Pact is an international nonprofit that works in nearly 40 countries building solutions for human development that are evidence-based, data-driven and owned by the communities we serve. Founded in 1971, Pact works with partners to build resilience, improve accountability, and strengthen knowledge and skills for sustainable social impact.

Department

Programs – Pact strives for a world where all people are heard, capable, and vibrant. The Programs Team helps realize this objective by bridging program management, technical support, and business development, enabling Pact to achieve its global strategy. We ensure program excellence through continuous learning, monitoring and evaluation and provide organizational and industry-wide thought leadership by leveraging a complementary set of cross-functional, multi-disciplinary skills, expertise, and experiences. The Programs team: influences progressive change through the development and implementation of global and regional strategies and business plans; supports advancement of innovative solutions; pursues new business opportunities; and drives effective internal and external engagement to maximize Pact’s impact across the globe. Across all aspects of its role, the Programs Department adheres to and promotes a culture of inclusion, accountability, and respect.

Position Overview

Pact is initiating a new activity in Malawi as part of the ACHIEVE project, a global project funded through the U.S. Department of State. The activity in Malawi will focus on accelerating triple elimination of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B while reducing maternal and child mortality in priority geographies, through integration with ACHIEVE/Malawi’s ongoing maternal, newborn, and child health and nutrition services activity. The activity will include elements of testing and treatment of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B among mothers and infants; HIV self-testing; pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); integration with ante-natal care, labor and delivery, and post-natal care services; and community-based case management for mother-baby pairs; along with a major emphasis on measuring and documenting outcomes. Pact seeks a qualified and motivated individual to serve as MERL Lead for the Triple Elimination Activity under the ACHIEVE project in Malawi. Duties under this position will be approximately 25% Performance Monitoring and 75% Evaluation and Learning. This is a short-term position, anticipated to last up to six months.

The MERL Lead will lead the implementation of the activity’s evaluation and learning agenda, with a strong focus on generating operational insights to inform program implementation and future scale-up of an integrated triple elimination model aimed at eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B. This includes assessing the effectiveness of integrated service delivery across antenatal, maternal, and child health platforms, and identifying best practices for improving early testing, treatment uptake, retention in care, and prevention interventions for pregnant women and their infants.

The role will also oversee performance monitoring, working closely with the ACHIEVE Malawi Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team to ensure high-quality routine data collection, robust analysis, and timely reporting on activity specific indicators aligned with triple elimination targets. In addition, the MERL Lead will support and coordinate efforts to strengthen health information systems, including improving data quality, integration of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B indicators into routine reporting systems, and building capacity among health workers and program staff. The role will also promote the use of data for evidence-based decision-making at facility, district, and national levels.

Through these efforts, the MERL Lead will contribute to advancing progress toward elimination of mother-to-child transmission (eMTCT), reducing maternal and child morbidity and mortality, and supporting Malawi’s alignment with global validation targets.

Key Responsibilities

Responsibilities or duties

• Lead the operationalization of the evaluation and learning plan for the Triple Elimination Activity, including development of tools, protocols, and timelines.
• Coordinate and conduct qualitative and quantitative data collection activities, including key informant interviews, supervision debriefs, and review of routine data sources.
• Contribute to the analysis and synthesis of findings related to the implementation of the integrated triple elimination model, including feasibility, acceptability, adoption, fidelity, and system-level outcomes.
• Support documentation of operational learning, reporting and dissemination of findings through technical briefs, case studies, learning summaries, among others.
• Coordinate exploratory, non-causal comparisons between EVT/3E integration areas and non-integration areas, focusing on system-level outcomes such as service integration, commodity availability, and data use.
• Collaborate with the ACHIEVE MEL team to ensure accurate and timely collection, analysis, and reporting of performance indicators related to the Triple Elimination Activity.
• Monitor data quality and completeness for activity-specific indicators and support data validation and review processes.
• Support capacity strengthening efforts for district and facility-level staff on data use, data quality, and performance monitoring related to triple elimination.
• Participate in collaborative learning sessions and performance review meetings with district and national stakeholders.
• Work closely with Pact’s global MEL backstops and ACHIEVE Malawi’s MEL Director, MEL team, and Triple Elimination technical team to ensure alignment of learning and monitoring activities with implementation priorities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications or requirements

Basic Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree and 9+ years’ relevant experience or equivalent combination of education/experience, including 4 years of management experience
• Minimum 7 years’ experience of progressively responsible experience designing, managing, and implementing research, evaluation, or learning activities in the health sector.
• Experience working with or supporting government health systems, particularly at district or subnational levels, is strongly preferred.
• Experience working with the Malawi HMIS data systems
• Experience working with Malawi IRB approval processes
• Experience in data analysis and reporting.
• Experience working on USAID/Department of State (DoS) funded projects is preferred

