Senior Associate, Sustainable Health Financing at Clinton Health Access Initiative

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to saving lives and reducing the burden of disease in low-and middle-income countries, while strengthening the capabilities of governments and the private sector in those countries to create and sustain high-quality health systems that can succeed without our assistance. For more information, please visit: http://www.clintonhealthaccess.org.

 

CHAI is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and is committed to providing an environment of fairness, and mutual respect where all applicants have access to equal employment opportunities. CHAI values diversity and inclusion, and recognizes that our mission is best advanced by the leadership and contributions of people with diverse experience, backgrounds, and culture.

 

Program Overview:

 

CHAI’s health financing program is working in 13 countries to support Ministries of Health to substantially and sustainably improve access to essential health services for their populations. Health financing is often insufficient and overly reliant on donors and individuals paying out of pocket at facilities. Low-income countries in Africa and Southeast Asia see over half of the global disease burden, are home to 40% of the global population and account for only 3% of health spending. Donor contributions for health have plateaued, and in many countries are likely to decline in the coming years. Domestic resources for health are increasing, but the rate of growth in government spending dedicated to health fluctuates and is often insufficient to meet population needs. In addition, resources that are made available may not be spent efficiently. Healthcare providers face stock-outs, ration services among patients, and charge informal or formal user fees, which can act as a deterrent for patients, and particularly the poor, to seek care.

 

CHAI’s health financing teams work with governments and key stakeholders to remove financing as a barrier to effective health care provision. Staff members work closely with the Ministry of Health to support evidence-based decision-making and design systems to mobilize sustainable resources and ensure those resources go as far as possible towards high-quality, equitable, and affordable health services.

 

Position Overview:

 

The goal of the CHAI Sustainable Health Financing program in Malawi is to support the government to progressively move towards universal health coverage through sustainably bringing more resources into the health sector and to ensure they are distributed and utilized equitably, efficiently and effectively for the delivery of high-quality health services.

 

The CHAI Malawi Sustainable Health Financing team works closely with departments across the Ministry of Health (MoH), and in particular with the Department of Planning and Policy Development and District Health Management Teams, to provide technical assistance, develop analytical tools, and strengthen capacity to manage spending in Malawi’s health sector. Some examples of ongoing projects are: costing, aid coordination, and resource mapping for the Health Sector Strategic Plan III for 2022-2030; evidence-based health workforce modelling for recruitment and pre-service education; supporting District Health Offices in developing planning, budgeting and management tools; convening an inter-ministerial committee to address key health financing issues and mobilise domestic resources; a pilot of direct facility financing in selected primary health care facilities; strengthening strategic purchasing of health services to drive efficiencies; and a study to identify challenges and opportunities for long-term capacity-building of Malawi’s health financing ecosystem.

 

CHAI Malawi seeks a Senior Associate, Sustainable Health Financing based in Lilongwe, Malawi to work with the Government of Malawi address critical funding shortfalls and inefficiencies in financing the health sector. The Senior Associate will report to the Program Manager, Sustainable Health Financing, within the office’s Health Systems Strengthening Cluster.

 

The Senior Associate will provide technical assistance to the Government of Malawi to identify and overcome health systems constraints to the provision of critical services to the entire population. A key focus will be strengthening the use of evidence in health financing policy decisions through targeted use of data. In addition, the Senior Associate will be responsible for supporting the MOH to develop sustainable systems and processes to improve the allocation of donor and government resources to improve availability of services across the country. The Senior Associate will be part of a team that works closely with senior leaders in the Ministry of Health as well as donors, NGOs, and civil society organizations.

 

This is a challenging but rewarding position which will directly impact the government’s capacity to deliver improved health services for the population of Malawi. It presents an opportunity to work closely with a government that is committed to finding opportunities for sustainable financing of the health sector, providing strategic advice, and developing tools that will deliver a stronger health system for the people of Malawi.

• Serve as a trusted technical advisor to the MOH on a broad range of health financing and health systems issues, enabling MOH to mobilize more resources into the health sector, distribute them equitably, and use them effectively and efficiently
• Support the MOH to operationalize the recently developed Health Sector Strategic Plan III, including through development of annual operational plans, costing of health systems funding gaps, and resource mapping
• Facilitate the development and implementation of government planning, budgeting, and donor coordination processes and tools, with the aim of improving efficiency and joint accountability at the national and district levels
• Support the movement towards strategic purchasing of health services in Malawi’s health sector, including through costing of tertiary health services at central hospitals and a value-for-money analysis of a major health sector PPP
• Build government capacity on evidence-based planning, public financial management, and effective management of external funding by delivering targeted training and skills development
• Build strategic relationships and facilitate meetings with government, donors and external stakeholders to drive operational and policy changes
• Contribute to the development of program workplans, budgets, and reporting for internal and external audiences
• Perform any other relevant duties and lead day-to-day implementation of activities as assigned by the Program Manager, Sustainable Health Financing

• Master’s degree in Economics, Health Economics, Health Systems, Public Health, Public Policy, or similar subject preferred;
• Bachelor’s degree with relevant experience will also be considered
• Minimum of four years of professional experience, preferably in health systems strengthening, health economics, health financing, health workforce, public health, public policy, public sector finance, consulting, or other relevant private and public sector experience
• Knowledge and experience in health systems, health financing, particularly in low- and middle-income countries
• Outstanding analytical skills and advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint
• Strategically minded and able to think creatively about long-term program goals and objectives, and the detailed steps necessary to achieve these goals
• Structured thinker with experience analyzing complex datasets to identify key trends and to translate them into actionable options for decision-makers
• Strong diplomatic and interpersonal skills and ability to build strategic relationships with government partners, donors and other stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to deliver excellence in high-pressure situations, set priorities and adapt to rapidly changing environments
• Excellent organizational and problem-solving skills without need for extensive structural or operational support
• Strong writer, facilitator and oral communicator, able to distil and explain complex concepts to varied audiences
• Self-motivated and able to lead workstreams with a high degree of independence and autonomy
• Team player with the desire and capacity to effectively coach others, based on the team’s professional development needs and as assigned by the supervisor

Advantages:

• Experience supporting governments and donors to make health policy and health financing decisions
• Experience working with district health management teams at the subnational level
• Experience working in resource-limited settings and a multicultural office environment, particularly in the health sector and in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Experience with programming/coding, including VBA coding and/or Stata