The Regional Health Specialist provides technical leadership, strategy development, and quality control for Handicap International (HI)'s health sector interventions across the East Africa region. This role involves leading the sector strategy, providing technical support to a portfolio of projects in development, emergency, and protracted crisis contexts, and ensuring alignment with global technical standards.
Responsibilities
1. Technical Leadership, Strategy & Quality
- Lead Sector Strategy: Provide technical input to the regional operational strategy (StratOp) and lead the development and monitoring of the regional Health sector strategy.
- Integrated Programming: Promote synergies with other sectors and support the technical assistance (TA) strategy to strengthen the capacities of service providers.
- Technical Support: Develop and contextualize technical guidance for Health, Equitable Health Systems, SRHR, ECD, MHPSS, and climate and health. Provide advice to projects in development and emergency contexts.
- Cross-cutting Approaches: Integrate disability-gender-age (DGA) markers, conflict sensitivity, and protection integration into interventions.
- Quality Control: Conduct technical monitoring missions, internal audits, and coaching to ensure projects meet global technical standards.
2. Programme Development, Partnerships & External Influence
- Strategic Monitoring: Monitor regional trends, dynamics, and multi-stakeholder initiatives to anticipate collaboration opportunities.
- Partnership Development: Identify opportunities for consortia with humanitarian actors, research institutes, and regional bodies like the Africa CDC.
- Proposal Development: Support country teams in drafting concept notes and high-quality proposals, ensuring technical logic and quality.
- External Representation: Represent HI in regional coordination platforms (clusters, technical working groups) and influence policy within national and regional health systems.
- Technical Visibility: Produce thematic content and participate in regional workshops to strengthen HI's recognition in the sector.
3. Knowledge, Learning & Capacity Strengthening
- Knowledge Management: Document field experiences, case studies, and lessons learned. Lead cross-country learning through communities of practice.
- Innovation: Contribute to research and evidence generation in priority health areas, integrating digital transformation and climate change adaptation.
- Capacity Building: Conduct training needs assessments and provide coaching to technical staff and partners. Participate in the recruitment and validation of technical positions.
Characteristics of the Position
The security situation in the region varies. Some areas, including Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan, are affected by tensions or travel restrictions. Appropriate risk management mechanisms are in place to ensure team safety.
