MEAL Officer

The MEAL Officer is responsible for monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning for anticipatory action and early response projects of the Humanitarian Action, Climate, and Disaster Resilience program. The role leads data collection and quality assurance, including rapid monitoring around triggers and activations, validates beneficiary and community selection, tracks indicators on timeliness, reach, and effects, and analyzes and reports results. The MEAL Officer manages feedback and accountability data, facilitates learning processes, including After Action Reviews, and strengthens staff and partner capacity in using data for decision-making. The position works part-time across assigned projects, reports to the MEAL and Communications Manager, is matrixed to the Project Manager of each assigned project, and is based in Quezon City, with regular travel to project areas.

Data Collection and Quality

• Accountable for the data collection systems of assigned anticipatory action and early response projects and the quality, reliability, and timeliness of the data they produce.
• Lead baselines, routine monitoring, trigger and activation monitoring, post-distribution and post-action monitoring, rapid assessments, surveys, and evaluations in line with each project's MEAL plan.
• Design and maintain digital data collection tools (KoBo or ODK) that can be deployed quickly at activation, ensuring tools are tested and aligned with project indicators.
• Recruit, train, and supervise enumerators and field data collectors, ensuring consistent and ethical data collection practices.
• Conduct data quality assurance, including field verification, spot checks, validation, and data cleaning, and address data quality issues promptly.
• Apply informed consent, confidentiality, and secure data storage and protection standards to all project data.

Indicator Tracking, Analysis and Reporting

• Maintain and update indicator tracking tables against project logframes and targets, and report progress regularly to project managers.
• Track trigger thresholds, forecast and early warning information, activation decisions, and the time from trigger to delivery of assistance.
• Analyze quantitative and qualitative data on reach, timeliness, and effects on households, and prepare dashboards, summaries, and analytical outputs for project managers and program leadership.
• Contribute analysis and evidence to monthly, donor, and final reports, ensuring accuracy and consistency with reporting requirements.
• Flag performance gaps and data trends early to inform decisions and adjustments.

Feedback and Accountability Mechanism

• Support the rapid setup and daily functioning of accessible and confidential feedback and complaints channels in project areas, together with project teams.
• Ensure community members, including women, persons with disabilities, and other at-risk groups, have safe and accessible ways to share feedback.
• Record, classify, and route feedback and complaints following CARE protection, safeguarding, and confidentiality protocols.
• Analyze feedback data regularly, identify trends and gaps, and share findings with project managers and the Protection, Gender and Inclusion Officer.
• Track follow-up actions and closure of feedback and complaints cases, and report overdue cases.
• Promote community awareness of the feedback mechanism, and strengthen staff capacity to handle feedback appropriately.

Learning and Capacity Support

• Train project staff and partners on data collection, indicators, and the use of data for decision-making.
• Facilitate learning sessions, reflection meetings, and After Action Reviews, and document lessons on trigger design, activation, and early response delivery.
• Support adaptive management by providing timely data and insights to project managers.
• Provide MEAL inputs to assessments, concept notes, and proposals of the program.
• Support alignment of MEAL tools and indicators across projects and partners.
• Work under the guidance of the MEAL and Communications Manager to apply CARE MEAL standards and contribute to program-level learning products.

Beneficiary and Community Selection Validation

• Validate that community, household, and targeting selection follows agreed criteria and includes women, persons with disabilities, and poorer households.
• Verify beneficiary and registration lists prepared by project teams for accuracy, duplication, and consent, including rapid validation before activation.
• Conduct sample field checks of site and community selection, and report discrepancies to project managers.
• Ensure targeting and registration processes follow safeguarding, inclusion, and data protection requirements.
• Maintain a protected beneficiary database.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Statistics, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Public Health, Information Technology, or a related field.
• Master's degree or advanced training in Monitoring and Evaluation, Research Methods, Data Analysis, or a related field.
• At least 3 years of experience in monitoring, evaluation, or survey work for development or humanitarian projects.
• Proficiency in KoBo or ODK and Excel.
• Experience managing enumerators and data quality.
• Strong analytical, communication, and reporting skills in English and Filipino, and ability to travel to project areas.
• Experience with anticipatory action, early response, early warning, or forecast-based programming.
• Experience monitoring cash and voucher assistance, including post-distribution monitoring.
• Knowledge of institutional donor MEAL requirements and accountability to affected populations.
• Skills in dashboards (Power BI or similar) and statistical software.

Work Location: In person