Head - Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) and Science of Scaling at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, we improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Head - Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) and Science of Scaling

Ref No: DDG-R4D/HMEL/SS/05/25
Location: Ibadan, Oyo
Employment Type: Contract
Contract Duration: 3 Years

Description

• IITA has a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) unit reporting to the Deputy Director General that is also in charge of gathering and sharing evidences  of impacts.
• The Head - Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning and Science of Scaling shall provide leadership for institutionalizing MEL and will be a member of the IITA Foresight, Impact Assessment and Scaling Program, focusing on addressing key research questions related to the monitoring, learning and scaling of the institute's innovations.
• This will include documenting and sharing data and learnings on research and scaling & delivery activities in the institute. The Head will also provide strong leadership for establishing and nurturing a strong, integrated, and effective institutional M&E framework for IITA.
• This will be with the objective to create the conditions for an effective science of scaling program based on project monitoring data at IITA and partners levels.
• Leadership tasks include but are not limited to, guiding the institution into building a strong MEL culture and practice; obtaining, institutionalizing, and managing software platforms to automate the aggregation and presentation of necessary MEL data; providing oversight to ensure quality data collection, analysis, and reporting to IITA management, donors, and other stakeholders promptly; building and overseeing the implementation of a strategy for capacity development of MEL personnel, focal persons as well as key partners to ensure best practices.
• The Head of MEL and Science of Scaling shall provide support to hubs/projects/programs on proposal/strategy development, baseline and special studies, annual reporting, mid-term, and final evaluation methodologies; and facilitate critical reflection, and learning across the institution based on information generated from the MEL system.
• This will include the production and dissemination of reports for tracking progress toward IITA KPIs. She/He will contribute to reporting to the board of trustees on these KPIs.
• The Head of MEL and Science of Scaling shall lead the development and implementation of processes for monitoring and data collection from IITA key scaling projects. She/He will ensure buy-ins through the capacity building of project managers to produce evidence-based information that can be used to learn and communicate about successes and failures in scaling activities at IITA.

Position Responsibilities
Institutional MEL Leadership (40%):

• Develop Institutional MEL framework and related infrastructure that supports data collection and analysis across the institute (programs, projects, etc), with a higher focus on data related to the institute’s KPIs.
• Work with the impact assessment team to streamline methodologies for measuring results. Collate/aggregate impact assessment results to provide a broad picture of IITA’s progress toward its KPIs.
• Review progress on achieving institutional objectives and provide IITA Management with information about important lessons learned and replicable practices.
• Lead the alignment of IITA's Institutional Performance Indicators and the CGIAR System Level Strategic Outcomes for overall performance and contributions of IITA to the CGIAR.
• Lead the integration of results-based management into all programs and projects interventions, ensuring appropriate results frameworks are developed to support monitoring activities.
• Lead the generation of verifiable information for strategic decision-making by aggregating data from all reporting levels.
• Introduce processes for simple quality and verifiable data generation in order to document scaling pathways and resulting outputs and outcomes.
• Represent IITA on the CGIAR MEL groups, and regional MEL communities of practice and maintain/develop MEL-related collaborative relationships with strategic partners on behalf of IITA.
• Coordinate the institute-wide MEL Community of Practice (MEL COP) that includes MEL professionals and focal persons of projects both at HQ and in hubs.
• Collaborate with other research support units to implement knowledge management systems that provide up-to-date information on institutional performance and operational effectiveness. Also, identify and minimize existing M&E procedures leading to duplicated efforts to save IITA's resources.
• Provide leadership for increasing appreciation of the need for quality MEL across the Institute, as well as increase confidence within the Unit by mentoring and appreciation of its personnel.
• Develop staff capacity in maintaining data quality standards and conduct data quality audits of all sources of M&E data that are reported and support the use of appropriate software systems within the hubs, country offices, and programs/projects as well as linkage to the institution-wide software system.
• Prepare, publish, and share communication materials documenting research outcomes and impacts and lessons learned across IITA, One CGIAR Initiatives and projects.
• Perform any other job-related tasks as may be assigned by the supervisors. 

Hub/Program/Project Level M&E (30%):

• Lead the mapping of programs and projects to IITA KPIs across the hubs for appropriate alignment and reporting.
• Provide strategic guidance for the implementation of MEL including institutionalization and automation of M&E processes across all IITA hubs, projects, programs
• Provide support to Hub MEL teams to generate verifiable information to support the hub strategic plans and to make strategic decision-making.
• Support program/project teams in the development and implementation of MEL systems that satisfy institutional and donor standards, which include:
• MEL plans with clearly defined results framework (addressing institutional and donor needs) and reflecting causal models.
• Procedures for collection, collation, analysis, reporting, and use of data for decision-making.
• Monitoring, documentation, and learning approaches that are integrated, aligned, and mainstreamed into project activities and coordinated with stakeholders.
• Plans for evaluation studies on outcome and impact-level achievements.
• Guide the hub MEL teams to review progress on achieving the hub objectives (per the hub strategies) and provide hub teams with information about important lessons learned and replicable practices.
• Lead the implementation of knowledge management systems across the hubs that provide up-to-date information on hub and institutional performance, and operational effectiveness.
• Collaborate with the impact assessment team to provide support for the assessment of project and programs impacts.

Science of scaling (30%):

• Provide guidance in identifying and assembling key components of the science of scaling in collaboration with the R4D and P4D Directorate. Such will include a compendium of innovations being scaled, the different scaling pathways, the stakeholder engagement process, etc.
• Align the Science of scaling framework to programs, projects and overall IITA scaling strategy.
• Guide the design and development of a framework (e.g., research questions regarding the effectiveness of different scaling pathways being used) to implement the Science of Scaling across IITA projects and programs in collaboration with the P4D Directorate.
• Mainstream the Science of scaling framework in the overall MEL activities of projects, programs and overall institutional MEL framework.
• Lead the design, development and use of appropriate data collection tools and processes to implement the Science of scaling across IITA.
• Synthesize the data and learnings from implementing the Science of scaling framework to support the overall IITA KPIs and as inputs into the P4D strategic plan.
• Develop staff capacity to conduct MEL to support the science of scaling across hubs, country offices, and programs/projects.

Requirements
Educational Qualifications

• The candidate should hold at least an Advanced Degree (MSc / PhD) from a reputable university in agricultural sciences, monitoring and evaluation or any other social sciences.

Core Competencies:

• At least 15 years of relevant work experience.
• Excellent track record in developing M&E frameworks at Institution and project levels.
• Proven leadership skills and providing guidance to a team of staff across projects.
• Demonstrated record on documenting and sharing technology uptake and lessons learned in the process.
• Excellent communication skills evidence by capacity to prepare and deliver clear and concise presentations.
• Work experience within multicultural teams and international organizations or companies and highly knowledgeable of Africa’s social, agricultural, and rural development and economic development issues, questions, and challenges.
• Fluency in English or French language with a working knowledge of the other.

Benefits

• Duty Station: Ibadan, Nigeria

Application Closing Date
4th June, 2025.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Note
General information:

• The contract will be for an initial period of three years.
• IITA offers an internationally competitive remuneration package paid in US Dollars.