Chief, Sexual and Reproductive Health Branch, Technical Division

New York City

Organization: UNFPA - United Nations Population Fund
Location: New York City
Grade: Senior Executive level - D-1, Director - Internationally recruited position
Occupational Groups:
- Public Health and Health Service
- Women's Empowerment and Gender Mainstreaming
- Sexual and reproductive health
Closing Date: Closed

UNFPA works around the world with governments, health experts and civil society to promote reproductive rights and expand access to integrated Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH)services. This includes among other, the training of health workers, improving the availability of essential medicines and reproductive health services, strengthening health systems, and promoting international maternal health standards. Moreover, addressing HIV is integral to UNFPA’s goals of achieving universal access to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights (SRHR), and realizing human rights and gender equality. It promotes integrated HIV and sexual and reproductive health services for young people, key populations, and women and girls, including people living with HIV. UNFPA also supports the empowerment of people to claim their human rights and access the services they need.

Major Activities/Expected Results

A. Strategic Direction

• Support the Technical Division (TD) Director in the strategic positioning of UNFPA’s role within the larger sexual and reproductive health and rights mandate, including of the MHTF Programme;

• Provide vision and leadership in the overall SRHR agenda, including HIV/AIDS, as well as the key components of the MHTF: midwifery, fistula, maternal death surveillance and response (MDSR), and Emergency Obstetric Care (EmOC), and ensure incorporation of these issues into organizational priorities;

• Provide strategic direction to ensure focus on comparative advantage of the MHTF program, alongside priorities as endorsed by the Steering Committee, and in alignment with UNFPA’s Strategic Plan and priorities;

• Provide strategic direction to UNFPAs fulfillment of responsibilities under the UNAIDS Division of Labor, alongside priorities of UNFPAs HIV/AIDs Strategy, and in alignment with UNFPA’s Strategic Plan and priorities;

• Oversee the design and implementation of targeted intervention strategies on SRH, including HIV/AIDS, differentiated by country need, in line with UNFPA’s Strategic Plan, and ensuring contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals pertinent to UNFPA’s mandate;

• Review the strategy of the MHTF program, the SRHR and the HIV/AIDS portfolios on a regular basis to ensure continued alignment with changing environment, emerging evidence, priorities of the organization and the program’s Steering Committee;

• Develop and regularly review criteria to allocate non-core funds to country programs, ensuring set criteria are aligned with strategies – in coordination with the Non-Core Funds Unit (NFCMU) within the Executive Office;

• Lead the setting and review of biannual global targets for the MHTF and HIV/AIDS programs, and the SRHR agenda;

B. Policy and Technical Leadership

• Conceptualize, plan, coordinate and lead the organizational development of evidence-based policy frameworks, technical guidance and tools in the area of SRHR, including HIV/AIDS, maternal health, adolescent sexual and reproductive health, as well as STIs - providing quality outputs which are timely, coherent and relevant to the needs of countries;

• Provide technical leadership in the identification of innovations that improve core functions of the MHTF, HIV/AIDS and SRHR programs, and take proven models to global scale;

• Identify needs for state-of-the-art technical knowledge on SRHR for use by Regional and Country Offices;

• Provide authoritative technical advice, guidance and support on SRHR related issues, including HIV/AIDS, to UNFPA senior management, HQ Divisions and, in particular, to UNFPA regional and country offices;

• Support the use of the substantive work of the Branch in UNFPA programming, UN programming, and national development processes;

• Represent UNFPA, and advocate for the ICPD plan of action in the area of SRHR, in policy dialogues and technical meetings with donors, programme countries, international agencies and institutions, and other development fora;

• Ensure the accuracy, consistency, coherence, and availability of technical content in the substantive area for global advocacy efforts; and

• Review and report on global effectiveness and results of use and application of the MHTF and HIV/AIDS programs.

C. Stakeholder Management

• Identify the need for, develop and maintain strategic partnerships and collaborative work within the UN system and other networks on SRHR, including on HIV/AIDS;

• Foster and strengthen strategic partnerships with key stakeholders, regional and international actors and development partners;

• Oversee and provide strategic direction of UNFPAs engagement at the MHTF Steering Committee, as managed by the MHTF Coordinator within the SRHB team.

