MONITORING AND EVALUATION OFFICER

CEZAM and Associates, Limited, also referred to as HLB Cezam, is a professional services firm registered in Kenya in 2002 and is an independent member of HLB International. We provide quality and personalized service to local and international organizations executing business in Kenya. At CEZAM and Associates Limited, we have expertise providing project management, external and internal audit services, management consultancy, tax advisory, corporate reconstruction, corporate and personal finance and company secretarial services in a wide range of industry sectors including public finance, financial and insurance services, agribusiness, education, manufacturing, hospitality, investment, not-for-profit and construction.
CEZAM and Associates Limited is currently implementing a five-year program funded by United States African Development Foundation (USADF) that focuses on food security, renewable energy, women and youth empowerment through entrepreneurship.
CEZAM and Associates Limited seeks to employ a qualified Monitoring and Evaluation Officer (M & E Officer) who will be responsible for leading the Monitoring & Evaluation as well as supporting the implementation of technical assistance specific to CEZAM-USADF grantees in Kenya and those assigned outside the country from time to time. Working with the Program Manager and other CEZAM-USADF staff, the role will help USADF applicants to design and implement a strategic result oriented and coordinated approach in project designs that are specifically targeted to responding to openly advertised call for proposals, debt and equity investments. Upon successful project award/successful commercial loans bidding, the M & E Officer will support the winning organizations through project start up, implementation, evaluation and close out. The M&E Officer is expected to provide USADF Kenya grant recipients technical assistance in monitoring the activities and performance of their grants, ensure compliance with their grant agreements, and identify and manage problems that arise during project implementation. Applicants must possess 3 or more years of experience in monitoring and evaluation and experience, not limited to working with international development organizations. Applicants must also have experience in impact assessment, leadership skills, grant/proposals/expressions of interest designing skills, financial analysis, market analysis, human resource management, technology/business processes analysis, budgeting, community engagement and development, and entrepreneurial skills. The person will be based at the CEZAM-USADF Program office in Nairobi and expected to conduct site visits to USADF Kenya grantee project sites over 60% of the time.

Specific responsibilities of the position will include:

  1. Support and provide training to USADF grantees in their project Monitoring and Evaluation activities on their business and economic development focused projects.
  2. Provide financial analysis training to grantees to enable them assess their financial projections, business plans and business performance.
  3. Work with USADF grantees to develop systems to track grantee activities against grant implementation, and record the progress of grantees compared to performance measures of the grant.
  4. Work with grantees to develop monitoring plans with smart indicators and tools for data collection for tracking progress against agreed workplan targets and set indicators.
  5. Train grantees on data analysis to enable them make informed decisions based on data.
  6. Assist applicants seeking funding from USADF in preparing project plans, including project implementation plans based on careful analysis of technology choices and financial and human resource requirements.
  7. Assist prospective grantees to develop financial goals and performance indicators and targets that will be used in measuring and validating projects progress and results.
  8. Review all performance reports including grantees’ quarterly performance and financial reports to assess progress and achievement of objectives; develop remediation plans jointly with the grantees, and answer questions and concerns raised by USADF Washington.
  9. Train grantees in the preparation of quarterly reports and in conducting data quality audits to verify the accuracy of data reported and ensure that grantees maintain adequate documentation to support the reports submitted.
  10. Provide grantees with USADF – mandated grant management training and proactive guidance on disbursing, managing, and accounting for grant funds. The training will be provided not later than forty-five (45) days after the effective date of specific grantee’s signing agreement with USADF in order to help them manage, and account for their grant funds.
  11. Assist grantees in gathering information, during project implementation, that will be needed to attain and remain sustainable.
  12. Assist grantees to develop analytical skills to understand the situation and financial conditions of their projects; reviewing and analyzing grantee business plans, and assessment of ongoing projects’ financial performance.
  13. Assist grantees to ensure the accurate and timely submission of their disbursement requests including verification of information in the reports.
  14. Conduct site visits to USADF grantees to discuss project progress, assess the issues or problems, and answer any questions or concerns of the grantees. Prepare and submit to USADF, site visit reports of these visits in consultation with the Program Manager.
  15. Provide technical assistance to grantees in monitoring the activities and performance of their grants to ensure compliance with conventions and expectations and the identification and management of problems or issues that arise during implementation of the project. This will also include projects under the entrepreneurship and off-grid sectors.
  16. Identify and pursue business development for CEZAM and Associates Limited as envisaged in Appendix A of the USADF-CEZAM Cooperative Agreement, including coordination with the Cezam and Associates Limited directors and the professional staff on the Program in the development of viable revenue generation strategies in the Counties where the USADF Kenya Program has a presence.
  17. Work with grantees to ensure they get value for money whenever they engage external vendors by ensuring they conduct competitive bidding and that they draft contracts that will protect them from exploitation by vendors.
  18. Timely development of projects working with other consultants as per the number of projects brought to CEZAM and Associates Limited by USADF for project development and giving feedback to consultants on the areas that need improvement.
  19. In consultation with the Program Manager and the other Consultants, support grantees with trainings that will enhance their capacity for accessing follow on financing, and compliance with USADF policies and guidelines and the Government of Kenya laws and requirements.
  20. Compile and submit weekly, monthly and quarterly qualitative and quantitative reports as required, analyze the reports to provide information that guides program implementation and follow up on recommended actions.
  21. Coordinate assessments and surveys for baselines and end of project evaluations and develop terms of reference for the evaluation of program impacts.
  22. Prepare and train assigned portfolio of grantees for financial audits ensuring all expenses are fully supported and, all grant funds fully accounted for, thereby ensuring project compliance.
  23. Contribute to CEZAM-USADF Program work quality by reviewing QRs and PDs for completeness, accuracy, consistency of documents and ensuring grantee prioritization of investments to where most impact on members/customers and financial benefit is expected.
  24. Provide internal M&E capacity building for program staff.
  25. Work on additional programmatic duties as might be assigned from time to time.

