Planning Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, Pretoria, South Africa

## Planning Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, Pretoria, South Africa - Organization:UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund - Office:UNICEF Pretoria Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, NO-3, Fixed Term Position, Pretoria, South Africa #00137961 Position type:Fixed Term Appointment Location:South Africa Division/Equivalent:Nairobi Regn'l(ESARO) School/Unit:South Africa Department/Office:Pretoria, South Africa Categories:Research, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children's lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence. At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job - it is a calling. UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package. Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF. For every child, the right to Dedication How can you make a difference? The UNICEF country programme 2026-2030 supports the Government's efforts to ensure that, by 2030, the most vulnerable children, adolescents and young people in South Africa will live in a safer and more equitable environment, get a fair chance in life and realize their rights to survive, thrive and reach their full capacity. The theory of change states that children and adolescents will progressively realize their rights if they can more fully utilize social assistance and basic social services supported by: (i) Government implementation of legislation with greater accountability, more strategic use of evidence, better interdepartmental coordination and more effective public finance management; (ii) a “whole-of-society” approach to leveraging investments in children, mobilizing support from the public and private sectors, as well as civil society; (iii) parents, caregivers and front-line service providers that deliver integrated programmes to reduce harmful practices and promote optimal behaviours for children's and adolescent's development and well-being; and (iv) empowerment to participate in decisions that affect their lives and communities. The country programme has four programme outcomes aligned with the national priorities and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2026-2030. These outcomes focus on investing in children; child survival and adolescent well-being; education; and child protection. The programme will maximize opportunities to advance child rights, presented by the global stature of South Africa, rooted in the legacy of Nelson Mandela and its leadership in development and human rights. Reporting to the Deputy Representative, the Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist will contribute to ensuring that UNICEF interventions are informed by high-quality data and evidence, aligned with national priorities, and focused on delivering measurable results for children and adolescents. The Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist is responsible for supporting the development and implementation of integrated monitoring, evaluation and research frameworks, and evaluation within the Country Programme. The position will play a key role in tracking progress against the UNICEF South Africa Country Programme Document (CPD), supporting results-based management, strengthening data and analytical systems, evidence-based planning, and ensuring that evidence is effectively used to inform programmatic and policy decisions. Working closely with government counterparts, UN agencies, academia, civil society organizations, and development partners, the PME Specialist will help strengthen national capacities for monitoring, evaluation, and data management to track the progress towards South Africa's national development priorities and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The role will also support knowledge management, organizational learning, and innovation. The position requires a highly analytical and collaborative professional with strong technical expertise in monitoring and evaluation, research, data analysis, and results-based management, as well as the ability to work across sectors and support evidence-driven decision-making in both development and humanitarian contexts. 1. Monitoring, Evaluation & Research Planning.The Country Office and national partners have a well-prioritised and realistic plan of research, monitoring and evaluation activities, developed collaboratively that provides all the relevant and strategic information needed to manage the Country Programme. 2. Situation Monitoring and Assessment.A collective Situation Monitoring and Assessment system owned by all key partners is in place, through which the Country Office and national partners have timely and accurate measurements of change in conditions of children, women, and their families in the country or region; this information is available to facilitate planning and measure program impact. 3. Programme Performance Monitoring.The planning function of the Country Office has quality information collected and disseminated with the participation of all concerned partners to assess progress towards expected annual and multi-year results. Technical support is provided for the annual work plans, and management of annual, mid-year, mid-term and end-term reviews to ensure alignment with CPD objectives and contribution to the Annual Management Plan. 4. Evaluation.UNICEF-supported evaluations attain established UN quality standards, and the results are disseminated in a timely fashion to stakeholders for improving programme performance and contributing to national and corporate learning. 5. M&E Capacity Building.The monitoring and evaluation capacities of Country Office staff and national partners - government and civil society are enhanced with the contribution of UNICEF knowledge partners meet the expectations and requirements of their positions and responsibilities. 6. Coordination and Networking.The UNICEF office is linked to wider UNICEF M&E developments in a way that both contributes to and benefits from organizational learning on effective M&E management. If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: NO-3 PME Specialist.pdf To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have... - Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Social Science, Statistics, Planning Development or Planning.Work Experience: At least 5 years of relevant work experience in Programme Development and Implementation including monitoring and evaluation activities.Skills: Program Evaluation, Monitoring & Performance Tracking, Data Analytics, Data Governance, Applied Statistics, Reporting & Insights Generation.Language Requirements: English - Proficient/Fluent - Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Social Science, Statistics, Planning Development or Planning. - Work Experience: At least 5 years of relevant work experience in Programme Development and Implementation including monitoring and evaluation activities. - Skills: Program Evaluation, Monitoring & Performance Tracking, Data Analytics, Data Governance, Applied Statistics, Reporting & Insights Generation. - Language Requirements: English - Proficient/Fluent - Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) - Developing country experience, field work experience, humanitarian crisis response experience, emergency preparedness planning - Relevant experience at country level particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts