Senior Research Officer

Job Summary:

The primary responsibility of the Senior Research Officer will be to support the Vulnerability to Corruption Assessment (VCA) Team Lead in conducting vulnerability to corruption assessments by conducting desk studies to map business processes in chosen sectors or institutions and collecting qualitative data through interviews and focus groups.

The secondary responsibility of the VCA Officer is to provide research support to the various teams of the MEC Secretariat, including the collection of primary evidence and data through site visits, as required. 

He/she supports the Research Unit by conducting primary and secondary research through desk studies and collecting qualitative and quantitative data through interviews, Focus Group Discussions, Direct Observations, and coordinates relevant research tasks with the team, the Technical Director, the Legal Advisor, the Senior Policy Advisor and the Executive Director.

Skills Required:

Provinces to travel:

Skills Description:

·     Excellent presentation and report writing skill.   

·     Proficient in MS Office, MS Project, and internet applications.

·     Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to communicate.

·     Experience of similar donor funded projects is preferred.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Supporting vulnerability to corruption assessments
• Support the Technical Director & VCA Team Lead in the conduct of vulnerability to corruption assessments as directed. Support will specifically include legal and regulatory research to identify formal frameworks for the functional processes being assessed.
• Support the conduct of interviews, Focus Group Discussions, and Direct Observations, as well the collection of relevant qualitative and quantitative data through surveys and/or questionnaires. 
• Providing research support to MEC Secretariat Teams
• Support MEC Secretariat teams by identifying documents and evidentiary sources for policy issues under consideration.
• Conducting web based and documentary research on issues identified by MEC Secretariat teams. 
• General research responsibilities
• Develop research tools such as questionnaires, interview guides, and Focus Group Discussion tools. 
• Conduct field research and data collection by conducting interviews, facilitating Focus Group Discussions, and performing Direct Observations on a variety of issues. 
• Ensure the quality of interview transcripts and field notes are up to standard and to ensure that they meet the research goals.
• Review research methodologies in identified reports to assess their appropriateness, effectiveness, and validity of findings.
• Provide training in research methodology and methods to staff as required.
• Maintain relationships with various research bodies and think tanks, particularly AREU, to stay current on the release of studies that may be relevant to MEC and to facilitate the collections of data when required.
• The officer will support Research Unit by conducting legal and regulatory research and report writing in Dari and English.
• The officer may be required to edit and re-draft Dari reports done by other team members, as well as support quality checks on team reports, Briefings, or other documents.
• The officer is required to deliver high-quality documents, often under tight deadlines, and may require some overtime / after-hours work.
• Perform any other tasks assigned by the Technical Director, VCA Team Leader or MEC Executive Director;