Within the context of the UHC Cluster and Vaccine Preventable Diseases (VPD) Programme, Inter-country Support Team for West Africa (IST-WA), the purpose of Technical Officer, Meningitis Laboratory, VPD/ IST-WA, is to support the member states in improving the performance of laboratory surveillance of Meningitis, through strengthening of laboratory capacities and provision of supervision and high-level expertise in WHO-endorsed, laboratory diagnostics technologies, quality control and management systems. This includes the setup of functional laboratory services, capacity building to perform laboratory surveillance of priority communicable diseases; provision of technical assistance and training courses on laboratory methodologies, procedures and biosafety aspects; the development and implementation of norms, guidelines, work plans and standard procedures; and the establishment, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of protocols. The incumbent also implements on-site laboratory reviews; provides documentation of best practices, needs, gaps, and assessments; and ensures information sharing.
Under the direct supervision of the VPD/IST-WA Team Leader, and in collaboration with the technical Clusters and Programmes, within the scope of work defined by regional strategies, policy guidelines, and programme objectives (including the WHO Transformation Programme, and the GPW13 towards the attainment of the SDG targets), the consultant is an organizational specialist who will implement the work assignments guided by the resolutions of the Regional Committee, the World Health Assembly, other relevant guidance documents as well as WHO/AFRO Strategies and frameworks, national priorities and needs of the Member States of the Region. S/he will exchange information and guide a range of internal and external partners, to enhance multi-sectoral collaboration. Functional guidelines are available which require interpretation. In this defined programme area, and within the structure, there is a high expectation for independent accomplishment of functional goals.
SCOPE OF WORK
The consultant will be expected to perform the following duties:
- Provide technical expertise to countries in the sub-region to support the definition and implementation of quality-assured WHO endorsed diagnostic technologies with emphasis on quality management systems towards accreditation, including:
Developing work plans in cooperation with sub-regional, regional and national;
Establishing, planning, and implementing monitoring and evaluation protocols;
Developing and reviewing existing guidelines and standard procedures and their implementation at the sub-regional, regional and national levels within the regional and national public health networks;
Build the capacity of national public health or reference laboratories, to perform laboratory surveillance of priority communicable diseases, confirm etiological agents and monitor antimicrobial resistance, through training and supervision of laboratory technicians and improving quality assurance and control;
Guide the development and update of norms and standards to improve laboratory technologies, with emphasis on capacity building through training courses on laboratory methodologies, procedures and biosafety aspects based on WHO policies; providing expertise for the development of new and revision of existing guidelines and promoting their implementation;
Set up functional laboratory services to provide high-level expertise in laboratory diagnostics and quality control including conducting research and training to support these activities;
Contribute to the establishment and strengthening of partnerships to fully support the joint regional activities of the Global Laboratory Initiatives (GLI) to promote uptake of WHO/AFRO policy guidance and use of GLI laboratory strengthening, including:
Serving as focal point to coordinate technical assistance and strengthen laboratory capability at the sub-regional, regional and inter-country national levels, in close cooperation with other VPD staff and other clusters as appropriate;
Lead critical reviews and assessments, documenting key achievements;
Promote information-sharing on best practices in laboratory technologies through the analysis and interpretation of data and evidence-based results and strategies;
Provide technical expertise and advice to Member States and partners, regional and sub-regional networks;
Encourage close collaboration at/between regional, sub-regional and country levels and WHO collaborating centres, including
Promotion of Information-sharing through video-conferencing, informal consultations and, as required, inter- and/or sub-regional meetings;
Ensuring collection, collation and analysis of data from countries and regular reporting on the situation of laboratories at IST level,
Preparation and submission of annual global progress reports, development and maintenance of up-to-date sub-regional and national databases as part of the development on new/improved tools and strategies;
Support the development of related work-plans and budgetary proposals as required within the framework of WHO staff Rules and Regulations; financial rules and AFRO accepted procedures;
Contribute to resource mobilization for the Cluster’s programmes, in collaboration with EPG, ORD and WCOs;
Qualifications, experience, skills and languages
Educational Qualifications:
Essential:
Degree in biomedical science with post-graduate degree or training in microbiology.
Desirable:
Post-graduate training in public health or epidemiology.
Experience:
Essential:
A minimum of 7 years of national and international experience in managing or implementing the technical requirements in the field of laboratory methodologies and procedures;
Experience in project management of tropical/communicable diseases reference laboratory projects at country level, including project planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, quality assurance, research and/or health worker training.
Desirable:
Work experiences that are diverse, incorporating private sector, NGOs, other UN, or governmental Health related agencies will be an advantage.
Knowledge and Skills
Demonstrated knowledge and skills in laboratory methodologies, technologies, procedures and biosafety aspects;
Ability to plan, coordinate and implement laboratory protocols in countries;
Knowledge and skills in monitoring and reporting on results, progress, lessons learnt and obstacles;
Skills in the assessment of laboratory-based surveillance, including but not limited to the development and implementation of norms and standards and effective reporting mechanisms and systems, and/or M&E.
Languages
Essential: Expert knowledge of English or French with Working knowledge of the other.
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of Portuguese.
The above language requirements are interchangeable.
