Health Specialist NOC at UNICEF

Job Number: 510295
Location: Maiduguri, Nigeria
Work Type : Fixed Term Staff

Background

• The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does" in programs, in advocacy and in operations.
• The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children's rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism.
• To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life "in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions" her or his rights are violated.
• There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society' most disadvantaged citizens" addressing inequity" not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries.
• This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Job Organizational Context

• The Health Specialist GJP is to be used in a Country Office (CO) where the Health Program is a major or key component of the Country Program (or UNDAF). The Specialist reports to the Chief Health/Nutrition/CSD who is at Level 5/4 or a Health Specialist who is at Level 4.

Purpose for the job

• The Health Specialist reports to the Health Manager for guidance and general supervision.
• The Specialist supports the development and preparation of the health program/s and is responsible for managing, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting of program progress of a sector of the health (e.g. nutrition, gender, maternal, neonatal, child survival/development) program/s within the country program.
• The Specialist provides technical guidance and management support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of concrete and sustainable results according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM) and organizational Strategic Plans and goals, standards of performance and accountability framework.

Key Function, Accountabilities and Related Duties/Tasks
Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

• Support to program development and planning
• Program management, monitoring and delivery of results
• Technical and operational support to program implementation
• Networking and partnership building
• Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

Support to program development and planning:

• Support/contribute to the preparation/design and conduct/update of situation analysis for the sector/s to establish a strategic plan for development, design and management of health related programs. Keep abreast of development trends to enhance program management, efficiency and delivery.
• Participate in strategic program discussion on the planning of health program. Formulate, design and prepare a sector of the health program proposal, ensuring alignment with the overall UNICEF's Strategic Plans and Country Program and coherence/integration with UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDF), regional strategies and national priorities, plans and competencies.
• Establish specific program goals, objectives and strategies and implementation plans based on results-based planning terminology and methodology (RBM). Prepare required documentations for program review and approval.
• Work closely and collaboratively with internal and external colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies and to determine national priorities/competencies to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable results.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes and to ensure integration, coherence and harmonization of programs/projects with other UNICEF sectors and achievement of results as planned and allocated.

Program management, monitoring and delivery of results:

• Plan and/or collaborate with internal and external partners to establish monitoring benchmarks, performance indicators and other UNICEF/UN system indicators and measurement to assess/strengthen performance accountability, coherence and delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the assigned sector in health programs.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, program reviews and annual sectoral reviews with government and other counterparts to assess progress and to determine required action/interventions to achieve results.
• Prepare/assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths/weaknesses in program and management, identify lessons learned and use knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve goals.
• Actively monitor programs/projects 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/appropriate use of sectoral program resources (financial, administrative and other assets) confirming compliance with organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity and ensuring timely reporting and liquidation of resources.
• Prepare regular/mandated program/project reports for management, donors and partners to keep them informed of program progress.

Technical and operational support to program implementation:

• Provide technical guidance and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and other country office partners/donors on interpretation, application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes and best practices and approaches on health and related issues to support program development planning, management, implementation and delivery of results.
• Participate in discussions with national partners/clients/stakeholders to promote health and development issues especially in the areas of gender, emergency preparedness and maternal, neonatal and child survival and development.
• Draft policy papers, briefs and other strategic program materials for management use, information and/or consideration.
• Participate in emergency preparedness initiatives program development and contingency planning and/or to respond to emergencies in country or where designated.

Networking and partnership building:

• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with health sector government counterparts, national stakeholders and global partners/allies/donors/academia through active networking, advocacy and effective communication to build capacity and exchange knowledge/expertise to facilitate the achievement of program goals on children rights and social justice/equity.
• Prepare communication and information materials for CO program advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnership/alliances and support fund raising for health programs (maternal, neonatal and child survival and development).
• Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate inter-agency (UNCT) discussions and planning on health and related issues to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNDAF planning and preparation of health programs/projects ensuring organizational position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in the UNDAF process in development planning and agenda setting.

Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building:

• Apply/introduce innovative approaches and good practice to build the capacity of partners and stakeholders and to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable program results.
• Keep abreast and conduct research to provide evidence for 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.
• Organize and implement capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders to promote sustainable results on health related programs/projects.

Impact of Results:

• The efficiency and efficacy of program preparation planning and implementation of health programs/projects contributes to the delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the Health/Country Program that directly impacts the improvement of the health of the most marginalized and vulnerable women and children in the country, and this in turn contributes to maintaining/enhancing the credibility and ability of UNICEF to continue to provide program services to protect the rights of children, promote greater social equality to enable children to survive, develop and reach their full potential in society.

Competencies and level of proficiency required (based on UNICEF Professional Competency Profiles)

• Core Values
• Commitment
• Diversity and inclusion
• Integrity

Core competencies:

• Communication (II)
• Working with people (II)
• Drive for results (II)

Functional Competencies:

• Leading and supervising (I)
• Formulating strategies and concepts (II)
• Analyzing (III)
• Relating and networking (II)
• Deciding and Initiating action (II)
• Applying technical expertise ((III)

Recruitment Qualifications
Education:

• An Advanced University Degree in 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 other Health related Science is required.

Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in public health/nutrition planning and management and/or in relevant areas of maternal and neonatal health care, health emergency/humanitarian preparedness, at the international level some of which preferably in a developing country is required. Relevant experience in health/nutrition program/project development and management in any UN system agency or organization is an asset.

 Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required.  Knowledge of another official UN language or a local language is an asset.