MERL Field Officer

MERL FIELD OFFICER

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Position

MERL Field Officer - Climate Resilience, Natural Resource Management, Water Sector & Social Accountability

Position

Project-based Staff - Fulltime

Type Position

MERL Field Officer at RAAGSAN with background in Water & Natural

Profile

Resources Management. The position coordinates fieldwork related to Climate Resilience, Natural Resource Management, Water Sector & Social Accountability.

Reporting

•  Reports to the Director of Operations for managerial aspects & Structure technically to the  Climate  Resilience, Governance  and Social Accountability Lead.

•  Coordinates with the Project Leads and MERL Coordinators/Officers

Contract: 6 months with possibility of extension based on project availability

Duration

Duty station

Based in Mogadishu with 70% travels to field locations across Somalia & Somaliland

Salary Scale

Project Based Basic Salary – 300 USD

Project Based Allowances – 400 USD

Other allowances- housing and transportation during travels

Background Information

RAAGSAN is a female-led local social enterprise providing strategic and analytical consulting services across the Horn of Africa, focusing on all Somalia, Somaliland, and Djibouti. We strive to bridge the gap between communities and policymakers by leveraging our network of young and middle-aged professionals supported by experienced senior consultants with post-conflict environment expertise. We offer an in-depth knowledge of the Somali community level. RAAGSAN works in fragile and conflict-affected states to develop and strengthen policies and systems that enhance public service delivery. Our operations have served a wide range of international and national clients and government entities. We have experience working with Ministries, Local Governments, UN agencies, INGOs, NNGOs. RAAGSAN has primary offices in Mogadishu and Hargeisa, and a Laison office in Nairobi. We also have project offices in Beledweyne and Kismayo.

Our experts and researchers were part of projects in multiple sectors in both the humanitarian and development: livelihood and markets, social protection, cash transfers, disaster management, water sector development, health systems, chain, GESI and justice sector, and humanitarian responses. RAAGSAN has conducted MERL work in more than

50 districts and has a pool of 200+ highly qualified local field researchers that could be rapidly deployed as a team of professionals who are trained to conduct research and data collection in the field, typically at the community or local level.

Objectives of the Position

The Field Research Officer plays a key role in supporting RAAGSAN’s implementation of MERL activities in the thematic areas of climate resilience, water governance, and social accountability. The position ensures that fieldwork is well-coordinated, ethically implemented, and properly documented. The role is especially suited for professionals with a technical background in Water or Agricultural Engineering, who are passionate about applied research and program delivery in fragile contexts. Specifically, the position will coordinate to:

•        Coordinate and support field data collection and logistics for MERL projects, specifically those on water and natural resources management

•        Lead the production and quality assurance of field notes from interviews, workshops and discussions with communities and other stakeholders

•        Produce field reports to inform MERL reports

•        Ensure research quality and ethical standards are upheld during implementation

•        Lead the field-level execution of two long-term and two short-term projects at any given time

•        Act as a liaison between field teams, technical leads, and community stakeholders

•        Contribute to internal learning, documentation, and operational planning

Roles and Responsibilities

Project Management, Research and MERL Support Role

•        Lead the field work of at least two long-term and two short-term projects

•        Coordinate field activities for assigned projects, including scheduling, mobilization, and deliverables

•        Lead the preparation of workplans, timelines, and logistical plans in collaboration with technical leads

•        Coordinate meetings, training sessions, site visits, and field interactions

•        Ensure adherence to data collection ethical protocols and that community-sensitive approaches are applied during field data collection

•        Maintain well-organized documentation project shared folders

•        Assist in finalizing field tools and adapt tools for specific geographic contexts and research participants

•        Train field research team in data collection tools and research protocols

•        Monitor the quality of data collection and report irregularities to project leads

•        Lead review of the data and notes coming from the field

•        Support the data cleaning and analysis and ensure timely and clean data transfer

Field Operations Coordination

•       Manage all logistics for field-based data collection, including researcher deployment, security assessments, transportation, and equipment

•       Prepare detailed fieldwork plans and ensure timely mobilization of teams

•       Supervise data collection and conduct pre-field briefings and post-field debriefings with enumerators, team leads, and project staff

•       Maintain consistent communication with project leads to report progress, challenges, and resolution measures

•       Maintain and update project folders, checklists, contact lists, and logistics trackers

Reporting and Knowledge Production

•       Provide field observations, reflections, and lessons learned during internal learning reviews and project after-action meetings

•       Support the development and documentation of field-based case studies, photo essays, and reflective summaries capturing community perspectives and contextual analysis

•       Assist in report writing, particularly in developing narrative sections, compiling field insights, verifying data accuracy, and supporting integration of qualitative findings into final deliverables

•        Contribute to the drafting and editing of policy briefs, learning papers, and technical summaries related to climate resilience, water governance, and accountability themes

•       Provide regular field content updates to the communications team for donor reports, social media, and internal bulletins

•       Support the development of learning products and materials such as workshop handouts, visual aids, and short-form summaries

•       Help organize and coordinate learning events and workshops to engage target audiences, social influencers, policymakers, and international stakeholders on topics such as Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Climate Change Adaptation, and Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)

•       Contribute to keeping RAAGSAN up to date on technological innovations in the DRR, Climate, and IWRM research sectors, identifying new tools and creative methods for capturing, visualizing, and communicating impact

•       Liaise with the communications team to curate and share content on emerging insights from the field—especially related to DRR, climate change adaptation, and IWRM—for dissemination to external audiences

Representation, Advocacy, and External Engagement

•       Serve as field liaison between RAAGSAN and local government, community leaders, and implementing partners

•       Represent RAAGSAN in field-level events, public meetings, or coordination forums as delegated

•       Report community feedback and contextual risks to the relevant technical or operations lead

•       Coordinate with the operations director to assess and manage field-level risks

Required Qualifications

•        Bachelor's Degree in Water or Agricultural Engineering, Water Management, Natural Resource Management, Environmental Sciences, or related field

•        Minimum of 2 years’ experi [email protected]ence in field work coordination, M&E and Research project delivery in fragile contexts

•        Diploma with 4 years of relevant field experience on related field of expertise required is acceptable

•        Ability to travel 70% of the time to the field and survive in difficult environments

•        Ability to generate high quality data and produce field reports

•        Strong understanding of local context and field realities in Somalia

•        Experience in handling field logistics and negotiating access for field work

•        Strong interpersonal skills and ability to coordinate teams remotely and in-person

•        Fluency in Somali and proficiency in English (written and verbal)

•        Willingness to travel to field locations frequently and work extended hours when needed

•        Fluency in Somali and English both in speaking and writing

Send your application documents to [email protected] before 2nd September 2025