Regional Health Specialist - East Africa Regional Division

• Place: Ethiopia, Uganda or Kenya (or in one of the other countries of the region: Somalia/Somaliland, Rwanda or South Sudan)
• Starting date: 1st July 2026
• Duration of contract: 24 months
• Closing date for applications: 26th April 2026

Humanity & Inclusion is an independent and impartial aid organisation working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. The organisation works alongside people with disabilities and vulnerable populations, taking action and bearing witness in order to respond to their essential needs, improve their living conditions and promote respect for their dignity and fundamental rights.

At Handicap International-Humanity & Inclusion, we truly believe in the importance of inclusion and diversity within our organisation. This is why we are engaged to a disability policy to encourage the inclusion and integration of people with disabilities. Please indicate if you require any special accommodation, even at the first interview. For more information about the organisation: www.hi.org

JOB CONTEXT:

This is a newly created position.

The countries of the East Africa Region are characterised by overlapping humanitarian and development challenges, including armed conflict, displacement, epidemics, food insecurity, and climate-related shocks. The region hosts approximately 3.8 million refugees, representing around 10% of the world’s refugee population; while ongoing crises in Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia continue to strain already fragile health systems.

These intersecting crises disproportionately affect people facing marginalisation, including persons with disabilities, who experience higher health needs and significant barriers to accessing services. Evidence from the World Health Organization Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities (2022) highlights persistent inequities in access, quality of care, and health outcomes, particularly in fragile and humanitarian settings.

In this context, Humanity & Inclusion (HI) works across the humanitarian-development nexus to strengthen inclusive, equitable and resilient health systems, improving sustainable access and health outcomes for populations facing intersecting forms of discrimination.

HI’s integrated health programming brings together multiple, interrelated domains:

• Equitable Health Systems and Services (EHSS): Strengthening inclusive, quality and resilient health systems aligned with Universal Health Coverage and primary health care, including in humanitarian emergencies. This includes advancing disability-inclusive health systems in line with the WHO Guide for Action on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities, with a focus on governance, service delivery, workforce capacity, financing, access to essential products, and health information systems.
• Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR): Sexual and reproductive health and rights in Africa face significant challenges, including high adolescent pregnancy rates, limited access to modern contraception, and rising levels of gender-based violence. While regional frameworks such as the East African Community SRH Bill (2021) aim to address these issues, substantial gaps persist between policy and implementation due to sociocultural barriers, weak health systems, inadequate financing, and the compounding impacts of climate change, which further exacerbate existing inequalities.
• Early Childhood Development (ECD): Many children are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential due to poverty, malnutrition, disability and limited access to services. The World Health Organization, UNICEF and World Bank Nurturing Care Framework underscores the importance of integrated interventions across health, nutrition, responsive caregiving and early learning.
• Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS): Conflict, displacement and crisis exposure are driving significant mental health needs across the region, with populations affected by emergencies at increased risk of mental health conditions. HI supports MHPSS across diverse contexts—including emergency responses in countries such as Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Uganda, and more structured approaches in Rwanda—through social, rights-based and community-based models that strengthen local capacities and integrate MHPSS within broader health and community systems.
• Climate and Health (Planetary Health): Climate change is intensifying health risks across the regions through rising heat stress, flooding, drought, and extreme rainfall, which increase illness and mortality and disrupt already fragile health systems. These changes are expanding the transmission of vector- and water-borne diseases—including malaria, dengue, chikungunya, and Rift Valley fever, including in previously unaffected areas—and contributing to malnutrition and conflict over scarce resources, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable populations. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and World Health Organization identify Sub-Saharan Africa as highly vulnerable to climate-sensitive health impacts. In response, HI is strengthening evidence and programming on climate and health, including research on the impacts of climate change on the health of women with disabilities, and translating these insights into inclusive, climate-resilient health system approaches.

HI promotes integrated, person-centred approaches that strengthen primary health care systems, ensure continuity of care, and responds to both immediate humanitarian needs and public health emergencies, as well as longer-term system strengthening priorities.

HI’s approach is grounded in human rights, community participation, and a twin-track strategy, combining the mainstreaming of disability inclusion across health systems with targeted actions to address specific barriers faced by persons with disabilities, including through engagement with organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs).

With approximately 350–400 staff and an annual budget of around €20 million, HI operates in a dynamic regional context. Ongoing regionalisation efforts aim to strengthen integration, harmonisation, and proximity to affected populations, enhancing the effectiveness and sustainability of interventions.

