The Position:

The Chief of Health is located in the Bangladesh Country Office (CO) and reports directly to the UNFPA Representative and leads a dynamic and large SRHR team providing strategic oversight and technical leadership and direction for overall management and administration in the development, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of UNFPA’s SRHR related interventions within the Country Programme and UNSDCF while  closely working with Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, UN agencies and NGO/CSOs, both at the central and local levels, including in emergency settings.

The Chief of Health also leads UNFPA’s advocacy and knowledge management efforts for the health sector in the country, especially for the areas related to SRHR.  As the head of the component, s/he directs, leads, manages, and develops a team of professional and support staff based in both the capital and districts, to achieve the strategic goals and objectives of the SRHR component of the country programme, also by effectively coordinating with other units within the UNFPA country office. The Chief of Health also contributes to partnership building for resource mobilization and for strengthening synergies with other partners, including UN agencies, bilateral and multilateral donors, and NGO/CSOs, in areas related to SRHR where UNFPA has primary responsibility and/or comparative advantages.

As a senior member of the office, the Chief of Health participates in the country management team and may serve as the Officer-in-Charge of the office.

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled.  UNFPA’s new strategic plan (2018-2021), focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.

Job Purpose:

Bangladesh has 169 million populations with 1.1% annual growth.  Population density is high with 1,103 persons per sq. km.  Bangladesh is also one of the most disaster prone countries in the world, ranking fifth 0n the World Risk Index 2012.  The country is exposed to high vulnerability to hazards, calamities related to climate change and natural disasters.  Bangladesh has been the host country for an increasing Rohingya refugee crisis since August 2017.  As of January 2019, over 900,000 stateless Rohingya refugees reside in 34 extremely congested camps in Ukhiya and Teknaf Upazilas of Cox’s Bazar district.

The Government has consistently enacted progressive laws and policies that focus on expanding the rights of women and young people and has made significant progress in achieving socioeconomic development.  However, maternal mortality is still high (176 per 100,000 live births in 2015.) and each year more than 5,200 women die due to complications during pregnancy or childbirth due to acute shortage and uneven distribution of health workers, insufficient coverage and poor quality of emergency obstetric and newborn care. Sixty-two per cent of women still give birth at home; 58 per cent without skilled birth attendance. Yet health receives only 4.1 per cent of the government budget, with high out-of-pocket expenditures.

UNFPA has been supporting Government of Bangladesh to provide critical sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services and information since 1974.  The current 9th country programme started from 2017 for four years. The current sexual and reproductive health and rights component aims to increase institutional capacity to deliver integrated and equitable sexual and reproductive health services, including sexually transmitted infections and HIV, in development and humanitarian contexts, including health sector response to GBV and repair and treatment services for fistula survivors. The country programme evaluation and preparations of 10th country programme to align with Government’s development plan are ongoing.

UNFPA is also providing life-saving sexual and reproductive health and rights and gender-based violence prevention and response care to Rohingya refugees, leading the SRH and GBV sub-sectors coordination, and responding to incidents of GBV by deploying trained volunteers to administer mental health and psycho-social support to survivors, and safe spaces for women and girls.

Requirements:

Qualifications and Experience

Education:  

Advanced university degree in Public Health (preferably with a focus on maternal health), medicine, sociology, health systems/economics, or other field directly related to the substantive area identified in this job description.

Knowledge and Experience:

·         Ten (10) years of increasingly responsible professional experience in the substantive area, of which seven (7) years at the international level

·         Strong track record of technical leadership and proven ability to lead and manage large, complex programme team and produce demonstrable results with shared visions and goals

·         Proven experiences in sexual and reproductive health and rights, including family planning, midwifery, EmOC are essential and understanding of health economics/health financing, human rights and gender equality dimensions of SRH/FP is desirable

·         Demonstrated ability to refine programme design to ensure alignment of strategic plan/programme, national priorities in UNDAF and CP development

·         Experiences in national/local health systems and health sector review/reform, especially SWAPs, RBM are an asset

·         Strong verbal and written communications skills, advocacy and presentation skills, and excellent communications and inter-personal skills are essential, in engaging partners at a high level of representation and fostering and maintaining political/technical partnerships

·         Initiative, strong conceptual and analytical abilities, sound judgment, liaison skills, negotiation skills, administrative and management skills, organizational skills, and interpersonal skills.

Languages: 

Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of another UN language an asset.