Director, Primary Health Care AT ECOWAS

The West African Health Organisation is seeking applications from suitably qualified ECOWAS Citizens to fill the following position:


Institutional Context
A Directorate in ECOWAS Community Institutions is a subset of Departments headed by Statutory Appointees or D2 level Officers. Directorates are headed by Directors or Officers holding Director level positions.
Directors or Director level Officers are responsible for providing the expertise in particular areas for the design and implementation of technical projects in line with ECOWAS objectives.

Directors in ECOWAS provide leadership and management to major sector(s) of technical activities which are substantively important to the accomplishment of the Institution’s mandate. They are responsible for interpreting governing bodies’, the President’s and the Commissioner’s broad visions and policy guidelines, and for developing and managing goals and objectives to meet that mandate. D1 positions typically supervise 10 or more professionals some of who may be Division Chiefs at the P5 level and thus supervise other professional staff.

Duties & Responsibilities
Leadership Tasks
Directors or Director level Officers report directly to Departmental Heads. As the principal link between the Directorate and the wider beyond, the Director is responsible for:

Clearly communicating the Department’s vision to staff, explain how the Directorate’s activities aligns with them as well as ways of carrying out set tasks on it;
Staying on top of fast-moving technical, political, social or economic changes;
Remaining in frequent contact with the other Directors in the Institution to ensure that the work is harmonized with that of other Directorates as needed.


Managerial Tasks

The Director will supervise staff of the Directorate including Professional and General staff. He or she will utilize a range of transactional managerial skills to ensure that staff of the Directorate performs efficiently and effectively, and that they deliver the regular outputs needed at sufficient quality and in a timely manner.

Managerial tasks will include:

Plan annual goals, objectives, activities and budget tied to the Department’s overall plans; and create measure and monitor goal achievement; negotiate suitable adjustments to goals and budgets;
Implement performance-based budgeting within the Directorate;
Organize the Directorate in an efficient way with clear reporting lines, minimal bureaucracy and optimal delegation of responsibilities and authority;
Work with the relevant Directorate to ensure efficient and effective services such as recruitment, action on performance decisions, promotions and related matters;
Set standards of work mechanisms to monitor staff output and ensure that standards are maintained and deadlines met without compromising quality of work;
Manage the system of setting individual performance planning and standards through available Performance Planning and Evaluation systems;
Provide regular and prompt performance feedback to direct reporting;
Actively engaged in the development of staff to ensure skills are built to match plans, goals and existing structures;
Create productive working atmosphere within the Directorate to encourages staff participation.
Use of Personal Expertise

While the Director will have a reserve of skilled professionals to draw upon, he or she may at times be called upon to apply his or her personal expertise directly in the relevant technical field in any of the following ways:

Direct technical guidance on programme design or implementation in an area where he or she has high-level technical expertise;
Represent ECOWAS in professional meetings or working groups; make speeches, negotiate agreements, mediate disputes;
Lead or participate in technical missions to develop projects and programmes;
Advise on issues relating to his or her area of technical expertise;
Work with the relevant specialized Parliamentary Committee on regional legislation, as needed.
Technical Tasks

The Director of Primary Health Care (DPHC) will manage and coordinate the activities of the Department of Primary Health Care. The DPHC will work closely with the other Departmental Heads and the General Directorate to ensure the smooth running of the institution. The DPHC will also manage relationships with partner organizations, and must therefore be results-oriented and possess the expertise to meet donor requirements. This position demands technical knowledge, leadership and management experience, and an ability to coordinate the implementation of large programmes and projects

The Director of the Department of Primary Health Care will be responsible for the following duties:

1.    Provide credible, effective, impartial leadership of the department

2.    Lead the process of promoting the integration of Traditional Medicine into national health systems;

3.    Support staff by creating a work environment that promotes teamwork, trust, mutual respect, and empowers them to take responsibility and show initiative;

4.    Supervise  and  evaluate  the  performance  of  staff  and develop  annual  work plans  for  the  department’s programs  consistent  with  the strategic and operational plans of the institution

5.    Continuously  monitor the implementation of the department’s annual  work  plans  and  budgets;

6.    Develop a culture of writing within the department to ensure regular dissemination of its activities;

7.    Coordinate and manage relationships with partner organizations and other stakeholders;

8.    Coordinate the human resource for health development activities of the department, in collaboration with health training institutions, professional bodies, universities and other institutions of higher learning;

9.    Supervise the development of harmonized policies and regulations that protect health and ensure safety and standardised minimum health care standards within primary health care facilities across the Community;

10. Coordinate the development of policies and plans that support private and national health efforts, as well as strategies to inform, educate, and empower health institutions on health issues;

11. Coordinate the development of strategies that facilitate the integration of health promotion interventions into development policies and health systems;

12. Coordinate mechanisms that will improve access to essential medicines, vaccines, quality health infrastructure and equipment;

13. Promote the documentation and dissemination of best practices in health;

14. Assure competent public and personal health care workforce through harmonization of curricular and certification;

15. Collaborate with key technical and financial partners to develop strategies for reducing maternal and child mortality

16. Perform any other duty as may be assigned by supervisor.

Minimum Requirements
Educational Qualification
·         Masters in Medicine, Public Health, Natural Sciences, Health Economics and or Social Sciences or related fields

Experience

·         Twelve (12) years professional experience including six (6) years relevant international experience and five (5) years in a supervisory or managerial capacity;

·         Possession of higher degree would reduce the required professional experience to ten (10) years with five (5) years in a supervisory or managerial capacity.

·         Experience in a variety of private and public training institutions-experience in a multi-cultural setting and/or an international institution would be an advantage

Competencies (Skills, Knowledge and Abilities)

·         Ability to solicit inputs by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise;

·         Proven knowledge of new developments in own occupation/profession and of the programs of the department;

·         Proven supervisory, leadership, advocacy and networking skills;

·         Demonstrated experience in working with health training institutions, professional bodies, universities and other institutions of higher learning;

·         Ability to write grant proposals;

·         Knowledge in policy and regulations development;

·         Successful track record in coordinating and managing complex health projects funded by donors such as USAID, EU, World Bank, KFW or other donor agencies;

·         Demonstrated adaptability in terms of skills and competences;

·         Demonstrated versatility-ability to provide a variety of administrative and technical support;

·         Demonstrated ability of team work, group facilitation, and interpersonal skills;

·         Excellent oral and written communication and negotiation skills;

·          Basic computer skills: Microsoft Office package;

·         Experience in designing and planning health programs;

·         Ability to supervise the development of an essential primary health care package and provide technical assistance in the implementation of the package.


Age

Candidates should not be over 50 years old at the point of recruitment and must be citizens of one of the ECOWAS member states;

Language

Candidates must be fluent in one of the official languages of the Community; English, French and Portuguese. A working knowledge of another would be an advantage.

Application must be sent to waho-ooas@ecowas.int

Job Title:                             Director, Primary Health Care

Category:                            D1

Reference:                          VN75

Duration:                             Permanent

Annual Salary:                   USD 60,372 – USD 75,005

Department :                      Primary Health Care

Immediate Supervisor:    Director General

Duty Station:                      Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso