The Egypt Impact Lab (EIL) is a collaboration between the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MPED) and J-PAL MENA at AUC. EIL seeks to strengthen evidence-informed policy and improve development outcomes for Egyptians. The Lab was launched in 2022 with several strategic government and founding donor partners. The outcomes of EIL are to evaluate promising and innovative government programs and use results to inform scale decisions; build government capacity to use rigorous evidence to strengthen program design and delivery; and foster the use of partner ministries’ administrative data to generate evidence and improve decision-making.
The Egypt Impact Lab Policy, Training, and Events Associate will be hired at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development. This position will support EIL leadership in building government partner relationships, understanding nuanced policy priorities, and conducting evidence dissemination or new research project development. The Associate will play a major role planning and conducting high-profile policy events including evidence dissemination. The Associate will also help communicate to government partners participating in EIL trainings and coordinate training event logistics. Bringing economics and policy experience, s/he will connect the dots between government priorities and questions and insights from rigorous evidence. Reporting to the EIL Deputy Advisor at MPED, this role requires excellent organizational and planning skills, detail-orientation, ability to take initiative and work proactively, and crisp verbal and written communication skills, together with teamwork and analytical ability.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS
Assist in partner relationship management and research project design:
- Work closely with EIL Deputy Adviser to support the generation, dissemination and synthesis of J-PAL’s evidence with EIL’s strategic government partners;
- Assist EIL Senior Management in preparing background notes, memos, updates, and presentations for EIL’s government partners, other implementing partners and donors;
- Develop sectoral expertise on one of the EIL priority themes (social protection, family development, employment and women’s empowerment) with strategic government partners;
- Support efforts to generate new rigorous research on EIL priority policy issues through research project development, including preparing concept notes and other written materials on potential ideas for policy-driven evaluations;
- Write about J-PAL’s evaluations in relevant documents with a clear, accurate, and non-technical format for a policy audience.
Coordinate active capacity building agenda:
- Coordinate a variety of capacity-building engagements including training workshops and knowledge-sharing events for government officials and implementing partners;
- Support in adapting training materials, presentations, manuals and knowledge products for different capacity building initiatives.
EIL coordination and process management:
- Support knowledge management for EIL;
- Serve as co-rapporteur for EIL leadership team and steering committee meetings;
- Contribute to biweekly EIL staff meeting, help prepare agenda, periodically facilitate meeting;
- Coordinate with counterpart at J-PAL MENA;
- Co-manage and maintain EIL shared electronic files;
- Support EIL recruitment.
External communications and events:
- Prepare social media content about EIL;
- Prepare press releases and coordinate with communications counterparts;
- Co-lead event planning preparations for EIL events (conferences, workshops, roundtables, trainings), with EIL J-PAL MENA team including scheduling with government partners, agenda development and design, coordinating preparation of presentations and other event collateral, day-of set-up, participant follow-up, additional needs as required for VIP events.
Reporting and M&E:
- Contribute to drafting EIL narrative reporting to donors on quarterly basis, writing about progress and results against clear indicators;
- Contribute to updating M&E logframe regularly and for inclusion in annual report;
- Contribute to other ad hoc reporting requests for J-PAL, strategic government partners, AUC, donors, other other opportunities as they arise.
Work with EIL Project Director on various task as assigned.
EDUCATION
Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in economics, public policy, or a closely related field including coursework in microeconomics, econometrics, and development economics.
PRIOR EXPERIENCE
- Minimum 4 years of experience; 2 of them with relevant work ex;perience, including work related to poverty reduction, public policy, impact evaluations, and evidence-informed policymaking;
- Significant training in economics at the undergraduate or masters level;
- Prior professional experience working in policy design, implementation, or evaluation is preferred;
- Prior professional experience in event planning, administration, or team coordination a plus.
REQUIRED SKILLS
- Exceptionally strong self-management and organizational skills ;
- Detailed oriented and advanced writing skills, including proven ability to communicate policy lessons from technical academic research to a non-technical audience;
- Handles multiple projects at once with little supervision, meet deadlines, and practice effective time management;
- Manage projects and tasks effectively and proactively;
- Fluent in both Arabic and English;
- Comfortable to work with computer applications (Google Suite, Microsoft Office, Asana, and SalesForce).