Application period: 26-Jan-2022 to 09-Mar-2022
"Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply."
The Country/Regional Support Partner Committee (CRSPC) provides a platform to engage the RBM Partnership community in coordinating support to countries and regions as they execute their malaria control and elimination implementation programmes. Support is tailored to suit the requirements and existing capacity in each country and region.
The consultant shall work for the RBM Country/Regional Support Partner Committee (CRSPC) to provide technical support to national malaria control programmes to optimize the quality and effectiveness of country and regional programming of malaria including developing plans, conducting reviews, providing ongoing support in programme implementation, addressing bottlenecks, resource mobilisation and advocacy.
Purpose of Assignment
The Technical Support Senior Specialist shall work for the RBM CRSPC to facilitate and support countries with issues related to implementation of their national programmes. The countries to be supported present highly complex technical, epidemiological and political contexts for implementation of malaria control and elimination. These scenarios significantly enhance the complexity of malaria program implementation and require senior and experienced consultants, able to command the respect of senior government officials and partners. The implementation support from the malaria specialist consultant will address core issues causing bottlenecks for implementation and/or issues where additional capacity and expertise is needed and cannot be found among in-country partners.
The Technical Support Senior Specialist is expected to have expertise in at least one of the intervention areas listed below in order to provide the targeted support a country requires. In addition, the specialist is expected to have a clear understanding of WHO policies and guidelines on the specific intervention area as well as an in-depth knowledge of the technical aspects of malaria prevention and control in endemic countries. The assignment also requires highly developed negotiation skills and a proven track record in achieving consensus across multiple stakeholders. The consultant will be expected to visit the country as necessary during the support period.
The expertise required includes the following intervention areas. Specialists applying should have expertise in a minimum of one intervention area.
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Social behaviour change communication (SBCC) – development of communications in support of overall national strategic plans or specific objectives, such as mass insecticide-treated nets (ITN) distribution; review of issues surrounding poor uptake of prevention, diagnostic and treatment interventions, support for Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) studies and operational research and development of tailored approaches; etc.
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Surveillance, monitoring and evaluation – review and strengthening of existing surveillance systems and/or monitoring and evaluation plans and procedures national strategic plan (NSP) objective-specific support; alignment of M&E frameworks to malaria profile; entomological and parasite profile updates; resistance monitoring; etc.
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Stratification – review of epidemiological data to guide intervention stratification and/or review data on quality/coverage/usage/uptake of malaria services to stratify targeting of quality improvement efforts (in line with the High Burden to High Impact approach)
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Vector control – review and updating of guidance for indoor residual spraying (IRS) or long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) distribution; support for Insecticide Resistance monitoring and decision-making on appropriate vector control (VC) technology; planning and operational support for deployment of VC; etc.
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Case management – assessing effectiveness of existing strategies, both facility (public and private) and community based, to provide recommendations for improved efficiency; procurement and supply management (PSM) support; support to Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) roll out, etc.
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Preventive chemotherapy (seasonal malaria chemoprophylaxis, intermittent preventive therapy) – development of overall strategy and planning documents; operational guideline development; etc.
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Emergency preparedness and response – risk assessment and mitigation planning; quantification for procurement of materials; etc.
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Procurement and supply chain management – review of supply chain management; support for quantification for procurement and delivery of VC, diagnosis and treatment materials; etc.
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Resource mobilization and advocacy - support to financial desk reviews, development of investment cases for malaria, development of resource mobilization and advocacy strategies and funding proposals.
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Health economic analyses – support for costing of strategies/interventions, cost-effectiveness analyses, value for money analyses
Assignments could include (but are not limited to) the following and could be for a particular intervention area or across interventions:
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Carry out a comprehensive review of country programme documentation (Strategic Plan; operational plan, work plans; gap analysis, etc.) for a particular intervention area, as well as a sub-intervention area (for example, logistics or communication to support IRS or LLIN interventions);
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Coordinate the analysis of underlying causes of implementation underperformance, and identify strategies and interventions to address these bottlenecks;
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Develop detailed strategies, operational and financing plans, as well as risk assessment and mitigation plans for the specific intervention or sub-intervention areas;
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Develop training, supervision, monitoring, evaluation and activity protocols for assessing key bottlenecks and questions, including timelines and indicators for finalization and monitoring of implementation;
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Review existing support and conduct partnership mapping of current activities, resources and anticipated changes;
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Review cost and efficiencies of programs
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Lead the fieldwork and analysis to develop an investment case for malaria
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Lead and/or support on review and validation of the comprehensive programmatic and/or financial gap analysis for a particular intervention area;
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Lead high-level discussions with senior management, partner representatives and other key stakeholders to broker consensus on any of the above intervention areas;
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Undertake a technical review of chosen strategies and interventions to ensure that they are technically sound and in line with WHO normative guidance, feasible to implement and will achieve sufficient impact based on malaria epidemiology of the country / area
