Zimbabwe Country Health sector context assessment with a focus on Sexual Reproductive Maternal Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (SRMNCAH): VSO

Deadline: 10 March 2021

Background

VSO is an international development agency with over 60 years’ experience of addressing poverty and marginalisation through our unique approach of working through international, national and community volunteers. By bringing together different perspectives and working at all levels of society – from communities to government ministries – volunteers can build trust and provide the right support to ensure that national development efforts deliver lasting change. Our works falls into the three thematic areas of Health, Education and Livelihoods.

Objectives of the consultancy

The objectives of this assignment are to: assess the policy, institutional and operational situation mainly the bottlenecks/gaps/emerging issues in the health sector particularly in the area of Sexual Reproductive, Maternal Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (SRMNCAH); identify practical solutions and recommendations that VSO - through its Volunteering for Development (VfD) method - can contribute to in achieving UHC and the health SDGs in the country; provide a compilation of the five key UHC policy tools and innovations that aim at delivering the SDGs targets by 2030 and leaving no one behind in the area of SRMNCAH. The compilation should include description of the tools/innovations, promoters and analysis of documented criticism and support for the same. detailed links or attachments should be included

More specifically, this assignment will aim to address the following areas: Analyse the key development priorities and opportunities that affect SRMNCAH in the country. Part of this will include analysing the extent to which the external factors e.g. Climate Change, COVID 19, gender discrimination, social exclusion and a lack of social accountability have affected SRMNCAH at all levels in the country. Please use a PESTLE analytical framework (Political, Economic, Socio-cultural, Technological, Legal and Environmental) to conduct the analysis; Analyse the current status of the blockages/gaps in SRMNCAH at policy, system, individual, family and community level that hinder the full achievement of the country’s socio-economic objectives, UHC and health SDGs. A particular focus will be on barriers that affect the delivery of Primary Health Care/ Community health-based services; Identify the future trends and innovations in line with the country’s strategy in the areas of SRMNCAH; Map the key stakeholders in country (including governments, government institutions, Civil Society, other INGOs, Private Sector, UN agencies and other multilateral agencies, Foundations, Academia and institutes etc.) and their roles and responsibilities within the health sector (with a focus on SRMNACH). Identify opportunities and any barriers that exist in terms of effective engagement towards the achievement of the health SDGs in the country. Explore areas of interest and influence, especially where VSO can add value; Assess the understanding amongst the key strategic stakeholders at national and local levels about how VSO’s Volunteering for Development model adds value and can contribute towards the realisation of UHC and the health SDGs in country; Undertake a donor mapping of potential donors who are funding Health in the country and analyse the donor trends over the next few years in terms of the typology, interests, Strategic priorities and funding etc. in SRMNCAH