Innovation Specialist - P3 - Monrovia, Liberia

UNICEF Liberia is looking for an Innovation Specialist – P3 with strong professional experience. The Incumbent will work closely with the Ministry of Health, USAID, and other partners to strengthen data collection, management, and analysis for mHERO (mobile Health worker Electronic Response and Outreach), a mobile SMS-based tool that facilitates communication and data collection within the Ministry of Health. The duration of this assignment is 364 days on Temporary appointment.

UNICEF works in 190 countries and territories to protect the rights of every child. UNICEF has spent 70 years working to improve the lives of children and their families. Defending children's rights throughout their lives requires a global presence, aiming to produce results and understand their effects. UNICEF believes all children have a right to survive, thrive and fulfil their potential – to the benefit of a better world.

 

For every child, For every child, a fair chance…

Liberia is located in West Africa and is neighboured by Sierra Leone, Guinea and Cote d'Ivoire. The current population is estimated at 4.4 million, of which 48% are children.

After 14 years of internal conflict, Liberia emerged as a failed state in 2003. 

The prevailing peace and stability in Liberia can be attributed to the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in Accra, Ghana in September 2003. The presence of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) peacekeeping force and police force has also contributed to the overall stable political situation, although it remains fragile.

UNICEF is a key partner to the Government of Liberia. With its mandate, knowledge, country presence and operational capacities, UNICEF supports the Government and works with other UN agencies and partners to bring about change and help every child reach their full potential.

The five main program areas supported by UNICEF in Liberia are: Education; Health; Nutrition; Child Protection; and Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).

 If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.

 How can you make a difference?

Under the supervision of the M&E Specialist at UNICEF, the Innovation Specialist will work closely with the Ministry of Health, USAID, and other partners to strengthen data collection, management, and analysis for mHERO (mobile Health worker Electronic Response and Outreach), a mobile SMS-based tool that facilitates communication and data collection within the Ministry of Health.

Key Expected Deliverables: The main aim of this post is to support the Ministry of Health (MoH) to enhance and expand the use of mHERO by MoH departments and partners. The Innovation Specialist is expected to spend at least 70 percent of his/her time at MoH to build their capacity and enhance their awareness on the use of mHERO.

Major expected deliverables include, but are not limited to:

• Advocacy: Under the leadership of the UNICEF Deputy Representative and M&E Specialist, advocate with senior managers on the relevance and impact of the platform.
• ICT Expertise: Review and modify system design to achieve desired results, including identifying gaps and bottlenecks. Provide first line response to electronic and IT technical queries and request for support from system users, and monitoring follow-up for issues referred to other MoH, GSM companies and other partners. Participate in relevant discussions regarding interconnection and interoperability of various health systems and suggest ways to enhance the connection of mHERO with other existing MoH information management systems.
• Capacity Building: On-job training of mHERO management team on designing and managing flows, conduct analysis
• Management: Develop and enhance resources for mHERO system in consultation with MoH staff and other partners, including creating standard operating procedures and guides for a variety of business processes. Explore new and improve methods of data collection, processing analysis and dissemination through mHERO and iHRIS (integrated Human Resource Information System).
• Reporting and Documentation: Participate in creation of worksheets, charts, table formats and templates, and required periodic reports to demonstrate the usage and key findings from mHERO and iHRIS.  Document the best practices of mHERO implementation and provide monthly reports on work progress to UNICEF and partners. Support mHERO Management Team to conduct periodic reviews of the iHRIS/mHERO database, and support MoH to update users as needed.

 

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Information Technology, Biostatistics, Demography, or other relevant disciplines.

*A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.

• A minimum of 5 years of professional work experience at the national/international levels in computer science, project management and public health with proven ability to conceptualize, plan and execute ideas as well as to transfer knowledge and skills.

• Previous experience working in mobile health applications will be an added advantage.
• Previous experience working in developing countries, especially in Africa and with development actors: donors, UN agencies, civil society, and government ministries, in addition to having a thorough understanding of open-source technology and experience with mobile-phone based systems for information.

• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

Our core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

Duration of the appointment:  364 days

 

How to apply:   Interested candidates will need to submit their application via UNICEF’s new Talent Management System via the following link: https://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=505816

*Only online applications received via UNICEF Careers Website by closing date 27^th July 2017 will be accepted.  Please note that due to high volume of applications, only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization.  Qualified FEMALES are highly encouraged to apply.