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Ref.
2026/PRWORRS/16062

Job offer type
Field staff jobs

Type of contract
CDDU

Activity sectors
Organization of Civil Society ; Democratic governance

Deadline date
2026/09/30 23:59

Contract
Wage portage

Duration
47

Mission description

Overall asignment

Reporting to the Project Manager, the MEAL Manager will be responsible for designing, implementing and coordinating the project's MEAL system, in line with donor requirements and Expertise France's MEAL policy. They will ensure the reliability of monitoring data, the quality of the analyses produced, and their effective use to inform the programme's strategic steering, while supporting partners and beneficiaries in monitoring their own activities.

 

Specific responsabilities

The MEAL Manager's main specific responsibilities are as follows (non-exhaustive list):

  • Monitoring and evaluation:
    • Review and update the project's theory of change and logical framework during the inception phase;
    • Develop and implement the project's MEAL plan;
    • Ensure the management and updating of project results monitoring data in the European Union's OPSYS system, including entering and updating the logical framework, indicators, baseline and target values, as well as reporting on results, ensuring the quality, consistency and traceability of the data entered;
    • Design and deploy quantitative and qualitative data collection tools adapted to the diversity of the seven countries of intervention and the plurality of grant mechanisms;
    • Support reporting and accountability processes vis-à-vis the donor;
    • Collect and track complementary indicators, including Expertise France's internal indicators and other reporting requirements;
    • Ensure regular monitoring of performance indicators to inform programme steering.
  • Learning and knowledge management:
    • Design, coordinate and oversee evaluations, learning exercises, studies and capitalization activities;
    • Facilitate the sharing of good practices and lessons learned within the team and with partners;
    • Contribute to strategic discussions and intervention reviews for the continuous improvement of the project;
    • Support evidence-based decision-making and organizational learning throughout project implementation.
  • Capacity building:
    • Train and support the field team on MEAL tools and processes;
    • Build the capacity of partner CSOs and networks to monitor and document their own initiatives;
    • Deploy and oversee the project's MEAL resources, including the mobilization of short-term expertise.
  • Accountability and beneficiary feedback:
    • Establish participation and accountability mechanisms towards beneficiaries (consultations, feedback systems, complaint-handling mechanisms), adapted to the different types of beneficiaries (CSOs, regional networks, media);
    • Ensure that beneficiary feedback is taken into account in project adjustments.

Project or context description

Expertise France 

Expertise France (EF) is the French international technical assistance agency, created from the merger of the six main French public implementing agencies on 1 January 2015, in order to enhance capacities to mobilize technical expertise, making it possible to address the growing needs of emerging and developing countries more effectively.

Under the joint supervision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development and the Ministry of Economy, EF aims at participating in French cooperation and development aid through a wide range of interventions in areas such as sustainable development, economic development, public finances, governance and human rights, social protection and employment, health, and issues of stability, safety and security.

EF is accredited by the European Commission for delegated management (the ‘six pillars’ audit), which means it can be awarded indirect management of projects and guarantees EF’s capacity to successfully implement activities and projects with which it is entrusted, and ensure efficient distribution of administrative and financial management tasks.

 

Project description 

Reform processes related to EU accession still involve civil society insufficiently, limiting citizens’ ownership of ongoing reforms. This lack of inclusion occurs within a broader context of shrinking civic space, characterized by the spread of disinformation, growing mistrust between public authorities and civil society, and increasing vulnerability of civil society organizations and independent media.

To help rebalance these dynamics and strengthen the role of civil society actors and independent media as full-fledged stakeholders in EU accession-related reform processes—as well as, more broadly, in the democratic transformations taking place across the seven countries of intervention—the Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG ENEST) is funding a regional project to be implemented by Expertise France.

The Overall Objective of this programme is to make civil society and media actors in the Western Balkans and Türkiye become autonomous, connected, and influential forces, collectively driving democratic EU-accession reforms, strengthening institutional accountability, and fostering active, inclusive citizen participation—thereby contributing to more transparent, accountable, and resilient governance in the region.

