Cameroun, Niger, and Nigeria.
• The project supports both non-formal and formal education supporting most marginalized children to have access to education and learning.
• In Nigeria, the PEACE project is being implemented in the three states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe.
• The project takes an integrated approach (Education and Child protection) to support school-aged boys and girls gain access to educational opportunities and improve their academic and social-emotional skills in a safe and conducive learning space.
• The project is a three-year project implementation aimed to reached 56,728 children in gaining relevant literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional skills.

Purpose of Consultancy

• The purpose of digitizing IRC Nigeria’s Education and Child Protection programmatic dataflows, from the point of data collection to field and country offices, is primarily to improve the quality, availability, and source of programme data, both for ECHO specific data and for the overall education and Child Protection programme team (sectors) and across project cycles.
• This approach will enhance the use of data for both strategic and programmatic decision making and action.
• Digitizing programmatic dataflows is also in line with Country and West Africa Measurement regional priorities, in particular transitioning away from paper-based data collection and the Excel for data management, to the use of CommCare for data entry and PowerBI for presentation of data in online databases.

Scope of Work
Portfolio review and getting up to speed:

• Review of ECHO PPP project proposal, MEAL requirements and reporting formats.
• Review of additional internal MEAL requirements and reporting formats.
• Desk review of IRC Nigeria ECHO PPP MEAL project documents and learning to date

Data collection tools: strengthening, standardisation and digitisation with CommCare:

• Clear mapping of data flow for each ECHO PPP intervention / M&E activity, providing clarity on where data structures / form sections can be the standardised and where variation is necessary - paying particular attention to the level of data (individual, class/ group, and/or school) and implications for data structure.
• Review of data collection tools and corresponding source data and identification of priorities for their strengthening and digitisation.
• Work with RMAC / RSS and TAs to establish a template CommCare form and database / dashboard structure that can be used for tracking trainings and sensitisation sessions.
• Provision of Excel data entry sheets that are derived from CommCare exports and provide a 'plan b' for data entry in the web app of CommCare where the data is not entered in a tablet.

PowerBI:

• Work with the RSS to set-up the dataflow and reporting requirements for summary data corresponding to the Programme Indicator dashboard, and other Power BI dashboards automatic presentation of programme data
• Work with the RSS to set-up the Programme Indicator dashboard, and other Power Bi dashboards automatic presentation of programme data

Data Management and presentation:

• Ensure that all data is stored in the IRC Nigeria CommCare space.
• Train the team on data quality assurance processes, including on-site verification, field level data verification in CommCare and Excel export
• Review field and country level routines for data driven decision making and recommend remedial action to ensure that they are as efficient and effective as possible
• Country level spot check/audit in CommCare and PowerBI

Trainings:

• Train data focal point on Commcare for mobile and web data collection and entry
• Train data focal point on country level administration of Commcare Enterprise license

Deliverables

• Configuration of CommCare applications and forms for data collection or entry for priority indicators / interventions
• Fully Aligned source data and CommCare exports to summary data for the Programme Indicator Dashboard
• Recommendations made to the Education Coordinator, MEAL Coordinator and DDP for the maintenance and continued improvement to digitisation and standardisation of dataflows with PowerBi and CommCare

Qualifications

• A Degree in Computer Science, Information Management, Statistics, Epidemiology, Demography or related field is required, with at least a programming certificate
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant experience in designing and programming database management system is required.
• Proven experience in the use of ICD4D tools, including Commcare, ODK, PowerBI, etc
• Experience in writing and maintaining database design documentation and operating manual would be an asset.
• Experience in training or assisting personnel in the use of database management and different software is desirable.

Payment Rate and Schedule

• Note the level of the person is what will count.  In this situation we only need an IT literate manager and there will be in-country support from the overall Digitization role, plus from the MEAL Specialist.
• Therefore we should take the Manager salary plus 20% to align to the other digitization role and divide it by the number of days. If there is money left we can have the flexibility to extend the duration if necessary.
• The 20% can be paid on after quality check and sign-off by IRC of the a) digitized data collection tools in CommCare, b) Excel metadata for the Power Bi indicator dashboard. The rest of the salary paid monthly.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.