Job Description
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Officer
Number of Positions: 1
Duration: 6 months
Location: Duhok governorate
Publishing date: 18th Dec 2025
Deadline of submission: 31st Dec 2025
Reporting to: Regional Director
About Us
The Lotus Flower is a non-governmental organization which is legally registered in the Federal Government of Baghdad and KRI. The Lotus Flower programs empower vulnerable women, girls and other community members so that they are safe, have opportunities to learn, the tools to become financially independent and the freedom to lead change. We provide safe social spaces inside refugee & IDP camps and implement projects to help them rebuild their lives and earn a living. We run multiple women’s and children centers for the IDP, refugee and host community in Iraq and have mobile teams in areas where static centers are not feasible.
The Lotus Flower services work to fill resource gaps by providing community-responsive programming which changes over time in response to feedback but revolves around 6 pillars from the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals:
Health & Safety (including MHPSS)
Education and Livelihoods
Peacebuilding & Human Rights
Climate Change
We aim to provide a foundation for women, girls, and other needed community members to rebuild themselves, their families, and their futures. As local implementers, we work at the grassroots level to get right into the heart of communities, listening to local needs and employing local communities to implement the programs.
Our main fundamental belief is that women and girls are powerful drivers of change, and we provide the support they need to reach their full potential and rebuild their futures. We strive for a world where they are safe from violence, free to access education, and are empowered to participate in their communities to drive social and economic change from within. We are investing in the future of women and girls because they play a vital role in resurrecting and strengthening communities. As local implementers, we work at the grassroots level to get right into the heart of communities. To ensure we meet their needs, we listen to the local community and employ local women to implement the programs.
The Lotus Flower has been widely recognized for its impactful and innovative work in advancing women's rights, economic empowerment, and justice for survivors. In 2021, the organization was honored with the CARE International Partnership Award, a prestigious recognition granted every four years to celebrate the professionalism and commitment of CARE’s global partners. Further affirming its dedication to women’s economic independence, The Lotus Flower received the IValues Award from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation under the “Economy and Jobs” category for the success and significance of its Women’s Business Incubation project. The organization also gained international acclaim through the PILnet Global Partnership Award for its groundbreaking initiative “Accountability for Yazidi Survivors of Atrocities by Da’esh,” which was recognized as one of the best cross-sectoral pro bono legal collaborations worldwide. Additionally, The Lotus Flower was a proud recipient of the UNHCR Innovation Award in 2022, further highlighting its commitment to delivering creative, impactful solutions for vulnerable communities.
Job Overview
Reporting to the Regional Director, the MEAL Officer will serve as The Lotus Flower’s (TLF) lead technical specialist for Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL). The role is responsible for strengthening and institutionalizing organization-wide MEAL systems to ensure programmes are evidence-based, accountable to affected populations, and continuously learning to maximize impact.
The MEAL Officer will lead the transformation of TLF’s data architecture from event-level tracking to beneficiary-level tracking, enabling longitudinal analysis through unique beneficiary identification systems. The role will also lead the organization-wide Theory of Change (ToC) review, strengthen logframes and indicators, and embed data-driven decision-making across all programme pillars:
Education and Livelihoods
Health and Safety
Peacebuilding and Human Rights
Climate Change
The position requires strong technical expertise in data systems, analytical skills, and strategic thinking to support organizational learning, accountability mechanisms, donor compliance, and adaptive management. The MEAL Officer will work closely with programme managers, field teams, senior management, donors, and external evaluators to ensure TLF’s programmes remain responsive, transparent, and impactful for refugee and displaced communities in the region.
Duties and Responsibilities
Monitoring and Evaluation
Develop, strengthen, and standardize monitoring, inspection, and evaluation procedures across all projects.
Monitor project activities, expenditures, and progress against outputs, outcomes, and indicators.
Develop, review, and refine project logframes with SMART indicators, ensuring alignment with programme objectives and the organizational Theory of Change.
Develop and track monitoring, outcome, and impact indicators for project success.
Monitor and evaluate overall progress toward achieving results and intended outcomes.
Monitor and assess the sustainability of project results and long-term impacts.
Support monitoring and evaluation of project effects and impact through qualitative and quantitative methods.
Provide regular technical feedback to Project Managers on project strategies, implementation quality, and results.
Identify implementation bottlenecks and propose evidence-based strategies to improve project efficiency and effectiveness.
Prepare monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, and annual progress reports on all project activities.