The East, Central and Southern Africa Regional Division currently comprises countries in East Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia/Somaliland, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan). Madagascar, Mozambique and the DRC will join the regional division by the end of 2026 or early 2027;

YOUR MISSION:

Under the hierarchical supervision of the Technical Head of Programmes (THOP) and in close collaboration with Global Technical Specialists, the Regional Health Specialist provides strategic and technical leadership for HI’s health programming across the East, Central and Southern Africa division.

The role leads the development and implementation of regional health strategy, supports country programmes, and strengthens HI’s positioning as a key actor in inclusive, equitable and resilient health systems across the humanitarian-development nexus. The Regional Health Specialist ensures the design, quality, and scaling of high-impact, inclusive and integrated health programmes across the different countries of the division.

The role contributes to advancing disability-inclusive health equity by strengthening technical quality, supporting programme development, delivering technical assistance, building strategic partnerships, and promoting learning and innovation, in line with HI global Health STRATECHs and the regional operational strategy (StratOp, under development).

The position works closely with regional and country teams, other technical specialists, and external stakeholders including Ministries of Health, UN agencies, NGOs, research institutions, and regional bodies.

The Regional Health Specialist will have 3 main responsabilities:

Responsibility 1: TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP, STRATEGY & QUALITY

1.1.       Lead sector strategy in the region and contributes to global strategic thinking

• Provides technical input to the regional operational strategy (StratOp) in line with the global technical strategy (StraTech) and sub-sector guidance
• Leads the development and monitoring of the regional sector strategy for the Health sector and ensures its implementation in the various countries where it is applied
• Contributes to synergies and promotes integrated programming approaches with other sectors, in coordination with the relevant Regional and Global Specialists and based on strategic and operational priorities and standard projects
• Supports HI's technical assistance (TA) strategy, strengthening the capacities of development actors and public and private service providers to deliver more effective, inclusive and quality services.

1.2.       Provides technical support to projects in accordance with global technical standards and frameworks in Health

• Develop and contextualize technical guidance and specific tools related to Health, Equitable Health Systems, SRHR, ECD, MHPSS and climate and health (including contextual analysis, needs assessment, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, etc.), mobilizing the relevant technical resources linked to the different health sub-sectors as needed.
• Provides advice and technical support to a portfolio of projects in development, emergency and protracted crisis contexts with support of sub-sector support where needed
• Supports programs in designing strategies aligned with a Nexus approach and prepares for emergency responses
• Integrates and promotes HI's cross-cutting approaches: disability-gender-age (DGA) marker, conflict sensitivity and protection integration in its interventions
• Provide technical guidance to ensure disability-inclusive and equitable approaches are integrated into outbreak preparedness and response (e.g. surveillance, risk communication, service continuity and community engagement)

1.3.       Ensures technical quality control and monitoring.

• Carries out technical monitoring missions in the region to support teams and partners through training assessments, internal audits, team coaching, etc.
• Applies and adapts quality control tools and frameworks (project reviews, checklists, dashboards), alerts the THOP and reports any problems or needs for adaptation of the technical reference framework in terms of quality.
• Provides technical support to operational teams during key phases of the project cycle (design, implementation, evaluation), mobilizing the relevant technical resources linked to the different health sub-sectors as needed.
• Applies and adapts quality control tools and frameworks (project reviews, checklists, dashboards) as defined by HQ, alerts the THOP & reports any issues or needs for adapting the technical quality reference framework
• Recommends program adjustments in response to possible contextual changes (e.g. humanitarian crises).
• Support the design and implementation of inclusive health emergency responses, including preparedness, response and recovery across humanitarian crises, public health events and disease outbreaks

Responsibility 2: PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENT, PARTNERSHIPS & EXTERNAL INFLUENCE

2.1.       Provides strategic technical monitoring

• Monitors regional trends, dynamics and multi-stakeholder initiatives in order to anticipate opportunities for collaboration and tracks trends in the Health sector in relation to national and regional contextual developments.
• Analyses internal strengths and weaknesses, considering the institutional ecosystem, and ensures that proposals are aligned with strategic frameworks and donor requirements
• Contributes to the strategic monitoring of relevant calls for proposals at regional level

2.2.       Develops strategic partnerships

• Identifies opportunities for partnerships and/or consortia with development and humanitarian actors, research institutes and multilateral organizations within the overall framework of the Stratech
• Supports teams in developing strategic partnerships with local national, regional and international stakeholders, based on needs and technical complementarities, and in line with HI's strengthened commitment to aid localization.

