Design Monitoring and Evaluation Assistant
Bujumbura, Burundi
Design Monitoring & Evaluation – Africa - Central & East /
Full Time - Local /
On-site
About
Founded in 1982,Search for Common Ground (Search)is an international non-profit organization working to end violent conflict and build healthy, safe, and just societies. Using innovative tools, Search seeks to transform the way the world deals with conflict, away from adversarial approaches, towards cooperative solutions. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium and Washington, DC, Search is present in more than 30 countries with over 800 employees worldwide.
Search has been working in Burundi since 1995 and works at the individual, institutional and community levels to promote inclusive decision-making and management mechanisms and to strengthen the capacity of all components of Burundian society to participate in a meaningful, effective and responsible manner. Its objective is to promote inclusive, effective and responsible participation in the process of social transformation for a just and equitable society.
Search for Common Ground has made Design, Monitoring & Evaluation (DME) a priority within the organization. As an agency, the Strategy Alignment Team (Evidence and Learning) and country programs are upgrading techniques, skills, and expectations in the area of MEARL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, Research and Learning) to further improve our ability to design, monitor, conduct and evaluate intelligent, effective and meaningful programs to make our mission a reality.
On the request of ENABEL, since August 2024, Search has been implementing the four-year project “Providing Technical Assistance for the Integration of Do No Harm Principles and the Development of a Conflict-Sensitive Approach for ENABEL’s Cooperation Program in Burundi,” with ENABEL’s financial support, to equip staff with the tools needed to integrate conflict sensitivity into their work.
In its program in Burundi, ENABEL uses a “double anchoring” approach, which means working both at the local and central levels. This helps respond to community needs through targeted actions in specific provinces, while also strengthening institutions at the national level. By combining these two levels, the program supports better planning, stronger institutions, and long-term benefits for local communitie
Summary of Position
- Search Burundi is seeking a DM&E Assistant who will support the implementation of monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning activities within this project in partnership with ENABEL. He/She will assist in data collection, entry, and quality checks while ensuring timely reporting on project indicators. The role also involves managing feedback mechanisms, documenting lessons learned, and supporting reflection sessions. Overall, he/she will help ensure programs remain evidence-based, accountable, and focused on continuous improvement.
- She/he would work closely with the direct support of DME Manager, to conduct regular snapshots, track project monitoring data, implement evaluations, and ensure documentation of results. She/he will report to the DME Manager.
Responsibilities
- The DME Assistant will be dedicated to the following responsibilities, liaising daily with different project ambassadors to meet their specific DM&E needs. The DME assistant will monitor trends and capture the experiences of ENABEL’s target groups in relation to conflict dynamics within their areas, while also conducting comparative analysis of perceptions across the different stakeholders involved. This process will regularly pulse checks on the evolution of key contextual factors, which in turn provides critical insights to inform timely programmatic adjustments. By doing so, interventions can be adapted in real time to ensure greater relevance, responsiveness, and effectiveness in rapidly changing contexts.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Support in developing data collection tools (surveys, interview guides, monitoring grids).
- Assist in setting up monitoring plans and indicators.
- Contribute to baseline and endline assessments by preparing tools and logistics
- Conduct or support field data collection (interviews, focus groups, observations).
- Ensure accurate entry of monitoring data into databases or spreadsheets.
- Maintain well-organized records of raw data, reports, and supporting documents.
- Track progress of activities against indicators in the M&E plan.
- Assist in preparing regular monitoring reports and dashboards.
- Support “pulse checks” or rapid assessments in targeted communities.
- Contribute to assessments by coordinating logistics and compiling feedback.
- Support analysis of trends, lessons learned, and good practices.
- Help organize reflection sessions, learning workshops, or dissemination events
Contributions
- Liaise with field staff, community observers, and project managers to ensure timely data flow.
- Provide logistical support for surveys, training, and monitoring missions.
- Support the M&E team in preparing presentations, briefs, or illustrated reports.
- Assist in the development and/or finalization of the project Work Plan and keep it updated in accordance with project activities and timeframes as relevant
- Contribute to, identify and synthesize good practices and lessons learned to share as part of quarterly reflection meetings
- Other duties that are broadly in line with the above key contributions as assigned.
Minimum Qualifications
- Essential:
- Highly Desirable:
1. Minimum of seven (2) years of work experience in a civil society or NGO settings.
2. At least five (2) years of field-based data collection and analysis experience.
3. At least two (2) years of work experience in design, monitoring, and evaluation methodologies.
4. Bachelor’s Degree in a related area required (Social sciences, statistics, development studies, Project Management, Monitoring&Evaluation).
5. Knowledge of logical framework and results framework planning and evaluation methodologies, and the ability to coach and train others in their use.
6. Ability to multi-task and work to meet tight deadlines.
7. Proficient inuse ofMicrosoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
8. Excellent ability to communicate effectively in Kirundi, English and French, both verbally and in writing;
9. Ability to travel in the countryside.
10. Experience working internationally and specifically in conflict/fragile state environments
11. Demonstrated capacities to analyze the assessment results and suggest some recommendations et show the lessons
12. Data collection & analysis (surveys, qualitative & quantitative methods).
13. Report writing and presentation.
14. Knowledge of M&E frameworks (e.g., theory of change, logical frameworks).
15. Strong IT/data visualization skills (Excel, Powerquerry, SPSS, Etc).
16. Communication & teamwork skills.
Interested candidates are invited to submit their application (CV and cover letter) online. The closing date for applications is October 6, 2025.
Only shortlisted candidates for the written test will be contacted.
