ABOUT AMREF HEALTH AFRICA

Amref Health Africa was founded in 1957 and has since grown to become the largest African-based international health development organisation; currently implementing more than 180 programs, reaching more than 40 million people across 35 African countries; and a staff complement of over 2,000. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, Amref Health Africa has offices in ten countries in Africa – Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Guinea (Conakry), Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. An additional eleven advocacy and fundraising offices are located in Europe and North America.

Amref Health Africa is driven by its vision of **‘**Lasting health change in Africa’ and its mission **‘**To catalyze and drive community-led and people-centred health systems while addressing social determinants of health’. We believe that the power to transform Africa’s health lies within its communities, and therefore strive to ensure that health systems are not only functional but that communities are empowered to hold these systems accountable for the delivery of quality and affordable health care.

Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) is integral to health service delivery and responding to health development needs. As a champion of Universal Health Coverage (UHC), Amref Health Africa prides itself in working directly with communities and governments to build strong community health systems. Technical Assistance (TA) delivery and Health Financing are among the critical paths to improving health systems resilience, progressing toward the attainment of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and more importantly, driving the impact on health outcomes. Amref’s goal is to drive the delivery of technical assistance to governments and civil society organizations across Africa, increasing knowledge platforms and thought leadership. Amref Health Africa has mobilized resources to create opportunities for countries and units across the organization to catalyze the provision of innovative technical assistance approaches. To deliver on its mandate the HSS directorate has four main pillars i.e. Health Financing, Reproductive Maternal Child and Adolescent Health [RMNCAH], Primary Health Care, and Social Determinants of Health (SDoH).

JOB PURPOSE

Amref Health Africa is seeking a highly motivated and dynamic person in the deepening of the health financing functions and their interactions in strengthening health systems in Africa. The successful candidate should have strong experience in providing strategic and technical advice across various stakeholders including governments, development partners, implementing partners and internal directorates within the context of health economics and health financing. As a Senior Health Economist, the candidate will provide thought leadership to Amref Health Africa and its partners in the areas of revenue mobilization, pooling, purchasing, and benefit entitlement.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Evidence Generation and Translation:

• Develop and design different economic analyses [at micro and macro-economic] levels to include fiscal space analysis in the health sector,
• Lead, coordinate, monitor, and roll out health economic analysis [ to include health technology assessment [HTA], technical and allocative efficiency, economic evaluation, fiscal space analysis among others that generate evidence to inform decision making for strengthening health systems]
• Reviewing policies and guidelines related to medication reviews in Swedish healthcare regions.
• Conducting econometric analysis using large register-based datasets.
• Develop and support the translation of evidence through high-quality learning products to include manuscripts for peer review papers, policy briefs and other forms of publications that target high-level decision-makers and stakeholders in the health sector,
• Use findings from analytics [economic and impact] through technical reports for use by stakeholders in health systems including donors, governments, and health programs
• Participate and represent Amref Health Africa in policy dialogue forums to disseminate evidence generated on health financing and health systems,
• Performing health economic evaluations while identifying interrelationships between health financing and other pillars within the HSS directorate to build the synergy and coherence needed for efficient health systems.
• Identify and implement appropriate analytic approaches and methodologies to improve on current processes
• Design and implement sound tools for principal health care drivers, by market segment and/or by provider/payer, referral patterns, and reimbursement rates
• Develop, evaluate, and provide consultative analytics to support negotiations for value-based arrangements
• Design and implement processes (SQL) to efficiently measure, monitor, and forecast revenue from payers.
• Determine credibility and usability of data prior to delivery of analytic results
• Build and utilize final report results in Tableau environment
• Reviewing policies and guidelines related to medication reviews in Swedish healthcare regions.
• Conducting econometric analysis using large register-based datasets
• Performing health economic evaluations. and support the institutionalization of reforms on health financing and health systems within government systems

Program Management:

• Lead development and technical oversight of a strategic portfolio of health systems financing and economics work for the directorate that links with and leverages relevant global agendas
• Support Amref Health Africa and HSS directorate in building an ecosystem of partners who support country-level technical assistance on health economics: costing, fiscal space analysis, budgeting and design of financing for PHC
• Coordinate and foster coherence across stakeholders and activities to increase capacity, evidence-based approaches and systemic change in health financing
• Provide support on the delivery of technical assistance framework, in close working relationships with the different pillars within HSS and Amref Health Africa while supporting Support technical leadership to define and grow health financing, health systems, and priorities,
• Participate in building knowledge and thought leadership in health financing and health systems thus contributing to increased Amref Health Africa visibility in this area,
• Support in the establishment of sustainable partnerships with governments, and regional blocks to influence health financing priorities, resolve challenges and barriers to strengthen sustainable health systems
• Providing national health systems financing and technical advice and support costing and economic evaluation work in a health economics and financing related field
• Build solid relationships within the organization including financial, actuarial, local market contracting, and clinical operations areas
• Encourage and promote idea generation in support of revenue generation strategies and other innovative solutions
• Support in the development of HSS work plans and budgets

Business Development-

• Support identification and proposal development to secure funding and business for HSS directorate and Amref Health Africa at large
• Negotiating and partnering with government, research and / or non-government entities in health-related field particularly in a development setting

Stakeholder engagement & Capacity building

• Beyond the formal engagement that Amref Health Africa has developed the successful candidate will foster relationships with key stakeholders in the health sector [Donors, implementing partners, learning institutions, and governments]
• Support the development of essential policy documents, guidelines, job aids, and toolkits
• Leverage on networks and existing regional convenings and platforms and support in building capacity on health financing to Amref Health Africa and health stakeholders.

Special Projects and Initiatives

• Support leadership in new, high priority efforts as opportunities arise in PHC and related areas
• Perform other relevant HSS interventions in coordination with the supervisor

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

The successful candidate will have a strong technical background in health economics and health systems and solid experience in delivering technical assistance. The candidate should be highly motivated, a creative problem solver, and have strong analytical, communication, process facilitation, and collaboration skills.

Education and Professional Qualification

• Master’s degree in public health, health economics, social policy, public policy or any other relevant field

Professional Qualification and Competencies

• Minimum ten (10) years of experience and technical knowledge of policy, advocacy, health system financing and governance,
• Prior experience in health economic modelling projects and/or health financing, particularly delivery of TA to strengthen public financing management, health financing capacity building, etc.
• Demonstrated experience of having built cost effectiveness and/or budget impact models from concept to conclusion including quality control, review, and critique of models
• Proven leadership in developing strategies, conceptualizing, planning, and implementing projects or programs.
• Track record in building partnerships with government health agencies, donors, and other key stakeholders,
• High level of organization, attention to detail, professionalism, and reliability. Ability to prioritize and manage work in a fast-paced environment and be responsive to internal offices/units and partners.
• Highly collaborative and accessible leadership style, with experience managing teams. enthusiastic about working in an open environment with multicultural peers and staff, including global, regional, national, local, public, and private sectors.
• Advanced level of proficiency developing economic models using Excel® and visual basic® for applications (VBA); experience developing economic models using R is preferred but not essential
• Experience in global evidence generation including cost-effectiveness and/or budget impact models
• Excellent research, communication and coordination skills, an acute eye for detail, together with a positive disposition will all be essential to enable you to help influence change at a senior level across the directorate
• Strong interpersonal and capacity-building skills, including training, mentoring, and coaching skills.
• Technically sound in health financing and health systems and ability to build and work with networks
• Technically sound in DEIB-focused approaches
• Fluency in French would be an additional advantage

Compensation

• This role attracts competitive benefits commensurate with experience

This is an immediate recruitment with a maximum of two months’ notice.