Background of IRC:
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC works with people forced to flee from war, conflict and disaster and the host communities that support them, as well as with those who remain within their homes and communities. At-work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. IRC leads the way from harm to home. Began work in Ethiopia, 1999 in response to severe drought that happened in Ethiopia’s Somali region. Currently, providing assistance in ten different regions implementing emergency and development programs in health, water and sanitation, economic recovery and development (ERD), women’s protection and empowerment, education, child protection, and multi-sectoral emergency response.
The IRC has a focus on narrowing the gender gap in humanitarian aid and ensuring that we contribute to gender equality, diversity, and inclusion in both our programs and operations by working to establish a context where our clients (including those from minority groups) enjoy the same rights and opportunities as well as an equal access to services. The IRC also has a strong commitment to creating an equitable and inclusive culture, where safeguarding is upheld in our workplace and programs. We are determined to protect our clients and staff from safeguarding violations through prevention and, where misconduct is alleged, to address it without fear or favor.
Job Overview/Summary:
PlayMatters (PM) is a four-year education initiative running from July 2026 to June 2030, designed to improve the well-being and holistic learning outcomes of Pre-primary and Primary school-aged children (ages 3–12+). The program focuses particularly on children affected by conflict and crisis in Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Uganda. Its central strategy is to strengthen education system so they can deliver quality services through active teaching and learning methods rooted in play. PM emphasizes resilience and sustainability by working with and through existing systems to scale impact.
The initiative is structured around three main outcomes. Outcome 1 aims to increase the capacity, uptake, and coordination of Learning through Play (LtP) as a recognized teaching method within education systems. Outcome 2 focuses on ensuring that school-aged children in refugee-hosting and post-crisis recovery zones have greater access to quality learning opportunities in safe environments. A core component of this outcome is assessing the quality and fidelity of implementation, as well as monitoring changes in target outcomes, to refine program delivery and strengthen advocacy for Outcome 1. Finally, Outcome 3 seeks to protect children’s holistic development during times of acute crisis, ensuring that their learning and well-being are safeguarded even in the most challenging circumstances. By prioritizing system resilience, fidelity of implementation, and evidence-driven advocacy, PlayMatters positions itself as a transformative initiative that not only improves immediate learning outcomes but also builds long-term capacity for education systems in crisis-affected regions.
Under the supervision of the Senior RMEAL Manager, PlayMatters, in collaboration with IRC’s Airbel Impact Lab’s Director of Education Research and with technical support from the Regional Research & Learning Coordinator for PlayMatters and Plan International Ethiopia’s MEAL Manager, the Principal Investigator will co-lead an implementation research study with the IRC’s Director of Education Research. The role involves securing ethical approvals, conducting research, managing research partnerships, analyzing data, and disseminating findings nationally. The successful candidate should have over a decade of experience conducting implementation research on education programs in challenging contexts with a track record of national and subnational policy influencing, strong statistical analysis skills, and good command of the written English language.
This role will be based in Addis Ababa with travel requirements to field for data collection.
Major Responsibilities:
- Lead the national-level implementation research study.
- Obtain national IRB approval.
- Build and maintain key relationships for ethical research.
- Oversee data collection, quality assurance, and longitudinal analysis.
- Produce baseline, midline, and endline reports with cleaned datasets.
- Develop manuscripts for peer-reviewed journal submission.
- Disseminate findings at local and national levels.
Key Deliverables
- National IRB Approval
- Baseline Report along with Cleaned Baseline dataset
- Midline Report along with Cleaned Midline dataset
- Endline Report along with Cleaned Endline dataset and combined dataset
- Develop manuscript for journal submission
Safeguarding Responsibilities: -
- Promote and actively participate in initiatives and efforts to build team engagement, inclusion and cohesion in IRC
Melusi Ncube
Developer Fullstack
Zambia
- Foster ongoing learning, honest dialogue and reflection to strengthen safeguarding and to promote IRC values and adherence to IRC policies
