MEAL Senior Project Officer (Contingent upon donor funding)

*This post is contingent upon donor funding.

About CRS  

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion, or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance, and peacebuilding.

CRS Iraq is supporting people affected by climate, conflict and inadequate access to resources to live in dignity through educational and psychosocial (PSS) support for children, social cohesion approaches to permit diverse populations to live together in harmony and livelihoods support for vulnerable youth.

About STRIVE-C

The Strengthening Thi-Qar Resilience with Vulnerable Communities (STRIVE-C) project will work with vulnerable communities affected by environmental shocks and water shortages in Thi-Qar Governorate who have begun to recover following decades of crisis, and who are now looking towards longer-term development and community resilience. Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and project partners aim to support communities’ transition from recovery to development, by helping them adapt to the impacts of climate change whilst also working with individuals to improve their livelihoods. Social cohesion approaches will be embedded across project activities to promote inclusive decision-making and collective action among diverse residents in Thi-Qar.

Job Summary 

As a member of the MEAL project team, you will monitor and report on all project activities in support of CRS’s work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your thorough and service-oriented approach will ensure that the project consistently applies best practices and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.

Under the direct supervision of the Program Manager, the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Senior Project Officer (SPO) is responsible for leading Monitoring, Evaluation and Accountability processes throughout project activities. The SPO will be responsible for field-level MEAL project needs and will compile findings based on process and performance monitoring and evidence-based data to show the project’s performance. The MEAL SPO will serve as a key support in designing, implementing, and making timely adjustments to strengthen project MEAL systems based on best practices and CRS MEAL Policies and Procedures.

Roles and Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic MEAL Leadership & Quality Assurance

• Lead the development and implementation of STRIVE-C project MEAL systems in line with CRS Program Quality (PQ) standards, MEAL policies, and donor expectations.
• Ensure effective integration of MEAL within the project lifecycle—design, implementation, adaptation, and close-out—ensuring continuous improvement and responsiveness.
• Maintain data quality assurance processes and provide technical support in designing digital tools for data collection and analysis, including use of platforms like CommCare, PowerBI, and other ICT4MEAL solutions.

2. Partner Coordination & Capacity Strengthening

• Serve as the main MEAL focal point for partner MEAL teams (IRW, Caritas), ensuring alignment and consistency in data tools, indicator tracking, reporting timelines, and quality assurance.
• Support partners in building and strengthening MEAL systems, offering hands-on coaching and facilitating joint planning and reflection sessions.
• Lead joint efforts in designing assessments, evaluations, and accountability systems, ensuring harmonized approaches across partners.

3. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Adaptive Learning

• Oversee the timely rollout of monitoring activities including baseline, endline, and Post-Distribution Monitoring (PDM), working collaboratively with CRS and partner MEAL teams.
• Lead data interpretation and learning sessions with program staff and partners, identifying insights and evidence to guide project adaptation and decision-making.
• Support implementation teams in using MEAL findings to inform improvements and innovations throughout the project lifecycle.

4. Accountability & Community Feedback

• Strengthen and coordinate community accountability systems, including safe and responsive Feedback, Complaint, and Response Mechanisms (FCRM), ensuring accessibility across all target groups.
• Collaborate with partner MEAL teams to ensure that community feedback is documented, analyzed, and meaningfully used to improve project design and delivery.

5. Documentation, Reporting & Learning

• Ensure MEAL-related documentation is complete, organized, and audit-ready, in compliance with CRS and donor standards.
• Contribute to donor reports by compiling quantitative and qualitative data, highlighting trends, successes, and learning.
• Lead or contribute to the development of learning products such as case studies, success stories, learning briefs, and presentations.

6. Internal Coordination & Representation

• Actively participate in project planning and coordination meetings, ensuring MEAL priorities and findings inform cross-sectoral decision-making.
• Liaise with the CRS regional MEAL focal point to ensure alignment of STRIVE-C MEAL efforts with broader country-level MEAL strategies and standards.
• Represent CRS in MEAL-related forums with partners and other stakeholders at the governorate level.

Basic Qualifications 

• Bachelor's Degree required. Degree in International Relations or in the field of Engineering, Statistics, or Research would be a plus.
• Minimum of 4 years of work experience in managing MEAL systems for multi-partner, multi-sectoral projects.
• Experience monitoring projects and collecting relevant data.
• Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) required; strong familiarity with data collection, analysis, and visualization tools (i.e., CommCare, Kobo Toolbox, or similar) preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities  

• Analysis and problem-solving skills with ability to make sound judgment
• Good relationship management skills and the ability to work closely with local partners
• Proactive, results-oriented and service-oriented
• Attention to details, accuracy and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities

Required Languages - Spoken and written Arabic fluency and spoken/written English professional proficiency are required. Knowledge of Kurdish is a plus.

Travel - The position is based in Thiqar with up to 25% travel to project sites or partner offices in Baghdad and Erbil. Minimal regional and international travel for training or project activities, as needed. 

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff)  

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.  

• Integrity  
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation 

• Builds Relationships  
• Develops Talent 
• Strategic Mindset 
• Accountability & Stewardship 

***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS’ processes and policies reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.  

Disclaimer:  This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.  

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation. 

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer 

Please submit your CV as a PDF, other formats rather than PDF will consider corrupted and will lead to neglect application. You can apply via the link below:

MEAL Senior Project Officer (Contingent upon donor funding)