ABOUT INKOMOKO
Inkomoko supports entrepreneurs to grow their businesses in order to improve livelihoods, create jobs, and help communities thrive.
In 2025, Inkomoko was listed by the Financial Times as the 8th fastest-growing company in Africa, supporting entrepreneurs across East and Central Africa to grow thriving businesses and build inclusive, resilient economies.
Founded in 2012, Inkomoko has worked with more than 100,000 entrepreneurs, including thousands of refugee entrepreneurs. Inkomoko provides a combination of training, consulting, access to finance, and market-level systems change. We are the largest investor to refugee entrepreneurs in Africa.
Inkomoko has 750+ staff in 40 offices across Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, and South Sudan. Through Inkomoko’s 2030 strategic plan, we are adding 3 additional countries to serve more than 550,000 entrepreneurs and growing our $30M loan fund to impact 7M lives.
INKOMOKO VALUES
All staff at Inkomoko are connected to a shared set of organizational values:
- Purpose: be solutions-oriented, produce high-quality work, and be a global leader.
- Achievement: push yourself to reach beyond what you previously thought possible.
- Improvement: be humble, engage in continuous growth through open & accurate feedback
- Bravery: willing to take risks, create a safe space for others, be compassionate, and inclusive.
- We Eat Goat: we celebrate success and support each other in hard times. We do this work together in the spirit of turikumwe, tuko pamoja, abren nen, Kula na sawa, On est ensemble.
Inkomoko is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer. Refugees, women, and persons who reflect the diverse communities we serve are strongly encouraged to apply.
ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY & RESPONSIBILITIES
The Head of MEL is a senior leader responsible for translating Inkomoko’s impact vision into high-performing systems and practice. This role goes beyond performance monitoring – it steers strategic decision-making, drives a culture of evidence and learning, and ensures teams across countries are equipped to measure what matters, adapt based on data, and contribute to a stronger, inclusive entrepreneurship ecosystem.
You will be part of a dynamic regional MERL team, leading the design and measurement of performance metrics aligned with Inkomoko’s Theory of Change, Balanced Scorecard, and country strategies. In this role, you will provide technical guidance to MEL Managers and work closely with the Regional MERL Director, Head of Research, Analytics Manager, and country teams to develop and strengthen adaptive, robust, and innovative MEL systems that drive learning, decision-making, and measurable impact across the organization.
The position holder can be based in any of our offices: Addis, Kigali, Nairobi, Juba or N’Djamena.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Strategic MEL Leadership and Systems Strengthening (30%)
- Co-lead the MEL strategy with the Regional MERL Director, ensuring it is future-focused, user-driven, and adaptive across country contexts.
- Provide MEL Technical Assistance to ensure MEL tools, systems, and frameworks are aligned to Inkomoko’s performance goals, impact pathways, and data governance standards.
- Strengthen the integration of MEL into program design, operations, and management decision-making processes.
- Elevate the MEL function beyond compliance, to drive organization-wide insight, accountability, and program quality.
- Foster cross-departmental alignment with BGS, Investments, and Innovation to embed outcome tracking into client journeys.
2. Impact Evaluation, Data Use & Learning (30%)
- Lead implementation of strategic evaluations, learning reviews, and outcome studies—balancing rigor with practical application.
- Build internal capacity for data storytelling, synthesis, and real-time learning.
- Ensure all MEL insights feed into program iteration, stakeholder reporting, and strategic foresight (at least 1–2 years ahead).
- Support MEL Managers to surface field-level insights and challenges, and escalate when cross-functional action is required..
3. MEL Influencing, Coaching & Culture Building (20%)
- Lead, mentor, and coach MEL Managers across countries, ensuring consistent execution and professional development.
- Model inclusive leadership and coach others to build diverse, high-performing teams.
- Support onboarding and mobilization of new team members, with clarity of roles, deliverables, and integration into Inkomoko’s values.
- Guide team problem-solving, and create space for autonomy, ownership, and peer-led learning.
4. Cross-Functional Engagement & Stakeholder Communication (10%)
- Partner with the Head of Research and Analytics Manager to ensure seamless data flow from collection to analysis to visualization.
- Contribute MEL insights to strategic planning, funding proposals, investor engagement, and reporting to the Senior Leadership team and Board.
- Represent Inkomoko in sector-wide learning spaces, positioning the organization as a thought leader in data-driven entrepreneurship.
5. Operational Excellence & Resource Stewardship (10%)
- Support the Regional Director of MERL in overseeing MEL work plans, budget execution, and resource allocation to ensure efficiency, effectiveness, and quality delivery.
- Strengthen MEL SOPs and ensure consistent adherence across countries and program teams.
- Guide risk management and scenario planning in MEL operations.
Requirements
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Education & Experience:
- Advanced degree in Monitoring & Evaluation, Public Policy, Economics, Development Studies, or other relevant fields.
- At least 10 years in MEL, with at least 5 in leadership roles, with direct team management responsibility.
- Experience working across multiple country contexts, especially in humanitarian and enterprise development programs.
- Knowledge of RBM frameworks, evaluation design, and MEL system architecture.
- Familiarity with MEL tech tools (SurveyCTO, PowerBI, SPSS/Stata, etc.)
Core Skills:
- Strategic systems thinking and ability to lead through complexity.
- Strong team leadership, coaching, and mentoring capabilities.
- Expertise in outcome measurement, MEL design, and adaptive learning.
- Data governance and ethical MEL practices.
- Skilled at translating complex data into accessible insights.
Mindset & Attributes:
- Client-centered and impact-driven.
- Proactive, solutions-oriented, and a natural collaborator.
- Curious, adaptive, and committed to continuous improvement.
- Able to think at both the big picture and operational detail levels.
- Culturally adept and inclusive in working across teams and geographies.
Benefits
WHAT YOU’LL GET
This role is inside a high-growth, mission-driven social enterprise. By joining, you’ll access:
- Competitive salary, and potential Performance-based bonus
- Incredible company culture, with opportunities for learning and growth
- Diverse colleagues across the region, and policies that demonstrate commitment to equity and inclusion
- Ability to make a significant social impact to your community
- Health insurance for self and family
- Staff savings and provident fund, negotiated bank rates for long-term employees
- Generous annual leave, parental leave, and sabbatical options.
TO APPLY
If you’re excited about this role, please submit your application through the jobs portal. Tell us about what you’ll bring to this growing company.
DEADLINE: 20 July 2025. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, please apply as soon as possible!
Inkomoko is committed to justice, diversity, equity and inclusion. As we seek to reflect the communities we serve, refugees and women are strongly encouraged to apply.As a company we have policies that ensure fair treatment in the application process.
NB: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Employment is conditional upon successful background checks and other verification as needed.
All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and background screening checks. Inkomoko also participates in the , In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual misconduct, fraud, or abuse. By applying, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.
