Health Governance Officer

Background

Please note that the person selected for this position will be offered a contract with UNDP under its National Personnel Services Agreement modality (N-PSA 10); the UNDP Service Contract modality is phasing out over the coming year. More information about the N-PSA is available here.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

UNDP in Ukraine is fully committed to help with resolving the immediate crisis and to support the Ministry of Health of Ukraine in its mid- and long-term efforts to reform its procurement and supply management system. UNDP brings its extensive expertise in establishing the procurement system that corresponds to the highest standards of transparency, accountability, cost-efficiency, equity and sustainability.
Since 2015, UNDP implements a project that aims at strengthening the national health care procurement system and thereby improving the effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment of the patients of Ukraine. Specifically, in the framework of the project, UNDP does (i) procure medicines and medical products for the National Public Health Programmes, (ii) strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Health to ensure transparency, accountability and effectiveness of the public procurement of medicines and other medical products.

The HIV epidemic continues to increase in Ukraine, especially among key populations at higher risk of HIV. The most affected by HIV are people who inject drugs (75% are men and 25% are women; 22.6% HIV prevalence), prisoners (96% are men, 4% are women; 8% HIV prevalence), men who have sex with men (7.5% HIV prevalence), sex workers (5.2% HIV prevalence). As per UNAIDS division of labour, UNDP continues cooperation with city administrations (including Fast Track cities), law enforcement representatives and judges to reduce stigma and discrimination towards people living with HIV and people affected by TB as well as LGBTIQ+ people in order to support the government in achieving the 90-90-90 targets and Sustainable Development Goals.

The Project is clustered in the Health and Transparency Programme (H&T Programme). The UNDP H&T Programme is aimed to support the implementation of the health reform in Ukraine through strengthening the medicine procurement capacity, enhancing the efficiency, effectiveness, transparency and accountability of the national healthcare procurement system and address the social, economic and environmental determinants of HIV and health, under UNDP Democratic Governance Portfolio.

To this end, UNDP seeks a Health Governance Officer to provide expertise and support for effective implementation of the goals and objectives of the H&T Programme related to the ongoing healthcare reform, capacity development of the government in public procurement of medicines, sustainable healthcare and HIV and TB response at local and national levels.

The incumbent will accelerate gender equality and women’s empowerment within all implementations and promote UNDP’s mandate as a gender-responsive organization with zero tolerance to any kind of discriminatory and abusive behaviour, including sexual harassment, sexual exploitation and abuse.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Chief Technical Advisor, the Health Governance Officer will be responsible for and will perform the following key tasks:

Provide programmatic support to ensure timely implementation of the H&T Programme activities in compliance with annual work and project implementation plans (healthcare reform, capacity development in public procurement of medicines, access to essential medicines, anticorruption efforts in healthcare, sustainable healthcare, infectious diseases and NCD response, health policy and human rights) including supporting effective reporting on progress vis-à-vis planned activities and expected outputs in line with both the corporate and government requirements;
Provide strategic inputs on HIV and health program development, health policy and strategic cooperation;
Support resource mobilization initiatives and programme development;
Advise on interlinking the H&T Programme activities with national and local Public Health Centres, MOH and relevant NGOs/CSOs plans (when applicable);
Support capacity development interventions for health and social workers, law enforcement officers, judges and other relevant stakeholders to reduce disease-related stigma and discrimination of key populations;
Liaise with national authorities, other members of the UN Joint Team on AIDS in Ukraine, civil society organizations, key populations representatives, as well as other regional and international stakeholders when tasked to do so;
Ensure the development of cross-project linkages with other relevant UN projects and programmes and other stakeholders’ projects in order to create synergies.
Ensure mainstreaming of gender equality considerations in the field of expertise, promotion of a safe and enabling environment free of any kind of discrimination and abusive behaviour, and gender-responsive communications based on corporate principles;
Contribute to organisation of events linked to the Programme goals and objectives;
Prepare reports, memoranda, briefs, presentations and other materials related to health policy and reform;
Prepare interim and final reports/briefs, article for the corporate social media and contribute to the interim UNDP reports;
Contribute to the project annual and implementation work plans preparation based on the requirements of UNDP and project donors;
Contribute to data collection, analysis and maintenance of projects related database and files;
Work closely on the inclusion of accountability and anti-corruption norms and principles in programming frameworks;
Engage with stakeholders (including civil society) to boost anti-corruption, including specific anti-corruption programmes and sector-specific anti-corruption interventions;
Participate in project activities (meetings, round tables, conferences, other public activities) preparation, implementation and follow up;
Provide inputs and comments to drafted and/or developed materials and reports;
Represent UNDP H&T Programme at routine meetings with UN agencies, other development partners, GOU, other stakeholders’ professional and official meetings and events when tasked to do so.