• Oversee and provide strategic direction to UNFPAs representation, partnership and engagement within UNAIDS coordination bodies;

• Lead in developing specific donor fund-raising strategies and approaches for SRHR, HIV/AIDS and the MHTF programme, in coordination with the Division of Communication and Strategic Partnerships (DCS), to ensure the sustainability of these programs;

• Serve as the main focal point to support DCS in liaising with donors to ensure appropriate level of transparency and communication;

• Foster technical partnerships with the broader UN System, foundations, private sector and NGOs, to ensure a functioning network that facilitates access to financial resources;

D. Capacity Development

• Strengthen the substantive capacity of UNFPA technical and programme staff to apply policy and technical knowledge to ensure effective programming of the MHTF and UBRAF resources;

• Foster partnerships and collaboration at the global level, including within the UN System, foundations, private sector and NGOs, to ensure a functioning network that facilitates access to financial and technical resources, and broad-based knowledge management and knowledge sharing in SRHR, including HIV/AIDS; and

• Identify and internally disseminate lessons learned, and ensure their incorporation into the UNFPA knowledge sharing system and country office program implementation.

E. Quality Assurance

• Ensure the availability of new or updated global strategies, policies, indicators, tools and guidance for substantive quality assurance in SRHR, including HIV/AIDS, and for thematic evaluations;

• Direct, manage and assess a substantive quality assurance framework for the Branch’s work.

F. Resources Management

• Assume overall accountability for financial resource management achieving the expected results of the Branch, and specifically the results of the MHTF and HIV/AIDS programs;

• Regularly conduct projections of mobilized resources vs targets, in coordination with DCS, and identify remedial actions as needed to ensure the financial sustainability of the programs;

• Propose and recommend annual financial requirements for the work of the Branch and monitor the use of core and external resources to ensure sound financial management in compliance with UNFPA rules, regulations, and procedures;

• Direct, manage and supervise the staff of the Branch, including working closely with direct reports and Regional Offices to ensure countries are properly supported and that country programming is aligned with the MHTF and UNAIDS strategies as relevant, that policy guidance is provided, external partnerships are managed, innovation is supported, and knowledge & tools are developed and shared;

• Manage the Branch human resources including ensuring training and learning opportunities are provided for required capabilities and managing performance;

• Provide input to DHR on selection of Branch and Division staff candidates and provide technical input to the regions on the selection of technical staff working on MHTF, HIV/AIDS and SRHR programmes;

• Establish and maintain a harmonious working environment; promote communication; encourage innovations; strengthen team-building through active participation and interaction at all levels; and, foster staff engagement, development and empowerment; Promote an ethics-based approach in the Branch to management of human and financial resources;

• Develop, ensure approval, implement and monitor the Branch Office Management Plan/My Results;

• Ensure that Audit recommendations applying to the Branch are implemented and followed up on; and

• Carry out any other duties as may be required by the Division Director.

Education:

• Ph. D. in Public Health, Medicine, Sociology, Demography, International Relations, International Development, Economics, Public Administration, Management or other field directly related to the substantive area of work.

• Exceptional candidates with significant work experience and a Master’s degree or equivalent may also be considered.

Knowledge and Experience:

• A minimum of 15 years’ experience of increasingly responsible professional experience in public administration and international development, of which at least 8 years in the thematic area at the international level.

• Extensive operational and managerial experience working on maternal health and SRHR programmes, especially at the field/country level.

Job knowledge and technical expertise:

The incumbent is expected to:

• Be an expert and recognized authority in the area of work, including:

- Proven experience in HIV/AIDS, Family Planning and Emergency Obstetric Care essential

- Health systems and health reform experience, an asset

- Basic understanding of health economics/health financing highly desirable

- Knowledge and understanding on quality of care, specifically client rights issues, an asset

- Up-to-date on state-of-the art knowledge, essential

- Experience in health sector review, especially SWAps, an asset

- Understanding of Human Rights dimensions of RH/FP/HIV/AIDS and gender, an asset

• Have the necessary skill set to manage a program with broad geographic reach, and that requires working across other divisions within the larger organization

• Have the proven ability to lead and manage teams of high level experts to achieve demonstrable results;

• Have an extensive network within the academic and development community in this area of work;

• Have excellent communication skills, speaking and writing in English;

• Strong interest in development work, especially the United Nations Population Fund mandate areas, and dedication to the principles of the United Nations; and,

• Field experience is essential.

Languages:

- Fluency in English is required.

This vacancy is now closed.
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