Reporting and Commitment:

The applicant will report to the Program Manager.
Commitment: The position is full-time and the successful applicant is expected to commit 100% of their time to this position without accepting any other full-time employment or engagements that could be in conflict with this appointment.

Qualifications:

We are seeking candidates with the following essential qualifications:
  1. A Kenyan national – living in Kenya 100% of the time and residing within Nairobi Metropolitan areas.
  2. Holder of a Master’s degree in community development, monitoring and evaluation, adult education, business administration/management, public administration, economics, sociology, or other relevant areas of
  3. Five years or more experience in the development, design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of investments at the community level, preferably with programs that help grassroots groups in income-generating activities or community development
  4. Experience in using and evaluating tools and techniques for data
  5. Experience in measuring socio-economic
  6. Knowledge of participatory development, including participatory research, with some experience in methods such as PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal).
  7. Demonstrated experience in preparing training plans, systems of monitoring and evaluation, including performance indicators and measurable targets, and performance
  8. Experience in the assessment of organizational strengths and weaknesses in participatory development activities.
  9. Experience in designing and preparing training plans, and in the organization, coordination, and facilitation of training workshops.
  10. Demonstrated experience supporting small groups and community organizations with project organization and administrative
  11. Computer skills, including Excel and Word, experience developing and ensuring quality control of spreadsheets and
  12. Proven experience in supporting and building capacity of African Startup, Growth and Expansion stage Organizations and Enterprises.
  13. Experience in working and knowledge of funding and reporting requirements of various development/funding partners including U.S. African Development Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.K. Department for International Development, Australian Aid for International Development, Canada’s Foreign Aid, European Union, United Nations, World Bank, IFC, Local and International Investors/Lenders – interested in African/Kenyan Enterprises and other financial institutions and/or development partners.
  14. Excellent interpersonal, negotiation, analytical, research, networking and communication skills as well as the ability to work collaboratively to impart these skills to a broad spectrum of colleagues and clients.
  15. Excellent leadership, monitoring, impact tracking and relationship building skills.
  16. Excellent knowledge and practice of presenting investment impact stories through facts, figures and stories.
  17. Proven ability to conceptualize, innovate, plan and execute ideas, as well as to impart knowledge and teach skills.
  18. An effective and energetic team player, with the ability to work in a multidisciplinary and multicultural environment.
  19. Strong self-starter, self-motivated and has high creativity skills, with capacity to work independently and meet deadlines.
  20. Knowledge of grant management, monitoring and evaluation practices including strong financial planning and management skills.
  21. Ability to conduct baselines and evaluations using Poverty Probability Index (PPI) and Organizational Capacity Assessment Tool (OCAT) is essential.
  22. Ability to analyze complex data using data analysis software like SPSS and Stata and present information for decision making.
  23. Excellent knowledge of English including reading comprehension, and fluency in one or more local languages.
  24. Ability to travel across all parts of Kenya at least 60% of the time.
  25. Qualifications/Experience in Agriculture/Agribusiness/Animal and Crop Management, Agricultural Engineering, Youth Entrepreneurship Development, Renewable Energy will be an added advantage.

The position is for an initial fixed-term of 6 months, renewable annually, based on performance and availability of funds. The position comes with an attractive and competitive package. For more information about CEZAM and Associates Limited, visit our websites at (www.hlbcezam.com and www.cezam-usadf.org).

Applications will be accepted up to March 24, 2023. Please submit your letter of motivation with a detailed CV/resume stating your current position, current and expected remuneration, email, telephone contacts, names and full contact details of three referees to [email protected] Do not attach any additional documents at this point. Only Applications labeled: Application for M & E Officer will be filtered for review.

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