Qualifications

Purpose of consultancy

To facilitate the outreach and dissemination of the WHO normative guidance on best practices for clinical trials, of the related training and stakeholder engagement activities.

Background

At the World Health Assembly in May 2022, World Health Organization’s Member States passed resolution WHA75.8 on strengthening clinical trials to provide high-quality evidence on health interventions and to improve research quality and coordination. The resolution recognized the importance of strengthening the global and national clinical trial ecosystems to advance: 1) equitable clinical trial capacity development; 2) health outcomes related to burden of diseases at national and regional level; and 3) to provide functional capacities that can pivot in times of emergencies.

To forward these goals, a WHO Guidance for best practices for clinical trials has been developed with a 16-member Technical Advisory Group (TAG) and in consultations with global experts and all relevant stakeholders in clinical trials, including Member States, patient and community engagement organizations, funders, researchers, ethicists, regulators, and representatives from industry. The Guidance outlines key ethical and scientific considerations for well-designed and well-implemented clinical trials. A series of regional and global consultations, including the first WHO Global Clinical Trials Forum, took place in 2023, where stakeholders agreed to a vision of collective efforts in improving clinical research infrastructure and capabilities in countries and globally, and calls for accelerating access to fit-for-purpose training packages for clinical trials.

To advance the implementation of the WHA75.8 and operationalize the vision agreed upon at the Global Forum, the Secretariat seeks a consultant who would facilitate the outreach to all relevant stakeholders to disseminate the normative guidance and the online training program.

Deliverables

• Task 1:  Ensure timely update of the WHO webpages related to the WHA75.8 implementation. This includes:
  • Review the current WHA75.8 implementation homepage content and conduct search on webpages of both relevant internal and external projects;
  • Provide input on technical improvement and enrich the project homepage to maximize its effectiveness in communicating the Secretariat’s work;
  • Facilitate regular and efficient updates of the contents of the homepage.
    • Deliverable 1.1: proposal for the WHA75.8 implementation homepage content map and layout.
    • Deliverable 1.2: regular updates for the WHA75.8 implementation homepage.
• Task 2: Identify mechanisms and facilitate the dissemination of the Secretariat’s technical products, such as the normative guidance and the related online training program.  This includes:
  • Draft policy or technical brief(s) with key messages on the technical products and address the relevant stakeholder groups, especially national clinical research authorities, national or regional regulators, and funders;
  • Draft workplans and facilitate the launch and disseminations for the technical products;
  • Facilitate the implementation of the workplans in collaboration with WHO teams (such as DCO), and collaborators (such as designers).
    • • Deliverable 2.1: draft policy or technical brief(s) for the technical products.
      • Deliverable 2.2: draft workplan for the launch and dissemination of the normative guidance on best practices for clinical trials.
      • Deliverable 2.3: draft workplan for the launch and dissemination of the online training program for best practices for clinical trials.
      • Deliverable 2.4: facilitation of materials development, with the WHO internal functions and designers, for the aforementioned launch and dissemination workplans.
• Task 3: Establish social media channels and platforms to assist the Secretariat in the outreach to the relevant stakeholders. This includes:
  • Collate highlights of the Secretariat’s work, and draft and facilitate the internal review of quarterly newsletters;
  • Conduct research and propose appropriate mechanisms (such as social media channels, online platforms, etc) to maximize the outreach of the Secretariat’s work;
  • Facilitate collaborations to curate contents and moderate discussions in the established channels or platforms to amplify the key messages.
    • Deliverable 3.1: drafts of quarterly newsletters to highlight the Secretariats’ work targeting both WHO internal and external audience.
    • Deliverable 3.2: proposal for social media channels and platforms, such as online community, interest groups, for effective and efficient dissemination of the Secretariat’s work, including methods for measuring the outcomes.
    • Deliverable 3.3: facilitation of the content curation and discussion moderation for the established channels or platforms, in collaborations with relevant stakeholders, experts and / or media.
    • Deliverable 3.4: report drafted of the outreach and dissemination outcomes via the established channels or platforms.

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications:

Essential:

• First level university degree in public health, health sciences, social sciences, international development or other related field.

Desirable:

• Advanced university degree in any of the abovementioned fields.
• Training in communications.

Experience:

Essential:

• At least 5 years of relevant experience working in stakeholder’s engagement and outreach around research and/or development of health products.
• Proven experience in developing information products, advocacy materials, related tools and in measuring outcomes.
• Demonstrated experience in working at international level.

Desirable:

• Experience in global health agencies, international development agencies or international organizations.

Skills:

• Proven knowledge and skills in writing and editing;
• Ability to analyze and synthesize relevant information;
• Ability to meet deadlines;
• Excellent interpersonal skills;
• Strong organizational skills
• Ability to work effectively under pressure.

Languages required:

Essential:

Expert knowledge of English.

Desirable:

Knowledge of other UN official language.

Location

Off site: Home-based.

Travel

The consultant is not expected to travel.

Remuneration and budget (travel costs are excluded):

Remuneration:

Band level B – USD 7,000 – 9,980 per month.

Living expenses (A living expense is payable to on-site consultants who are internationally recruited):

N/A

Expected duration of contract:

11 months – part-time at 50%. Remuneration will be pro-rated accordingly.

Additional Information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for 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.
• For information on WHO’s operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.
• 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.
• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority. The execution of the work under a consultant contract does not create an employer/employee relationship between WHO and the Consultant.
• WHO shall have no responsibility whatsoever for any taxes, duties, social security contributions or other contributions payable by the Consultant. The Consultant shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions and any other contributions which are applicable to the Consultant in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the Consultant shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.
• Consultants working in Switzerland must register with the applicable Swiss cantonal tax authorities and social security authorities, within the prescribed timeframes (Guidelines issued by the Swiss Mission are available at: https://www.eda.admin.ch/missions/mission-onu-geneve/en/home/manual-regime-privileges-and-immunities/introduction/Manuel-personnes-sans-privileges-et-immunites-carte-H/Non fonctionnaires et stagiaires.html