Monitoring, Evaluation, and Research (MERL) Officer

AI summary

HANDS is hiring a Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Officer for its MiracleFeet-funded Clubfoot Programme in Kano, Nigeria. The role focuses on data management, indicator tracking, and evidence-based learning to improve clubfoot treatment and programme performance. This is a full-time position with regular field travel.

• Full-time MERL Officer role based in Kano with regular field travel
• Supports the MiracleFeet-funded Clubfoot Programme in Nigeria
• Focus on data quality, indicator tracking, and programme learning
• Reports to the Programme Manager within Disability Inclusive Development
• Requires strong analytical and results-oriented skills

Original source description

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Research (MERL) Officer at Health and Development Support Programme (HANDS) ⏲ Sep 3, 2026, 7:00 AM ⋕ View all NGO & Humanitarian / Nonprofit Organizations jobs Health and Development Support Programme (HANDS) is a homegrown Non-Governmental Organization that is officially registered in Nigeria. It was founded in 1995 with the primary goal of supporting the National Onchocerciasis Control Programme in Nigeria as CBM Onchocerciasis Control programme. Over time, HANDS has broadened its scope to encompass various initiatives aimed at improving public health, fostering development, and providing emergency services. HANDS envisions a quality life with equal opportunities in an inclusive society. The organization collaborates with communities, government agencies, and developmental organizations to achieve its objectives. The organization is active in the FCT and multiple states across Nigeria, focusing on controlling and elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), preventing blindness, promoting disability inclusion, offering clubfoot treatment, and providing reproductive health, gender mainstreaming and emergency response services. HANDS' headquarters is situated in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria. We are recruiting to fill the position below: Job Title: Monitoring, Evaluation, and Research (MERL) Officer Location: Kano Employment Type: Full-time Department: Disability Inclusive Development (DID) Programme: Clubfoot Programme Project: Miracle Feet Implementing Partner: HANDS Reports To: Programme Manager Duty Station: With regular field travel About the MiracleFeet Clubfoot Programme The MERL Officer will therefore be responsible for ensuring that programme data are accurate, complete, timely, securely managed, analysed and used to improve service delivery and demonstrate programme performance. HANDS, in partnership with MiracleFeet, supports expansion of access to quality clubfoot treatment and management in Nigeria. The programme supports health facilities, clinical capacity, community awareness and referral, supportive supervision, monitoring and evaluation, and data-driven programme improvement. HANDS' clubfoot programme uses the Ponseti method and has trained clinical and programme personnel in the CAST/CommCare digital system. The Opportunity HANDS is seeking a highly competent, analytical and results-oriented Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Officer to support implementation of the MiracleFeet-funded Clubfoot Programme in Supported States. The role will monitor the patient and programme pathway from identification and referral through enrolment, treatment, bracing, follow-up, retention and completion. The officer will work closely with the Project Manager, outreach personnel, clinic teams, healthcare providers, HANDS' MERL Unit and relevant MiracleFeet technical teams. Key Responsibilities: Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Systems: Maintain indicator tracking systems and monitor progress against monthly, quarterly and annual targets. Document lessons learned, promising practices, challenges and innovations. Translate programme objectives and donor requirements: into measurable indicators, data sources, collection methods and targets. Support implementation and review of the programme MERL framework, indicators, monitoring plans and reporting schedules. Participate in programme review meetings and contribute evidence-based insights. Identify performance gaps and recommend corrective actions. Clubfoot Programme Data Management: Maintain accurate databases and well-organized M&E records. Reconcile facility records, source documents, CAST/CommCare and other approved reporting systems. Track agreed MiracleFeet programme indicators and identify anomalies or gaps. Monitor identification, referral, enrolment, serial casting, tenotomy where applicable, bracing, follow-up, retention, defaulting and treatment completion. Coordinate collection, collation, cleaning, validation, analysis and reporting of data from supported clinics and outreach activities. CAST/CommCare and Digital Data Systems: Support users with routine digital reporting and data-management challenges. Identify and resolve data-quality issues with clinic teams. Monitor data-entry completeness, timeliness and consistency. Support effective use of CAST/CommCare and other approved digital data systems. Support training and refresher sessions on digital data collection and reporting. Data Quality Assurance: Strengthen clinic and programme staff capacity in data quality. Conduct data verification, validation and source-document checks. Implement routine Data Quality Assurance (DQA) processes. Document DQA findings and track corrective actions to closure. Assess accuracy, completeness, consistency, timeliness, integrity and reliability. Monitoring Visits and Supportive Supervision: Support facility assessments and programme verification exercises. Participate in monitoring and supportive supervision visits to supported facilities. Use approved monitoring tools and checklists. Verify reported achievements against source documentation. Provide constructive feedback and follow up on agreed action points. Data Analysis, Visualization and Interpretation: Prepare tables, graphs, dashboards and visualizations. Generate routine descriptive statistics and indicator analyses. Translate findings into clear, actionable recommendations. Analyse programme data to identify trends, patterns, gaps and performance variations. Disaggregate data appropriately by facility, LGA, age, sex, treatment stage and other relevant variables. Develop or maintain dashboards using Excel, Power BI, Looker Studio and the CAST Community and other approved tools. Reporting and Documentation: Contribute verified data and analysis to donor and programme reports. Maintain organized electronic and physical M&E documentation. Prepare indicator tracking tables, analytical briefs and presentations. Prepare accurate and timely weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual M&E reports as required. Programme Learning and Adaptive Management: Support learning and reflection sessions. Identify and document lessons from implementation. Contribute to evidence-based case studies, learning briefs and success stories. Promote routine use of data for programme decision-making. Capacity Strengthening: Promote accountability, evidence-based management and continuous improvement. Assess M&E and data-management capacity gaps among clinic and programme staff. Support practical M&E and data-management training and mentoring. Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate with HANDS' MERLA/M&E Unit and MiracleFeet technical teams. Maintain effective relationships with supported health facilities and government stakeholders. Work closely with the Project Manager and programme team. Participate in relevant technical meetings and coordination platforms. Key Performance Areas Compliance with HANDS, donor and programme data-management requirements. Quality of technical support to clinic teams. Completeness and quality of clinic and programme data. Timeliness and accuracy of programme reporting. Evidence of data use for programme improvement. Accuracy of indicator tracking. Timely completion of DQA and monitoring activities. Quality of dashboards and analytical outputs. Timely identification and resolution of data-quality issues. Quality of analysis and recommendations. Required Qualifications Bachelor's Degree in Statistics, Epidemiology, Public Health, Health Information Management, Demography, Economics, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Data Science, Mathematics or another relevant discipline. Professional Experience: Minimum of 3 years of progressive experience: in monitoring, evaluation, research, data management or programme performance monitoring. Experience: in facility-level monitoring and DQA is strongly preferred. Experience: with NGOs, international development organizations, government health programmes or donor-funded projects is highly desirable. Experience: in health, public health, disability, rehabilitation, community health or development programmes. Experience: with digital systems such as CommCare, CAST, KoboToolbox/ODK, DHIS2, REDCap or similar platforms is an advantage. Experience: in health programme reporting, indicator tracking and donor reporting is desirable. Technical Skills: Competence in data cleaning, validation, reconciliation and database management. Experience: with Salesforce, Power BI, Tableau, Looker Studio or comparable visualization tools is desirable. Strong Microsoft Excel and quantitative data-analysis skills. Experience: with digital data-collection platforms such as CommCare, CAST, KoboToolbox/ODK, DHIS2, SurveyCTO or REDCap. Strong technical report-writing and presentation skills. Clubfoot Programme Knowledge: Knowledge of clubfoot programming is highly desirable, including familiarity with identification and referral, Ponseti treatment, serial casting, tenotomy, bracing, follow-up, retention, loss to follow-up and treatment outcomes. Formal clinical training in the Ponseti method is not required; however, the successful candidate must be able to quickly understand the treatment pathway and programme indicators. Experience: with MiracleFeet-supported programmes or CAST/CommCare will be a significant advantage. Core Competencies: Ability to translate data into practical programme decisions. Commitment to confidentiality and responsible handling of patient information. High integrity, professionalism and accountability. Strong communication, interpersonal and facilitation skills. Excellent organizational and time-management skills. Ability to train, coach and mentor programme staff. Exceptional attention to detail and strong data-quality mindset. Strong analytical and problem-solving ability. Ability to work independently and within multidisciplinary teams. Commitment to disability inclusion, safeguarding and equitable access to healthcare. Language Requirements: Fluency in Hausa is strongly preferred. Knowledge of other local languages spoken in Northern Nigeria is an advantage. Excellent written and spoken English is required. Travel Requirement: Comply with HANDS safeguarding, data protection and information-security policies. Report safeguarding or data-protection concerns through established organizational channels. The position requires regular travel to supported states, clubfoot clinics, health facilities and LGAs. Promote an inclusive, child-safe and disability-sensitive programme environment. Respect the rights, dignity and privacy of children and families receiving clubfoot services. Ensure responsible handling, storage and transmission of programme data. Maintain strict confidentiality of patient and programme data. Safeguarding, Data Protection and Ethical Responsibility The successful candidate must be willing and able to undertake frequent field travel and occasional extended field assignments. Desirable Advantages: Experience: working with government health facilities and donor-funded health programmes. Experience: in disability-inclusive health or rehabilitation programmes. Experience: monitoring patient-level health programmes. Experience: working in Northern Nigeria. Experience: developing interactive Power BI or similar dashboards. Fluency in Hausa. Previous experience: with MiracleFeet-supported programmes. Knowledge of the Nigerian health system. Experience: using CAST/CommCare. Experience: conducting facility-based DQA. Equal Opportunity: HANDS is committed to providing equal employment opportunities and maintaining an inclusive workplace. Women, persons with disabilities and qualified candidates from underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply. Selection will be based on qualifications, competence, relevant experience: and demonstrated suitability for the position. How to Apply Interested and qualified candidates should send their current CV/Resume highlighting relevant M&E, health-programme, data-management and digital-systems experience: and a concise Cover Letter explaining suitability for the position and interest in supporting the MiracleFeet Clubfoot Programmeto: recruitment@handsnigeria.org using "Application – MELR Officer, MiracleFeet Clubfoot Programme" as subject of mail. Note Applicants should clearly demonstrate experience: with health programme M&E, data quality assurance, digital data systems, facility monitoring, data analysis and reporting. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Applicants should not pay money, provide favors or engage intermediaries in exchange for employment. HANDS reserves the right to conduct appropriate reference, safeguarding and background checks as part of its recruitment process. HANDS do not charge applicants any fee at any stage of its recruitment process. Application Deadline: 10th September, 2026. View all Jobs in Nigeria Kano State