The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to our mission of saving lives and reducing the burden of disease in low-and middle-income countries. We work at the invitation of governments to support them and the private sector to create and sustain high-quality health systems.

CHAI was founded in 2002 in response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic with the goal of dramatically reducing the price of life-saving drugs and increasing access to these medicines in the countries with the highest burden of the disease. Over the following two decades, CHAI has expanded its focus. Today, along with HIV, we work in conjunction with our partners to prevent and treat infectious diseases such as COVID-19, malaria, tuberculosis, and hepatitis. Our work has also expanded into cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and other non-communicable diseases, and we work to accelerate the rollout of lifesaving vaccines, reduce maternal and child mortality, combat chronic malnutrition, and increase access to assistive technology. We are investing in horizontal approaches to strengthen health systems through programs in human resources for health, digital health, and health financing. With each new and innovative program, our strategy is grounded in maximizing sustainable impact at scale, ensuring that governments lead the solutions, that programs are designed to scale nationally, and learnings are shared globally.

At CHAI, our people are our greatest asset, and none of this work would be possible without their talent, time, dedication and passion for our mission and values. We are a highly diverse team of enthusiastic individuals across 40 countries with a broad range of skillsets and life experiences. CHAI is deeply grounded in the countries we work in, with majority of our staff based in program countries. Learn more about our exciting work: 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 established presence in Sierra Leone in 2015. While CHAI’s original intent was to provide assistance related to the Ebola response, it became clear based on preliminary conversations with the government that the real need for partner support was in the realm of health systems strengthening. CHAI in response to the government need developed a scope of work focusing on Human Resources for Health and Supply Chain, supporting the HRH Directorate within MOH and the National Pharmaceutical Procurement Unit (NPPU) respectively.

CHAI made significant progress in both areas and was able to build trust and establish strong relationships with the government. In recent years CHAI has expanded its support to the Government to include programs on sexual and reproductive health, vaccines delivery, assistive technology, geospatial data use (GRID3), and improving access to medical oxygen. With each new and innovative program, our strategy is grounded in maximizing sustainable impact at scale, ensuring that the government of Sierra Leone leads the solutions, that programs are designed to scale nationally, and learnings are shared globally.

CHAI recently initiated collaboration and support to the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) of the MOH and has spent its initial months trying to understand the strengths and areas for improvement within the malaria program, the broader health system, and the partner and donor engagement with it. CHAI aims to empower the program to regularly utilize disaggregated data and analytics for effective decision-making in both programmatic and strategic planning and operations.

Through a set of technical and operational assessments, CHAI has identified potential areas of work and has prioritized them based on impact and feasibility. We anticipate our initial focus to be on strengthening data reporting, data analysis, and disease surveillance based on the results of an in-progress surveillance assessment and epidemiological stratification. CHAI is also positioned to provide strategic and financing support to the national malaria control program, following successful costing of the malaria Operational Plan and application to the Global Fund. CHAI will continue to consult with government and non-government partners in country to evaluate how it can best add value to ongoing efforts.

In line with the prioritized areas of support, CHAI is actively searching for a highly motivated individual to contribute to the organization’s efforts in surveillance and analytics in Sierra Leone. The selected candidate will play a pivotal role in advancing CHAI’s commitment to strengthening health systems and promoting the use of data-driven insights for improved public health outcomes.

Position Overview

The Malaria Associate for Surveillance and Analytics, reporting to the CHAI Malaria Program Manager in Sierra Leone, will play a crucial role in advancing CHAI’s malaria strategy. Responsibilities include contributing to operational plans, identifying opportunities for impact, and supporting programmatic aspects. This role offers a unique chance to contribute to a high-impact CHAI malaria program in a country facing significant public health challenges.

The successful candidate will actively support CHAI Sierra Leone’s malaria initiatives, serving as a collaborative partner to government health officials. They will facilitate engagement with CHAI’s regional technical teams, ensuring the execution of impactful programs aimed at reducing malaria mortality and morbidity, which also means intentionally identifying and addressing specific barriers faced by some individuals or groups of individuals . A strong commitment to delivering results, adeptness in navigating political landscapes, and a resilient, optimistic approach to challenges are essential attributes.

