Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Adviser (Maternity Cover)

MEL Adviser (Maternity Cover)
Full-time (37.5 hours per week), fixed-term (maternity leave cover). Part-time will be considered (3 days per week).

Saferworld is an independent international organisation working to prevent violent conflict and build safer lives. We work with people affected by conflict to improve their safety and sense of security, and conduct wider research and analysis. We use this evidence and learning to improve local, national and international policies and practices that can help build lasting peace. Our priority is people – we believe in a world where everyone can lead peaceful, fulfilling lives, free from fear and insecurity. We are a not-for-profit organisation operational in 12 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

We are seeking to recruit a MEL  Adviser on a fixed-term contract to cover a period of maternity leave. The role is full-time at 37.5 hours per week, and we will also consider applications on a part-time basis of 3 days per week. This is an opportunity for an experienced MEL professional to bring technical expertise to an independent international organisation working to prevent violent conflict and build safer lives, and to help shape how evidence drives our programmes and partnerships in complex and conflict-affected contexts.

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Adviser provides technical leadership and practical support to strengthen monitoring, evaluation and evidence generation across Saferworld's programmes and partnerships. Working closely with country leads/teams, thematic advisers, and civil society partners, the post-holder supports the design and implementation of robust MEL systems and processes that enable programmes to measure progress, demonstrate results, meet accountability commitments and generate high-quality evidence for learning on the effectiveness of Saferworld's conflict prevention and peacebuilding.

The MEL Adviser provides technical advice on programme design, theories of change, results frameworks, indicators, monitoring approaches and evaluations, ensuring that MEL systems are appropriate to complex and conflict-affected contexts and aligned with organisational principles and standards and donor requirements. The role supports programme teams and partners to collect, analyse and use evidence effectively, strengthens MEL capacity across the organisation, and contributes to high-quality donor reporting and accountability.

The post-holder also facilitates reflection and learning processes that help teams interpret evidence and adapt their work, while contributing to the continuous improvement of Saferworld's MEL approaches, tools and practices. The role works collaboratively across the organisation to foster a culture of evidence-informed decision-making, adaptive programming and mutual learning.

Distinct from the Learning Adviser role, which focuses on strengthening how Saferworld learns, adapts and applies evidence across the organisation, the MEL Adviser focuses on generating, assessing and assuring the quality of evidence through monitoring, evaluation and results measurement systems. Together, these roles form a complementary and integrated evidence, learning and adaptation function that supports organisational effectiveness, accountability and impact. Therefore, the MEL Advisor will work collaboratively with the Learning Advisor to ensure coherence across the MEL function.

Experience, skills & knowledge

• Experience providing MEL support within partnership-based international development, humanitarian or peacebuilding programmes
• Experience supporting programme design, theories of change, results frameworks and MEL plans
• Experience supporting evaluations and participatory learning approaches, such as outcome harvesting
• Experience supporting donor reporting and the use of evidence for learning and accountability
• Strong analytical and facilitation skills, with the ability to synthesise complex information into clear outputs