Policy and Training Associate - Morocco Innovation and Evaluation Lab

I- Job summary

The Morocco Innovation and Evaluation Lab (MEL) is looking to hire a Policy and Training Associate to contribute to its mission of promoting evidence-based public policy in Morocco, and to support engagements with its partners as well as the development of new projects, capacity-building activities and communications efforts. This position will be based in our offices at the University Mohammed VI Polytechnic campus in Rabat.

About the Morocco Innovation and Evaluation Lab (MEL)

The MEL is a collaboration between the University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P), the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Harvard Center for International Development (CID). The Morocco Innovation and Evaluation Lab emerged from the Morocco Employment Lab, an initiative that was launched in 2020 in partnership with the Millennium Challenge Account - Morocco Agency (MCA-Morocco) and hosted by the Policy Center for the New South. With the support of Community Jameel, the lab is expanding its work beyond employment into sectors such as education, social protection, firm growth, agriculture, and environment. 

The MEL works in close collaboration with the public, private, NGO, and philanthropic sectors in Morocco to conduct evaluations that speak to their priorities and share rigorous evidence to inform their decisions.

About the Policy Team 

The MEL Policy Team connects the dots between research and policy through disseminating research findings; developing relationships with government, civil society, and academic stakeholders; catalyzing scale-ups and replications of effective projects; and assisting in conceptualizing new research projects.

One of MEL's primary objectives is to cultivate a culture of evidence-based policymaking by enhancing decision-makers' capacity in rigorous impact evaluation methods. To support this goal, the Policy Team regularly organizes tailored training sessions for this audience.

The selected candidate will join a growing team based in Rabat. We are particularly interested in candidates who have relevant work experience with governments and policymakers in Morocco (or else) and language skills that could support outreach in the country.

II- Key Responsibilities 

Policy (60%)

• Forge new connections and maintain strong relationships with key partners in government agencies, non-profits, foundations, and the private sector in Morocco;
• Initiate and build partnerships with implementing partners to identify new opportunities for rigorous evaluation of social policies;
• Initiate new evaluations by matching implementing partners with researchers in MEL’s network; 
• Draft blog posts highlighting and providing context for relevant research findings and describing MEL’s work;
• Provide technical and project management support to policymakers and practitioners as they develop evaluations;
• Develop expertise in one of MEL's thematic sectors and identify opportunities to leverage existing evidence to inform policymaker decisions in Morocco;
• Create materials for policy outreach, including tailored evidence note presentations, policy briefs, and other high-level deliverables designed to “translate” research findings into actionable recommendations;
• Raise the profile of MEL’s work in the region by presenting MEL’s work and research at conferences and seminars.

Training (40%)

• Support MEL’s capacity building activities by preparing original and curating existing content for presentations, case studies, and knowledge products for different policy and research audiences; 
• Present technical content and facilitate discussions and small breakout sessions at trainings and policy events;
• Create guides, documents, and presentations that can serve as resources for policymakers and implementing partners who are beginning to work on randomized evaluations; 
• Support the organization and implementation of training programs and workshops geared at policy audiences such as J-PAL’s Evaluating Social Programs course;  
• Organize events designed to spur new research collaborations and share policy lessons from completed research.

III- Requirements

Your technical expertise, strong communication and organizational skills, passion for translating research into action, and interest in poverty reduction and development make you an ideal candidate for this role.  

• Education: You hold a Master’s degree in economics, public policy, or a closely related field, including coursework in microeconomics, econometrics, and program evaluation. Candidates with Master’s-level degrees in other fields may be qualified as long as they have a solid understanding of quantitative research methods. 
• Experience: You have at least 1-3 years of relevant and substantial work experience related to the design of social programs and policies. You have a successful track record of identifying opportunities, developing and managing external partnerships, and relevant experience in communication and development.  
• Skills: You have strong project management skills, as well as excellent written and oral communication skills in French. Fluency in English would be a considerable asset, Arabic is a major advantage. Experience running or interpreting randomized evaluations is desirable but not required.  
• Communication: You are detail-oriented and have advanced writing skills. You understand how to communicate policy lessons from technical academic research in ways that policymakers and practitioners understand. You are precise, clear, and creative. You are adept at managing relationships across countries and time zones.  
• Organization: You are a strategic thinker. You can handle multiple projects at once with little supervision, meet deadlines while conducting high-quality work, and effectively manage your time.  
• Attitude: You love learning. You are passionate about international development policy and the rigorous research that informs it. You are self-motivated, work hard, and enjoy working in teams.