Chhan Bahadur Bhattachan
Kathmandu
Summary
Accomplished professional with 15 years of experience in the field of international development and humanitarian assistance to provide strategic and technical oversight and lead all aspects of monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) system design and delivery for donor-funded complex projects in agriculture and nutrition, children's education, health, social inclusion and ethnic minorities, women's empowerment, and youth entrepreneurship development programming with respect to diverse multi-country team inclusion, equity, integrity, and collaboration.
Overview
19
19
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Manager
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
09.2022 - Current
- Develop USAID's Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) global program monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) system through project cycles; design, start-up, implementation, and close-out in line with CRS program quality principles and standards; MEAL policies, procedures; USAID's MEAL requirements; and industry good practices in the Asia, East, West, and Central Africa regions, including Nepal, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, Uganda, Benin, and Rwanda.
- Ensure MEAL-related activities are executed, and that lessons learned and best practices inform program management decisions, complying with the agency's regional and global MEAL systems, standards, and good practices.
- Conduct annual data quality assessments, prepare action plans in consultation with the program team where gaps are identified to improve program quality and decision making.
- Identify the MEAL-related staff capacity and technical assistance needs for the F2F team, hosts, and partners to enhance staff capacity on MEAL and required interventions to support quality project implementation.
- Lead the monitoring of performance indicators, data management, and analysis for donor reporting.
- Oversee accountability to the communities through the implementation of the Feedback, Complaints, and Responses Mechanism and other MEAL/program approaches that are gender and inclusion friendly.
- Lead MEAL section into concept notes and project proposals, as required.
- Contribute to the larger MEAL-related Communities of Practice and disseminate Agency-wide learning and innovations across the program.
- Facilitate quarterly learning-to-action discussions within country program staff.
- Contribute to relationships and dialogue regarding ongoing project interventions and results with community members and stakeholders.
- Represent senior management team (SMT) member for CRS global F2F program.
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Coordinator
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
09.2018 - 08.2022
- Provided MEAL technical advice and support to the Nepal and Timor-Leste teams on a range of program design and implementation issues for the CRS global F2F project, in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor guidelines, and industry best practices.
- Conducted annual MEAL self-assessment to ensure the F2F project complied with agency-level MEAL policy and procedure.
- Shared MEAL self-assessment among team in Nepal and Timor-Leste, and prepared action plan for correction for quality project implementation.
- Enhanced staff capacity on MEAL by conducting Simple Measurement of Indicators for Evidence-Based Reporting (SMILER) plus sessions to comply with agency MEAL policy and procedure.
- Carried out two data quality assessments of national projects led by CRS Nepal country program with actionable recommendations to improve CRS Nepal program quality and agency learning.
- Engaged and provided strategic thoughts to design adapted project activities in consultations with donor, CRS senior management team, community, and partners caused by COVID-19.
- Served as staff focal person at Nepal country program during the difficult situation of COVID-19 to enhance the wellbeing of over 80 staff by organizing virtual wellbeing sessions, identifying health service providers in coordination with the human resource department for staff health and psychosocial support.
- Acted as gender and social inclusion focal point for one of CRS Nepal CP, leading about 11 million project staff recruitment process to ensure diversity, equity, inclusion, and local leadership have been well considered and addressed during the recruitment process.
Assistant Country Manager
WINROCK INTERNATIONAL
10.2015 - 08.2018
- Designed impactful youth entrepreneurship and agricultural education training country projects for highly expert volunteer technical assistance needed in participation with youth-led organizations, private sector, cooperatives, universities, colleges, government, and non-government organizations. As a result, three Winrock International F2F volunteers who had served in Nepal received the prestigious US Presidential Volunteer of the Year award three years in a row, from 2015 until 2017, selected across F2F implementers globally.
- Coordinated with government line agencies, USAID Local Mission, and its other implementers in the country for quality program design, its effectiveness, and scaling up of cutting-edge technologies.
- Leaded program impact assessment for evidence-based reporting, shared impact information with a wide range of stakeholders, including communities, line ministries, USAID implementers, host, and partners in Nepal, Burma/Myanmar, and Bangladesh countries.
- Acted as focal point during project mid-term and final evaluation, externally conducted by the Social Welfare Council (SWC), Government of Nepal.
Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist
WINROCK INTERNATIONAL
01.2014 - 09.2015
- Designed and implemented a comprehensive monitoring, evaluation, and learning system for the Winrock Farmer-to-Farmer project. As a result, it overachieved the life of project (LOP) targets.
- Coordinated with government line agencies, USAID Local Mission, and its other implementing agencies for program designing, data collection, management, and analysis to generate evidence, relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainable project activities.
- Communicated M&E issues with the senior management team in the country, region, and Headquarters for review of tracking tools and techniques to capture knowledge and best practices to strengthen agency learning practices.
- Organized central project advisory committee (CPAC) meeting every six months by inviting a dozen of Nepal Government ministries representatives (Deputy and joint secretaries) and the social welfare council-SWC (which is the Nepal Government authority to approve and legitimize all international development agencies' presence and their project activities in the country) for project progress and directives for the way forward for the smooth operation of the project over the life of the project period.
Monitoring, Evaluation and Documentation Officer
CARE INTERNATIONAL
07.2011 - 12.2013
- Prepared documentation and monitoring plan for agriculture, social inclusion, women empowerment, and health (HIV and AIDS) projects led by CARE, partnering with national NGOs. As a result, produced documentary and success story as learning materials and disseminated widely.
- These materials were appreciated by the donor and accepted by project participants, community, stakeholders, and the public.
- Strengthened partners and their staff capacity for activity planning, implementation, and effective recording, data management, and analysis and reporting.
- Acted as focal person to carry out project baseline, end line surveys, project evaluation by the government of Nepal, and donors European Commission and DANIDA.
- The projects rated as successful at the end by European Commission result-oriented monitoring (EC-ROM) evaluators.
- Prepared quarter, annual, and project completion reports.
Project Coordinator
NEPAL FEDERATION OF INDIGENOUS NATIONALITIES
12.2010 - 04.2011
- Company Overview: Janjati Empowerment Project supported by UK AID/DFID
- Carried qualitative (participatory/rapid rural appraisal) and quantitative (household surveys) to establish a benchmark for endangered, highly marginalized, and marginalized indigenous nationalities' socio-economic status in Nepal, which was a benchmark for policymakers, researchers, and planners.
- Planned and implemented activities for advocacy, research, capacity building, and communication to empower indigenous people, who account for approximately 35 percent of the total population, with a special focus on enhancing the capacity of endangered and highly marginalized indigenous people and their respective organizations at the national, district, and local levels.
- Developed terms of reference for action research and recruited consultants to carry out research.
- Disseminated research reports by organizing forum meetings among duty bearers, right holders, policy makers, including members of parliaments, ministries, and concerned experts.
- Janjati Empowerment Project, supported by UK AID/DFID.
Principal Researcher
NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF INDIGENOUS NATIONALITIES (NFDIN)
01.2010 - 06.2010
- Prepared Ethnographic Profile of 'Thakali' Minority Indigenous Nationalities.
- This research was granted as per NFDIN and Nepal Government strategy to prepare an ethnographic profile of all 59 Indigenous people ratified by the Government.
- The NFDIN, Nepal Government, published it in 2021.
Statistician
CENTRAL CHILD WELFARE BOARD, GOVERNMENT OF NEPAL
10.2009 - 12.2009
- Produced Child-friendly local governance (CFLG) profile by developing research tool, processing, managing, and analyzing field data from six selected districts of Nepal to replicate CFLG program at the national level by the Nepal Government and donors, including UNICEF, for child rights protection.
Statistician
UNDP REGIONAL CENTER IN BANGKOK
06.2009 - 08.2009
- Company Overview: Communication for empowerment in Nepal.
- Processed, managed, and analyzed field research data in communication for empowerment study and assessment methodology for Indigenous peoples in Nepal.
- The UNDP Regional Center in Bangkok published the report in 2009, which is available at https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/migration/asia_pacific_rbap/RBAP-DG-2009-Nepal-C4E-Report.pdf.
- Communication for empowerment in Nepal.
