Public Health Officer

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The overall office of the Regional Director (ORD) is to support the Regional Director in the efficient delivery of his/her mandate and in the provision of effective leadership and coordination of the work of WHO in the African Region, ensuring that the Region's need and priorities are taken into account in WHO global policies, strategies and actions, including partnerships within and beyond the UN system, and collaboration with countries, cooperation with and support to the UNsystem, international organizations, bilateral and multilateral agencies and other stakeholders. The Office co-ordinates the regional Director's engagement and collaboration with members States, the African union Commission, development partners, donors, and other stakeholders. It is responsible for coordinating the preparation of policy, technical and managerial briefs on relevant health matters to facilitate the decisions of the Regional director and in the development of strategic initiatives. The Office ensures the contributions of the programmatic/technical clusters and the management units under the GMC cluster to the execution of the functions of the Regional Director and assists in monitoring compliance in the implementation of specific executive decisions and recommendations. The office supports RD's role as the prime communicator with stakeholders and partners for information sharing and advocacy. The Office also develops strategic partnerships,mobilizing capacities in the region in the pursuits of its objectives and contributes to cross-Cluster resource mobilization in order to achieve universal coverage for significant improvement in health outcomes using Primary Health Care as a delivery vehicle. The Director ORDs Office is also responsible for developing, leading, monitoring, and evaluating the work of the ORD Teams and coordinating its action with WHO Headquarters, Clusters, and partner agencies and institutions. TheOffice of the Regional Director also coordinates the following teams-WHO Country Office/Inter- Country Support Teams (WCO/IST); Country Focus and Coordination (CFC); Ombudsperson (OMB); Polio Eradication Programme, including Polio transition (PEP): External Relations, Partnerships and governing Bodies (EPG); Transformation Agenda Initiatives (TAI); and Communications (COM). The goal is to enable countries in the WHO Africa, Region to ensure evidence-based policies and strategies are in place to achieve universal access to high-quality integrated health services, increase coverage and quality of effective interventions and to create mechanisms to measure the impact of those strategies and interventions.
 

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

The incumbent will be expected to perform the following duties: Under the direct supervision of the ORD Director in collaboration with the CFC Units and WCOs, 1. Provide specialist technical support to the work program in the area of Public health in the assigned country(ies) and assist Member States through the provision of technically sound advice to facilitate the successful implementation of national health systems. 2. Contribute to the development of national strategies and policies through technical and policy advice and recommendations on plans of actions for strengthening health systems and improvements in the planning and management of existing Public health systems. 3. Develop and monitor work plans and budgets including resource mobilization for the work programme and follow up on the implementation of planned activities.4. Critically review data and provide high-level data analyses and information on best practices and partners' experiences in implementing sustainable Public health systems and disseminate information. Submit proposals for the extension of health-care networks and the development of mechanisms of social health protection. 5. Develop and conduct capacity building in the area of Public health systems and the management and financing of the systems.6. Serve as a technical resource to the public concerning sustainable health systems that contribute to health equity, social justice and elimination of exclusion and respond to inquiries and provide detailed and technical information concerning related principles, practices, issues, measures, techniques and procedures.7. Conceive, coordinate and conduct a variety of community outreach activities concerning the extension of health-care networks.8. Advance liaison with and coordinate national counterparts, technical departments at HQ, and with donor and development partners (UN and bilateral) to harmonize recommendations on policies and strategies related to Public health systems and resolve issues or concerns. 9. Seek funding for new projects and work programmes.10. Represent WHO at various meetings. 11. Perform all other related duties as assigned,
 

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: Master's degree in public health, or global health/ international or related fields.
Desirable: 
 

Experience

Essential: At least seven (7) years' relevant experience at national or international level in public health, monitoring and evaluation of health-related programmes.
Desirable: Experience working in the United Nations system and/or other International Organizations
 

Skills

Demonstrated ability to write technical and scientific reports. Ability to analyse and summarize documents in the context of strategic issues concerning the global health agenda. Ability to negotiate and engage new partnerships. Excellent analytical and writing skills.
 

WHO Competencies

Teamwork
Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
Communication
Producing results
Moving forward in a changing environment
 

Use of Language Skills

Essential: Expert knowledge of English. Intermediate knowledge of French.
Desirable: 
The above language requirements are interchangeable.
 

REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 86,027 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 3255 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.
 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Staff members separated due to the 2025 Prioritization and Realignment Process will receive special consideration according to the applicable regulatory framework.

• This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level.

• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

• A written test and/or an asynchronous video assessment may be used as a form of screening.

• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.

• According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible.

• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and eManual.

• The Director-General retains the discretion to not make any appointment to this vacancy, to make an appointment at a lower grade, or to make an appointment with a modified job description, including shortening the duration of the appointment.

• Staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.

• WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. WHO recruits and employs staff regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.

• WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its staff. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply.

• Persons with disabilities may request reasonable accommodations (modifications or adjustments to the application or recruitment process) to support their participation in the application and recruitment process. Please send an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int with your full name, the vacancy number you are applying for, and specific details of the accommodation needed in your request.

• An impeccable record for integrity and professional ethical standards is essential. WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.

• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.

• Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with WHO and an underlying premise of the international civil service. Candidates appointed to a fixed-term position in the International Professional category (Grades P1-D2) are eligible for Geographical Mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world.

• WHO also offers wide range of benefits to staff, including parental leave and attractive flexible work arrangements to help promote a healthy work-life balance and to allow all staff members to express and develop their talents fully.

• The statutory retirement age for staff appointments is 65 years. For external applicants, only those who are expected to complete the term of appointment will normally be considered.

• Please note that WHO's contracts are conditional on members of the workforce confirming that they are vaccinated as required by WHO before undertaking a WHO assignment, except where a medical condition does not allow such vaccination, as certified by the WHO Staff Health and Wellbeing Services (SHW). The successful candidate will be asked to provide relevant evidence related to this condition. A copy of the updated vaccination card must be shared with WHO medical service in the medical clearance process. Please note that certain countries require proof of specific vaccinations for entry or exit. For example, official proof /certification of yellow fever vaccination is required to enter many countries. Country-specific vaccine recommendations can be found on the WHO international travel and Staff Health and Wellbeing website. For vaccination-related queries please directly contact SHW directly at shws@who.int.

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