The Specific Objectives (SO) are:

  • SO1: Strengthen the effective, meaningful, and sustainable engagement of CSOs as proactive, self-organized, and sector-based partners in governance processes linked to EU enlargement policies and priorities;
  • SO2: Enhance access to adequate, sustainable, predictable, and transparent funding for CSOs and independent public interest media, while reinforcing their resilience and protection against democratic backsliding;
  • SO3: Safeguard the integrity of the information space by strengthening citizens’ trust and fostering stronger relationships between independent media, civil society, and citizens.

In this context, establishing an adapted and operational Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) system is essential to report on the project's results (particularly the qualitative changes in CSO resilience, the strengthening of regional networks, and the evolution of civic and media space), as well as to build the capacity of supported CSOs and media outlets to monitor and document their own initiatives.

The MEAL system will also need to address the project's inherent complexity: a large number of beneficiaries and grants to monitor, deployed across seven geographies with contrasting contexts (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Türkiye), requiring a monitoring architecture that is both rigorous and flexible enough to adapt to this diversity. In a project of this scale, the data and analysis generated by the MEAL system will also be essential for informing strategic decisions throughout implementation.

It is within this framework that the MEAL Manager's role comes in, playing a central part in designing, deploying and sustaining the MEAL system throughout the project — ensuring both the methodological rigor expected by the donor, the contextual relevance of monitoring in each of the seven countries, and ownership of the system by the project team, partners and beneficiaries themselves.

Required profile

Qualifications: 

  • Master's degree (or equivalent) in social sciences, international development, project management, statistics, or any other relevant field.

 

Skills: 

  • Solid knowledge of monitoring and evaluation methodologies and tools: demonstrated experience in developing MEAL tools and systems, including in programmes with multiple grant mechanisms;
  • Proficiency in data management tools and software (Kobo, SurveyCTO, Stata, SPSS, PowerBI, OPSYS, etc.);
  • Excellent analytical and report-writing skills;
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to work within multicultural teams and with consultants;
  • Autonomy, initiative, and the ability to adapt to demanding and diverse contexts.

 

Professional experience:

  • Proven experience (minimum 5 years) in monitoring and evaluation within international development projects, ideally EU-funded projects in the Western Balkans and/or Türkiye;
  • Experience in capacity building and working with local partners, including CSOs;
  • Knowledge of the civil society and/or independent media sector in the Western Balkans and in Türkiye is a strong asset.

 

Languages (written and spoken):

  • Fluency in English (mandatory);
  • Knowledge of Albanian (strong asset);
  • Knowledge of Serbo-Croatian (Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian/Montenegrin), Macedonian and/or French (asset).

Additional information

Position type: project-based position, full-time
Contract type: fixed-term work contract, through a third-party employer
Estimated contract start date: November 2026
Estimated contract end date: Septembre 2030
Thematic areas: Governance, democratic processes
Project geographic scope: Western Balkans and Türkiye
Location: Albania, Tirana (regular field missions across the different countries of intervention are foreseen)
Expected Start Date: 1 Novembre 2026 (the anticipated start date is subject to change)

 

The signature of the work contract is pending on the signature of the main contract between Expertise France and the donor. The anticipated start date is subject to change.

 

Application requirements: An updated CV and a motivation letter explaining how the candidate’s experience and profile match the project’s needs. 


Regular field missions across the different countries of intervention are foreseen.


Application Deadline: 30 September 2026 at 11:59 PM (Paris time).

Deadline for application : 2026/09/30 23:59

Expertise France is the public agency for designing and implementing international technical cooperation projects. The agency operates around four key priorities :

  • democratic, economic, and financial governance ;
  • peace, stability, and security ;
  • climate, agriculture, and sustainable development ;
  • health and human development ;

In these areas, Expertise France conducts capacity-building initiatives and manages project implementation, leveraging technical expertise and acting as a project coordinator. This involves combining public sector expertise with private sector skills to drive impactful results. 

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