CHAI places considerable emphasis on personal qualities such as resourcefulness, tenacity, independence, patience, humility, and a strong work ethic. The Malaria Associate will be embedded within the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) at the Ministry of Health in Freetown, fostering relationships with key stakeholders from the government, donors, and the international community in Sierra Leone.

Fluency in English is a requirement, with excellent communication and relationship-building skills which are paramount for effective collaboration with diverse stakeholders. This role presents an exciting opportunity for a dedicated individual to make a meaningful impact in the realm of public health in Sierra Leone .

Responsibilities

The Associate will:

• Act as a trusted adviser and collaborative partner to the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) and other MOH units, offering insights on malaria program analytics.
• Assist the NMCP and other MOH units on malaria surveillance. This includes implementing new surveillance platforms to enhance data collection, management, analysis, and visualization that help evidence based decision about addressing health inequities.
• Assist the NMCP in collecting or generating disaggregated data, analysing them and addressing equity gaps
• Monitor and evaluate the performance of existing malaria surveillance system and new platforms, such as the SNIGS and geospatial registries (e.g., community health worker registry, master health facility registry). From the surveillance system evaluations, prioritizing recommendations, designing surveillance improvement action plans and supporting the NMCP to improve surveillance processes and the surveillance system.
• Contribute to writing SOPs, guidance and trainings on malaria surveillance, data analysis, data use.
• Support the NMCP in organizing regular data review meetings at all levels, extracting and analyzing malaria epidemiological data, malaria vector surveillance data, and malaria prevention and intervention data. Translate findings into actionable recommendations through impactful presentations and reports.
• Develop Excel-based budget and cost models for malaria interventions and conduct analyses to map available funding to needs and identify resource gaps;
• Work with stakeholders to prioritize and optimize activities within funding envelope, and develop funding proposals to mobilize resources (e.g., from Global Fund) for countries;
• Facilitate evidence-based program reviews and strategic and operational planning and assist malaria programs in identifying and addressing impediments to funding absorption, activity implementation, and programmatic goals;
• Strengthen financial and programmatic data use to inform program management and strategic decision-making;
• Synthesize and communicate results internally and externally as required.
• Identify obstacles hindering the execution of malaria program plans, intervention campaigns and collaborate with stakeholders to develop rapid solutions for addressing bottlenecks.
• Proactively build and sustain strong working relationships with key stakeholders in government and non-governmental organizations.
• Document and compile resources and best practices, facilitating knowledge-sharing across teams. Synthesize and disseminate findings through high-quality presentations, reports, and publications.
• Undertake any other tasks as identified, contributing to the overall success of the malaria program in Sierra Leone. This multifaceted role requires a dynamic individual dedicated to enhancing public health outcomes through data-driven strategies and collaborative problem-solving.

• Master’s degree in Public Health, Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Statistics, Data Science, Business, or International Development
• Minimum of 3 years of pertinent work experience.
• Established experience in cultivating and sustaining partnerships with governmental entities and/or other intricate organizations.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint at advanced levels.
• Genuine enthusiasm for employing analytical methods to address global health challenges.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, ensuring effective conveyance of complex ideas.
• Capacity to manage multiple tasks concurrently, prioritize effectively, and work autonomously, particularly in remote settings.
• Demonstrated ability to remain effective, patient, and thoughtful in high-pressure situations.
• Adaptability to thrive in a fast-paced and multicultural environment.
• At least basic knowledge in gender, equity and diversity at the intersection of health interventions
• Fluency in English (written and oral) is mandatory, with French language proficiency considered advantageous but not obligatory.
• Willingness and ability to travel within Sierra Leone at up to 40% of the time, based on program requirements.
• This role demands a versatile individual committed to utilizing advanced analytical skills and fostering collaborations to address health challenges effectively.

Advantages

• Knowledge of major global infectious disease problems, preferably malaria and NTDs
• Demonstrated expertise in epidemiological and spatial analysis of disease data is essential.
• Proven track record in disease surveillance and enhancing information systems to strengthen public health initiatives
• Experience or knowledge of health finance, public finance, or finance for development.Experience working with surveillance platforms (e.g., DHIS2), data collection tools (e.g., ODK) and/or data visualization applications (e.g., Tableau).
• Experience in carrying out statistical analyses using relevant software (e.g., R, STATA).
• Experience in gender analysis

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