Senior Technical Advisor

The Government of Rwanda has achieved significant momentum behind Universal Health Coverage (UHC) reforms, enabling equitable access to quality health services for its population as outlined in the Fourth Health Sector Strategic Plan (HSSP IV). Progress has been made against a backdrop of rising health care costs and uncertainty around the future availability of development partner funding. Rwanda has achieved high levels of enrollment in its Mutuelles de Santé or community-based health insurance (CBHI) scheme and subsidizes care for the poor. The challenge now is to sustain these gains. Acknowledging this, the Government aims to employ effective, equitable, efficient, innovative and sustainable health care financing approaches to guide reforms of existing financing mechanisms.

CHAI’s Health Financing Program supports the government in implementing reforms towards the goal of universal health coverage; ensuring that patients can access the care they need without suffering financial hardship. In partnership with Global Fund, CHAI will support the government in operationalizing the Health Financing Strategic Plan (2018 – 2024) by strengthening critical financing systems to sustain the delivery of critical services. This work will illustrate practical steps towards the goals of UHC and donor aid transition.

Position Overview:

Under the supervision of the Senior Program Manager, the Senior Technical Advisor will work with the government to develop and implement strategies for raising domestic resources, coordinating and planning for donor transition. This will include improving how funding is utilized to prepare systems for development partner transitions.

CHAI is seeking a highly motivated, entrepreneurial individual with outstanding planning, Public Finance, Health Financing, Management, analytical and communication skills to serve as a Senior Technical Advisor. S/He will provide technical assistance to government counterparts at the Ministry of Health primarily and support linkages with the Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB) and Ministry of Finance.

 Key Responsibilities:

The Senior Technical Advisor will be responsible for advising the senior leadership of MoH and partners on all matters regarding domestic resource mobilization, and coordination of transitions in health financing that sustain and increase gains in UHC. More specifically, the position holder will be responsible for:

• Lead the development of long-term aid transition plans and short-term mechanisms to strengthen coordination of donor and domestic resources
• Assess and provide advice on policy, priorities, and strategies for improved mechanisms to mobilize new resources for health with a focus on domestic resources
• Develop tools and identify opportunities to improve technical and allocative efficiencies of health resources, to ensure that changes in funding translate into tangible or sustained improvements in service delivery
• Devise strategies to ensure the sustainability of programs that heavily rely on donor funding, including a fundraising strategy, and mapping the network of key donors and partners to fundraise for health and social affairs
• Assess the impact of health financing policies, and improve access to key financial information in order to determine the feasibility and sustainability of scaling up pilot health finance interventions.
• Support collaborative efforts to strengthen institutional capacity and linkages between government institutions including the Ministry of Health, RSSB and MINECOFIN on the cross-cutting health financing agenda
• Serve as a strategic thought partner for government leadership on critical policy decisions and reforms, providing evidence to inform decisions. This may mean developing decisions memos or similar and discussing the evidence with government leadership directly
• Participate in the design and implementation of technical support activities related to health finance action plans and policies.
• Support in the strategic connection with UN agencies, NGOs, CSOs and private foundations to align country priorities in domestic health Financing and resource mobilization
• Develop strategies for private sector engagement in domestic health financing
• Participate in or represent MOH in external meetings with stakeholders and donors.
• Other duties as requested by MOH and (or) Country leadership.

Education and Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in a relevant field such as health economics, health financing, public financial management, public policy, finance, statistics or other relevant disciplines
• At least 10-years of professional experience in a demanding results-driven environment, with increasing levels of responsibility and leadership
• Demonstrated experience managing complex projects, working with high-level stakeholders and building consensus. Work with governments on health systems reforms is an advantage.
• Experience informing the development of government strategy, policy, and operational plans, preferably in health or health systems is an advantage;
• Excellent problem solving, analytical, and quantitative skills;
• Strong communication skills, including the delivery of compelling presentations and documents in Microsoft PowerPoint and Word;
• Exceptional diplomacy and interpersonal skills demonstrated the ability to build strong professional relationships with a range of stakeholders in a challenging, multi-cultural environment;
• Ability to work independently, set priorities, and handle multiple tasks simultaneously;
• Ability to learn on the job quickly and absorb and synthesize a broad range of information;
• Strong command of the English language; strong writer, facilitator, and oral communicator
• Professional experience working with government authorities in developing countries, with experience in sub-Saharan Africa;
• Experience working in public health and with international organizations;
• Familiarity with a broad range of key global health issues, including health systems or health financing challenges in developing countries.

Interested candidates should email a letter of interest (maximum 1 page) outlining how their background meets the requirements outlined above; CV (maximum 3 pages); and the names of three references to [email protected] or online