National Health Cluster Co-Coordinator

INTERSOS is an independent humanitarian organization that assists the victims of natural disasters, armed conflicts and exclusion. Its activities are based on the principles of solidarity, justice, human dignity, equality of rights and opportunities, respect for diversity and coexistence, paying special attention to the most vulnerable people.

Terms of reference

Job Title: National Health Cluster Co-Coordinator

Code: SR-28-9324

Duty station: Kabul, with frequent visits within the Country

Starting date: 01/06/2024

Contract duration: 12 months

Reporting to: Country Director

Supervision of: n/a

Functional supervision: n/a

Type of Duty Station: Non-family duty station

General context of the project

In line with the IASC Global clusters guiding principles and in line with the Global Health Cluster recognition of the importance and usefulness to create opportunities for co-coordination collaborations within national and sub-national health clusters, INTERSOS is offering, with support from ECHO, the opportunity to set up a co-coordination office for the National Health Cluster in Afghanistan.

The overall purpose of co-coordination is to enhance the timeliness and impact of appropriate humanitarian health assistance for crisis-impacted communities and to strengthen the collective health outcomes of the response.

The Health Cluster Co-Coordinator will be expected to work with the Health Cluster Coordinator to support the implementation of, monitor and evaluate performance against the six core cluster functions and accountability to affected populations. The Health Cluster Co-Coordinator will ensure that partners participate in and assume their minimum commitments to the Health Cluster (in line with the IASC Minimum Commitments for participation in clusters) by placing Affected Populations at the centre of decision-making and action.

The Health Cluster, led by the WHO, has been active in AFG since 2007 supporting health sector coordination and service delivery targeting 10.3 million of the 14.5 million people in need of health assistance in 2021. The Health Cluster has 54 partners delivering health assistance in 34 provinces, coordinated through 7 sub-national hubs.

The AFG Health Cluster collectively prepares for and responds to humanitarian and public health emergencies to improve the health outcomes of populations affected by the ongoing crisis through timely, predictable, appropriate, and effective coordinated health action. Working with national and international counterparts, the Health Cluster is responsible for facilitating and coordinating the engagement of partners to deliver quality programmes and services, responding to the affected populations based on identified needs.

General purpose of the position

The engagement of a national co-coordinator through INTERSOS is aimed at improving ownership of the operational response by partners and local authorities and have a meaningful involvement in co-leading an effective humanitarian response which is adapted to the local context and implemented in strong collaboration with local communities and other stakeholders.

As already mentioned, as for the co-coordination office purpose, the overall purpose of co-coordinator is to enhance the timeliness and impact of appropriate humanitarian health assistance for crisis-impacted communities and to strengthen the collective health outcomes of the response, in line with the six core cluster functions:

1. To support service delivery.
2. To inform Health Cluster/HCT's strategic decision making.
3. To develop sectoral strategies.
4. To monitor and evaluate performance.
5. To build national capacity in preparedness/ contingency planning.
6. To support advocacy.

Main responsibilities and tasks

The Health Cluster Co-Coordinator will work in partnership with his/her counterpart from the CLA (WHO) as the Health Co-lead to provide leadership and facilitate the processes that will ensure a well-coordinated, strategic, adequate, coherent, and effective response in AFG. The co-coordinator will also be responsible for ensuring that the NGO membership is contributing to and sharing cluster responsibilities and will play a lead role in developing active engagement and technical capacity of members of the Health Cluster.

The following core functions, beside other priorities set-up during the period of co-coordination, will be performed:

