UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S
FUND (UNICEF)
KENYA COUNTRY OFFICE, NAIROBI
Temporary Appointment
Duration:
5 months
Date of
Issue: 27 January, 2014 Closing Date: 09 February, 2014
Applications
are hereby invited from suitably qualified candidates to fill the above Temporary
Appointment position in the Health Section, UNICEF Kenya Country Office
Purpose of the Post:
Under the supervision of the Chief of Health, the incumbent will be
responsible for the day-to day operations of the MNH project and support the
delivery of program strategies.
Justification
Maternal mortality is said to represent the biggest
disparity in health status between rich and poor countries (or rich and poor
communities within the same country). Health is a form of human capital; high
numbers of maternal and child deaths are holding back a significant portion of
the population of Kenya from achieving their full potential. High newborn and
child mortality rates are sustaining high fertility, perpetuating a vicious
cycle of vulnerability among women and young children. Moreover, maternal and
newborn mortality do not only affect women and babies: poor health and health
disparities are preventing Kenya from achieving economic progress and
stability, particularly in the poorest parts of the country.
Hemorrhage is by far the leading cause of maternal
deaths. Hemorrhage and hypertension collectively account for more than half of
all maternal deaths. HIV-related illnesses also play a major role in maternal
deaths, especially in regions such as Western Kenya, where HIV is more than
four times the national average, and Turkana County where HIV prevalence is
twice the national average and increasing.
In most of sub-Saharan Africa including Kenya,
neonatal mortality has seen no significant change in over a decade. Nearly 4 in
10 under-five deaths are among newborns, making neonatal mortality reduction
increasingly the ‘unfinished business’ of under-five mortality reduction. Both
neonatal and maternal mortality are heavily concentrated in the delivery period
and initial week after delivery. Most of these deaths occur at home; two-thirds
of such deaths could be averted if mothers and babies were attended by trained
health professionals.
More
specifically, Kenya’s maternal mortality rate remains unacceptably high (at
488/100,000 live births nationally), even as under-five mortality rates are
decreasing. Disparities in access to
health services and in maternal and newborn health outcomes have become
slightly worse over the last decade, with the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands region
(ASAL) in the North and Nyanza province in the West of Kenya maintaining
mortality rates that are substantially higher than the national average. The
maternal mortality rate in Turkana County, for example, is estimated to be
above 1500 per 100,000 live births—three the national average, according to the
2013 Kenya Population Situation Analysis Report.
Kenyan
mothers’ access to skilled delivery and emergency obstetric care have stagnated
in the past decade: in both 2008 and 2003, the KDHS surveys found that
approximately 40% of women make the recommended 4 antenatal visits and the same
number deliver in a health facility. Moreover, the significant regional
disparities in skilled delivery coverage noted in 2003 have not improved in
recent years. The difference in coverage between the poorest and wealthiest
quintiles also increased during this period. Access to basic and comprehensive
emergency obstetric care appears to have decreased over the past decade (5,6).
Disparities in C-section rates have been reduced within the upper 60% of the
population, but the poorest 40% still lag far behind in coverage. With these
stagnating coverage trends and widening disparities, it is unlikely that the
country will achieve the MDG maternal mortality target of 147/100,000 by 2015.
This
situation, which is increasingly acknowledged in Kenya’s national health and
development policies, led DFID to develop a Business Case for aggressively
reducing maternal and newborn mortality in the most vulnerable counties in
Kenya over the next five years (2014-2018). UNICEF with financial support form
DFID has been engaged to oversee the project, which will involve a number of
different service providers, and to manage direct implementation of activities
in two of the three focus counties (Homa Bay and Turkana). The primary outputs
of this project shall be 1) increased coverage of skilled birth attendance, 2)
increased availability of BEmONC and CEmONC services, and 3) a reduction in the
obstetric case fatality rate. Accordingly, the overall project has three major
components: 1) improving the availability and skills of human resources for
health, 2) strengthening the health system, and 3) generating demand for
skilled delivery and emergency obstetric care services.
UNICEF’s
five-year work plan contains twelve areas of work, which shall be directed by a
MNH Specialist/ Team Lead. The Team Lead will be responsible for overall
technical leadership, quality assurance, partner and donor relations, and
high-level budget management. An MNCH Officer, whose responsibilities are
described in this TOR, will work directly under the MNH specialist to oversee
day-to-day activities, support coordination of the various players, and ensure
that the three major components of the project are well-integrated.
Scope
of Work for the TA
Working under the supervision of the
MNH Specialist and with regular guidance and support from the M&E
Specialist, the MNH Officer will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day
operations of the project, both in Nairobi in the field. At the national level,
the TA will maintain the overall project work plan, attend meetings with the
MOH and the national MNH Technical Working Groups , and document decisions made
about project management. He or she will then be responsible for relating
management decisions to the field-based project personnel, verifying that they
understand the project-wide work plan and effectively translate it into
county-specific micro-plans. The MNCH Officer will be expected to maintain
close relationships with the various partners involved in the project,
carefully review their regular reports and coordinate responses to challenges
or shifts in strategy. Finally, the MNCH officer will be responsible (together
with the Program Assistant) for maintaining the project budget and ensuring the
fund transfers to partners, and financial reporting linked to these transfers,
happen on a timely basis.