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience applying implementation of science principles to real-world program evaluation, operational learning, or systems strengthening initiatives.
• Proven expertise in qualitative research methods, including tool development, data collection (e.g., interviews, focus groups), coding, and thematic analysis.
• Experience supporting or conducting comparative and/or mixed-methods studies, including triangulation of routine data with qualitative insights.
• Familiarity with Malawi’s health information systems (e.g., DHIS2), data quality assurance processes, and performance monitoring frameworks in the context of MNCH, HIV, or health systems programs.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, with the ability to interpret complex data and translate findings into actionable recommendations.
• Excellent writing, synthesis, and presentation skills, with a demonstrated ability to produce high-quality reports, briefs, and learning products for diverse audiences.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and at least one qualitative and one quantitative data analysis software (e.g., NVivo, Dedoose, Excel, STATA, or SPSS).
• Experience facilitating learning sessions, stakeholder consultations, or participatory evaluation processes is an asset.
• Ability to work independently, manage competing priorities, and collaborate effectively with multidisciplinary teams in a fast-paced environment.
• Fluency in English and Chichewa required.
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with government counterparts, implementing partners, and community stakeholders.
• Commitment to ethical research practices, data confidentiality, and inclusive, respectful engagement with participants and stakeholders.

• Lead the operationalization of the evaluation and learning plan for the Triple Elimination Activity, including development of tools, protocols, and timelines.
• Coordinate and conduct qualitative and quantitative data collection activities, including key informant interviews, supervision debriefs, and review of routine data sources.
• Contribute to the analysis and synthesis of findings related to the implementation of the integrated triple elimination model, including feasibility, acceptability, adoption, fidelity, and system-level outcomes.
• Support documentation of operational learning, reporting and dissemination of findings through technical briefs, case studies, learning summaries, among others.
• Coordinate exploratory, non-causal comparisons between EVT/3E integration areas and non-integration areas, focusing on system-level outcomes such as service integration, commodity availability, and data use.
• Collaborate with the ACHIEVE MEL team to ensure accurate and timely collection, analysis, and reporting of performance indicators related to the Triple Elimination Activity.
• Monitor data quality and completeness for activity-specific indicators and support data validation and review processes.
• Support capacity strengthening efforts for district and facility-level staff on data use, data quality, and performance monitoring related to triple elimination.
• Participate in collaborative learning sessions and performance review meetings with district and national stakeholders.
• Work closely with Pact’s global MEL backstops and ACHIEVE Malawi’s MEL Director, MEL team, and Triple Elimination technical team to ensure alignment of learning and monitoring activities with implementation priorities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

• Proven expertise in qualitative research methods, including tool development, data collection (e.g., interviews, focus groups), coding, and thematic analysis.
• Experience supporting or conducting comparative and/or mixed-methods studies, including triangulation of routine data with qualitative insights.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, with the ability to interpret complex data and translate findings into actionable recommendations.
• Excellent writing, synthesis, and presentation skills, with a demonstrated ability to produce high-quality reports, briefs, and learning products for diverse audiences.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and at least one qualitative and one quantitative data analysis software (e.g., NVivo, Dedoose, Excel, STATA, or SPSS).
• Ability to work independently, manage competing priorities, and collaborate effectively with multidisciplinary teams in a fast-paced environment.
• Fluency in English and Chichewa required.
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with government counterparts, implementing partners, and community stakeholders.
• Commitment to ethical research practices, data confidentiality, and inclusive, respectful engagement with participants and stakeholders.

• Bachelor’s degree and 9+ years’ relevant experience or equivalent combination of education/experience, including 4 years of management experience
• Minimum 7 years’ experience of progressively responsible experience designing, managing, and implementing research, evaluation, or learning activities in the health sector.
• Experience working with or supporting government health systems, particularly at district or subnational levels, is strongly preferred.
• Experience working with the Malawi HMIS data systems
• Experience working with Malawi IRB approval processes
• Experience in data analysis and reporting.
• Experience working on USAID/Department of State (DoS) funded projects is preferred
• Demonstrated experience applying implementation of science principles to real-world program evaluation, operational learning, or systems strengthening initiatives.
• Familiarity with Malawi’s health information systems (e.g., DHIS2), data quality assurance processes, and performance monitoring frameworks in the context of MNCH, HIV, or health systems programs.
• Experience facilitating learning sessions, stakeholder consultations, or participatory evaluation processes is an asset.