Call for Consultancy - Individual Consultant

Please submit your application via the following link: https://forms.office.com/r/sCXtiHf9yh

Title: Consultancy Services for the development of Continental Community Health Standard Operating  Procedures (SOPs) for the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

Background: 

This position is posted on 09^th October 2023 and the deadline of submitting the application is on 27th  October 2023. While we review all applications on a rolling basis, please note that we will prioritize applications received within the first two weeks of the posting. 

This role is posted by the Financing Alliance for Health on behalf of the African CDC. African CDC is the hiring organization for this role. African CDC is a collaborative partner with the Financing Alliance for Health, Last  Mile Health, and Community Health Impact Coalition. 

Financing Alliance for Health (FAH) https://financingalliance.org/, partners with the government on all steps of financing to strengthen, and sustain community health systems, leveraging primary health care to attain universal health coverage. (FAH partners long-term with Ministries of Health and Ministries of  Finance teams to develop different and changing financing sources). FAH draws on private sector knowledge of financial structuring and access to private sector and development finance opportunities to increase and diversify funding options for governments to scale and sustain community health systems. 

Role Background and Rationale 

Launched officially in 2017 as a specialized technical institution of the African Union in Addis Ababa,  Ethiopia, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) stands as Africa's foremost continent-wide public health agency. Its vision encompasses a safer, healthier, integrated, and more robust Africa, where Member States can adeptly counter infectious disease outbreaks and other public health challenges. Africa CDC's mission revolves around reinforcing the capabilities of Africa's public health institutions, facilitating swift and effective responses to disease outbreaks and health burdens through an interconnected network of continent-wide preparedness, response, surveillance, laboratory,  and research programs.  

During the Twenty-Ninth Ordinary Session, held in 2017, the AU Heads of States AU leaders endorsed the visionary 2 million CHWs. This acknowledged the pivotal role of the Community Health Workforce (CHW)  as an essential Human Resource for Health (HRH). 2 Million Community Health Workers . The AU Heads  of States and Government also entrusted Africa CDC with leading a transformative New Public Health  Order, aligning with the aspirations of AU's Agenda 2063. Africa’s New Public Health Order.  

To operationalize these commitments, Africa CDC’s Division of Disease Control and Prevention (DCP) is mandated to support Member States in controlling endemic and neglected tropical diseases, noncommunicable diseases (including mental health), and advancing integrated, institutionalized, and sustainable community health systems across the continent. It established a Community Health Unit to establish and strengthen community health worker programs in Member States to bolster health systems.   

Its objective is to expand integrated, institutionalized, and sustainable community health systems across the continent, aligning with universal health coverage and health equity goals by 2030.  

To fortify its efforts in enhancing community health systems, Africa CDC is currently in the process of formulating a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to standardize norms and principles for Community  Health in Africa, thereby outlining a clear vision for community health systems on the continent. 

Africa CDC seeks to ensure a cohesive approach to scaling up integrated community health service delivery, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes for communities across the continent.  Therefore, Africa CDC is seeking a qualified and experienced consultant to assist in drafting Standard  Operating Procedures (SOPs), Policies, Administrative and Technical Instructions, Strategies, and  Guidelines encompassing all aspects of scaling up integrated community health service delivery. 

Objective(s): 

Ensure a cohesive approach to scaling up integrated community health service delivery, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes for communities across the continent through developing Standard  Operating Procedures (SOPs) to standardize norms and principles of Community Health in Africa such as;  integrated community health service delivery, resource allocation, training, collecting and utilizing data,  and coordination. 

Specific Objectives. 

