Junior Researcher

Evaluation of JISRA Participatory Grantmaking – 2025

Mensen met een Missie is an organisation for international cooperation and solidarity that aims to change beliefs that lead to hatred and violence. To do this, we’ve joined forces with hundreds of partner organisations in Africa, Asia and Latin America. With people who dare to go against the current, who stick their necks out and stand up for justice, inclusion and equality. Together we facilitate dialogue between people on each side of a conflict. We inspire consideration and discussion of harmful beliefs, so that mutual hatred and mistrust can decrease. Our team in The Hague consists of about 30 people who work daily with passion and commitment, on building a world without violence.

For team JISRA we are looking for a Junior Researcher
Employment: max 24 hours / week
Starting: April 2025

JISRA is a partnership of 50 civil society organisations based in Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iraq, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria and Uganda and funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. JISRA addresses harmful norms and narratives within religious communities, stimulates cooperation between religions and shows that different religious traditions can come together in a common vision for a better and fairer society. JISRA operates a participatory grantmaking (PGM) mechanism in each of the seven programme countries, providing direct support to grassroots youth-led and women-led groups addressing inter-religious dynamics through a process where these groups themselves are in charge of resource allocation.

JISRA wishes to evaluate the progress made with PGM in the seven countries. The results of the evaluation will contribute to identifying lessons learned and will inform future PGM programming, as well as the PGM Handbook (under development).

What are you going to do?

The objective of the evaluation is to assess to what extent PGM has contributed to:

• Putting the decision what activities are funded into the hands of the communities and shift power -  Power of Voices (transform power dynamics);
• Increasing the representation of women and youth in decision making processes at community level;
• Addressing inter-religious challenges at community level, thereby contributing to achieving JISRA theory of change;
• Generating evidence-based recommendations for learning and improving the PGM process, in order to run more effective future PGM interventions, including sustainability of PGM initiatives.

Key activities to be carried out include:

• Development of the evaluation workplan (including detailed evaluation questions and corresponding methodology and planning) in collaboration with PGM Taskforce;
• Carry out desk research, coordinate implementation of FGDs, KII, etc.;
• Coordination and communication and working closely together with the in- country facilitators / IPs/ Focal Points (in collaboration with Task Force);
• Analysis and reporting, including identification of recommendations;
• Presentation of main findings and recommendations within JISRA.

You are…

A junior researcher with:

• Master’s degree / studying for Master’s degree
• Relevant field of study (e.g. international development)
• Fluent in English, French is an advantage.
• Experience with implementing research activities in international settings
• Good analytical and presentation skills
• Capacity to work independently
• An understanding of dynamics of financing/ funding programmes is preferred.

Our offer

The junior researcher will be contracted by Mensen met een Missie, and should be based in The Netherlands.

• Starting date: April 2025
• Duration: Three months, based on approx. 3 days per week
• Fee: EUR 4.500,00.

Interested?

Send your letter (in English) with CV before 21st of March to:  sollicitatie@mensenmeteenmissie.nl. The first round of interviews will take place in the week of 24th of March 2025.

For more information about this position, please contact Huub Sloot via telephone number 06.12332914 or e-mail huubsloot@mensenmeteenmissie.nl

Mensen met een Missie is an organisation where diversity and inclusion are paramount and where everyone feels welcome and valued. That’s why we invite everybody to apply, regardless of religion, roots, gender, sexual preference or age.