1. Strengthen pre-existing sectoral coordination by maintaining appropriate links and dialogue with national and local authorities, local civil society, and other relevant actors, respecting their respective mandates and programme priorities. Taking reasonable measures to proactively engage with and support NGOs involved in health programs to participate in cluster coordination and at each phase of the Humanitarian Programme Cycle. Ensuring that the Health Cluster position is informed by the NGO perspective.
2. Lead and/or co-lead, coordinate and conduct health needs assessments with the health partners and other sectors (joint/multisectoral), to identify humanitarian health needs of the target populations.
3. Contribute effectively to inter-cluster coordination forums and cooperate with other clusters, Government counterparts, and relevant authorities (as appropriate) in planning, coordination, and operational activities, ensuring that the NGO community is contributing to and sharing responsibilities.
4. Ensure protection and early recovery are mainstreamed and awareness of the different needs and capacities of women, girls, boys and men of all ages, people with disabilities, and other diversity characteristics such as ethnicity and religion are informing what we do, how we do it and with whom to promote meaningful access, safety, and dignity in all phases of the health sector response.
5. Participate actively in gap analysis, priority setting reinforcing the complementarity of partner actions by avoiding duplication and gaps, while ensuring that the health sector/cluster responds in a harmonized and coherent manner to the health needs of all Afghans, across the country, and independently from their location of residence or socio-cultural background.
6. Ensuring adequate and coordinated data collection (Assist in leading the harmonization of health information management tools amongst the cluster members), reporting and effective information sharing, reflecting the agreed minimum standards are in place and that all partners contribute on a regular basis to enable appropriate monitoring and evaluation and review the impact of the cluster activities and progress against the strategic Health Cluster objectives.
7. Participate in reviews of coordination mechanisms and their adaptation over time to reflect the evolving crisis and the capacities of local actors.
8. Convene and facilitate regular Health Cluster meetings, ensuring that discussions are participatory and results oriented. Ensure that the NGO members of the cluster are kept fully informed of the meetings and any decisions that may take place outside of regular Health Cluster meetings.
9. Promote the leadership roles of NGOs within the cluster and ensure that all Health Cluster working groups have active national and international NGO participation to help ensure that NGOs support and influence the cluster’s work.
10. Promote/support training and capacity building of health sector personnel, of partners and national authorities.
11. Represent the interests of the Health Cluster in discussions with stakeholders on priorities, resource mobilization and advocacy. Taking additional steps to ensure that the resource mobilization and advocacy efforts fairly represents and benefits NGOs as well as the UN agencies in support of the agreed Health Cluster strategy.
12. Ensure adequate contingency planning, preparedness, and surge coordination, for new emergencies and seasonal adaptation of responses that reflect the actual and potential to scale-up capacities of all partners (local and international).
13. The NGO Co-Coordinator should act as a focal point for receiving NGO concerns to raise these with the Health Cluster Coordinator and the Cluster Lead Agency to strengthen accountability and transparency of the cluster’s decisions and work.
14. Act as Health Cluster Coordinator Officer in Charge whenever needed.
15. Assist in providing support and strategic direction to AFG Health Cluster/sector in the development of the health sector components of HNO (Humanitarian Needs Overview), PMR (Periodic Monitoring Report), FTS (Financial Tracking Service), HRP (Humanitarian Response Plan), and other interagency planning and funding documents that are part of the IASC Humanitarian Program Cycle.
16. Promote adherence to standards and best practices by all Health Cluster/sector working group partners in the cluster considering the need for local adaption. Promote use of the Global Health Cluster Guide to ensure the application of common approaches, tools and standards.
17. Ensure appropriate links among humanitarian actions and longer-term health sector plans, incorporating specific risk reduction measures.
18. Capacity Building: Identify urgent training needs in relation to technical standards and protocols for the delivery of key health services to ensure their adoption and uniform application by all Health Sector/Cluster partners in the cluster and coordinate the dissemination of key technical materials and the organization of workshops or in-service training. Arrange/conduct direct training in health for key national and local stakeholders as feasible, in line with agreed upon sectoral priorities in the work plan; in the case that direct access is not possible, arrange for alternative, hybrid or mixed learning approaches to capacity building.

Required profile and experience

Education

• Advanced university degree (Master's level or above) in Public Health, Medicine or International Health or related fields.
• Health Cluster Coordinator training.

Professional Experience

• Minimum of 4 years proven experience working on health issues in humanitarian environments, including provision of technical advice to field teams.
• Proven collaboration record of participating in and contributing to health cluster/sector meetings.
• Demonstrable experience in advocacy and high-level negotiation skills.
• Strong experience with information management as related to the health sector, including maintaining standards of impartiality and confidentiality with data of a sensitive nature.

Professional Requirements

• Team player/leader.
• Strong report writing skills.
• Strong planning and organizational skills.
• Excellent leadership, coordination, capacity building and analytical skills
• Excellent representation skills including the development of strong interpersonal relationships to facilitate communication within the cluster.
• Excellent understanding of health issues in emergency situations and detailed knowledge of humanitarian principles, guidelines and laws and the cluster system.

Languages

• Fluency in English with excellent verbal and written communication skills

Personal Requirements

• Ability to prioritize, organize, manage, and adapt management style according to needs.
• Respectful and non-discriminatory attitude.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills.
• Strong facilitation skills and experience of developing facilitation skills in others.
• Diplomatic with stakeholders.
• Able to work successfully under pressure and ability to make timely decisions.
• Adaptable to restricted living conditions.
• Able to create, promote and maintain a highly positive and collaborative work relation and environment.