UNDP Jobs - 54424- Regional Sustainable Financing HIV and Health Inte

Regional Sustainable Financing HIV and Health Intern

Location :

Istanbul, TURKEY

Type of Contract :

Internship

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

30-Apr-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

Intern

Duration of Initial Contract :

3-6 months, part-time or full-time (preferred)

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

starting date is flexible, candidates will be selected on repetitive basis throughout the year 2015

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

HIV is spreading faster in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States than in any other region in the world. According to the latest UNAIDS data, Eastern Europe and Central Asia remains the only region in the world where prevalence continues to climb. There are now an estimated 1.1 million people living with HIV . The epidemic continues to target young adults of working age, with over 90 percent of new HIV cases registered in the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

Multi-drug and extensive-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR and XDR TB respectively) also represents a large health issue. According to WHO, there are currently an estimated 81,000 people with MDR and XDR TB in the region and most of them do not receive proper diagnosis and treatment. The elimination of malaria is also on the agenda in the Central Asia sub-region.

Even though many countries in the region have made notable progress in addressing health issues in the context of economic, ecological and social development, significant gaps remain to be filled, particularly in view of achieving the health related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs 4 – Reduce Child Mortality, 5 – Improve Maternal Health and 6 - Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases) and the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

While many of the national health systems in the region (Eastern Europe and Central Asia) are still in transition, the financing of national HIV and TB programmes (and malaria programmes in Central Asia) are funded to a large degree by external sources, mainly the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GF). Due to changes in eligibility criteria, a number of countries in the region will no longer have access to these external resources in the near future and need to develop sustainable financing strategies which take also into account the need to scale up service coverage, as well as service quality and efficiency. Together with other UNAIDS co-sponsors and stakeholders, UNDP through its regional HIV, Health and Development Practice provides support to the countries in the region to put in place the best policies, strategies and inclusive processes for the sustainable financing of national HIV, TB and malaria according to needs particularly of the most vulnerable populations.

In this context it is critical to have precise data of current expenditures by national governments and international community on HIV, TB and overall health sector in each country, to make forecasts for short and medium term perspectives, and to analysis these data in the context of available macroeconomic and human development indices and in the context of country specific health financing mechanisms with the aim of scenario development for sustainable financing strategies. This approach includes country case reviews and documentation of sustainable financing initiatives already in progress at various stages and support to countries with the development of investment cases supporting their Global Fund NFM concept note development processes.

While the primary objective for this internship is contribute systematically to the editing of national and sub-regional reports, the intern will also contribute to the editing of fact sheets, policy briefs, blogs or papers for publication.

Duration: 3 to 6 months, start date is flexible and eligible candidates may be selected on repetitive basis.

Duties and Responsibilities

The selected candidate will work under the supervision of the UNDP HHD Programme Specialist and direct guidance of the International consultant on sustainable financing of HIV responses. The interested candidate will assist the HIV, Health and Development Unit at the Bratislava Regional Center in the following tasks:

Collection of HIV, TB, malaria and health expenditure data; collection of relevant macroeconomic and human development indices data for all countries in the region (Eastern Europe and Central Asia, EECA and South-Eastern Europe, SEE);
Collection of available reports of the evidences of effectiveness and efficiency of the NGO service provision in the context of concentrated HIV epidemics globally and in developing countries, with particular attention on systematic reviews;
Expenditure forecasts for HIV, TB and malaria programmes based on current and projected coverage and need;
Documentation of sustainable financing initiatives in countries of the region (EECA, SEE);
Checking data and references for their consistency;
Others as required.

Competencies

Good team worker;
Solid writing and communications abilities;
Strong organizational skills and the ability to multi-task;
Must be able to work in a multicultural environment and be aware of political sensitivities;
Responsible, responsive, and enthusiastic;
Be willing to work within the framework of UNDP’s internship policies.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Current enrollment in a graduate degree programme (second university degree or higher) of relevance to the duties and responsibilities described above.

Experience:

Knowledge of HIV, health and development terminology a strong advantage;
Experience in working with economic and financial data desirable;
Experience with public financing, health economics and health insurances an advantage;
Proficient with managing Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and data bases; proficiency with statistical software packages an advantage;
Experience in literature review is desirable.

Language:

Have good English oral and written communications skills;
Good command of Russian and other CIS languages an advantage.

Must be available at least 20 hours a week for a period of at least 3 months;

Application procedure:

The application should contain:

Brief Cover Letter (in English) stating interest in and qualifications for the post; (Please indicate in your cover letter, your motivation, actual dates of availability including number of hours per week, and any relevant work experience);
Current and complete CV in English;
Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

Candidates who are selected for must submit prior to the interview the following documents:

Official letter from the University confirming enrollment in a graduate-level degree programme;
Proof of medical and life/accident insurance valid for the location in which the internship will be carried out. Selected intern must have medical and life insurance.

UNDP only accepts interns for a minimum of 6 weeks and a maximum of 6 months.
Interns are not financially remunerated by UNDP. The costs associated with the latter must be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the student, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his or her own arrangements for travel, accommodation, etc.

Subsequent Employment:

The purpose of the Internship Programme is not to lead to further employment with UNDP but to complement an intern’s studies.
Therefore, there should be no expectation of employment at the end of an internship.
It is important to note that interns are responsible to arrange for their own visa and residence documents, and need to plan for these well in advance.