Sector: Health
Employment Category: Fixed Term
Employment Type: Full-Time
Open to Expatriates: Yes
Job Description
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and regain control of their future. The IRC Yemen began its programs in October 2012 and currently operates in the south and north of the country through direct programming and local partnerships in Health, Nutrition, WASH, Economic Recovery and Development, Education, Child Protection, and Women’s Protection and Empowerment. The country program operates from main offices in Aden and Sana’a and field offices in Abyan, Al Dhale’e, and Hodeidah governorates.
POSITION OVERVIEW
The IRC maintains an expansive portfolio of health and nutrition services across Yemen and reaches more than 900,000 patients per year through 19 mobile health teams, more than 70 supported static health facilities, 10 Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care (EmONC) centers, and one hospital. The organization supports 74 outpatient therapeutic programs for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) plus four inpatient therapeutic feeding centers (TFCs).
The Senior Health and Nutrition Coordinator is responsible for the strategic direction, leadership, and quality implementation of all health and nutrition programs in Yemen. This includes the delivery of comprehensive primary health care, sexual and reproductive health, malnutrition treatment, mental health, and community health services across a wide range of geographic locations. This position will monitor and assure technical quality, coach and mentor program staff, oversee budgets and grants management, and ensure effective working relationships with external actors.
The position is based in Aden with regular travel to program sites across the country. The IRC currently manages health and nutrition programs in Aden, Lahj, Al Dhale’e, Abyan, Shabwah, Hodeidah, and Amanat al Asimah (Sana’a city) governorates, with additional services delivered via partners in Taiz and Al Bayda governorates.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Program Development and Management
• Lead Yemen’s health and nutrition departments to implement timely, effective, and relevant activities in line with identified needs, strategic objectives, and donor requirements.
• Oversee the project design process for new or adapted health and nutrition programming, including the development of budgets, proposal narratives, logframes, and other supporting documents. Ensure compliance with IRC technical standards through engagement with technical advisors.
• Coordinate closely with the Deputy Director for Programs and grants department to ensure timely and effective grant management and compliance with donor requirements. Develop actionable plans to ensure that stated project objectives are regularly evaluated and achieved.
• Guide teams to ensure that the health and nutrition departments produce and utilize functional project management tools, including work plans, procurement plans, and accurate financial forecasts.
• Coordinate closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) department to develop effective monitoring and measurement tools and collect relevant data. Maintain a strong information management system and use findings to inform and improve program delivery. Carry out regular data review exercises.
• Ensure that all internal and external reports are submitted on time and to a high standard.
Technical Quality
• Ensure all health and nutrition projects are implemented in accordance with the IRC’s technical guidelines and global best practices.
• Liaise with health and nutrition technical advisors on a regular basis; maintain knowledge of new developments in the IRC Health Technical Unit and global coordination structures.
• Provide ongoing technical coaching, guidance, and supportive supervision to IRC and partner staff.
• Promote effective integration of health and nutrition services at the point of care. Ensure service delivery modalities are responsive to patient needs and location-specific constraints.
• Regularly monitor and report on unmet needs and service delivery gaps across Yemen; make informed recommendations to senior management on the capacity of the IRC to address identified needs.
• Regularly review MEAL data and apply indicator findings to improve program quality. Ensure all programs are data-driven.
• Develop and maintain a health and nutrition strategy for the IRC in Yemen, ensuring that program growth is aligned with the country’s overall Strategic Action Plan (SAP). Ensure the interventions of all health-related sub-sectors are complimentary and mutually reinforcing.
Team Leadership & Management
• Coach, mentor, and lead the Deputy Health and Deputy Nutrition Coordinators, plus larger health and nutrition teams, to implement programs to a high standard of quality.
• Oversee the timely recruitment, comprehensive onboarding, and the sustained professional growth and wellbeing of team members.
• Ensure all team members are well-versed in job expectations and have clear performance objectives and professional development goals. Conduct regular management meetings with all direct reports and ensure the same is done throughout the team management structure.
• Identify training needs and develop capacity building plans for health and nutrition staff to improve management capacity.
• Promote and monitor staff care and wellbeing.
Coordination
• Ensure consistent IRC representation in relevant clusters, technical working group meetings, and other coordination structures
• Oversee regular communication, negotiations and engagement with partners and government entities, including the Ministries of Public Health and Population (MoPHP) in both north and south.
• Work closely with field managers and the humanitarian access & security team to ensure concerns and challenges at the service delivery level are addressed appropriately.
• Proactively collaborate with other IRC sector technical leads to promote program integration and ensure effective internal referrals.
KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
• Position Reports to: Deputy Director for Programs
• Position directly supervises: Deputy Health Coordinator, Deputy Nutrition Coordinator, Senior HIS Officer
• Other internal contacts: Grants, MEAL, Finance, HR, Supply Chain, and other program coordinators. Position is supported by thematic technical advisors based in HQ.
• External contacts: Health and nutrition clusters, peer and partner agencies, MoPHP in both north and south
QUALIFICATIONS
• Medical or public health professional with strong technical expertise in the delivery of healthcare services in volatile low-resource settings. General knowledge of all and advanced knowledge of at least two of the following sub-sectors required: primary health, acute malnutrition (both CMAM and TFC), reproductive health, mental health, health promotion, iCCM.
• Minimum of eight years of experience coordinating the implementation and management of humanitarian health and nutrition programs, including substantial experience in a leadership position for a large and diverse program.
• Significant experience in the management of a multi-donor grant portfolio required. Skilled in proposal development, creation and timely execution of workplans, and high-quality donor reporting. Knowledge of BHA (former OFDA) and ECHO regulations in the health sector an advantage.
• Strong financial management skills, including budget development, financial forecasting, and management of spending plans.
• Knowledge of health data management standards and quality assurance is essential. Ability to oversee both routine consultation data and complex indicator measurement, and to analyze and apply findings to inform program implementation and priorities. Training in basic epidemiology and statistics strongly preferred.
• Experience in complex emergencies and conflict-affected settings strongly preferred.
• Excellent written and spoken English. Proficiency in Arabic is an advantage.
COMPETENCIES
• Advanced leadership skills and a commitment to staff development. Promotion of teamwork and enthusiasm to coach, empower, and transfer skills to program teams under line management is essential.
• Strong cross-cultural communication skills and comfortable working as part of a diverse team. Sensitive to cultural differences and a range of viewpoints.
• Demonstrated advance planning and organizational skills. Able to effectively prioritize and follow multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously.
• Flexible and innovative. Able to adapt programs and pivot approaches in response to changes in context.
• Proactive, reliable, and able to work independently in a fast-paced environment with heavy workloads.
Standards of Professional Conduct: The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Harassment-Free Workplace, Fiscal Integrity, Anti-Retaliation, Combating Trafficking in Persons and several others.
Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances.
Work Environment: There is active conflict in parts of the country and a possibility of the conflict expanding into other locations. The situation in Aden is currently quiet but remains unpredictable. Security will be thoroughly discussed during the interview process.
Housing: Lodging in Aden and Sana’a is in shared IRC guesthouses. All IRC sites have electricity and internet. Food is the individual’s responsibility.
IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status or disability
If interested, please apply here.