Area of Expertise

National Consultant – NCD programme coordinator

Purpose of consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to hire an individual to provide technical support for the National NCD programme, Health Protection Agency, Ministry of Health. This consultancy is open to applications and submissions from Maldivian candidates exclusively.

Background  

Technical support is required for the Noncommunicable Diseases (MND) unit of health protection agency to support action across government and society in addressing noncommunicable diseases. Focus areas of the programme are strengthening advocacy on NCDs, improving service delivery at primary healthcare through a risk-based approach to early detection and treatment as part of the continuum of care and strengthening health systems to support the achievement of global and national targets to reduce premature mortality due to NCDs.

Terms of Reference

• Provide technical support for timely implementation of national commitments on public health and NCDs prevention and control, according to available National and WHO guidelines and tools.
• Identify gaps and make recommendations for implementation of the activities under the National Multi-sectoral Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases in Maldives.
• Identify gaps and make recommendations for implementation of the activities under the National Cancer Control Plan of Maldives.
• Provide technical and implementation support in strengthening Primary Health Care in Faafu Atoll Demonstration Site and roll out to other atolls.
• Plan the overall NCD 25 by 30 campaign, including goals, objectives, target audience segmentation and key messages.
• Support to develop campaign messages that emphasize prevention, early detection, and healthy lifestyle choices.
• Assist in identifying public engagement opportunities, including through partnerships with media, CSOs, etc., to communicate verified information to the public as well as acquire timely feedback.
• Disseminate appropriate and relevant scientific, technical, and policy information, on integrated prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.
• Support in developing social listening/media monitoring reports (from social and news media) based on public perceptions towards required behaviors as well as other related sentiments.
• Guide the HPA, NCD program on revising messaging and engagement efforts and other actions to be taken based on findings from social listening/monitoring.
• Guide on attending to instances and queries of misinformation and disinformation regarding media campaigns.
• Support monitoring of messages disseminated and engagement opportunities and ensure reach to marginalized and vulnerable groups.
• Support in framing and carrying out online polls and surveys (on different platforms such as social media and online news) to gather required data to support the communication and advocacy efforts of the HPA, NCD program.
• Plan and conduct community engagement activities on NCDs (minimum 2 mass activities for the year).
• Proactively participate in planning and implementation of activities by developing project proposals, timely implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting.
• Develop documentation on major activities implemented by the NCD unit.

Deliverables

Monthly progress report on status, actions and next steps towards achieving the activities outlined in the TOR.

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications

Essential: University degree in medicine, public health or health management-related field.

Desirable: Master’s degree in public health or health management and postgraduate qualification (s) in the areas of NCD prevention and control, ageing, nutrition, gender and social determinants of health.

Experience

Essential: At least five years’ experience in the field of Noncommunicable diseases control.

Desirable: Experience in project management, capacity building programmes, planning, monitoring and evaluation, developing and promoting collaborative partnerships.

Skills/Knowledge

Skills

• Excellent presentation skills.
• Demonstrated ability to provide technical advice to all relevant stakeholders.
• Demonstrated skills to assess and analyze data to support national programmes and policies; projects and activities, including budget programming and control.
• Demonstrated skills in planning and donor and technical report writing.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work under pressure; complemented by demonstrated ability to identify and manage difficult situations.

Knowledge

• Strong theoretical and practical knowledge of public health, NCD related programmes and policies.

Languages and level required (Basic/Intermediate/Advanced):

Essential: English – read, write, and speak at expert level

Divehi – read, write, and speak at expert level

Location

Onsite at Health Protection Agency, Ministry of Health Maldives

Travel

Travel maybe required as per needs of WHO or the HPA NCD programme.

Remuneration and budget (travel costs are excluded):

Remuneration: MVR 35,000 per month (depending on qualification)

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

Expected duration of contract: 12 months (1 August 2024 to 31 July 2025)

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.
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• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its workforce. 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 for WHO jobs.
• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int
• 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 (https://www.who.int/about/who-we-are/our-values) 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 short-listed candidates.
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• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority.
• WHO shall have no responsibility 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.
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• This assignment is subject to local recruitment and will be filled by persons recruited in the local commuting area of the duty station/assignment location.