Background

The Bureau for Development Policy (BDP) is UNDP’s policy Bureau and backbone of the global practices. BDP has a key role to play in helping country offices to accelerate human development through strengthening the practice areas within UNDP’s programmes.  BDP supports the development and design of projects that are responsive, effective and contribute to the national-level policies and results. Driven by demand, BDP provides the tools, analysis and capacities that country offices need to make a real difference in UNDP’s practice areas.
 
BDP support of UNDP’s Strategic Plan 2008-2013 and its 6 thematic areas (Poverty Reduction, Governance, Environment and Energy, HIV, Health and Development, Capacity Development, and Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment) together with the regionalization process require it to support a strong and vibrant practice architecture which can ensure that UNDP, at all levels, benefits from consistent and coherent policy direction, rigorous quality standards and valuable service platforms. 
 
HIV, Health and Development Approach
 
UNDP is a founding cosponsor of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), a partner of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, and a co-sponsor of several other international health partnerships. UNDP’s work on HIV, health and development leverages UNDP’s core strengths and mandates in human development, governance and capacity development to complement the efforts of specialist health-focused UN agencies. UNDP delivers three types of support to countries in HIV, health and development. 
 
First, UNDP works with partners to address the interactions between governance, human rights and health responses.   Sometimes this is done through focused or specialized programmes, such as promoting attention to the role of the human rights, law and legal environments in facilitating stronger HIV responses, including the use of flexibilities in intellectual property and human rights law to lower the cost of health technologies and to increase access to HIV-related
treatment. UNDP also works to empower and include marginalized populations who are disproportionately affected by HIV, such as sex workers, men who have sex with men and people living with HIV; this includes increasing access to justice for these populations. Beyond these focused efforts, UNDP plays a key role in ensuring attention to HIV and health within broader governance and rights initiatives, including support to district and municipal action on MDGs, strengthening of national human rights institutions and increasing access to justice for marginalized populations.
 
Second, UNDP helps countries to mainstream attention to HIV and health into action on gender, poverty and the broader effort to achieve and sustain the Millennium Development Goals. For example, UNDP works with countries to understand the social and economic factors that play a crucial role in driving health and disease, and to respond to such dynamics with appropriate policies and programmes outside the health sector. UNDP also promotes specific action on the needs and rights of women and girls as they relate to HIV.
 
Third, as a trusted, long-term partner with extensive operational experience, UNDP supports countries in effective implementation of complex, multilateral and multisectoral health projects, while simultaneously investing in capacity development so that national and local partners can assume these responsibilities over time. The UNDP/Global Fund partnership is an important part of this work, facilitating access to resources for action on MDG 6 by countries that face constraints in directly receiving and managing such funding. UNDP partners with countries in crisis/post-crisis situations, those with weak institutional capacity or governance challenges, and countries under sanctions. When requested, UNDP acts as temporary Principal Recipient in these settings, working with national partners and the Global Fund to improve management, implementation and oversight of Global Fund grants, while simultaneously developing national capacity to be able to assume the Principal Recipient role over time.
 
The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund and Access and Delivery of New Health Technologies for Neglected Tropical Diseases
 
The majority of deaths caused by infectious disease are of poor people living in low and middle income countries with many occurring in children under five. HIV, malaria, tuberculosis (TB) and other epidemics continue to devastate communities throughout the developing world.The prevalence of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), endemic in 149 countries, also remains high.
 
As part of its work on accelerating progress on the MDGs, UNDP is committed to working with partners to achieve the health related MDGs including MDG 8.E specifically aimed to address the sector gap in research and development (R&D) funding for new global health technologies for global diseases and their availability: “in cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries.”
 
Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) provide an opportunity to combine the private sector’s capabilities in research and development of health technologies with the public sector’s work in health policy and ability to strengthen capacity in developing countries. For these reasons, UNDP is partnering with GHIT, a Japanese non-profit PPP in efforts to incentivize innovation for NTDs, and with WHO and PATH to provide advisory services and strengthen capacity for the access and delivery of new global health technologies for TB, Malaria, NTDs, and other diseases in low and middle income countries (LMICs).
 