1. Situational Analysis: Conduct a comprehensive situational analysis of community health-related guiding documents at global, regional, and national levels.  
   1. A desk review of existing documents outlining the framework for Community Health  Workers (CHWs), policies, reports, international recommendations, as well as relevant national laws and regulations pertaining to community health systems. 
2. SOPs Framework: Define the scope of SOPs, through compiling a list of documents to be developed, propose a governance model for SOP development and implementation, establish a  development methodology, and formulate a draft framework for the SOP development process.  
3. Gaps among MS: Using different approaches, assess the gaps and urgent needs of African MS in scaling up Community Health Systems, in order to generate recommendations on SOPs relating to the community health systems and to identify needed focus areas. 
4. Engage key stakeholders; implementing partners, researchers, and academia to provide in-depth  analysis of the drafted SOPs and ensure synergy with ongoing work by these organizations, while  creating opportunities for dissemination of SOPs 

Expected Deliverables: 

Additionally, one of the essential deliverables will be the creation of a validation roadmap, designed for implementation by Africa CDC, to authenticate the SOPs with Member States. This roadmap will provide a systematic and organized approach to ensure that the developed SOPs/guidelines align with the objectives and requirements of the Member States. 

Reporting, Management, Support, and Data Ownership 

The consultant will provide biweekly brief reports, sharing them with the Community Health System Unit and the Africa CDC Head of Division that houses the Community Health System. All outputs, including raw data, draft documents, analyses, and final documents, will be the property of Africa CDC. 

Required Qualification and Experience 

• Master’s degree in public health (MPH), Community Development, Epidemiology, Health System  Management, or a related field. PHD qualification is an added advantage. 
• At least 10 years of experience in community health systems or community development,  focusing on normative documents and SOPs for community health (please share work samples if you have any). Preference will be given to candidates with:  
• Technical skills and experience in supporting public health programs, particularly community health, epidemiology, surveillance, health information systems, and workforce capacity development. 
• Experience in Community Health Program Implementation and strong academic background.
• Proficiency in data collection, analysis, and use of data for recommendations, suitable for scientific and lay audiences. 
• Proficiency in technical and scientific writing, alongside narrative and technical reporting.
• Knowledge of public health programs, health sciences research, health systems strengthening,  and experience with government ministries and external donors. 
• Familiarity with administrative and management practices in public health and public sector programs, especially emergency response contexts. 
• Experience with international organizations and National Public Health Institutes operations.
• Proficiency in oral communication and presentation, translating technical information for various audiences.  
• Experience in stakeholder engagement and collaboration with Member State entities and  partners

• Language: Fluency in written and spoken English is essential, and proficiency in French is advantageous. 

Evaluation and Qualification Criteria 

• General Education, Qualification, and Relevant Training - 20 Points. 
• Experience, Technical Expertise – 80 Points 

Duration of Consultancy 

The Consultancy’s duration is Five (5) months following the contract signing. Successful completion and submission of the Final Draft of CDC’s Community Health continental SOPs and related reports will signify the accomplishment of the consultancy. 

Consultancy Fee 

The lump-sum payment for the consultancy will be USD 30,000. This amount covers the Consultant's fees.  Payments will be linked to specific deliverables as indicated above. If any travel is involved, the African  Union will cover travel-related expenses. 

Duty Station 

The consultant can conduct the tasks in the consultancy virtually. He/she will need to avail himself/herself for a number of virtual engagements with the technical team and be flexible in terms of meeting different  Community Health Stakeholders. He/She will however have to travel to some selected Countries for in-country consultation in the course of this consultancy. 

Invitation 

Eligible Individuals Consultants are invited to submit their applications including, (I) a brief technical and financial proposal (II) a Cover letter, (III) most recent curriculum vitae, including two (2) referees (IV). The financial proposal must be quoted in USD. Please share the required documents as detailed in this  advert through the link-https://forms.office.com/r/sCXtiHf9yh

• The selection of the Consultant will adhere to the Individual Selection method stipulated in the African Union/Africa CDC Procurement Regulations. 
• All applications should be submitted online no later than 15:00 hrs (EAT), October 27th, 2023.  Please end all your applications on the link above:  
• For additional information, inquiries can be made during office hours (8:00-13:00 and 14:00- 17:00, Kenyan Time) at the address provided below. 

Financing Alliance for Health, Attn: Human Resources and Operations Workstream. P.O. Box 856-00606, Nairobi, Kenya. Tel +254703041694,   E-mails:[email protected] and [email protected]

For further information about Africa CDC, please check the following https://africacdc.org/