Health Specialist at UNICEF

Position: Health Specialist

Job Time: Full-Time

Job Type: Contract

Place of Work: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Application Deadline: January, 09/2023

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up. 

For every child, a chance

Due to the damage caused by the conflict in Northern Ethiopia, there is a European Union (EU)-funded project to be led by UNICEF to contribute to the improved health and well-being of women, newborns, children and adolescents through the provision of equitable and quality health services by reinstating and strengthening the health system in Amhara, Afar, SNNPR and Oromia regions. The Ministry of Health (MOH) and its main directorates will be the main partners for coordinating and leading this project at the federal level, while in Amhara, Afar, SNNP and Oromia regions, the key lead partners are Regional Health Bureaus (RHBs) and other partners.

The project will focus on three main outcomes:

Outcome 1: Restored health gains in conflict-affected areas, focusing on women and girls.

Outcome 2: Reduced inequalities in health service delivery and utilization.

Outcome 3: Improved Quality of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Services.

How can you make a difference?

The Health Specialist reports to the Health Manager for guidance and general supervision. The Health Specialist provides coordination and management support to various units of the health section (Health System Strengthening - HSS; Disease Prevention and Control - DPC; and Maternal and Child Health -MCH), other sections (WASH, Nutrition and Child Protection), MOH and EU throughout the programme implementation to facilitate achievement of concrete and sustainable results. The Health Specialist is expected to perform the following tasks:

1. Support to programme development and planning

• Support the UNICEF 5 field offices included in the project to plan and develop the regional micro-plans in line with the national project micro-plan.

• Work closely and collaboratively with colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies, and to determine the project’s priorities and competencies to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable results.

• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of project’s implantation processes to ensure integration, coherence, and harmonization of programmes/projects with other UNICEF sectors and achievement of results as planned and allocated.

2. Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results

• Plan and/or collaborate with internal and external partners to monitor the project’s benchmarks and performance indicators to assess and strengthen performance accountability, coherence and delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the project.

• Coordinate monitoring and evaluation exercises, and project review with government and other counterparts to assess progress and to determine required action/interventions to achieve project results.

• In collaboration with the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, prepare and assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths and/or weaknesses in project management, identify lessons learned and use the knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve project goals and outcomes.

• Regularly monitor project implementation through field visits, surveys and/or exchange of information with partners/stakeholders to assess progress, identify bottlenecks, and potential problems and take timely decisions to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for timely resolution.

• Monitor and verify the optimum and appropriate use of the project’s resources (financial, administrative and other assets) confirming compliance with organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity, ensuring timely reporting and liquidation of resources.

• Collate progress inputs from the health section units and other sections within UNICEF and coordinate project reports for management, donors and partners.

3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation

• Provide technical and operational support to government counterparts, implementing partners, and other country office partners on the project implementation, and best practices and approaches.

• Coordinate with the other health managers (Health system strengthening - HSS; Disease prevention and control - DPC, and Maternal and Child Health - MCH) to ensure linkages and complementarity with other ongoing projects and new projects in the pipeline; build complementarity of partners' actions; and avoiding duplication and gaps.

• Effective and comprehensive integration of relevant cross-cutting issues, including Adolescent, GBV, MHPSS, Nutrition, and WASH in health facilities. Maintain flexibility within the project to respond to changes in the operating environment, evolving requirements, capacities and participation.

• Participate in discussions with national partners, clients and stakeholders to promote health and development issues, especially in the areas of gender, emergency preparedness, maternal and neonatal health, and child survival and development.

4. Networking and partnership building

• Prepare information materials for CO programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships/alliances, and support UNICEF and donors’ visibility.

• Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate project-related discussions and ensure organizational position, interests and priorities are fully considered. 

5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Apply and introduce innovative approaches and good practices to build the capacity of partners and stakeholders, and to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable project results.

• Keep abreast and conduct research to provide evidence for the implementation of best and cutting-edge practices in health.

• Assess, institutionalize, and share best practices and knowledge learned.

• Contribute to the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure optimum efficiency and efficacy of sustainable programs and projects.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in one of the following fields is required: public health/nutrition, pediatric health, family health, health research, global/international health, health policy and/or management, environmental health sciences, biostatistics, socio-medical, health education, epidemiology, or another relevant technical field.

• *A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.

• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: public health/nutrition planning and management, maternal and neonatal health care, or health emergency/humanitarian preparedness.

• Experience in project coordination (managing EU projects is an added value).

• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergencies is considered an asset.

• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are:

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)

• Works Collaboratively with others (1)

• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)

• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)

• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)

• Drives to achieve impactful results (1)

• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to including everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

UNICEF’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to delivering the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.? Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

How to apply

Register using the following link CLICK HERE