SSA-Secretariat and Governance Support Officer

Purpose of SSA

To provide high-level secretariat and coordination support to the Health Services Commission technical working group and Taskforce, ensuring the effective planning, organization, and follow-up of all meetings, correspondence, consultations, and reports.

Background

The Government of Papua New Guinea, through the National Department of Health (NDoH), is exploring the feasibility of establishing a Health Services Commission (HSC) to address long-standing workforce management, governance, and performance challenges within the health sector. This reform aims to strengthen accountability, streamline recruitment and deployment processes, and create a more efficient, transparent, and equitable system for managing the national health workforce.

To support the HSC internal technical working group and Taskforce and broader governance activities within NDoH, a Secretariat and Governance Support Officer is required for a period of 12 months to provide dedicated coordination, documentation, and communication support. The position will also provide limited but strategic support to the Legal and Governance Branch on internal governance processes and Provincial Health Authority (PHA) governance processes.

Deliverables

Health Services Commission Taskforce Secretariat

• Provide full secretariat suppo1i to the Health Services Commission Technical Working group and Taskforce, including preparation of agendas, briefing notes, and meeting documentation.
• Coordinate and schedule all technical working group and Taskforce meetings, workshops, and consultations, ensuring effective communication with members, partners, and stakeholders.
• Record and prepare accurate minutes and action registers, circulate them promptly, and follow up on agreed actions.
• Draft and format letters, reports and submissions, including correspondence with government agencies, development partners, and internal divisions.
• Maintain a central record of all Taskforce documentation, including meeting minutes, reports, and reference materials.
• Support the Taskforce Lead in progress reporting, compilation of updates for senior management, NEC submissions, and other policy documents.
• Assist with logistical arrangements for technical working group and Taskforce meetings and partner consultations (venues, invitations, travel, materials).

Governance and Institutional Support

• Provide coordination and administrative support to the Legal and Governance Branch in relation to internal governance activities as well as support to PHA governance oversight.
• Support the preparation of materials and minutes for Departmental governance meetings (e.g., Management Committee, Audit and Risk Committee).
• Assist in the coordination of PHA Board appointments and inductions, maintaining an updated register of board members and terms.
• Track follow-up actions on key governance decisions and maintain a centralized monitoring log.

Communication and Reporting

• Prepare communication briefs, talking points, and summary notes for the Taskforce Lead and senior executives.
• Contribute to quarterly and annual progress repo1is summarizing Taskforce achievements, challenges, and next steps.

• Support dissemination of information to internal divisions and external stakeholders to ensure consistent messaging on reform activities.

Qualifications, Experience, Skills and Languages

• Bachelor’s degree in public administration, Management, Law, Political Science, or related field.
• Minimum 5 years' experience in secretariat, governance, or policy coordination roles.
• Proven experience in minute-taking, drafting formal correspondence, and managing multi-stakeholder coordination.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize competing tasks.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Familiarity with Government systems, NEC processes, or health sector structures is an advantage.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams).

Location

National Department of Health, Port Moresby

Additional Information:

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar SSAs at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test/interview 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.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• SSAs 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 SSA. The SSA shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions and any other contributions which are applicable to the SSA in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the SSA shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.
• Please note that WHO’s contracts are conditional on members of the workforce confirming that they are vaccinated as required by WHO before undertaking a WHO assignment, except where a medical condition does not allow such vaccination, as certified by the WHO Staff Health and Wellbeing Services (SHW). The successful candidate will be asked to provide relevant evidence related to this condition. A copy of the updated vaccination card must be shared with WHO medical service in the medical clearance process. Please note that certain countries require proof of specific vaccinations for entry or exit. For example, official proof /certification of yellow fever vaccination is required to enter many countries. Country-specific vaccine recommendations can be found on the WHO international travel and Staff Health and Wellbeing website. For vaccination-related queries please directly contact SHW directly at shws@who.int.

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