About

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is the implementing agency of the Federal Republic of Germany for technical and international cooperation. It offers flexible, sustainable and effective solutions in political, economic and social change processes. Most of the work of GIZ is commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). GIZ also operates on behalf of other German ministries as well as public and private bodies in Germany and abroad. These include the European Commission, the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the United Nations, the World Bank and governments of other countries.

BACKUP health is mandated by the BMZ, FCDO, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and the French Agency Expertise France for the period April 2020 to August 2023 to support governmental and civil society partners to leverage funding from global (health) financing mechanisms for the strengthening of their health systems mainly in Sub-Saharan countries. In Zimbabwe, all activities in the context of BACKUP are commissioned by FCDO.

To achieve this goal, the project will collaborate with partners in the respective countries primarily on four main areas: 1) Improve national coordination of global health financing: The objective is that management (planning and implementation) of globally financed programmes is coordinated nationally and based on national strategies; 2) Support the institutions of national health systems: Selected institutions in partner countries are supported in making use of their scope to influence global financing and to strengthen their national health systems. This may include developing and enhancing both HR and organisational skills; 3) Develop management of community-based health services at decentralised level: This includes, for example, analysing existing models of community-based health services and incorporation of the results in a model for integrated management of health services; 4) Mitigate the risks that the COVID-19 pandemic poses for GFATM programmes and national health systems: BACKUP provides technical support for reprogramming of GFATM grants, coordinating the COVID-19 response with other health sector processes and conducting risk assessments; Participation by civil society, key and vulnerable populations, human rights and gender equality are critical factors for programme success and serve as cross-cutting topics for the project.

Main tasks and responsibilities

Establish and maintain partnerships with stakeholders at national and decentralised level in the health sector; Support and maintain partnerships with national, bi- and multilateral stakeholders in the health sector; Provide advisory and capacity development services to BACKUP partner institutions and organisations in Zimbabwe; Support the coordination and monitoring of the implementation of ongoing Global Fund related projects and consultancies as part of the BACKUP portfolio and also support keeping track of developments of other global financing mechanisms such as GFF and Gavi with a special focus on the decentralised level; Based on overall BACKUP strategy and mandate, contribute to the ongoing development of the BACKUP portfolio and technical assistance approach in Zimbabwe.

Technical advise (Capacity Development)

Identify technical assistance (TA) needs and opportunities for support in BACKUP’s areas of cooperation, such as strengthening national coordination, the health system and the management of health services at community level with a special focus on partners´ needs at the decentralised level; Provide technical assistance based on the identified needs as well as analyse and incorporate cross-cutting themes such as community, rights and gender related to the interventions with a special focus on the decentralised level; Provide technical contributions to policies, guidelines and tools as may be required by programme activities; Organise, conduct and / or facilitate training sessions in relevant areas of work with a special focus on the decentralised level.

Management and coordination

Support the planning of consultancy and financial support to be provided by BACKUP based on the overall strategy of the project and specific partner needs; Operationalize the monitoring framework for the contribution of interventions in the Country to overall project objectives and indicators; Provide technical backstopping to local and international TA providers in his / her field of expertise; Prepare, attend and report on governance, programmatic and technical working group coordination meetings with; Manage and coordinate BACKUP interventions in the country (monitoring, technical and financial reporting, logistical management of workshops and field trips); Plan and support visits from TA providers and BACKUP headquarter staff; Support knowledge management for BACKUP by collecting and documenting good practices and lessons learned on Global Fund-related processes and TA approaches as well as for Gavi and the GFF.

Communication and networking

Promote partnerships and linkages between key stakeholders related to the Global Fund, disease specific as well as health system actors as well as for Gavi and the GFF; Support transparent communication and information sharing between all involved institutions and counterparts related to the Global Fund, Gavi and the GFF; Prepare BACKUP communication and coordinate public relations through national, regional and global publication of project outcomes (e.g in journals, news feeds and social media).

Coordination with other teams of relevant programmes in the Country

Coordinate planning, execution and monitoring of all national, regional and district activities jointly with other teams of relevant programmes in the Country to ensure a coherent and seamless support in the health sector from GIZ; Conduct regular meetings with other program´s project managers if applicable to update on progress, report on results and seek guidance on key challenges.

Other duties / additional tasks

The position holder: Performs other duties and tasks at the request by the BACKUP / GIZ management.

Qualifications and requirements

University degree (master’s level) in an area that is relevant to the program objectives, with a focus on public health, public policy or development studies; A master’s degree in public health (management) would be an asset; High ability to work in a team, organisational talent, intercultural competence and very good communication skills; High affinity to latest IT applications, e.g Microsoft applications etc.

Professional experience

Good understanding of global health architecture; At least 5-7 years professional experience in a comparable position; Work experience in the health sector in Zimbabwe with public and / or private institutions (e.g disease control, health service delivery, community development); Experience with health programmes financed by domestic and external resources; Experience in programme management for an NGO or development partner.

Other knowledge, additional competences

Experience with Global Fund and / or German Development Cooperation would be an asset; Highly motivated professional; A team player willing to take on responsibility; Strong managerial and organisational competence; Possessing a positive attitude to change; Tolerance to ambiguous situations and stress; Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to effectively interact in complex cooperation systems with various stakeholders (including senior government officials, civil society and key population representatives, project implementers and beneficiaries); Good communication and writing skills; Language skills: Excellent spoken and written English; Good IT knowledge; Willingness to upgrade knowledge as required by the tasks to be performed.