Summary

Save the Children is seeking a Deputy Chief of Party – Technical (DCOP) for an anticipated five-year USAID/Uganda Urban Health Activity. The goal of this activity is to address poor quality of care, congested public health facilities, uncoordinated referral system, weak community structures, limited private sector capacity, and gaps in enabling environment results in poor health outcomes in Kampala, Mukono and Wakiso.

The DCOP will be responsible for overseeing the design and high-quality implementation of health system strengthening strategies in urban Kampala, Mukono, and Wakiso. They will be responsible for overseeing the work of all consortium partners to ensure a coordinated and strategic approach to improve quality of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health services; referral systems; community engagement; and private sector capacity. They should liaise with local and national government counterparts, engage in local level planning, provide necessary guidance for capacity building, and ensure that activities are evidence-based, adapted to local context, and reflect state-of-the-art knowledge and best practices. The position will be based in Kampala, Uganda, for the five-year period of performance with frequent travel required to other project sites. The position will report to the Chief of Party.

This position is contingent upon donor approval and funding.

What You’ll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

• Provide overall technical leadership and guidance to the project team.
• Lead the design, planning, roll-out, and monitoring of evidence-based health systems strengthening approaches to support local health authorities to identify and address systemic issues preventing them from achieving high quality and equitable primary health care services in their areas.
• With the COP, lead the development and review of project work plans and strategies, and writing project technical documents.
• In collaboration with the COP, ensure that the program is delivered according to agreement with the donor and government, i.e., that all activities and deliverables are completed within the agreed timescale and budget, reports are submitted per agreed schedules and any other requirements or criteria are fulfilled.
• Support the identification and targeting of health inequities and the inclusion of vulnerable groups to ensure equitable access to quality health services.
• In collaboration with project staff and stakeholders, innovate, develop, document and disseminate new approaches to identify and address emerging health system challenges.
• Maintain good working relationships with officials, government ministries, implementing partners and the international and national NGO community.
• Work with program staff and technical advisors based in the country office and globally to identify the technical support needs of the program and ensure this support is provided.
• Facilitate the use of data and implementation learning to improve the project’s strategies and activities (including through the use of collaborating, learning, and adapting methodologies).
• Work with project staff and stakeholders to document, share learning and represent the project as appropriate at national and international events.

Required Qualifications

• Master’s or higher degree in public health.
• Demonstrated expertise in health system strengthening in Uganda, including demonstrated knowledge of the unique complexities of the urban health system.
• Experience working in maternal, newborn, reproductive, child, and adolescent health.
• Demonstrated technical expertise in leading a diverse team in similar programs in the region.
• At least 8-10 years of relevant experience with USAID or other donor-funded health programs.
• Professional experience interacting with country governments and counterparts; international donor organizations; civil society; and the private sector.
• Demonstrated experience developing and maintaining collaborative, equitable partnerships with consortium and other local partners, including developing the capacity of partners to improve the technical quality of programming.
• Personal commitment to child safeguarding, child rights, gender equality, and social inclusion.
• Excellent interpersonal, writing, and English language oral presentation skills.

Desired:

• Previous experience working with other development partners on similar types of programs.
• Current relationship with relevant stakeholders in Kampala, Mukono, and Wakiso Uganda, including government ministries, municipalities, city corporations, donors, private sector, and civil society.
• Fluency in other languages spoken in Uganda will be considered an asset.

Qualified local national candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

About Save the Children

No matter your role when you join Save the Children, each and every day you will challenge yourself to devote your skills, talent and expertise to changing the world for kids. It’s an ambitious goal, and a meaningful one no matter how you see yourself professionally: an accountant, a writer, a data analyst, a teacher, a driver, a designer, or any one of the hundreds of dozens of roles we’re looking to fill every day.

You see, Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.

Our work for children and their families requires that we commit—at every opportunity—to work together to identify and dismantle persistent systemic and structural racism, inequality, and any other forms of discrimination in this country and beyond. As an anti-racist organization, Save the Children will not tolerate discrimination in any form—in our employment practices, amongst our staff, in our leadership or toward the people we serve. We stand in solidarity with all people to fight for equal rights, justice, inclusion, and belonging.

We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Save the Children complies with all applicable laws.

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom we are in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse. In addition, it is Save the Children’s policy to create and proactively maintain an environment that aims to prevent and deter any actions and omissions, whether deliberate or inadvertent, that place children at the risk of any kind of child abuse. All our representatives are expected to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with this commitment and obligation.

Save the Children is committed to minimizing safety and security risks for our valued employees, ensuring all are given training, support and information to reduce their risk exposure while maximizing the impact of our programs for children and families. Our shared duty, both agency and individual, is to seek and maintain safe working conditions for all.