Public Health Officer at World Health Organization (WHO)

World Health Organization (WHO) is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Public Health Officer

Ref No: 2304725
Location: Damaturu, Yobe
Schedule: Full-time
Organization: AF_NGA Nigeria
Grade: NO-C
Contractual Arrangement: Temporary appointment under Staff Rule 420.4
Contract Duration (Years, Months, Days): 12 Months

Background and Justification
Purpose of the Position:

• In the context of the WHO Health Emergencies Incident Management System (IMS), at the country level, the incumbent will provide technical advice for all WHO strategic categories and related public health programmes, including
  • Strengthening emergency response/resilience and preparedness activities to reduce mortality, morbidity especially due to the impact of outbreaks and or public health emergencies.
  • Advising national and international actors on public health issues related to emergency response.
  • Strengthening the health system, enhancing health equity, tackling the social determinants of health and envisioning the achievement of universal health coverage.
  • Advocate the utilization of reliable information, evidence, innovation and knowledge for improving population health outcomes, throughout the full cycle of the emergency response.
  • Liaising with other sectors in providing a public health response in emergencies and outbreaks
  • Providing technical public health input for strategic planning, project management and reporting.

Job Description
Objectives of the Programme and of the immediate Strategic Objective:

• The mission of WHO's Health Emergencies Programme (The Programme) is to build the capacity of Member States to manage health emergency risks and, when national capacities are overwhelmed, to lead and coordinate the international health response to contain outbreaks and to provide effective relief and recovery to affected populations.

Organizational Context

• In the duty station, reporting to the state coordinator, and based on priorities set by the Team Lead, the Incident Manager and the WHO Head of Country Office, and working closely with, the incumbent will act as the technical expert for the surveillance programme.
• S/he will provide technical oversight for the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of public health policies and programmes pertaining to surveillance of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases particularly those with epidemic and pandemic potentials

Summary of Assigned Duties
The incumbent will perform some or all of the following duties:

• Assess threats to human life and health, damage to health infrastructure for primary and secondary care, the state of health referral and support systems, including cold chain, laboratory, essential drugs and health information systems, and the vital needs of the affected populations.
• Collaborate with national authorities and health partners to coordinate and implement public health response activities as part of the health cluster's strategic response; analyse existing coordination mechanisms, designing and recommending improvements.
• Provide analysis of the public health risks, needs and capacities and advise on priority interventions for WHO and partners; challenges and operational course correctors, as applicable.
• Monitor progress towards achievement of universal health coverage; analyse social determinants of health and their impact on the incident management system, including identifying inequities, gaps in the delivery of health services or emergency interventions, recommending appropriate actions and innovative approaches to improve the situation.
• Facilitate the implementation of effective, evidence-based policies, public health programmes and interventions through all life cycles, this might include maternal and newborn health, health promotion and education, NCDs, the elderly, social determinant of health, violence and injury prevention including road safety, gender and health equity and other related areas.
• Secure information from a broad range of health sectors, analysing such and consolidating health data in trends and trends assessment, with particular attention to surveillance, monitoring and early warning. 
• Coordinate meetings with all relevant partners and incident management team, producing and circulating minutes, related decisions and tracking the latter, and developing detailed lessons learnt reports, recommending improvement to current and future field operations.
• Provide input to communications and information products (Sitreps, health cluster bulletins, outbreak bulletins etc.) as required.
• Ensure compliance with IASC principles and the Humanitarian Programme Cycle in delivering WHO's health response.
• Perform any other related incident-specific duties, as required by the functional supervisor

Recruitment Profile
Education Qualifications
Essential

• University Degree (Master's level or above) in Public Health and/or Health-related fields from an accredited/recognized institute

Desirable:

• Doctorate Degree in Public Health. Post graduate studies or specialized training in emergency response or disaster management in the context of public health. Diploma in tropical medicine or diploma in disaster management.

Experience:
Essential:

• At least five years of relevant experience, at the national and international levels, in public health in emergencies response or health sector coordination, with emphasis on managing outbreaks and health emergencies and/ or health consequences of emergencies and crises.
• Experience in capacity building, developing and promoting collaborative partnerships

Desirable:

• Relevant work experience in WHO, other UN agencies, health cluster partners, recognized humanitarian organizations or relevant nongovernmental or humanitarian organizations.
• Experience in capacity building programme planning/development, project management, monitoring and evaluation. Experience with resource mobilization in emergency settings.

 Use of Language Skills:

• Expert knowledge of English Language

Functional Knowledge and Skills:

• In-depth knowledge of public health programmes with focus on health system, and the Millennium Development Goals.
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience of operational management of health aspects/consequences of humanitarian crises and outbreaks in field settings.
• Demonstrated skills in capacity building, proposal and report writing, knowledge of and experience with needs assessments in emergency settings, strategic information analysis and planning and ability to anticipate new trends in the field of public health and take actions accordingly.
• Managerial skills for the development, implementation and analysis of technical cooperation programmes and activities, including the development of programmatic indicators.

Other Skills (e.g. IT):

• Knowledge of Microsoft Office software applications.

Competencies:

• Teamwork
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
• Communication
• Building and promoting partnerships across the organization and beyond
• Producing results.

Remuneration
Remuneration comprises an annual base salary starting at N28,030,973 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable) and 30 days of annual leave.

Application Closing Date
9th June, 2023 (10:59:00 PM).

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Additional Information

• This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible.
• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.
• For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• The WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The WHO recruits and employs staff regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.
• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its staff. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply for WHO jobs.
• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to [email protected]
• An impeccable record for integrity and professional ethical standards is essential. WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• WHO also offers wide range of benefits to staff, including parental leave and attractive flexible work arrangements to help promote a healthy work-life balance and to allow all staff members to express and develop their talents fully.
• The statutory retirement age for staff appointments is 65 years. For external applicants, only those who are expected to complete the term of appointment will normally be considered.
• This is a National Professional Officer position. Therefore, only applications from nationals of the country where the duty station is located will be accepted. Applicants who are not nationals of this country will not be considered.
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