JOB DESCRIPTION
Amref Health Africa was founded in 1957 and has since grown to become the largest African-based international health development organisation; currently implementing more than 180 programs, reaching more than 40 million people across 35 African countries; and a staff complement of over 2,000. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, Amref Health Africa has offices in ten countries in Africa – Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Guinea Conakry), Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. An additional eleven advocacy and fundraising offices are located in Europe and North America.
Amref Health Africa is driven by its vision of ‘Lasting health change in Africa’ and its mission ‘To catalyze and drive community-led and people-centred health systems while addressing social determinants of health’. We believe that the power to transform Africa’s health lies within its communities, and therefore strive to ensure that health systems are not only functional but that communities are empowered to hold these systems accountable for the delivery of quality and affordable health care.
STRATEGIC PURCHASING AFRICA RESOURCE CENTER (SPARC)
The Strategic Purchasing Africa Resource Center (SPARC) is a resource hub aimed at strengthening strategic purchasing capacity in Sub-Saharan Africa by connecting existing regional expertise and matching it with country demand to make better use of resources for health. Our vision is to empower countries with knowledge and practical tools to make access to affordable and quality health care a reality for all. SPARC is creating a network of regional experts who can support the development of practical, home-grown solutions that meet countries’ strategic purchasing needs.
SPARC is hosted by Amref Health Africa, a foremost Africa based NGO, as part of its strategic move nto support health financing reforms in Africa. SPARC’s core partner – Results for Development – provides technical support to SPARC.
Since launching the initiative in November 2017, SPARC has been on a journey to build momentum and capacity for strategic purchasing across sub-Saharan Africa, by expanding and connecting the growing critical mass of expertise, understanding and sharing practical experience on the continent and supporting countries to overcome political and technical barriers to using limited resources to promote equitable access to quality primary healthcare services. Building on its learnings so far, SPARC aims to scale up its impact, by strengthening its network of expertise, generating and sharing more practical tools and experiences on the continent and as a result, helping more countries advance strategic purchasing. In addition, SPARC is strengthening its strategic partnerships to expand its reach and sustain its impact in Africa.
IDENTIFICATION
JOB TITLE Technical Programme Manager
REPORTING TO Director, Health Financing
DIRECTORATE Health Systems Strengthening
DEPARTMENT Strategic Purchasing Africa Resource Centre (SPARC)
PERIOD Two (2) Years (Renewable)
PHYSICAL LOCATION Nairobi, Kenya
JOB PURPOSE
Under the leadership of the Director, Health Financing, the Technical Programme Manager will provide strategic management of SPARC’s programmatic pillars – Country Engagement, Coaching & Mentoring and Evidence Generation and Learning.
The Technical Programme Manager will provide day to day management and technical oversight of program activities and will be responsible for the development and execution of project deliverables, leading project planning and monitoring, and supporting the budget process in collaboration with the program support team. The Technical Programme Manager will also advise on overall project strategy and design, contribute technical expertise to specific health system challenges, and oversee implementation of activities. S/He will be responsible for ensuring effective coordination with other actors, monitoring and evaluation of project activities, quality assurance, representation and partnership development, proposal and resource development; and organizational learning.
Principal responsibilities are delineated below.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
KEY AREA ACTIVITIES
Programme
Management
- Provide strategic management of SPARC’s programmatic pillars, leading the development and coherent implementation of SPARC’s workplan and budget.
- Support program M&E progress tracking
- Provide coaching and mentoring to the technical team
- Delegate tasks to team members as needed
- Produce accurate and timely reports and other key initiative deliverables
Technical Oversight - Oversee quality assurance of program outputs and outcomes
- Provide guidance to team members to determine project scope, approach and requirements
- Engage stakeholders to clarify technical requests and country demands
Collaboration - stablish and maintain partnerships with government teams, relevant institutions and program partners.
- Support oversight of contractors and partners responsible for assisting with implementation of SPARC activities
- Contribute to the operationalization of Amref corporate strategy and the health financing community of practice
Demand Generation & Business Development - Support countries in framing country demand and prioritizing key topics that can be addressed through SPARC platform
- Support proposal development to secure funding and business for SPARC
- Liaise with country stakeholders regarding SPARC packages of support and monitor feedback channels
- Maintain ongoing communication with potential partners and other key stakeholders to identify and pursue growth opportunities
Donor Liaison - Serve as first point of contact with donors and streamline communications
- Liaise with donors to identify potential areas of donor support for SPARC activities and to create partnerships that foster effective use
of skills and resources.
QUALIFICATIONS, KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE
Education and Professional Qualifications - Master’s Degree preferred in Public Health, Health Economics, Social Sciences or other relevant fields.
Experience - At least ten (10) years’ experience providing technical leadership to similar initiatives or in a health financing setting.
- Extensive experience with donor management and building strategic alliances. Experience with Managing BMGF grants is an added advantage.
- Extensive experience in programme/project management.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities - Strong international development and programme/project management background; knowledge of UHC, health financing and/or health economics a bonus
- Demonstrated leadership skills and expertise in the management of health programs
- Strong verbal and written communication skills
- Strong interpersonal skills and experience working with cross cultural teams
- Strong knowledge of and experience in monitoring and evaluation
- Excellent analytical skills, as well as the ability to express facts and ideas in a clear, convincing and organized manner
- Ability to set priorities and handle multiple competing time and resource demands, highly organized
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office products at expert level
- Willing to travel within the region and across the African continent
- Fluent in speaking, reading and writing in English. Knowledge of French would be an asset.
HOW TO APPLY
Interested? Please visit our website https://amref.org/vacancies/ to make your application. You will be directed to our online portal where you will need to create an account in order for you to be able to submit your application. Your application should include a cover letter detailing why you are the best fit for this position and your CV with relevant skills and experience.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Closing date will be May 19, 2023. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Duly note that Amref Health Africa does not require applicants to pay any money at whatever stage of the recruitment and selection process and has not retained any agent in connection with recruitment. Although Amref may use different job boards from time to time to further spread its reach for applicants, all open vacancies are published on our website under the Vacancies page and on our official social media pages.
Kindly also note that official emails from Amref Health Africa will arrive from an @amref.org address.
Amref Health Africa is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. Amref Health Africa is an equal opportunity employer and has a non-smoking environment policy.