Consultant - Infectious Hazard Prevention and Preparedness

Contractual Arrangement : External consultant
Contract Duration (Years, Months, Days) : ‎11 months
Job Posting : Jul ‎10, ‎2023, ‎8:23:‎28 AM
Closing Date : Jul ‎17, ‎2023, ‎4:59:‎00 PM
Primary Location : Egypt-Cairo
Organization : EM/WHE WHO Health Emergencies Programme (WHE)
Schedule : Full-time

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‎1. Purpose of the Consultancy
The consultant is expected to work with the IHP team and IMST secretariat and
all technical pillars in supporting multi-disease outbreak and other
mechanisms to strengthen the capacity of member states to better prepare,
prevent and control disease outbreaks.
‎2. Background:
In recent years, countries of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region have faced
repeated outbreaks from emerging infectious diseases with the potential to
cause a global health emergency. Outbreaks of such diseases have a significant
impact on health and economic development in the Region. In ‎2022-‎23, at least
‎20 of the Region 's ‎22 countries have reported outbreaks from emerging
infectious disease including COVID-‎19. The likelihood of the emergence and
rapid transmission of high-threat pathogen diseases has increased considerably
in the Region, as there are many countries affected directly or indirectly by
acute, protracted humanitarian emergencies, which have led to an unusually
high number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees living in
overcrowded, overburdened spaces, with little or no access to basic health
care services and environmental infrastructure. The other risk factors
contributing to the emergence and rapid spread of epidemic diseases in the
Region include rapid urbanization in the Region, climate change, weak
surveillance and limited laboratory diagnostic capacity, and increased human-
animal interaction.
Between ‎2022-‎23, a number of disease outbreaks confirmed and responded in the
region include cholera and other water-borne diseases, Crimean-Congo
haemorrhagic fever, dengue fever, malaria, circulating vaccine-derived
polioviruses, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and others. These
infectious diseases continue to pose major public health problems in the
Region with high number of mortalities and morbidities and pose challenges for
effective control. WHO/EMRO continued to provide technical, financial and
operational support to the countries affected by different disease outbreaks.
The Regional Office established different incident management systems to
better coordinate the response and support member states. Since early ‎2022,
Multi-Disease Outbreak incident management has been operational with multiple
technical pillars to support the member states while coordinating WHO's
support to the disease outbreaks.
Major challenges in prevention and control efforts for emerging and other
epidemic-prone diseases in the Region include knowledge gaps on the risk
factors for transmission and disease epidemiology of a number emerging and
epidemic-prone infections that are commonly prevalent in the Region, weakened
or fragmented disease surveillance systems for early detection of health
threats, limited laboratory diagnostic capacities owing to fragile health
systems in crisis affected countries, insufficient investment on disease
surveillance and response activities and the absence of a cohesive and
inclusive country focused strategy for prevention, containment and control of
emerging and epidemic-prone diseases.
Under the Infectious Hazard Preparedness (IHP) Unit, the consultant is
required to support the readiness, preparedness, and response capacities to
emerging infectious disease outbreaks, support the incident management
structure, and documenting IHP work and impact of disease outbreaks to
priority countries.
‎3. Planned Timeline
Start date: ‎15/‎08/‎2023
End date: ‎14/‎08/‎2024
‎4. Work to be performed:
Output ‎1: Analyze and document the readiness, preparedness, and response
capacities to emerging infectious disease outbreaks for priority countries.
* Deliverable1.‎1: Conduct analysis on the emerging infectious disease outbreaks, which may include but not limited to cholera readiness, preparedness, and response
* Deliverable ‎1.2: Document IHP's ongoing efforts to assist member states in preventing and controlling disease outbreaks, which may include but not limited to support on manuscript development and outbreaks management-related regional meetings
* Deliverable ‎1.3: Extend technical support to other workstreams within IHP unit, promoting cross-cutting issues.
* Deliverable ‎1.4. Develop a manuscript about disease outbreaks in the region in collaboration with different workstream and submit to peer reviewed journals.
Output ‎2: Extend technical support to the secretariat of the Multi Disease
IMST in the Region and other IMST for public health emergencies
* Deliverable ‎2.1: Measure the implementation of and document the activities conducted by the IMST pillars, in the areas of trainings, tools/guidance development, and support missions.
* Deliverable ‎2.2: Participate in developing periodic progress reports on the activities, achievements and challenges the IMST faced in the response, in addition to its performance, in collaboration with all the counterparts involved.
* Deliverable ‎2.3: Support and facilitate the country-specific mission agenda and concept note, following the standard template.
Output ‎3 Support joint IHP and EMO work on strengthening the public health
institutes and Centres for Disease Controls (CDCs) in emergency preparedness
and response especially infectious hazard preparedness and response
* Deliverable ‎3.1: Design survey on capacities and systems in place by National Public Health Institutes (NPHI) and CDCs in the Region on managing infectious disease hazards.
* Deliverable ‎3.2: Support the data collection and analysis of survey.
* Deliverable ‎3.3: Develop meeting materials (relevant to infectious hazards) for a regional consultative meeting with NPHIs and CDCs.
* Deliverable ‎3.4: Participate in the regional meeting and support presentation of findings from survey on NPHIs and CDCs.
‎5. Technical Supervision:
Hiring manager: Shaza Mohammed, Medical Officer, Infectious Hazard
Preparedness Unit, Health Emergencies Department [email protected]
Collaborator: Eman Mamdouh, Programme Assistant, IHP/WHE [email protected]
‎6. Specific requirements
* Qualifications required:
* Essential: University degree in public health or health related sciences
* Desirable: Master's Degree in public health or health related sciences
* Experience required:
* Essential: At least five years of experience in public health including demonstrated experience working with multidisciplinary counterparts. International experience is mandatory.
* Desirable: Prior experience within the United Nations System and working with the international partners
* Skills / Technical skills and knowledge:
* Excellent oral and written communication skills in English language
* Organization and efficiency skills
* Data handling and analysis skills
* Interpersonal communication and collaboration skills
* Language requirements:
* English expert level required, intermediate level of French or Arabic is desired.
‎7. Place of assignment:
* Cairo, Egypt
‎8. Medical clearance:
* The selected Consultant will be expected to provide a medical certificate of fitness for work.
‎9. Travel :
* The selected Consultant may be expected to travel to countries of the Region upon request
Additional Information:
* This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
* Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
* A written test may be used as a form of screening.
* If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
* For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
* WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
* WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
* Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.
* WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.
* WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.
* Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority. The execution of the work under a consultant contract does not create an employer/employee relationship between WHO and the Consultant.
* WHO shall have no responsibility whatsoever for any taxes, duties, social security contributions or other contributions payable by the Consultant. The Consultant shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions and any other contributions which are applicable to the Consultant in in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the Consultant shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.
* Consultants working in Switzerland must register with the applicable Swiss cantonal tax authorities and social security authorities, within the prescribed timeframes (Guidelines issued by the Swiss Mission are available at: https://www.eda.admin.ch/missions/mission-onu-geneve/en/home/manual-regime-privileges-and-immunities/introduction/Manuel-personnes-sans-privileges-et-immunites-carte-H/Non fonctionnaires et stagiaires.html