National consultant – Health Economics Specialist, Dar es salaam, Tanzania, (For 10 Months). – Home based.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.  

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.  

And we never give up.  

For every child, care 

The United Republic of Tanzania (URT) has renewed its commitment to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and has adopted Primary Health Care (PHC) as a main pillar for its action to achieve its UHC goals. Optimal Public Financial Management (PFM) in the health sector is a key prerequisite for effective and efficient use of scarce resources.   

UNICEF and the Government of Tanzania are collaborating on several health financing initiatives. The Health Economist (consultant) will lead costing exercises, identify, and address key public PFM bottlenecks affecting health services delivery, conduct fiscal space analyses to identify efficiencies within the existing resources envelope, and generate solid economic evidence to inform the climate and health agenda.  

The deliverables will be used by key stakeholders at the national and sub-national level, including the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance and Planning, the President’s Office for Regional Administration and Local Government, selected regional authorities, other UN agencies and International Financial Institutions.   

 The results will inform decision making on influence the size, composition, equity, efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency of health spending at national and subnational levels.  

How can you make a difference?  

The objective of the consultancy is to generate solid economic evidence to optimize PHC services financing.   

By the end of the assignment, the consultant will be expected to answer the following questions:  

1. What is the effect of the multiple funding flows on the delivery of PHC services in public health facilities in Tanzania?  
2. What are the drivers the PHC spending differences across the country and how they translated into results?  
3. What are the financial and environmental benefits resulting from the switch to the HPV one dose schedule?  
4. What is the carbon footprint of PHC facilities and how can emissions be reduced?  

 This will be achieved through the following activities:  

• Examine the timeliness and completeness of PHC funding flows, determine the financial management burden they pose on providers, and identify opportunities to streamline the funding flows to health facilities and improve their financial management.  
• Identify the drivers of inequities by analysing the relationship between health systems inputs, per capita PHC spending, and services outputs and outcomes at the regional level across the country.  
• Estimate the economic and environmental benefits, measured as reduced carbon emissions, associated with the switch of HPV one dose vaccination.  
• Estimate the carbon footprint of selected PHC facilities, identify and cost opportunities to reduce emissions.  

Secondary data on health sector outcomes and spending will be provided by UNICEF. The consultant will be expected to travel to Dodoma to engage with government officials and stakeholders and to conduct primary data collection as needed.   

WORK ASSIGNMENT, DELIVERABLES, DELIVERY DATE AND PAYMENT IN (%)  

PAYMENT SCHEDULE  
Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.  

 ASSESSMENT / SELECTION PROCESS AND METHODS 
The Financial Proposal should include all costs of this assignment including fee, travel costs, accommodation as UNICEF will not pay any DSA. The financial proposal should be in Tanzania shillings.    

Proposals will be both technically and financially evaluated. The technical part will carry a weight of 75%, in which the consultant will be evaluated in terms of their education level and work experience. The financial part will carry 25% showing the proposed budget breakdown of consultancy cost for each deliverable (fees, travels and accommodation) and eventual total consultancy cost.   

LOCATION, DURATION & LOGISTIC  
The consultancy is Home-Based. The consultant will be required to travel including 4 travels to Dodoma for the dissemination workshops and 6 travels to select regions for data collection.  

The period of the contract will be for 10 months.   

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…   

• PHD in Economics, Health Economics Public Health, or a closely related field  
• A Masters Degree with 7 years of additional professional experience (15 years in total) can be accepted in lieu of PhD. 
• At least 8 years of professional experience working on health financing, economic analysis, and policy in Tanzania. 
• Track record of quantitative data analysis  
• Demonstrated experience writing technical documents  

For every Child, you demonstrate…  

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).  

 To view our competency framework, please visit  here.  

 UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. 

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.  

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.  

 Remarks:   

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.  

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.  

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.