Provide data, analysis, statistics, and narrative inputs for internal and external reports.
Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP)
· Design and strengthen accountability mechanisms, ensuring meaningful beneficiary participation, feedback, and complaints-handling systems.
· Ensure ethical data collection practices, including informed consent, data protection, confidentiality, and safeguarding standards.
· Develop case studies that capture beneficiary voices and lived experiences while adhering to ethical and accountability standards.
· Ensure beneficiary feedback and accountability data are systematically analyzed and integrated into programme design and decision-making.
· Promote alignment with humanitarian accountability standards, including the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS).
Learning and Organizational Development
· Lead the organization-wide Theory of Change review, integrating consultant recommendations, evaluation findings, lessons learned, and strategic priorities.
· Coordinate external evaluations and ensure systematic follow-up and integration of recommendations into programme planning and implementation.
· Facilitate organizational learning processes by synthesizing findings, lessons learned, and best practices across programmes.
· Assist Project Managers in documenting lessons learned from project innovations and adaptive practices.
· Participate in annual project reviews, learning events, and planning workshops.
· Lead the development of the Annual Report, coordinating quantitative data, qualitative analysis, case studies, and evidence-based storytelling.
· Translate MEAL findings into accessible learning products, including data visualizations, infographics, dashboards, and narrative summaries for diverse audiences.
Data Systems, Analysis, and Reporting
· Design, implement, and maintain beneficiary-level tracking systems, ensuring each beneficiary is assigned a unique ID for longitudinal analysis.
· Lead the restructuring of data collection systems from event-level to beneficiary-level aggregation for more granular and meaningful analysis.
· Implement standardized data disaggregation protocols (age, gender, disability, displacement status, nationality) with strong data quality assurance procedures.
· Develop and maintain dashboards to support real-time programme monitoring and data-driven decision-making.
· Ensure high data quality through regular data cleaning, validation, and verification processes.
· Prepare and maintain project Issues Logs and Risk Logs to support proactive programme management.
Capacity Building and Technical Support
· Conduct capacity assessments of existing MEAL systems and develop improvement plans.
· Develop monitoring strategies and MEAL frameworks for new and ongoing projects.
· Provide technical support to project staff on MEAL tools, methodologies, and data use.
· Design and deliver training sessions on MEAL systems, Management Information Systems (MIS), and data collection tools for programme staff.
· Support coordination across project components to ensure consistent and effective MEAL implementation.
Grant Applications and Fundraising Support
Support the Programme Department and senior management with grant applications and fundraising efforts by providing:
Relevant MEAL data, indicators, baselines, and targets
Evidence of impact, lessons learned, and programme effectiveness
Theory of Change, logframes, and results frameworks aligned with donor requirements
Contribute to donor proposals, concept notes, and funding reports by ensuring strong evidence-based narratives and compliance with donor MEAL standards.
Support donor communications by providing accurate, timely, and compelling data and impact stories.
Required Skills and Experience
Education
· University degree in Statistics, Data Science, International Development, Social Sciences, Public Health, or a related field.
· Degrees in Business Administration or Economics are acceptable if combined with specialized M&E or MEAL training or certification.
Professional Experience
· Minimum 4–5 years of experience in Monitoring and Evaluation within humanitarian programmes, preferably in refugee or IDP contexts, with international or national NGOs.
· Proven experience in designing data collection tools, MEAL strategies, and reporting systems.
· Strong data cleaning and transformation skills (advanced Excel functions).
· Experience leading mobile data collection systems (e.g., Kobo Toolbox) and database design.
· Demonstrated experience developing Theory of Change and logframes for multi-pillar humanitarian programmes.
· Expertise in data analysis using statistical software.
· Proven experience in MEAL systems strengthening in humanitarian settings.
· Experience coordinating with external evaluators and integrating evaluation findings into programme design.
· Strong training, facilitation, and capacity-building skills.
· Solid understanding of humanitarian standards, including the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS), and donor compliance requirements.
Language Requirements
· Fluency in written and spoken Arabic and English.
Nice to Have
· Proficiency in Power BI or equivalent data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau) for dashboard development and maintenance.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please send your updated CV and cover letter to careers@thelotusflower.org while mentioning “Monitoring ,Evaluation ,accountability and Learning(MEAL) Officer “as the subject of your email.
CVs and cover letters that are in the form of pictures, and screen-shots will not be accepted.
CVs that do not include the subject line will not be considered.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Applications past the expiration date of the advertisement will not be considered.