Health Finance Specialist (Health Economist), P-3/P-4, Luanda, Angola #118651 (Temp Appointment - 364 days)

Contract

This is a P-4 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 141,458 USD and 182,381 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, health

The government of Angola has renewed its commitment to achieving Universal Health Coverage and adopted Primary Health Care as a main pillar for its action to achieve its UHC goals. Optimal Public Financial Management is a strong prerequisite for rational use of increasingly scarce and limited resources to achieve tangible results for the most vulnerable children and women and the population.

How can you make a difference?

The Health Finance Specialist will provide support to the Ministry of Health in the areas of health financing. This include fiscal space analysis, revenue collection, costing of interventions, health planning and budgeting, procurement, and reform of public financial management systems. The ultimate objective is to contribute to health system strengthening to achieve universal health for all. Beyond the Ministry of Health, the Health Finance Specialist is expected to develop close collaboration with other key partners including the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Economics and Planning, other UN agencies and IFIs. The ultimate objective is to influence the size, composition, equity, efficiency, effectiveness and transparency of health spending at national and local level.

S/He will provides a broad range of technical assistance to facilitate the achievement of concrete and sustainable results, according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM), organizational strategic plans and goals, standards of performance, and accountability framework, in collaboration and leveraging with the other UNICEF sections.

The Health Finance Specialist reports to the Deputy Representative, Programme and works in close collaboration with the Chief, Health and Nutrition and the Chief Social Policy, for sector-specific technical guidance.

Key functions/accountabilities:

1. Data-driven health financing and spending

• Prepare timely health system analysis, including equity analysis, cost effectiveness analysis and public health expenditure reviews and empower UNICEF Angola with evidence for dialogue in improving the efficiency of health spending
• Support and guide UNICEF Angola for the development of national health financing systems towards Universal Health Coverage, including revenue collection, pooling, and purchasing, to assure access to needed promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative services without financial hardship
• Prepare data-driven situational analyses of the state of health systems, health services and health care financing supporting the monitoring of health sector performance including general financing indicators, Sustainable Development Goals and UHC indicators
• Undertake health sector budget analysis to inform UNICEF’s advocacy and technical assistance to Ministries of Finance and Health, to improve equitable allocations for essential services for children.
• Work with Social Policy and support engagements in the analysis and understanding of the underlying social determinants of health to develop and implement health policies and programmes that enhance health equity and integrate pro-poor, gender-responsive, and human rights-based approaches.
• Facilitate the analysis of social and economic trends and health financing information with a focus on implications on fiscal space for health services and support engagement for policy dialogue and formulation
• Advocate for and support efforts to leverage resources for sustainable health system strengthening
• Provide technical support in the design, implementation and monitoring of innovative health financing initiatives to ensure sustainable and equitable financing and universal health coverage
• Support the development of an investment case for health tailored to specific country contexts to resonate with ministries of finance and/or other target audiences
• Collaborate with the central and local authorities to strengthen capacity on quality data collection, analysis for policy development, planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring of essential social services, with emphasis on community participation and accountability

2. Improving use of health sector public financial resources

• Provide technical assistance to government ministries and entities in developing health financing strategies, including advice on the right strategic purchasing and provider payment mechanisms
• Provide support to Ministry of Health on budget planning & preparation, revenue collection, pooling, and procurement
• Work with sector colleagues to build capacity to undertake costing and cost effectiveness analysis on priority interventions to help inform policy decisions on child-focused investments.
• Carry out analyses on fiscal space, out-of-pocket spending, benefit incidence, or a national health accounts exercise
• Undertake and build capacity of health sector partners for improved monitoring and tracking of public expenditure to support transparency, accountability and effective financial flows for essential health service delivery, including through support to district level planning, budgeting and public financial management as well as facilitating community participation.
• Support health sector financial reporting and accountability at national and local level.
• Support the Government to regularly monitor and measure the equity, efficiency, and effectiveness of health expenditures

3. Advocacy, networking and partnership building

• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with health sector government counterparts, national stakeholders, as well as global partners, allies, donors, and academia. Through active networking, advocacy and effective communication, build capacity and exchange knowledge and expertise to facilitate the achievement of programme goals on child rights, social justice and equity.
• Prepare communication and information materials for CO programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships/alliances, and support fund raising for health programmes (maternal, neonatal and child survival and development).
• Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate inter-agency discussions and planning on health-related issues to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNSDCF planning and preparation of health financing programmes/projects.
• Support compelling use of finance data and evidence in advocacy materials and campaigns.
• Collaborate with WHO, World Bank, other UN agencies and implementing partners to support country-level technical assistance on public financing: costing, financial and fiscal space analysis, budgeting and design of financing mechanisms to benefit children and women
• Advocate, during strategic discussions with Ministries of Finance and Health and other key decision makers and stakeholders to influence agenda setting in favour of health and wellbeing of children, women and young people

4. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Design and implement in-country studies to evaluate the cost of specific health interventions and programmes
• Document and disseminate lessons learned from regional, national efforts in strengthening health systems and expanding health coverage for UHC and of efforts to improve partnerships for sustainable health systems strengthening
• Produce high quality written reports and presentations, including technical documents, project status reports, policy briefs, and publications for conferences and journals
• Share good practices in equity based and gender equality programming and systems strengthening practices at the national and regional level
• Develop and implement country-specific national capacity building strategies
• Provide technical leadership and coordination of relevant operational research, thus contributing to the knowledge base in health systems
• Disseminate relevant academic research findings, publications, presentations and reports

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in health economics, health financing or public financial management or closely related field is required.
• A minimum of five years of relevant professional experience in for the P3 level (or eight years at the P4 level) in a public finance or economic development role within the national/international health sector
• Prior experience developing costing /using costing tools (OneHealth Tool, CHPCT, EQUIST) is an asset
• Preference will be given to candidates who have demonstrated knowledge of and professional experience in at least two of the following areas: Public Financial Management in health, health economic analysis (especially cost analysis), strengthening public health financing and governance, Health Systems Strengthening applications and programmes.
• Experience working in a developing country is considered as an asset.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.
• Fluency in English is required. Fluency in Portuguese is strongly preferred; alternatively, fluency in Spanish, Italian or French would also be considered an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA).

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are:

• Builds and maintains partnerships (1)
• Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (1)
• Drive to achieve results for impact (1)
• Innovates and embraces change (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)
• Thinks and acts strategically (1)
• Works collaboratively with others (1)

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.