This position is based in the UNICEF
Office in Gigiri, Nairobi, but will involve regular travel (approximately 30%
time) to the field. Specifically, the MNCH will be expected to spend at least
one week per month in the field directly observing project activities. These
trips can alternate between Turkana and Homa Bay and will be supported by
UNICEF field-based personnel in the UNICEF Lodwar and Kisumu field offices.
More specifically, the MNCH Officer
will be responsible for the following work:
1)
(40%) Support project coordination at the national
level: Under the guidance of the MNH
Specialist/ Team Lead, participate in relevant national coordination meetings,
document decisions made, and update the overall project work-plan accordingly.
Relay any resulting management decisions to colleagues in the two field offices
(the MNH Field Officers). Keep abreast of public health developments in Kenya
that could have an impact on the project (positive or negative) and proactively
propose how to respond to these developments. Working closely with the M&E
team, ensure that relevant and accurate information is available for partners
as needed.
2)
(25%) Oversee financial disbursements and supply
requisitions: Working closely with
the Programme Assistant, supply and finance divisions, and field office staff,
review and process MOH and partner requests for cash transfers and reports on
fund utilization. Update the MNH Specialist/ Team Lead regularly on fund
utilization and budget status. Based on needs assessments, and with assistance
from the supply division, prepare supply requisitions and monitor delivery.
While the Quality Assurance Officer and supply division colleagues will conduct
end-user monitoring of supplies, the MNCH Officer should also monitor the
placement and use of UNICEF-purchased supplies.
3)
(25%) Maintain the project work-plan: Based on regular reports received from the Quality
Assurance Officer and M&E Team, and on feedback obtained directly from the
field and partners, maintain the overall project work-plan and proactively
propose solutions to delays or other implementation challenges. Work closely
with field staff and MOH colleagues to prepare county-specific work-plans and
suitable budgets, and regularly track progress through both reports received
from colleagues and direct field visits.
4)
(10%) Generate progress reports and support donor
visits: The M&E Team will be responsible
for generating draft progress reports every six months. The MNCH Officer will
be responsible for reviewing and finalizing these reports, based on his or her
direct knowledge of the overall situation at national and county levels, and
his or her relationship with the donor agency (DFID). The MNCH officer shall
also oversee all donor visits to the field, through close collaboration with
the MNCH field officers and M&E field officers.
RWPPCR/IRs
areas covered
UNICEF will contribute to increasing
the number of women and children have equitable Access to and Use of Quality
Essential Social and Protection Services and practices with focus on vulnerable
groups and the most marginalised regions of Kenya by 2014
ü IR 1:
Increased proportion of women and children receiving quality
evidence-based essential integrated maternal and child care services by June
2014
ü IR 2: Increasing number of households
practicing improved health care practices with focus on reaching the un-reached
by 2014 and sustained after that
ü IR3: Health policies, strategies and
systems supportive of MNCH scale-up and mitigation of emergencies
Expected
Deliverables and Results
|
The TA will be expected to deliver
the following each month:
1)
Brief report (5 pages) detailing a) the TA’s activities for the month,
b) overall status of the project including challenges, solutions, budget status
and priorities for the next month.
2)
Updated workplan
3)
Detailed project progress report, including financial report and annexed
data analysis furnished by the M&E team
*Please note that the TA shall be
invited to apply for a longer-term (5 year) position to continue this work,
provided he/she has demonstrated superb performance during the five-month
consultancy.
Desired
background and experience
The
TA should have a Medical Degree with Masters Degree in Public Health or a
related field, with at least five years of experience working for a development
organization in the area of project management. Clinical experience is a plus.
The TA should have demonstrated ability to network and communicate well with
partners, oversee complex logistical operations, manage budgets responsibly,
and understand and process public health data. Knowledge of Microsoft Office
(Word, Powerpoint, Excel) is required. Knowledge of the UN and its regulations
is a plus. The TA must have excellent (English) writing and presentation
skills.
In
addition, the TA should have the following personal attributes:
- Enjoys travel and work in the field/ harsh conditions
- Excellent interpersonal skills, diplomacy, and conflict resolution skills (essential for working with partners and donors and diverse UNICEF staff)
- A proactive attitude: notes problems and seeks to address them immediately in a positive manner
- Independence: provided with a clear Terms of Reference and regular supervisor feedback, the TA should be able to work independently, whether in the office or in the field
Competencies
- Communication
- Drive for Results
- Formulating Strategies and Concepts
- Relating and Networking
- Persuading and Influencing
- Applying Technical Expertise
- Learning & Research
- Working with People
- Planning and Organizing
Languages:
Fluency in English. Knowledge of
Kiswahili would be an asset.
Conditions
(Important)
The contract will be a Temporary Appointment.
Salaries and benefits will follow UNICEF regulations for NOC level positions
Position
will be based in Nairobi with frequent travel to Homa Bay and Turkana counties.
Interested and suitable candidates should ensure
that they forward their applications along with their curricula vitae, to;
The Human Resources Manager
UNICEF Kenya Country Office
Email address: kenyahrvacancies@unicef.org
Please indicate Reference No. “KCO/HEALTH/2014/001”
in the email subject.
Interested candidates should also complete the
Personal History (P11) form, which can be downloaded from the UNICEF Kenya
website (http://www.unicef.org/kenya).
“QUALIFIED FEMALE
CANDIDATES ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY”
ZERO TOLERANCE FOR SEXUAL
EXPLOITATION AND ABUSE
UNICEF IS A SMOKE-FREE
ENVIRONMENT
No comments:
Post a Comment