Reporting to the Policy Advisor on law, rights and treatment access, the Programme Advisor will be responsible for managing these partnership and activities. He/she will provide strategic direction and technical and programmatic advice to national stakeholders, working in close collaboration with project partners and other stakeholders.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions

  • Provide strategic direction and day to day leadership;
  • Maintain strong partner relationships;
  • Provide advisory services on access and delivery of health technologies and on enabling legal environments;
  • Oversee efficient management of financial and human resources.
Provide Strategic Direction and Day to Day Leadership
  • Lead the strategic direction and day to day management of the UNDP GHIT Project and Access and Delivery Partnership;
  • Ensure the efficient management of the operational relationship between UNDP and GHIT;
  • Ensure project alignment with UNDP’s mandate of strengthening capacity to accelerate human development;
  • Oversee the implementation of  project activities and outputs;
  • Monitor project operations to ensure strategic direction and timely adjustment of project goals as required;
  • Ensure regular  and high-quality programmatic and financial reporting as well as communication of results;
  • Provide direction and liaise with staff, consultants and project partners to assess and manage risk;
  • Facilitate the organization of the Access and Delivery Partnership and Advisory Group meetings.
Maintain Strong Partner Relationships
  • Liaise with partners including GHIT, WHO and PATH to establish mutually agreed outputs, activities, expected outcomes, and time-frames;
  • Liaise  with partners to support effective delivery of outputs within agreed timeframes;
  • Maintain regular communication with partners to monitor and review progress  in implementing agreed work-plans;
  • Host partner workshops to monitor operations and review strategic direction;
  • Oversee joint work planning and budgeting by UNDP, WHO and PATH in implementing the project .
Provide advisory services on access and delivery of health technologies
  • Lead the provision of technical and advisory services on access and delivery of health technologies, both to recipient countries and to partner organizations;
  • Establish research, development and innovation learning networks involving countries and development partners;
  • Strengthen capacity of national and regional stakeholders on innovation models for neglected tropical diseases;
  • Lead the provision of capacity development support on enabling legal and policy environments, including intellectual property and licensing.
Manage Interface with Donors and Oversee Efficient Management of Financial Resources
  • Lead resource mobilization for the Access and Delivery project;
  • Meet regularly with donors to report project progress;
  • Manage documentation necessary for donor audits and reporting;
  • Support donor renewal of funding;
  • Oversee management of donor funds and regular monitoring and reporting on delivery.
  • Report to the Access and Delivery Advisory Group on use of funds, and funding needs

Impact of Results

The key results have an impact on the overall economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of the project delivery “Building Capacity for the Access and Delivery of New Global Health technologies for TB, Malaria, NTDs, and other Diseases” or the “Access and Delivery Project” funded by the Government of Japan and managed within the Bureau of Development Policy. Key results are especially important in the following areas:
  • UNDP will be able to optimally manage effective programme implementation and the financial resources entrusted to it by the GOJ;
  • UNDP will show the highest level of expertise in advisory services for capacity building on access and delivery of new health technologies to recipient countries and GHIT. Results to include:
  • Networks between eligible R&D learning centers and partners established;
  • Capacity developed on innovation models, enabling legal and policy environments for access and delivery of new health technologies;
  • Capacity developed for government officials and research institutes to negotiate licensing and technology transfer agreements;
  • UNDP will be able to set a standard of practice in working with WHO and PATH that can be scaled up for project expansion or additional projects.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:
  • Demonstrates integrity and fairness, by upholding the UN/UNDP’s values and ethical standards;
  • Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of UNDP;
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
Functional competencies:

Leadership
  • Strong managerial/leadership experience and decision-making skills;
  • Ability to conceptualize and convey strategic vision from the spectrum of development experience;
  • Experience in Project Management, with a strong knowledge of partnership management, and public-private partnerships.
Managing Relationships
  • Demonstrated well developed people management and organizational skills;
  • Strong ability to manage teams; creating an enabling environment, mentoring and developing staff;
  • Excellent negotiating and networking skills;
  • Strong resource mobilization and partnering skills;
  • Ability to address global development issues;
  • Demonstrated project management leadership and ability to integrate knowledge with broader strategic, policy and operational objectives;
  • A sound global network of institutional and individual contacts.
Knowledge Management and Learning
  • Ability to strongly promote knowledge sharing and knowledge products and services;
  • Ability to understand and respond promptly to the needs of  internal and external partners;
  • Demonstrated ability to collaborate with others in own unit and across boundaries; acknowledge others' contributions; promote collaboration and facilitate teamwork across organizational boundaries;
  • Open to new ideas; shares own knowledge; applies knowledge in daily work; builds partnerships for learning and knowledge sharing;
  • Promotes knowledge management in UNDP and a learning environment in the office through leadership and personal example;
  • Seeks and applies knowledge, information and best practices from within and outside of UNDP.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • An advanced degree in public health, international  law or a related field.

Experience:

  • Minimum of 10 years’ experience in the health sector or global development;
  • Proven technical expertise and track-record of providing relevant advisory support in developing countries;
  • Proven ability to manage programs with complex partnership arrangements;
  • Relevant experience in strengthening the capacity of government officials and/or civil society in public health, innovation or a related field.
Language Requirements: 
  • Fluent in English;
  • Working knowledge of another UN official language is an asset.