Immunization Officer- COVID vaccination and response

Contract

This is a UNV National Specialist contract. This kind of contract is known as National UN Volunteer. It is normally only for nationals. More about UNV National Specialist contracts.

With more than 10,000 staff members, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) works in over 190 countries and territories to protect the rights of every child. UNICEF is one of the longest-serving international organizations in Myanmar, with almost 70 years of service in the country, working to improve the lives of children and their families.

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

More information on what we do in Myanmar is available here.

The National UNV will have the opportunity to work at the Health & Nutrition section based in Yangon/Nay Pyi Taw and UNICEF field offices based in Shan, Chin, Kachin, Rakhine and Kayin (also covers Mon and Tanintharyi).

First COVID 19 case was identified in Myanmar at 23/3/2020, which triggered Ministry of Health and Sports (Now Ministry of Health) the implementation of

Under the guidance of Chief, Health and Nutrition Section and direct supervision of the Immunization Manager, the International UN Volunteer will carry out the following tasks:

The overall objective of the Immunization Officer post is to support UNICEF/WHO led COVID-19 vaccination roll out and revitalization of routine immunization as part of comprehensive contingency health response initiatives and programming,

Main tasks and responsibilities:

Support to programme development and planning



Closely coordinate with WHO and other developmental partners at national and sub-national levels to adapt National COVID Vaccine Deployment Plan (NCVDP) to reflect evolving contexts and to meet different potential conflicting requirements, while ensuring to achieve targets
Support collection and analysis of timely, comprehensive and current data to inform NCVDP and revitalization of routine immunization plan adaptation, and implementation and monitoring
Support proposal and resource mobilization materials development and report preparation to be submitted to different developmental partners



Support Implementation of NCVDP and revitalization of routine immunization plan



Work closely with WHO and other developmental partners at sub-national level to develop and establish partnerships with any organization/network acceptable from different angles, including developing programme documents and monitoring indicators for partnership
Support to sustain close working partnership with all stakeholders through active and regular sharing of information and knowledge on evolving COVID pandemic, prevention and treatment options and build capacity of stakeholders
Provide technical and coordination, support to roll-out the recommended/adapted NCVDP and routine vaccine revitalization activities



Monitoring and Analysis of coverage, vaccine stock and cold chain data, and keep monitoring implementation of interventions



Use simple tools like Excel, access, ODK or kobo-co

, Accountability, Adaptability and Flexibility, Building Trust, Commitment and Motivation, Communication, Creativity, Empowering Others, Ethics and Values, Integrity, Judgement and Decision-making, Knowledge Sharing, Leadership, Planning and Organizing, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity, Self-Management, Technological Awareness, Working in Teams

A minimum of three years professional experience in development planning and management in public health/immunization related areas, at the international level, is required.

Knowledge and understanding of the immunization programming in low-resource settings, particularly in the context of complex emergency;

Ability to develop and coordinate public health/immunization programmes that target IDPs/returnees is considered a strong asset;

Ability to mobilize and coordinate multiple health sectors to incorporate immunization programmes

Relevant experience in health/immunization programme development in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset;

Experience in both development and humanitarian contexts is considered an added advantage.

Myanmar is second biggest country in term of land after Indonesia in South East Asia Region. It has population of over 54 millions living across seven States and Seven Regions plus Union Territory, where all central government departments are located. About 70% of population are living in rural areas and main economy of Myanmar is agriculture. Myanmar is subtropical and tropical country with three distinct seasons: Summer (from March to June), Rainy (from July to October) and Winter (from November to February).

Sittwe, is the capital of Rakhine State, Myanmar. Sittwe, pronounced sait-tway in the Rakhine language, is located on an estuarial island created at the confluence of the Kalandan, Mayu, and Lay Mro rivers emptying into the Bay of Bengal. The city has 181,000 inhabitants.

Sittwe is currently a “Level 4” area and therefore the Designated Official for Security for Myanmar must receive a travel notification in advance and provide security clearance. On 1 February 2021, the Myanmar Military took over the power from the democratically elected government and declared a state of emergency. Following the takeover, the security situation in the country worsened. Since 30 March 2021, there has been a family restriction in place and eligible family members of international staff members have been evacuated. Civilians especially governmental staff joined a Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). Consequently, provision of almost all the public services is affected especially banking and health care systems. In addition, as numerous anti-coup groups are now shifting focus from peaceful demonstration to armed revolution, security situation in Myanmar is currently volatile and unpredictable. Acts of violence by both parties of the conflict can occur anywhere, anytime and a further deterioration of the security situation is possible.