2.3.       Supports the development and drafting of new project proposals

• Provides technical support to country teams in drafting concept notes and proposals, ensuring the technical quality of intervention logics, results frameworks and budgets
• Leads or contributes to the drafting of concept notes and proposals including multi-county and multisectoral proposals.
• Supports and/or develops technical assistance (TA) offers to support and strengthen the capacities of humanitarian and development actors

2.4.       Represents HI in external coordination and advocacy forums Actively participates in relevant regional sectoral groups (clusters, alliances, inter-institutional groups)

• Strengthen HI’s positioning within national and regional health systems, including engagement with Ministries of Health and regional bodies (e.g. AU, Africa CDC)
• Represent HI in regional and national coordination platforms (e.g. clusters, technical working groups) and actively participates in the Regional health bodies to influence policy
• In collaboration with the Institutional Funding Division (IFD), identifies potential donors (private, foundations and institutional), networks, partners, NGOs and advocacy groups in line with HI's technical and strategic vision, and ensures the development of technical and strategic links

2.5.       Contributes to technical visibility and external communication

• Supports the organization’s technical visibility through presentations, publications and participation in regional and national events or workshops, with the aim of strengthening HI's recognition and credibility within the Health sector
• Produces content (capacity statements, project sheets, thematic fact sheets) to promote HI's approaches and positioning within the Health sector to an external audience

Responsibility 3: KNOWLEDGE, LEARNING & CAPACITY STRENGTHENING

3.1.       Coordinates a knowledge management system and promotes research and innovation initiatives

• Designs participatory tools and processes to document field experiences (case studies, lessons learned, innovations) and identifies lessons learned, including through recommendations from evaluations
• Leads cross-country learning and actively engages in and creates global and regional communities of practice (CoP)
• Contributes to the drafting of analytical reports, technical notes and capitalization documents, and ensures their internal and external dissemination
• Contribute to research, innovation and evidence generation in priority health areas: Facilitates reflection and the development of innovative thematic outcomes, ensuring that issues related to gender, disability, climate change adaptation and digital transformation are meaningfully integrated into programming

3.2.       Supports and ensures capacity building for technical and non-technical staff (managers, project officers, etc.) in accordance with the framework defined at the global level

• Participates in the recruitment ("R" for technical test and technical interview) and validation of technical positions within projects and countries
• Ensures the integration of new employees so that they become familiar with sector priorities and objectives
• Conducts training needs assessments in collaboration with country and regional teams
• Strengthen the technical capacities of staff and partners through training, coaching and technical support.
• Contributes to staff capacity development through the implementation and monitoring of a capacity building plan, including training and coaching mechanisms, to promote continuous learning in line with HI's professional competency frameworks

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE POSITION:
The security situation in the region varies from country to country, with some areas affected by tensions or travel restrictions, particularly in Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. Appropriate risk management mechanisms are in place to ensure the safety of teams.

YOUR PROFILE:

Experience

• Master's degree in public health, global health, health system management and policy, or other health-related Masters’ degrees
• A specialization in one or more of the following sub-sectors: Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), early childhood development (ECD), health equity.
• At least 3 years of relevant field experience in the health-related sector preferably in the East, Central or Southern Africa
• Experience working in health across the nexus – in development and humanitarian responses and/or health emergencies

Skills

• Strong understanding of: Social Determinants of Health; Health Equity, Intersectionality and Human Rights; Health Systems Strengthening; Health Prevention, Promotion, and Social Behaviour Change Communication;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and support for technical teams in the field;
• Strong capacity building skills
• Strong written and oral communication skills, suitable for high-level external representation;
• Experience in strategy and project management in the sector;
• Ability to develop public relations/communication and represent the organisation to various stakeholders (donors, networks, ministries, local authorities, technical services, etc.).

Languages

• English: Excellent command is mandatory
• French: proficiency is highly desirable
• Knowledge of local languages is an asset

CONDITIONS:

At HI, the conditions offered are up to your commitment and adapted to the context of your mission. https://hi.org/en/join-the-team

• 24 months International contract starting from 1st July 2026;
• The international contract provides social cover adapted to your situation:
• Unemployment insurance benefits for EU nationals;
• Pension scheme;
• Medical coverage with 50% of employee contribution;
• Repatriation insurance paid by HI;
• Salary package: national/regional package if you are from one of the countries of the region upon experience;
• Housing: Individual taken in charge by HI;
• If you are resident in the country: local package.