Measurable outputs of the work assignment:

Full and appropriate use of UNDP Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures and Standard Operating Procedures during implementation of the Project.
Results, experiences and lessons learned during implementation of project activities documented;
Reporting on and quality monitoring of activities completed.
Reporting on and quality monitoring of activities completed.

Performance Indicators for evaluation of results:

Relevant sections of the annual work plan and project implementation plan are fully and timely implemented;
Project and component activities of the Health and Transparency Programme are carried out in strict accordance with UNDP rules and procedures.

Competencies

Competencies and Selection Criteria

Description of Competency at Level Required

Core – Level 3

Achieve Results

Demonstrate focus on achieving quality results and impact
Consistently strive to meet or exceed excellence standards
Hold self and others accountable for results
Efficiently establish appropriate plans and resources for self and others to accomplish goals

Think Innovatively

Look beyond conventional approaches and established methods
Propose new ideas, approaches and solutions to problems
Seek patterns and clarity outside boxes and categories while resisting false certainty and simplistic binary choice

Learn Continuously

Actively pursue opportunities for learning and self-development professionally and personally
Keep abreast of new developments in one’s professional area
Cоntribute to the learning of others

Adapt with Agility

Participate in, support, contribute to or drive meaningful change in UNDP
Be comfortable with ambiguity and effectively managing multiple demands

Act with Determination

Pursue everything with motivation and drive
Not give up in the face of adversity and setbacks; demonstrate resilience and composure

Engage and Partner

Demonstrate and encourage teamwork and co-creation internally and externally to achieve joint objectives and results
Establish and develop networks that deliver powerful collaborations
Encourage and respect the views of others; accept views and ideas other than one’s own

Enable Diversity and Inclusion

Treat all individuals with respect, consider ethical implications and respond sensitively to all differences among people
Fully accept and value all people, creating an inclusive environment
Understand that inclusion is multi-faceted (e.g. race, gender, age, disability, culture, etc.)
Understand and appreciate issues from the perspective of others
Treat everyone fairly and equally
Demonstrate honesty and transparency

Cross-functional competencies – Level 3

System Thinking

Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Strategic Thinking

Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP’s objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities; linking the vision to reality on the ground, and creating tangible solutions
Ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends; to demonstrate foresight in order to model what future developments and possible ways forward look like for UNDP

Effective Decision Making

Ability to take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one’s authority, area of expertise and resources

Partnerships Management

Ability to build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies

Risk Management

Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks

Resource Management

Ability to allocate and use resources in a strategic or tactical way in line with principles of accountability and integrity

Knowledge Facilitation

Ability to animate individuals and communities of contributors to participate and share, particularly externally

Communication

Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels

Working with Evidence and Data

Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions and supporting decision-making

People Management Competencies – Level 3

Motivate and Direct

Create and communicate a compelling vision and purpose
Align people and resources with organizational vision, strategy, objectives
Understand and proactively builds the team/organization culture

Build an Enabling Workplace

Create a working environment where people are engaged and want to do their best; empower and enables team members to perform and have a positive workplace experience
Promote honestly, openness, trust and psychological safety and create opportunities to innovate and learn
Recruit and promotes individuals based upon objective measures and meritocracy; acknowledge and utilise the talent of others Encourage collective action and integration

Build Capability

Identify and develop talent in individuals, providing positive support to enable them to achieve their potential
Foster learning or development of others by giving feedback, guidance, and support; support career development of others
Have willingness and ability to delegate to help people learn, including from failure

Manage Performance and Ensure Accountability

Ensure regular conversations with people about work
Provide positive and constructive feedback
Discuss poor performance in a timely manner
Provide praise and recognition, as well as ensure accountability

Technical Competencies

UN policy knowledge - Ethics

Knowledge and understanding of the UN Staff Regulations and other Rules and Policies relating to ethics and integrity

Governance

Transparency and Anti-Corruption

Gender Mainstreaming

Knowledge of gender issues and the ability to apply to strategic and/or practical situations, including analysis and implementation of projects from a gender perspective

Required Skills and Experience

Education

Master’s Degree in Public Health, Medicine or other related fields. Bachelor’s Degree (or equivalent) in a relevant field with additional 2 years of progressively responsible relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of Master’s Degree.

Experience

A minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in the field of health programme/project supporting, social policy development and analysis or related field.
Experience of carrying out analytical work, preparing briefs, reporting and contributing to reports is required.
Experience in health reform and capacity development is required.
Experience in health development projects related to HIV and TB areas would be considered an advantage.
Previous experience of work with the UN/international organizations would be considered an advantage.
Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc) and advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages.

Languages

Fluency in English, Ukrainian and Russian is required.