Job Description

Introduction

Abt Associates is a mission-driven, global leader in research and program implementation in the fields of health, social and environmental policy, and international development. Known for its rigorous approach to solving complex challenges, Abt Associates is regularly ranked as one of the top 20 global research firms and named one of the top 40 international development innovators. The company has multiple offices in the U.S. and program offices in nearly 40 countries.

The Local Health Systems Sustainability (LHSS) Project is USAID’s flagship initiative in integrated health systems strengthening, with a goal to help low- and middle- income countries transition to sustainable, self-financed health systems as a means to support universal health coverage. The project will support country-level efforts to reduce financial barriers to health care, ensure equitable access to essential health services for all people, and improve the quality of health care... Equally important, it will equip host countries to sustain progress after the project ends. It will do so by ensuring that local institutions and organizations have the technical capacity and expertise to independently design, implement, and manage continued health system strengthening activities.

Program Background

In Cambodia, LHSS focuses on two objectives: 1) Expand Social Protection Systems through Global Standards and Best Practices Incorporated into the Implementation of the National Social Protection Policy Framework to Improve Transparency and Accountability, and 2) Strengthen the Decentralization of Health Financing Functions to Ensure Effective Use of Resources for Health Including HIV and TB, to Improve Transparency and Accountability, and Improve Monitoring of HIV/AIDS Financing. Under objective 2, LHSS works with the National Aids Authority (NAA), MoH, national programs, provincial government administrations, provincial health departments (PHD) to improve the subnational health systems across a wide range of health areas including HIV, TB, malaria, maternal and child health (MCH), and family planning (FP) to provide technical assistance a) to provinces and PHDs in their efforts for health/HIV resource allocation and budget execution through strengthening health/HIV work planning and budgeting processes, b) to build sub-national health systems to additionally mobilize resources for improving TB diagnostics and care and treatment, and c) to improve the capacity of concerned stakeholders to effectively, efficiently, and sustainably manage and operationalize the SorChorNor #213 Monitoring System.

In this Year 3, LHSS has continued its technical assistance to the government institutions and programs relating to health and HIV. These include the NAA, the National Malaria Program (CNM), Ministry of Health and subnational health departments (provincial health departments). NAA’s current challenge is to reach the 95-95-95 targets (elimination of HIV as a public health threat) and to sustain the HIV response which will required improved policy and strategies, and strengthened country coordination and systems. CNM faces a similar challenge of malaria elimination and sustaining the malaria response including prevention of re-emergence (PoR). This document presents only a portion of LHSS’s technical assistance to the government.

LHSS is looking for hiring a high profile and self-motivated consultant who has extensive experience in health systems strengthening and health policy analysis and development to assist the NAA and CNM/MoH.

Key Roles and Responsibilities:

The consultant will be required to perform the following tasks:

HIV/AIDS
• Provide Technical Assistance (TA) to NAA and stakeholders in the development of:
• The national policy of Ending AIDS by 2025 and HIV Sustainability 2023-2028 which is being drafted in Khmer by NAA’s Core Team. This draft document needs to be translated into English and needs extensive feedback by involved stakeholders through a consultation process to ensure it follows participatory and consultative principles.
• The next National Strategic Plan “HIV Elimination and Sustainability Strategic Plan 2024-2030-HESSP” which will build on the current National Strategic Plan #5 (NSP5) and the milestones of the NSP5 Mid-Term Review consolidated by the High-Level Reflection Workshop on 20 September 2022 at the Raffles Hotel Le Royal. This new national strategic plan should serve as the implementation tool for the national policy above. It will also consolidate both health and non-health/multisectoral plans into one consolidated strategic plan for Cambodia.
• Draft and revise documents, collect and consolidate feedback, and facilitate meetings, interviews, discussions, and workshops. The consultant is requested to prepare and present slides to the NAA core group and the Inter-ministerial Technical Working Group (TWG).
• Travel to target provinces where LHSS is working with government officials from the offices of the provincial administration, PHDs, operational districts (ODs) and health centers (HCs) on health and non-health related activities.

Malaria
• Provide TA in the development of Cambodia’s National Strategic Plan for Malaria Sustainability 2025-2030 by working with CNM, WHO, Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), Cambodia Malaria Elimination Project 2 (CMEP 2), and other concerned partners. TA for Malaria NSP will include reviewing documents to collect data, drafting/revising documents, meetings/interviews with key people, facilitating workshop/group discussions, preparing materials, and presenting them to national stakeholders.
• Travel to target provinces where LHSS is supporting to work with provincial government officials in offices of the provincial administration, PHDs, ODs and HCs on health and non-health related activities.

Skills/Knowledge Required:
• University degree in Public Health or other relevant health field, MPH preferred.
• Bachelors + 14 years’ relevant experience, Masters + 12 years, or PhD + 10 years
• Solid experience in research on health system strengthening (HSS), health policy, community-system strengthening (CSS), and community health programming,
• Experience in engaging non-health actors to be involved in public health system and policy development.
• Strong understanding of Cambodia’s health decentralization and de-concentration policies and practices.
• Experience with Tuberculosis, Malaria and community health programming in resource-limited settings.
• Good understanding of Cambodia’s health and administrative structures and how they are connected to each other.
• Demonstrated ability to work with government officials in health and administrative sectors.
• Strong experience in conducting and facilitating meetings, discussions, and workshops.
• Proficiency in written and spoken English and Khmer languages.
• Well organized person.

Deliverables

Below are expected deliverables from the consultancy.
• National Policy to End AIDS by 2025 and HIV Sustainability 2023-2028 (Khmer and English)
• The National Strategic Plan “HIV Elimination and Sustainability Strategic Plan 2024-2030-HESSP” (English).
• Final draft of the National Malaria Sustainability Strategic Plan
• STTA Report

Level of effort and Timelines

Activity

# Of Days

Timeframe

Note

Translate the draft National Policy from Khmer into English.

3

March 1-15, 2023

Facilitate collection and consolidation of feedback/inputs in the national stakeholder consultation workshop

5

March 1-15, 2023

Revise draft document and submit to NAA

2

March 15-30, 2023

Participate and facilitate in Inter-Ministerial TWG meeting to collect and consolidate feedback

1

Revise the national policy document by incorporating consolidated feedback from the Inter-Ministerial TWG meeting

2

Draft the next National Strategic Plan “HIV Elimination and Sustainability Strategic Plan 2024-2030-HESSP” which will build on the current NSP5 and the NSP5’s Mid-Term review, and consolidated by the High-Level Reflection Workshop on 20 September 2022 at the Raffles Hotel Le Royal

20

May-August 2023

Write-up document on the HIV Country Systems to support the operationalization of the HESSP 2024-2030 and Implementation of the Ending AIDS Policy.

10

June 2023-July 2023

Draft National Malaria Sustainability Strategic Plan

20

May 2023-Septemebr 2023

Final short term technical consultancy report- STTA

0.5

15 days after end of consultancy

Total

63.5

Period of Performance: March 1, 2023 – September 30, 2023.

Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Travel Required: To target provinces including Battambang, Kampong Cham, and Svay Rieng
Phnom Penh Cambodia

Salary Criteria