Technical Director: Social Determinants Amref Health Africa

Amref Health Africa is looking for a highly motivated and dynamic person to serve in this new
role as a Technical Director: Social Determinants providing strategic and technical leadership
of the global programme portfolio, which has entered the new 8-year strategic period. Working
closely with teams across Amref, the successful candidate will provide overall strategic
direction and technical leadership, implement the corporate TA strategy (technical
assistance), and invest in people-centered health systems, specifically in experience in the
social determinants of health including public health security, climate and health. The
incumbent will serve as a peer, to two other Technical Directors, who specialize in, Sexual and
Reproductive Health and Rights and Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent
Health; and Health Systems.
The successful candidate will therefore provide high-quality technical support to teams across
Amref and is expected be a thought leader. The role demands high visibility, both internally
and externally, including representation and creation of partnerships. The position is a
combined technical and managerial role.

The incumbent will primarily be responsible for the:
• Development, implementation and oversight of programme technical quality and standards across the organization. The Technical Director will be responsible for the development and implementation of programme technical strategies, service delivery models, protocols and guidelines.
• Building knowledge and thought leadership. Technical Directors are expected to represent Amref on high level panels, media interviews, meetings and in other forums which position the organization and grow its thought leadership agenda.
• Growing programmes and multi-country projects. The Technical Directors are responsible for identifying and growing multi-country projects. This includes developing work plans for country offices to implement programmes and multi-country projects. It further involves enhancing cross-country learning, improving documentation of lessons learned, dissemination/publication and translation of learnings into policy and practice to impact change.

Key responsibilities
• Develop technical approaches, protocols and service delivery models in alignment with the corporate strategy.
• Provide technical leadership and advisory services, overseeing the implementation of Amref’s programme portfolio. Oversee implementation of programs and multi-country projects, with a focus on impact, continuous learning and innovation. Exercise budget authority where applicable.
• Provide guidance and build capacity of Country Directors, Country Managers and technical/subject matter experts.
• Establish, guide and build the capacity of Communities of Practice (CoPs) to optimize learning across the organization, support growth of technical expertise and guide product development.
• Support the Business Development Department – participating on technical calls and brainstorming sessions and reviewing proposals.
• Oversee hosting partnerships as needed. Amref currently hosts seven entities: Advocacy
• Accelerator, Family Planning 2030, Gavi Civil Society Organizations Steering Committee, Shaping Equitable Market Access (SEMA), Strategic Purchasing Africa Resource Center (SPARC), Transform Health (and possibly the Joint Learning Network).
• Create and build partnerships that enhance the organization’s technical leadership at national, regional and global levels – donors, regional partners such as the African Union/Africa CDC, governments, civil society organizations, private sector; as well as research and policy institutions. Provide guidance to governments in developing and implementing health priorities, resolve challenges and barriers to build and sustain efficient health systems.
• Actively develop and maintain extensive networks with experts and opinion leaders to ensure the organization’s work is shaped by the most up-to-date insights and research.
• Lead efforts to actively seek opportunities to position Amref and showcase its contribution to Africa’s health agenda.

Skills and experience
• Advanced degree in public health, international development, medical anthropology or related field. MBA preferred.
• Experience in social determinants of health (including public health security, climate and health, etc.), is preferred.
• Strong technical background and experience in overseeing, or the delivery of, large public health/development portfolios.
• Minimum of ten years’ experience working on strengthening community and health systems, familiarity with strategy execution, multi-country programming and technical leadership, with proven track record in programme planning, budgeting, supervision and evaluation of health outcomes.
• A strategic thinker with an international perspective and good understanding of development issues and trends impacting Africa’s health agenda.
• Proven leadership in developing service delivery models, conceptualizing, planning, and implementing projects or programs. Proven experience in quality documentation and reporting.
• Demonstrated track record in building partnerships with government health agencies, donors, and other key health stakeholders.
• Highly effective leadership with demonstrated team building and supervisory experience; facilitating teams to work effectively while holding them accountable for results.
• Highly collaborative and accessible leadership style, with experience managing teams.
• Enthusiasm about working in an open environment with multicultural peers and staff, including global, regional, national, local, public and private sector.
• Places high value on quality improvement, applying managerial and technical skills to measure and improve efficiency and effectiveness and ensure compliance with all regulatory and contractual obligations.
• Demonstrates commitment to diversity and inclusion, valuing different perspectives and encouraging contributions by all team members who are geographically dispersed.
• Good networks that may be useful in advancing the best outcomes for Amref’s agenda.

Personal attributes
• Highly motivated strategic leader who is a creative problem solver and willing to disrupt the status quo.
• A leader with a continuous strive for excellence
• Strong interpersonal and capacity building skills, including training, mentoring and coaching skills.
• 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.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including demonstrated ability to effectively facilitate high-level meetings; prepare clear and concise briefs, presentations, and reports.
• Strong analytical, and process facilitation skills.
• Fluency in French is an added advantage.

Unique differentiators
• This exciting leadership role provides the opportunity to leverage access to populations
• groups, on behalf of Amref Health Africa, in the thrust of the new 8-year strategic phase.
• Working alongside established peers, and reporting to the Group Programmes Director, in this specialized role.
• Serving as a strategic and visionary leader, collaborating with high-level stakeholders across public and private sectors.
• Applying specialist knowledge and experience to achieve optimal results which will thereby broaden access to programmes and initiatives with the ambit of Amref Africa’s scope of work.