Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership committed to saving children's lives and protecting people's health by increasing equitable use of vaccines in lower-income countries. Gavi brings together developing country and donor governments, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and other private sector partners. Gavi uses innovative finance mechanisms, including co-financing by recipient countries, to secure sustainable funding and adequate supply of quality vaccines.
BACKGROUND
Since 2000, Gavi has contributed to the immunisation of nearly 822 million children and the prevention of more than 14 million future deaths. At the Global Vaccine Summit in June 2020, world leaders pledged more than $8.8bn to ensure Gavi can continue to amplify this work and immunise another 300 million children by 2025.
A year later, the crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic is still raging. In countries with already fragile health systems, this is likely to have a catastrophic impact. Through the ground-breaking COVAX Facility and the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), Gavi is working with the international community to take urgent action in accelerating access of COVID-19 vaccines and ensure availability to populations no matter where they live. This is the moment where more resources from diverse and sustainable sources are required, and where available financing must be leveraged strategically and efficiently to unlock the greatest level of impact possible. The Gavi COVAX AMC has already secured significant financing from sovereign and private sector donors, and as the fundraising campaign for the Gavi COVAX AMC continues, the Gavi secretariat seeks to ensure sustainability in its ambitious immunisation programmes and safeguard global health security through helping put together the world’s response to the global COVID-19 crisis.
Gavi’s business model combines excellence from both the private and public sectors and a commitment to running a lean organisation that makes a measurable impact upon global health, including the long-term strengthening of health systems. Gavi builds on public sector expertise in health and development, with the acumen of private sector individuals and organisations. The Alliance brings together developed country donors, implementing governments, civil society organisations, research and technical institutes, and vaccine producers with the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, and the World Bank, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), private philanthropists and international financiers, to find ways to fund and support immunisation in the world’s poorest countries and advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Making the reach of immunisation near universal and thus foundational to the new SDG vision of Universal Health Coverage is a key focus moving forward.
Working as an alliance, Gavi achieves objectives in support of its mission that no single agency or group alone could realise. These include cooperating to accelerate access to underused and new vaccines; innovative performance-based financing and programming approaches to international development aid; strengthening national health and immunisation systems; and introducing innovative immunisation technology. By pooling demand for vaccines from the world’s poorest countries, securing long-term funding and shaping vaccine markets, Gavi is accelerating access to life-saving vaccines in the countries that need them the most.
KEY FUNCTIONS AND DELIVERABLES
Main Duties/ResponsibilitiesBACKGROUND
Since 2000, Gavi has contributed to the immunisation of nearly 822 million children and the prevention of more than 14 million future deaths. At the Global Vaccine Summit in June 2020, world leaders pledged more than $8.8bn to ensure Gavi can continue to amplify this work and immunise another 300 million children by 2025.
A year later, the crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic is still raging. In countries with already fragile health systems, this is likely to have a catastrophic impact. Through the ground-breaking COVAX Facility and the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), Gavi is working with the international community to take urgent action in accelerating access of COVID-19 vaccines and ensure availability to populations no matter where they live. This is the moment where more resources from diverse and sustainable sources are required, and where available financing must be leveraged strategically and efficiently to unlock the greatest level of impact possible. The Gavi COVAX AMC has already secured significant financing from sovereign and private sector donors, and as the fundraising campaign for the Gavi COVAX AMC continues, the Gavi secretariat seeks to ensure sustainability in its ambitious immunisation programmes and safeguard global health security through helping put together the world’s response to the global COVID-19 crisis.
Gavi’s business model combines excellence from both the private and public sectors and a commitment to running a lean organisation that makes a measurable impact upon global health, including the long-term strengthening of health systems. Gavi builds on public sector expertise in health and development, with the acumen of private sector individuals and organisations. The Alliance brings together developed country donors, implementing governments, civil society organisations, research and technical institutes, and vaccine producers with the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, and the World Bank, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), private philanthropists and international financiers, to find ways to fund and support immunisation in the world’s poorest countries and advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Making the reach of immunisation near universal and thus foundational to the new SDG vision of Universal Health Coverage is a key focus moving forward.
Working as an alliance, Gavi achieves objectives in support of its mission that no single agency or group alone could realise. These include cooperating to accelerate access to underused and new vaccines; innovative performance-based financing and programming approaches to international development aid; strengthening national health and immunisation systems; and introducing innovative immunisation technology. By pooling demand for vaccines from the world’s poorest countries, securing long-term funding and shaping vaccine markets, Gavi is accelerating access to life-saving vaccines in the countries that need them the most.
KEY FUNCTIONS AND DELIVERABLES
- Shape a comprehensive US donor strategy; Provide leadership, expert advice, and co-ordination in envisioning, developing, and implementing donor relations and campaign strategies to support the mobilisation of funding for Gavi 5.0 and COVAX AMC
- Position Gavi including COVAX with key stakeholders in the US; Prepare tailored campaigns and stakeholders engagement plans. Anticipate the evolving influencing landscape. Work with other teams, help identify structures and voices (e.g. interparliamentary groups, civil society organisations, private sector CEOs, key forums, and meetings e.g. G7/G20) best placed to support funding of future Gavi needs;
- Work to raise trust and visibility and advance US-Gavi relations in partnership with other Gavi divisions, including the Executive Office, Media & Communications, Public Policy and Advocacy as well as Country Programs and Vaccines & sustainability, in a matrix fashion where there is natural overlap between audiences.
