NATIONAL POST: Quality Assurance Specialist, NOC, Dakar, Senegal

The Position :

The Quality Assurance Specialist plays a key role in tracking progress and building a sound results-based management for innovative programmes.  In synergy with programme teams, s/he will be responsible for developing tools and systems for tracking and assessing progress towards expected results. The Quality Assurance Specialist will be responsible for developing a knowledge sharing and adaptation system that supports a sustainable quality assurance culture and practice throughout the overall country programme development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. You will report to the Deputy Representative.

Job Purpose :

The Quality Assurance Specialist advises and supports the programme units and the CO management on strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, audit, implementation of the internal control framework and results-based management policies, resource mobilization and donor reporting, and financial management of the Senegal programming portfolio.

S/he will oversee the quality assurance team in cross-cutting collaboration with all units of the programme team identifying opportunities for cross-fertilization, enhancing the communication of good practices and lessons learned as well as the recommendation of corrective actions and ensuring the alignment of programmatic actions with SDGs, UNFPA Strategic Plan, and the national country plan.

You would be responsible for :

1. Strategic Planning and monitoring

• Actively contributing to the formulation of the Country Program and the development of Annual Work Plans in accordance with organizational Results-Based Management policies and procedures, Government's priorities, and the strategic orientations of UNFPA;
• Strengthening the country office staff and Implementing Partners’ capacity to develop Annual Work plans aligned to UNFPA’s monitoring and evaluation guidelines and donor agreements;
• Providing technical guidance and building the capacity of Implementing Partners to strengthen programme monitoring, performance measurement, reporting, and evaluation systems and enhancing the quality of programme data and evidence;
• Planning and establishing an order of priorities for reports and related documents for projects to be discussed in various high-level meetings, management committees, senior management consultations;
• Coordinating and providing technical support in preparing quarterly, annual, and donor programme implementation reports, UNDAF annual reports, and other relevant reports; ensuring compliance and timely submission;
• Ensuring the effective monitoring and evaluation process in order to track progress, ensure regular and timely reporting and measure the impact of the country programme;
• Facilitating and coordinating knowledge building/sharing and management in the country office, including the introduction of new functionalities, tools, and policies;
• Managing the capacity development/building of national staff and partners in the area of quality assurance;
• Facilitating the alignment of all documentation related to the development of the country programme development;
• Tracking of SIS Dashboards and ensuring proactive measures are taken by appropriate staff to avoid deviation from the policies and procedures.

2. Effective quality assurance

• Mapping and establishing internal Standard Operating Procedures in Results-based Management and control of the workflows in the country office programme units;
• Actively contributing to ensuring the effective implementation of the Internal Control Framework in collaboration with the operations and programme units;
• Establishing quality and accountable reporting system;
• Coordinating the audit exercise of programmes, projects, and operations, and ensuring compliance with audit quality standards and timeframes;
• Tracking the use of financial resources in accordance with UNFPA rules and regulations.

3. Evaluation and knowledge management

• Providing technical leadership to the review, evaluation, and documentation of programme results, best practices, and lessons learned and sharing these with relevant partners to inform programming, policy, and advocacy;
• Coordinating research and studies;
• Ensuring the effective monitoring and evaluation process in order to measure the impact of the country programme;
• Coordinating knowledge building/sharing and management in the country office, including the introduction of new functionalities, tools, and policies;
• Build national partners’ capacity to analyze and utilize monitoring and evaluation data for evidence-based decision making, policy and programme formulation, and monitoring and evaluation in support of integrated national development;
• Facilitating the digitalization of knowledge management for ongoing programmes, optimization of monitoring and evaluation data reporting, analysis and storage systems, and capacity strengthening for UNFPA staff and implementing partners to utilize ICT-based monitoring and evaluation and reporting tools.

4. Strategic partnerships, resource mobilization, and communication

• Providing up-to-date and relevant data to facilitate political dialogue in national strategies and plans, national and United Nations development initiatives and frameworks;
• Analyzing and interpreting the political and socio-economic environment in order to feed the advocacy and the resource mobilization plan in favor of Population and Development, Reproductive Health and Gender issues;
• Actively contributing to the country office's efforts in resource mobilization, by preparing appropriate documentation; analyzing and researching information on donors, and preparing substantive briefs for possible areas of cooperation, and identifying opportunities for cost-sharing and trust funds;
• Ensuring timely and quality donor reporting;

5. Perform other job-related duties as assigned by the UNFPA Representative to ensure the success of the country programme.

Key Outcomes :

• Strengthened UNFPA Senegal capacities for strategic planning, quality assurance, and results-based management of programme interventions in the implementation of SDGs.
• Enhanced visibility of UNFPA as a trusted partner in the management of its financial resources and programmes within the UN system and in the international development and humanitarian context to promote social, political, and economic activity and changes in behaviors, social attitudes, beliefs, harmful social norms and actions by communities, individuals and society.
• Enhanced ability of UNFPA Senegal to fulfill its mission on measurable evidence-based actions to achieve sustainable, locally owned, and concrete results solutions to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning, and end gender-based violence and harmful practices.

Qualifications and Experience :

Education : 

Advanced university degree in Statistics, Public Health, Social Science, Demography, Economics, International Development, Public Administration or other related fields. The degree should preferably include credits in the principles and practice of monitoring and evaluation.

Knowledge and Experience :

• Five (5) years of professional and substantive experience in programme development and implementation and establishing monitoring and evaluation frameworks in the field of development assistance;
• Experience in providing management advisory services;
• Hands-on experience in design, monitoring, and evaluation of development projects;
• Proven experience in monitoring and writing project activity reports and in setting up networks of relations between national and international partners;
• Proven skills in collecting and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data, including demographic and health data;
• Mastery of the principles of Results-Based Management;
• Proven experience in information system management and database development is an asset;
• Ability to write reports and oral presentations;
• Ability to organize effectively, and to work under pressure with attention to details, precision, and accuracy.
• Experience working with the United Nations System and international NGOs would be an asset;

Languages :

Fluency in French and working knowledge of English is required.