Position: NRD MEL Coordinator
Reports to: Research Manager
Location: Butaleja
Planning Phase: 5th January 2026 - 27th February 2026
Contract Duration: [Contingent on funding] 28th February 2026- 31st December 2028
OVERVIEW
Building Tomorrow, an international nonprofit organization that provides literacy and numeracy for all children, is seeking an exceptional, values-aligned Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Coordinator to work with the Numeracy Research and Development (NRD) project in Butaleja. The MEL Coordinator is responsible for implementing and maintaining a robust MEL system to collect, store, analyze, and report on data essential to measuring the effectiveness and impact of the NRD Project. This role involves setting up data collection, supporting those who perform data collection, creating visualizations, reports of data analysis and learnings, facilitating data-based learning for decision-making, and reporting key performance indicators. This position is tied to the NRD project and will end at the end of 2028.
THE ORGANIZATION
Started in 2006, Building Tomorrow supports community-powered learning in rural areas. Through over 650 Building Tomorrow Fellows and over 20,000 Community Education Volunteers, Building Tomorrow has enrolled over 216,000 out-of-school children and reached more than 850,000 learners with our signature Roots to Rise (R2R) literacy and numeracy camps. Between offices in the USA, Uganda, and Rwanda, Building Tomorrow has a full-time staff of over 350, just eight of whom work outside East Africa. Building Tomorrow has received funding and recognition for its innovative work from Echoing Green, Big Bang Philanthropy, Clinton Global Initiative, US Library of Congress and Forbes Magazine. More information can be found online at: www.buildingtomorrow.org.
POSITION HIGHLIGHTS
The NRD MEL Coordinator will collaborate closely with the NRD Project team and MEL Team to ensure effective monitoring, evaluation, and learning for NRD. The Coordinator will implement tools and methods to track progress and evaluate the impact of the project activities while maintaining the integrity of data collection processes and systems.
This position is responsible for supporting field-based data collection, ensuring data quality, data analysis, and generating reports that facilitate learning and informed decision-making. The role includes building the capacity of project field staff in data collection and management, ensuring adherence to best practices in MEL, and contributing to a culture of continuous learning within the project and organization at large.
This position is full-time and candidates must be willing to be located in Butaleja for the project duration. This position will require some travel. This position reports to the Research Manager.
Key Responsibilities:
MEL System Development
- Collaborate with the Research Manager to implement methods for collecting and monitoring data that measure project effectiveness and organizational efficiency.
- Develop and manage technical tools for data collection within the existing MEL system, which includes a mobile data collection app (TaroWorks) and a cloud-based database (Salesforce) and aligned with local government needs.
- Define and document MEL processes, including data collection methods, monitoring procedures, and reporting structures.
- Incorporate MEL activities into project planning in collaboration with the NRD Project and Research Managers.
Monitoring and Reporting
- Implement monitoring plans to track project progress and ensure data quality.
- Create internal and external dashboards, reports, and visualizations to communicate key performance indicators and project impact.
- Gather and incorporate consistent feedback from staff and stakeholders on the effectiveness of MEL processes.
- Assist in the creation of reports detailing project successes, challenges, and learnings for internal and external dissemination.
- Contribute to ongoing improvements in reporting processes to align them with Building Tomorrow’s strategic goals.
Data Analysis
- Perform exploratory data analysis to understand patterns, trends, and outliers in program and operational datasets.
- Utilize statistical techniques and tools to extract meaningful insights and learnings.
- Create clear and informative visual representations of data using tools such as Salesforce, Tableau, and R statistical computing software.
- Incorporate third-party data and research into internal analysis.
- Build predictive models to forecast trends, make recommendations, or solve specific programmatic problems.
- Summarize findings in monthly reports and meetings for government stakeholders.
Quality Assurance and Coaching
- Build the capacity of field staff to collect accurate, valid, and reliable data by providing training and technical support.
- Conduct regular site visits to ensure data quality, performing data validation and cleaning as necessary.
- Ensure that all MEL activities adhere to ethical standards and best practices for data collection and analysis.
- Maintain high standards of data quality through regular cleaning, validation, and identification of data errors.
Facilitating Learning
- Translate complex data findings into actionable insights for non-technical staff and stakeholders.
- Facilitate learning discussions to inform decision-making and adjust strategies to enhance project effectiveness.
- Share learnings with project leads to support continuous improvement in program and project planning.
- Facilitate monthly data analysis meetings with government stakeholders.
- Promote a data-driven culture within the organization, encouraging staff to use data in decision-making processes.
Research
- Serve as the on-ground liaison for NRD’s externally conducted impact and process evaluations.
- Support the NRD team and Research Manager in designing and collecting NRD research questions. Lead on-ground coordination of said research question, in partnership with external partners.
- Collaborate with academic and research partners as needed throughout the project. Tasks could include supporting study design, developing research protocols, and collecting data.
- Analyze research data to draw actionable conclusions and make evidence-based recommendations.
- Contribute to research reports, working papers, and case studies that contribute to the evidence base in education and international development.
Qualifications, Education Background, and Required Skills:
- Bachelor’s degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Statistics, Social Sciences, International Development, or a related discipline, with relevant certifications in monitoring and evaluation are a plus.
- Minimum of 1-3 years of experience in monitoring, evaluation, learning, or research, preferably in a nonprofit or international development context.
- Proficiency in designing and implementing MEL frameworks, including indicators, data collection methods, and reporting systems.
- Experience in managing databases or information systems for MEL purposes, preferably with Salesforce.
- Knowledge of data collection techniques (surveys, interviews, questionnaires) and ensuring data quality, specific quantitative or qualitative research experience is a plus.
- Strong project management skills with the ability to oversee MEL activities across multiple programs.
- Understanding of ethical considerations in data collection and analysis.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex information clearly.
- A commitment to continuous learning and staying updated on the latest trends and tools in MEL.
WE WANT YOU TO APPLY IF YOU…
- Have an unshakeable passion for education equality, believing access to an inclusive, quality education is a basic human right.
- Possess creative ingenuity, being progressive in your thinking and approaching challenges, old and new. You are intrapreneurial and unafraid to pilot new ideas.
- Are relentlessly determined, refusing to accept the status quo, persistently striving to create new opportunities to reach more children, allowing them to reach their maximum potential.
- Believe in collaborative engagement, you believe more can be achieved together than alone, believe in the power of cultivating relationships, and see everyone as an equal partner.
The compensation package includes benefits and will be commensurate with experience. This is a coordinator position based in Butaleja, Uganda.
If someone referred you to apply for this position, please provide his or her name in your cover letter.
Building Tomorrow maintains a dedication to promoting gender equity, diversity, multiculturalism, and inclusion, and recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of protected characteristics. Building Tomorrow will not tolerate illegal discrimination or harassment under any applicable law in any jurisdiction where it operates.
