Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) and Reserach Advisor- Integrated Innovation Highway (IIH) Project Ethiopia

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PATH is a global nonprofit dedicated to achieving health equity. With more than 40 years of experience forging multisector partnerships and with expertise in science, economics, technology, advocacy, and dozens of other specialties, PATH develops and scales up innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing health challenges.
PATH combines scientific and public health expertise, implementation experience, innovation, and strong partnerships with governments, communities, civil society, and development partners. In Ethiopia, PATH works closely with the Federal Ministry of Health (MoH), Regional Health Bureaus, health facilities, communities, local organizations, and development partners to strengthen health systems and expand access to high-quality, equitable health services.
Project Overview
The Integrated Innovation Highway (IIH) is a Gates Foundation–funded project that supports the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) and MoH to establish a government-owned platform that systematically identifies country needs, prioritizes innovations, assesses evidence and readiness, and supports the introduction, transition, and scale-up of innovations within the Ethiopian health system.
The IIH will establish an integrated approach across six innovation highways:
Medical devices
Diagnostics
Therapeutics, family planning and nutrition products
Vaccines
Technology, including digital health, artificial intelligence (AI), and biotechnology
Bundled and systems innovations
Phase 1 will focus on three tracer products across two highways:
Medical devices: AI-enabled point-of-care ultrasound (AI-POCUS)
Diagnostics: Near-point-of-care TB PlusLife and Ebola diagnostics
The project will work closely with the MoH, Regional Health Bureaus, public health institutes, universities, innovators, development partners, and other stakeholders to strengthen innovation governance and develop practical pathways for evaluating, introducing, transitioning, and scaling priority health innovations.
Position Summary
The Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) and Reserach Advisor will provide strategic and technical leadership for the project's monitoring, evaluation, research, learning, and adaptive management functions.
The MEAL and Research Advisor will lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of the project's MEAL system, ensuring that project performance, evidence, learning, and lessons are systematically generated, analyzed, communicated, and used to inform decision-making and the transition and scale-up of health innovations.
The position will work closely with the Project Director, IIH technical team, MoH, Regional Health Bureaus, research institutions, universities, local partners, innovators, and other stakeholders to generate and use evidence to inform the introduction, transition, and scale-up of priority innovations.
Reporting and Working Relationships
Reports to: Project Director, Integrated Innovation Highway
Key internal relationships: IIH Project Director, technical leads, Project Officers, AI/innovation specialists, PATH Ethiopia leadership, finance and operations teams, and PATH global/regional technical teams.
Key external relationships: MoH, Regional Health Bureaus, public health institutes, universities, research organizations, innovators, development partners, Gates Foundation, local implementing partners, and other IIH stakeholders.
Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with travel to project implementation sites and partner institutions as required
Key Responsibilities1. MEAL System Design, Data Management, and Performance Monitoring
Lead the design, implementation, and maintenance of the IIH MEAL system, aligned with the work plan, learning agendas, results framework and donor requirements.
Develop and maintain project indicators, performance measurement plans, data collection tools, reporting templates, and data management systems.
Establish systems for tracking project outputs, outcomes, milestones, risks, assumptions, and progress toward transition and scale-up goals.
Oversee implementation monitoring at national, subnational, partner, and service-delivery levels, as applicable.
Ensure timely collection, analysis, validation, and reporting of project performance data.
Support the development and monitoring of annual and quarterly project work plans.
2. Learning, Evaluation, and Adaptive Management
Analyze project data and lead performance reviews and learning sessions to assess progress against targets, identify implementation bottlenecks, emerging risks, and lessons learned, and recommend corrective actions to support adaptation and continuous improvement.
Lead the development and implementation of learning agendas and priority learning questions for the IIH.
Lead evaluations of the project and its approaches, and support stakeholders to interpret and use evaluation findings.
Work with technical leads and project partners to ensure that evidence, learning, and evaluation findings are routinely used to inform project implementation and strategic decisions.
3. Research and Evidence Generation
Lead the development of the project's research and evidence-generation agenda and coordinate its implementation with project and research partners.
Collaborate with local research institutions, universities, public health institutes, and other partners involved in project research and evidence generation.
Provide technical oversight for feasibility studies, operational research, implementation research, and other evidence-generation activities, including development of protocols, study designs, data collection tools, analysis plans, and research reports.
Ensure that research activities comply with applicable ethical, regulatory, scientific, and donor requirements.
Support the interpretation and synthesis of research findings to inform innovation prioritization, introduction, transition, and scale-up.
4. Innovation Assessment and Transition-to-Scale
Provide MEAL and research leadership for the assessment of priority innovations from initial assessment through introduction, implementation, and potential scale-up.
Develop indicators and assessment frameworks to measure innovation readiness, implementation, sustainability, and scale-up potential.
Work with technical teams and government stakeholders to establish evidence requirements and milestones for transitioning innovations into the health system.
Support the generation and synthesis of evidence needed to inform decisions on innovation introduction, transition, and scale-up.
Support documentation of the transition pathways for priority innovations.
Identify and track key learning and evidence needs along transition-to-scale pathways.
Support generation of findings and analyses that can inform government decisions regarding financing, institutionalization, and scale-up.
5. Data Quality and Knowledge Management
Conduct routine data quality assessments and support partners to address identified gaps.
Ensure that project data are appropriately documented, stored, analyzed, and protected.
Develop and maintain knowledge-management systems and repositories for project evidence, lessons learned, case studies, success stories, and other learning products.
Promote the use of data visualization, dashboards, and other appropriate tools to communicate project performance and results.
6. Documentation, Learning and Dissemination
Lead documentation of project achievements, lessons learned, challenges, promising practices, and insights from the assessment, introduction, transition, and scale-up of innovations.
Develop success stories, case studies, technical briefs, learning briefs, and other knowledge products.
Facilitate learning events, stakeholder consultations, dissemination meetings, and knowledge-sharing sessions.
Ensure that lessons and evidence generated by the project are shared with government, partners, and other stakeholders through learning events, technical forums, publications, conferences, and other appropriate platforms.
Develop communication products that demonstrate the contribution of IIH to strengthening Ethiopia's innovation governance and health system.
7. Team Leadership and Capacity Strengthening
Provide technical leadership and guidance to project staff, consultants, and partner MEAL and research focal points.
Coordinate MEAL and research contributions across technical workstreams and implementing partners.
Mentor project staff and partners in monitoring, evaluation, research, learning, and evidence-use approaches.
Support government and local partners to strengthen MEAL and research capacity and progressively assume ownership of relevant monitoring, evidence-generation, learning, and decision-support functions.
Supervise MEAL and research staff, consultants, or interns, as assigned.