- Ensure governments, institutions, civil society, and private entities alike are aligned around the magnitude of the challenge of understanding the limitations of existing approaches to international assistance.
- Make significant efforts to improve aid effectiveness and to engage private sector partners with the understanding that innovative financing solutions are critical towards enhancing the level of public-private sector collaboration presently needed.
- Responsible for increasing financial commitment by the US Government as well as relevant private sector entities to Gavi. Work to broaden the base of civil society support to Gavi and ensure bi-partisan support within Congress, ultimately increasing the profile of the organization and its immunization strategy amongst key US stakeholders. Continue to elevate the understanding of Gavi’s innovative business model and leading approach to development with key audiences through targeted content and integrated campaign approaches;
- Overall responsibility for the development and maintenance of the US country strategy, as well as associated risk assessment;
- Provide leadership, overall management and development of the US Strategy team and;
- Support the MD, RMPSPIF by providing senior-level strategic business development and leadership to foster global fundraising and innovation efforts.
Resource Mobilization Function:
Advocacy Function:
Operational Functions:
Reputational risk:
Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.
Work Experience- Develop and implement strategies to secure increased financial support from the United States, if possible, over multi-year periods across both sovereign and private sector, including innovative finance organizations;
- Strategy development to be based on analyses of the relevant policies of the US Government, identification of existing and possible centers of political support and champions for Gavi, engagement of advocacy partners, think tanks and other civil society organizations, Congress, the private sector, and effective outreach to and engagement of the media.
Advocacy Function:
- Ensure the development and implementation of a multi-year strategic advocacy plan for Gavi in the U.S. working in collaboration with the Advocacy and Public Policy and as part of the broader Resource Mobilization strategy, and with an emphasis on securing increased US support for Gavi including COVAX fundraising moments, and other policy initiatives;
- Direct the expansion of relationships with U.S.-based advocacy partners to rally collective support, including through their international affiliates, for Gavi/COVAX, immunization and other growing priorities (health security, zero dose children, etc.). Engage the leadership of such advocacy partners on behalf of Gavi;
- Participate in leadership dialogues with the development community and think tanks in the United States on best practices in both governance and development and Gavi’ s role in these areas;
- Provide leadership regarding Gavi’s engagement with faith-based organizations;
- Support and contribute to the advocacy campaigns of Gavi’s partners in the US.
Operational Functions:
- Oversee and ensure development and implementation of the US representation work plan and budget;
- Support effective and efficient planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting on team’s activities;
- Manage, develop, and implement common organizational policies;
- Assure adherence to and communication of Gavi standards and processes;
- Monitor overall progress and results towards strategic objectives.
- Support the preparation of reports and papers for presentation to the Board;
- Lead specific initiatives from time to time as determined with Gavi Leadership
- Coordinate and facilitate specific evaluations;
- Contribute to policy development;
- Evaluate adequacy of programs and policies to meet team objectives.
Reputational risk:
- Identify reputational risk issues and engineer rapid responses—defending Gavi’s brand, and injecting ally voices into important debates.
Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.
- Minimum of 15 years significant and progressively responsible professional work experience with having developed political strategy and cultivated and maintained strategic partnerships is necessary.
- Strong political acumen and the ability to work independently to build a network of champions and support is critical;
- Excellent communication skills, both written and oral are essential, with demonstrated experience representing an organization, individual, and/or issue. Must display gravitas and be articulate and compelling in manner;
- Proven team leadership experience and the ability to work with complex project teams and processes is necessary;
- Comfort working within a matrix environment and a strong collaborative team player;
- Innovative and interpersonal acumen to build fundraising, business development including client relations, and political advocacy in the region of interest;
- Familiarity with political and technical governmental decision-making processes in the region;
- Understanding of both public and private sector perspectives;
- Experience in managing teams and consultants and large scale, high profile projects.
- Excellence in management; established operational track record in achieving results;
- Exceptional tact, political, diplomatic and interpersonal skills;
- Excellent networking, representational, communications and negotiation abilities; proactive and persuasive;
- Ability to cope with uncertainty;
- Demonstrated ability to build and sustain working relationships with a variety of constituencies; understanding of both public and private sector perspectives;
- Awareness of and sensitivity to political issues in all tasks;
- Ability to conceptualise, innovate, plan and execute ideas, as well as to impart knowledge and coach;
- Strong analytical skills; organised and detail oriented;
- A track record in producing high quality work on a variety of issues with short deadlines and make effective, timely decisions;
- Creativity and innovation, a self-starter with energy and enthusiasm;
- Demonstrated ability to work in a multi-cultural environment and across teams, and establish harmonious and effective working relationships both within and outside the organisation;
- High standards of personal conduct and integrity.
- Written and spoken fluency in English.
- Advanced level university degree in political science, public or business administration or other relevant fields.
- Gavi Secretariat;
- COVAX partners
- WHO;
- UNICEF;
- Other implementation agencies;
- Donors;
- NGOs.
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