Senior Program Officer, Nutrition - DataDENT Focal Point

Job Description

Background

Malnutrition represents one of the most formidable challenges of the 21st century to achieving country health goals and economic success. Over 45% of under-five child deaths globally can be attributed to malnutrition and those children who survive face higher risks of living in poverty and of giving birth to malnourished children, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and social inequity. In contrast, good nutritional status is linked to improved school completion rates, higher household income, and a greater chance of escaping poverty and boosting intergenerational equity. This is a critical time for nutrition that requires fresh thinking and new tools and solutions.

High-quality and relevant nutrition data is needed to understand progress towards reducing malnutrition and reaching nutrition targets. However, nutrition data systems are fragmented and incomplete in many low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). This makes it difficult for governments, development partners, and other nutrition stakeholders to access and use data to plan, implement and monitor policies and programs and allocate resources. To address this, the Data for Decisions in Nutrition (DataDENT) initiative supports efforts to strengthen the nutrition data value chain globally and in focal countries.

DataDENT is a collaboration of four partner institutions - R4D, JHU, IFPRI and the African Population Health Research Center (APHRC) – who will work together over three years (2022-2025) to achieve three primary outcomes:

1. Improved strategic planning and coordination – including costing and financing - to support the collection and use of multisectoral nutrition data in Ethiopia & Nigeria

2. Increased readiness to collect and use indicators of multisectoral nutrition intervention coverage and co-coverage in Ethiopia and Nigeria

3. Increased multistakeholder knowledge exchange, collaborative action, and access to capacity development for strengthening multisectoral nutrition data value chains across LMIC

You can learn more about the diverse mix of research, technical assistance, capacity strengthening, and stakeholder engagement activities by visiting www.datadent.org and selecting “Our Work”

Opportunity:

To support this mission, DataDENT seeks a Senior Program Officer (SPO) to coordinate its activities in Ethiopia. This position is based in Addis Ababa and situated in the Results for Development (R4D) office and working closely with DataDENT partners – IFPRI and APHRC.

• The SPO will lead the coordination of all DataDENT activities in Ethiopia by serving as the focal point for engagement with government stakeholders, research partners, and other nutrition data partners at national and sub national levels.
• Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
• Develop, implement, and track the annual DataDENT work plan for Ethiopia and link the work plan to objectives and ensure the outcomes and results are realized.
• Ensure the smooth, efficient, and effective start-up and ongoing implementation of DataDENT activities in Ethiopia, including engaging with individual DataDENT partners to identify their priorities and identifying and fostering linkages within the project as well as with other stakeholders in the nutrition data space.
• Actively contribute as DataDENT team member in the development of Ethiopia country strategy and annual work planning for research, technical assistance and capacity strengthening, advocacy, and communication activities.
• Establish and maintain good relationships and a wide network with project co-implementers, government ministries and departments, NGOs/CSOs working in the area, including media and other key stakeholders.
• Attend related coordination meetings and ensure internal and external experts and program managers are involved and consulted, as appropriate.
• Help to identify and supervise local research partners and facilitate related processes (e.g. IRB approval).
• Track implementation of DataDENT activities in Ethiopia and identify and communicate opportunities and bottlenecks that require the attention of the wider DataDENT team
• Support design, planning, and facilitation of meetings, workshops, and other events organized by DataDENT in Ethiopia.
• Regularly communicate with DataDENT partners through participation in biweekly partner calls, one-on-one meetings as well as formal and informal reporting.

• We are seeking an experienced professional with expertise in nutrition and nutrition data information system strengthening including project and partner management skills.
• Minimum of 7 years of relevant professional experience on issues related to multisectoral nutrition programming, information systems, or related fields.
• Master’s degree in a relevant field preferred.
• Familiarity with the nutrition data value chain including tools, methods, and metrics for measuring coverage of nutrition interventions. Experience with capacity building and system strengthening including advocacy is preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to build and manage partner relationships and project workstreams, including managing situations with potential for conflicts.
• Experience in research, including desk research and stakeholder interviews.
• Experience in training, and facilitation.
• Experience in advocacy and stakeholder management.
• Proven capacity to effectively synthesize and simplify technical content for high-level audiences.
• Should be a highly skilled communicator in writing and in speaking.
• Ability to prioritize and manage work in a fast-paced environment across multiple projects and work streams with competing time/resource demands.
• High level of organization, attention to detail, professionalism, and reliability.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Enthusiastic about joining a diverse and inclusive work environment
• Motivated to learn, grow, contribute, and produce.

About the Organization

Results for Development (R4D) is a leading non-profit global development partner. We collaborate with change agents around the world — government officials, civil society leaders and social innovators — to create strong systems that support healthy, educated people. We help our partners move from knowing their goal to knowing how to reach it. We combine global expertise in health, education and nutrition with analytic rigor, practical support for decision-making and implementation and access to peer problem-solving networks. Together with our partners, we build self-sustaining systems that serve everyone and deliver lasting results. Then we share what we learn so others can achieve results for development, too.

We have a unique and vibrant culture at R4D. Diversity, equity and inclusion are at the heart of our work environment and help advance our mission. Diversity—of ideas, identities, perspectives and backgrounds—is vital to who we are and what we do. We seek people who embrace these values and will help reinforce them. Our work culture is collaborative, creative and entrepreneurial. We operate based on trust and respect. Teams across the organization frequently collaborate on programmatic work and support each other in continuously building a better R4D.