Mauritania M&E and Research Field Manager

Introduction

STOOS Consulting is an international consultancy firm specializing in research, assessments, third-party monitoring, monitoring and evaluation, and capacity building for humanitarian and development organizations. This Mauritania-based role will support STOOS’ research and M&E assignments, with a strong focus on field coordination, administrative authorization, stakeholder engagement, field team management, data quality and timely delivery.

Position Overview

STOOS Consulting is seeking an experienced M&E and Research Field Manager based in Mauritania to support upcoming research, assessment, evaluation, third-party monitoring and M&E assignments.

The position is highly field-oriented and requires strong experience in coordinating with government authorities, civil society organizations, humanitarian and development partners, community leaders and local communities; recruiting and supervising field teams; and managing data collection across different wilayas, moughataas and communes of Mauritania.

Role Purpose

The Field Manager will lead the day-to-day implementation of field research and monitoring activities. This will include planning field movements, coordinating local access and permissions, recruiting and supervising data collectors, monitoring daily progress, resolving operational challenges and ensuring that all data is accurate, complete, ethical and submitted on time.

Key Responsibilities

The Field Manager will be responsible for:

• Planning and coordinating field data collection, including household surveys, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, observations, site visits, market assessments and third-party monitoring activities.
• Securing and following up on required approvals, authorization letters and introductions at the national, wilaya, moughataa and commune levels.
• Coordinating with government authorities, public institutions, civil society organizations, community-based organizations, cooperatives, project partners, traditional leaders and community representatives.
• Supporting fieldwork across Mauritania, including urban, peri-urban, rural, pastoral, oasis, drought-affected, border and hard-to-reach locations.
• Recruiting, onboarding and supervising enumerators, field researchers, supervisors, interpreters, community mobilizers and data-quality personnel.
• Training field teams on research tools, sampling procedures, informed consent, safeguarding, confidentiality, referral pathways and digital data-collection platforms.
• Translating and culturally adapting research tools into Arabic and French, as well as supporting interpretation into relevant national languages where required.
• Managing daily field deployment, transportation, respondent mobilization, sample tracking and progress against agreed targets and timelines.
• Ensuring strong data quality through spot checks, back-checks, accompaniment visits, daily debriefings, form reviews and follow-up on missing or inconsistent information.
• Coordinating field logistics, including transportation, accommodation where required, communication, mobile data, tablets or smartphones, field materials and contingency arrangements.
• Ensuring inclusive and culturally appropriate engagement with women, young people, persons with disabilities, internally displaced persons, refugees, migrants, returnees, pastoral communities and other potentially vulnerable groups.
• Providing regular updates to STOOS on field progress, completed samples, operational risks, team performance, data-quality concerns and corrective measures.
• Documenting field observations, community feedback and contextual factors that may influence data analysis and reporting.

Required Qualifications and Experience

Candidates should have:

• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Social Sciences, Development Studies, Statistics, Economics, Sociology, Public Administration, Monitoring and Evaluation, or another relevant field.
• At least five years of relevant professional experience in research coordination, field data-collection management, M&E, assessments, evaluations, third-party monitoring or humanitarian and development field operations in Mauritania.
• Proven experience coordinating field activities and securing approvals from government authorities, public institutions and community stakeholders.
• Strong experience recruiting, training and managing enumerators and completing multi-location fieldwork within tight timelines.
• Experience conducting research in rural, pastoral, underserved, drought-affected, displacement-affected or hard-to-reach communities in Mauritania.
• Experience working on humanitarian and development themes such as food security, livelihoods, economic empowerment, social protection, migration, protection, gender equality, youth inclusion, climate resilience, WASH, education, health or local governance.
• Good knowledge of digital data-collection platforms such as KoBoToolbox, ODK, SurveyCTO, CommCare or similar systems.
• Fluency in Arabic and French is required. Working proficiency in English and knowledge of one or more Mauritanian national languages, such as Hassaniya, Pulaar, Soninke or Wolof, would be valuable assets.
• Strong coordination, leadership, negotiation, communication, reporting and problem-solving skills.
• Availability and willingness to travel extensively throughout Mauritania according to project requirements.

Engagement Modality

The successful candidate will be engaged through a project-based consultancy arrangement, depending on STOOS’ upcoming assignments and operational needs in Mauritania.

The Field Manager will work closely with STOOS project managers, team leaders, research specialists, M&E experts, data analysts, quality assurance personnel and field supervisors to ensure timely, ethical and high-quality field implementation.