Social Consultant
POVERTY ALLEVIATION FUND, NEPAL GOVERNMENT
10.2006 - 08.2008
- Company Overview: SUPPORTED BY WORLD BANK GROUP
- Granted about US$3 million resource benefiting above 20,000 poor and ultra poor households (50 percent women headed) in rural Nepal by following participatory and rural appraisal need assessment for participants and partners compliant with Nepal government and the World Bank process documentation
- SUPPORTED BY WORLD BANK GROUP
Survey Supervisor
EDUCATION SECTOR ADVISORY TEAM/DANIDA
07.2005 - 10.2006
- Company Overview: Technical review of school education
- Leaded national level technical review of school education’s survey tool design, FGD tool development, training to survey researchers in different districts, carried FGD with district stakeholders, survey data processing, management, and analysis to produce reports
- The report was very helpful to provide ground reality on School Education to the government and donor during strict conflict situation in Nepal
- Technical review of school education
Education
Master’s Degree (MSc) - Statistics
Central Department of Statistics- Tribhuvan University
Kathmandu, Nepal12.2006
Skills
- MEAL system design
- MEAL plan
- Performance indicator reference sheet (PIRS)
- MEAL calendar
- MEAL checklist
- Indicator performance tracking table
- RACI table preparation
- Baseline data collection
- Midline data collection
- Endline data collection
- Evaluation terms of reference (TOR) preparation
- Qualitative research
- Quantitative research
- Focus group discussion
- Data collection
- Data processing
- Data analysis
- Data interpretation
- Data visualization
- Capacity building
- Pause, reflect and learning events
- Data quality assessment
- Technical training
- Innovation management
- Learning Strategies
- Training delivery
- Employee Development
- Partnership Development
- Teamwork
- Conflict situation management
- Adaptive Learning
- Volunteer Management
- Training Program Assessment
- Decision-Making
Certification
- 2023, MEAL Dpro (Monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning developmental professional)
- 2022, Management essential
- 2021, SMART Skills: Organizing and managing farmer groups
- 2018, Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Basics
- 2013, Arc GIS
Publicationsandpapers
- Ethnographic profile of Thakali Indigenous Nationalities, Bhattachan, C., 2021, National Foundation for the Development of Indigenous Nationalities, Government of Nepal
- USAID’s Asia Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) Nepal program impact on Food Security, Bhattachan, C. B., V. R. Duwadi, A. Thapa, D. P. Chaudhary, 2017, USAID’s Feed the Future, INGENES Nepal Symposium, 11/09/17, Kathmandu
- Establishment of weed science graduate program at the Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal, Shrestha, A., S. Sah, S. Dhakal, S. Marahatta, V. R. Duwadi, C. Bhattachan, A. Thapa, 2017, WSSA Mgt., 02/06/17, Tucson, AZ
- History of Thakali Indigenous Nationalities, Bhattachan, C. B., 2014, Thakali Research Center, 01/25/14
Affiliationsandnetworking
- Member, Community of Evaluators (COE), South Asia, 02/01/13, Present
- Deputy Member-Secretary, Thakali Research Center, Kathmandu, Nepal, 08/01/17, Present
- Executive Secretary, Nepal Junior Red Cross Circle, 01/01/92, 02/28/93
Volunteer Experience
Flood emergency in Dhorpatan, Nepal, 09/01/20, Raised about US$55,000 resources to re-establish local primary school premise.
Timeline
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Manager
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
09.2022 - Current
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Coordinator
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
09.2018 - 08.2022
Assistant Country Manager
WINROCK INTERNATIONAL
10.2015 - 08.2018
Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist
WINROCK INTERNATIONAL
01.2014 - 09.2015
Monitoring, Evaluation and Documentation Officer
CARE INTERNATIONAL
07.2011 - 12.2013
Project Coordinator
NEPAL FEDERATION OF INDIGENOUS NATIONALITIES
12.2010 - 04.2011
Principal Researcher
NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF INDIGENOUS NATIONALITIES (NFDIN)
01.2010 - 06.2010
Statistician
CENTRAL CHILD WELFARE BOARD, GOVERNMENT OF NEPAL
10.2009 - 12.2009
Statistician
UNDP REGIONAL CENTER IN BANGKOK
06.2009 - 08.2009
Social Consultant
POVERTY ALLEVIATION FUND, NEPAL GOVERNMENT
10.2006 - 08.2008
Survey Supervisor
EDUCATION SECTOR ADVISORY TEAM/DANIDA
07.2005 - 10.2006
- 2023, MEAL Dpro (Monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning developmental professional)
- 2022, Management essential
- 2021, SMART Skills: Organizing and managing farmer groups
- 2018, Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Basics
- 2013, Arc GIS
Master’s Degree (MSc) - Statistics
Central Department of Statistics- Tribhuvan University
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