Direct from UNICEF careers
International Consultancy for Senior Health Financing and Economics Specialist to support the Government of Sao Tome and Príncipe in preparing for the Gavi transition and sustainable immunization financing, Sao Tome (office based) 11months (595338)
Full job description
UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.
At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.
UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.
Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.
How can you make a difference?
São Tomé and Príncipe has maintained one of the strongest immunisation performance profiles in the West and Central African region, with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin coverage reaching 99.8 per cent in 2011. Routine coverage declined to about 80 per cent from 2020 onwards, in part in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The country entered the Gavi accelerated transition phase in 2018 and is expected to fully self-finance its immunization programme by 2030.
Following a review of the Country Foundational Support (CFS) portfolio, the Gavi Secretariat recommended that advocacy activities with civil society organisations be reallocated to dedicated technical support in economics and financing, to run from mid-2026 through 2028. This redirection reflects Gavi's assessment that transition sustainability in STP requires sustained economist-level accompaniment anchored in-country.
On that basis, UNICEF STP Country Office, under the supervision of the CoE for Child Survival and Development Health Economics and Financing Section, will recruit an international senior specialist based in São Tomé for the full duration of the engagement. The specialist will work under the direct supervision of the Health Specialist at the UNICEF STP Country Office, with technical oversight from the Global Lead, Health Economics and Financing, at New York Headquarters, and day-to-day technical coordination from the HEF team in the Nairobi hub.
The engagement is designed to strengthen national ownership of transition planning, anchor capacity within government counterparts, and support UNICEF and partners in a coordinated approach to sustainable immunization financing.
If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: ToR_ext_TMC0004922.pdf
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have...
QUALIFICATIONS / SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE / EXPERIENCE/ COMPETENCIES (CORE/TECHNICAL/FUNCTIONAL) / LANGUAGE SKILLS REQUIRED FOR THE ASSIGNMENT
Education:
- An advanced university degree (Master's or higher in Health Economics or Public Finance for health, is mandatory.
- A PhD in Health Economics or Public Finance is a strong asset
Work Experience:
- Minimum ten years of progressively responsible professional experience in health economics and financing, including demonstrated work on fiscal space analysis, immunization or health programme costing, resource tracking, and transition planning.
- Documented experience supporting countries in Gavi, Global Fund or similar donor transitions is strongly preferred.
- Prior work experience with UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank or other United Nations system agencies is considered an asset
Language Requirements:
- Working knowledge of Portuguese (or French) is required, or a documented commitment and capacity to reach working proficiency within the first three months of the assignment.
- Working knowledge of English is required for reporting and internal UNICEF coordination.
- Knowledge of French is an asset
Knowledge/Expertise/Skills:
- Proven experience supporting Ministries of Health and Ministries of Finance in low-income and lower-middle-income countries, including direct engagement in donor transition plans development, and implementation, national budget cycles and policy dialogue.
- Strong command of health and immunization financing analytical tools, including donor transition, fiscal space analyses, immunization costing and financing tools, National Health Accounts methodologies and Public Financial Management analysis.
- Proven ability to translate technical analysis into policy-ready products for government and legislative audiences.
- Experience in capacity strengthening and mentoring of national counterparts.
Desirables:
- Demonstrates UNICEF's core values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability (CRITA)
For every Child, you demonstrate...
UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values
UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.
UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.
UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.
Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System):
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An up-to-date TMS profile and curriculum vitae (CV)
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Cover letter
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A separate financial proposal (only acceptable in the format of the linked template) financial proposal template -TMC0004922.xlsx
Remarks: If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not downloadable on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers.
UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.
All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.
Advertised: Greenwich Standard Time
Deadline: Greenwich Standard Time
Listing sourced from UNICEF careers. Applications are handled entirely by the employer.
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