Location: Ethiopia

Duration of work: Approximately 20 months with a commitment of 35 hours per week  

Background Information

The consultant will provide ongoing guidance, support of oversight of trachoma elimination Implementing Partners (IPs) under Accelerate funding support.  The consultant will work in close coordination with the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Team Leader, NTD Technical Assistant, Integrated NTD Data System and Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Advisor and WEASH-NTD Data Use Advisor to:

1. a) ensure SAFE Strategy interventions are delivered in accordance with FMoH-approved preferred practice, technical and programmatic directives;
2. b) facilitate and contribute to constructive dialogue and coordination across the WASH, education and health sectors of Ethiopia.

 The consultant will ensure that IPs:

1. a) have cogent and comprehensive plans and schedules for the delivery of SAFE Strategy key activities and outputs;
2. b) are consistently striving for optimal value for money through cost efficiencies in the delivery of their agreed scopes of work;
3. c) are capturing, analysing and using key programme prevalence and progress data to inform decisions regarding possible adaptations to delivery approaches.

Principle Accountabilities

• Provide guidance and oversight to Accelerate Implementing Partners (IPs) for programme planning, budgeting and delivery, including but not limited to:
• Development and submission of annual, multi-year and/or activity-based plans, schedules and projected budget requirements;
• Conduct regularly scheduled field visits to Accelerate IPs’ areas of operation to assess adherence to FMoH-approved preferred practice, technical and programmatic directives as well as IPs progress against plan and budget;
• Identify key issues to be addressed to improve timeliness and optimal quality of all trachoma elimination key activities, outputs and outcomes;
• Ensure that IPs are working within district-specific micro-plans, are supporting the compilation of all district-specific supporting documentation, and are engaging in ongoing dialogue with the district, zonal and regional FMoH regarding transition of SAFE Strategy interventions within existing ministry service delivery once WHO trachoma elimination thresholds are attained;
• Ensure there is regular and ongoing dialogue amongst – and contribute to - key stakeholders of the WASH, NTD, health and education sectors at the regional, zonal and district levels.
•  Review and provide timely feedback to IPs on all key planning and reporting documents, including:
• Annual, multi-year and/or activity-based plans, schedules and budgets;
• Quarterly progress reports – narratives, MyCLAIMS, accompanying trachoma data sheets – submitted by and provide first-line feedback to Implementing Partners;
• Quarterly Review Meeting (QRM) presentations, including progress on actions to be taken from previous QRMs;
• IP responses to findings and recommendations from supportive-supervision visits (from personnel of FMoH NTD Team, Regional Health Bureau, Zonal Health Bureau, Woreda Health Office) and from Sightsavers personnel as a result of periodic Technical Support Visits and/or programme-wide Capacity Building events.
• Coordinate with FMoH NTD Team members for the scheduling and undertaking of Quarterly Review Meetings (QRMs), Annual Programme Review and Planning (APRP) meetings, and other programme-wide capacity building events.

• Assist FMoH NTD Team members, as needed, in accessing the Sightsavers Trachoma Technical Expert Network for support to programme partners.
• Work closely with the Sightsavers NTD Finance Team (and other stakeholders) to ensure that agreements, due diligence reports, individual country and consolidated log frames are up to date and stored; and prepare any contract closure and asset transfer required.
• Work with Sightsavers communications to provide content material, as needed.

• Provide regular project reporting to all stakeholders including project updates as required for sign off by the relevant Sightsavers Project Director.
• Work closely with Sightsavers PSMO on monitoring and evaluation.
• Maintain risk register and ensure all interventions uphold a commitment to gender, equity, social inclusion, value for money and sustainability.

  Deliverables

• High-quality and timely programme reporting and accompanying documentation, including but not limited to: JAP reports; TEMF reports; annual donated drug applications; etc. to the FMoH NTD Team Coordinator
• High-quality and timely quarterly updates on support provided to and progress made towards consistent use of the integrated NTD data system for monitoring and decision-making at the RHB and implementing partner levels
• Effective mobilisation of technical expertise in support of documentation of standard best practice and lessons learnt
• Implement / sustain the national NTD DHIS2 database with up to date NTD program data

  Qualifications and attributes

• Educated to degree level or equivalent in a relevant discipline
• Extensive experience in public health – preferably trachoma and Neglected Tropical Diseases - programme delivery and management
• Extensive experience in annual and multi-year planning, budgeting, progress monitoring and reporting
• Extensive experience guiding, overseeing and reviewing partner (sub-contractor) annual and multi-year plans, budgets and progress reports
• Extensive experience and demonstrated success working within and navigate the complexities and contextual nuances of trachoma elimination programme delivery through Implementing Partners supporting the FMoH
• Experience identifying and sharing good practice towards optimal value for money in programme delivery
• Ability to work collaboratively and build stakeholder consensus
• Ability to identify key risks, problem solve and rapidly escalate critical issues (no surprise environment)
• Extensive experience and capability working with Microsoft Office Suite
• Good analytical skills
• An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity for people with disabilities

Schedule of Payment 

The consultancy fee will be paid based on submission of monthly invoices to Sightsavers for an agreed monthly rate to be discussed at interview. Pre-approved expenses associated with the work shall be incurred by Sightsavers on the consultant’s behalf or reimbursed to the consultant upon presentation of receipts as part of monthly invoicing.

Interested parties are asked to submit a CV and Cover Letter, please include your fee expectation in the Cover Letter.

How to express your interest

To express interest to undertake this assignment we ask that you review the Terms of Reference for full details of the work and complete an Expression of Interest form. Please click the Apply Here to access these documents. 

You will also be asked to upload your CV and Cover Letter. Please ensue that in your Cover Letter you include fee expectations. You will also be asked to complete a fee history as part on the Expression of Interest. Please note that you will be asked to upload a Budget Template, please ignore this as we ask you to provide your fee history in the Cover Letter instead. 

Closing date for applications is midnight on 30 March 2021