Key Population Policy Research

at The African Constituency Bureau to the Global Fund
Location Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Date Posted August 9, 2020
Category Business Development
Job Type Full-time
Currency ETB

Description

ABOUT AFRICAN CONSTITUENCY BUREAU FOR THE GLOBAL FUND (ACB)

The Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) has two constituencies representing Africa namely the Eastern and Southern African (ESA) and West and Central Africa (WCA) constituencies. The two constituencies took a joined-up approach in 2012 with a twofold intent: to ensure that constituency priorities are reflected in Global Fund strategy and operational plans; and to strengthen the presence, voice and contributions of the constituencies, through their delegations, in all Global Fund governance deliberations and processes. The constituencies adopted a new governance framework that amongst other things, established a joint ESA and WCA Bureau – the African Constituencies Bureau, ACB – a policy think tank that support ESA and WCA Global Fund board members, committee members and delegations. Its primary functions include ensuring effective engagement, representation and participation of African constituencies in Global Fund processes. It also seeks to enhance the capacity of the African constituencies to shape Global Fund policies and processes. The constituencies comprise a total of 47 countries.

The ACB, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, ensures effective engagement, representation and participation of African Constituencies, ESA and WCA, in Global Fund Board processes.

Background to this apportunity

The Global Fund, the biggest multi-lateral mechanism, is at the centre of the global community’s efforts to end AIDS, TB and malaria by 2030. The fund is in the process of developing its post-2022 strategic plan. There is so much at stake for this plan given it will be the last before the 2030 goal of ending the three epidemics. It cannot be business as usual and the margin for error is therefore extremely limited.

Africa bears the biggest share of the global burden of malaria and HIV and a considerable burden of TB. As the epicenter of the epidemics, it is critical that the continent is at the forefront of developing evidence-based interventions that will turn the tide of these epidemics and engage in discussions on the Global Fund’s next strategy. This will be a huge demonstration of the continent’s ownership of global strategies towards ending the three epidemics in 2030.

The African continent has made notable progress against the HIV epidemic, with ESA making the most gains. However, the gains are increasingly narrowing and achieving epidemic control targets is currently off track. The progress is fragile, and complacency will lead to backtracking on the last decade’s gains.

An increasingly important aspect of the HIV portfolio in Africa is the high and increasing new infections among key populations, especially in WCA region. In 2019, this group and their sexual partners constituted 62% of all new HIV infections globally, with WCA registering 69% compared to ESA’s 28%[1]. It is worth noting that in WCA’s new infections among KPs were 40, 64 and 69% in 2017, 2018 and 2019 – thereby marking a 29% increase in two years!

African leaders, including WCA leaders, have made commitments towards ending the HIV epidemic in Africa, including increasing access of services by KPs and additional effort including the following:

  • The Agenda 2063’s first 10 years of implementation seeks to “reduce 2013 incidence of HIV, TB and malaria by at least 80%
  • The 2013 Declaration of the special summit of African Union on HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria: dabbed the “Abuja actions towards the elimination of HIV and AIDS, TB and malaria in Africa by 2030 which agreed, among others:
  • Review relevant laws and policies at national and regional levels to strengthen rights-based protection for all vulnerable and key populations in the context of the three (3) diseases;
  • Meaningfully engage people living with HIV and members of other key populations as partners in ensuring accountability and the effectiveness of national AIDS, TB and Malaria responses;
  • The 2016 Catalytic Framework to end AIDS, TB and Malaria by 2030 strategy on discrimination seeks to “increase access to combination prevention services including HIV and SRH services to young people, men and women, and key populations” and “addressing HIV and human rights, gender equality, and offer HIV sensitive social protection”.
  • The 2016 Common African Position (CAP) to the UNGA special session high-level meeting on AIDS was “concerned…that stigma and discrimination remain key barriers to access to services in Africa, and addressing HIV and human rights is critical to ensuring that no one is left behind in accessing services” and recommended to the African Union Member States to “Leave no-one behind – human rights, gender and social protection…(by) establishing legal, political and social environments that enable effective HIV response – including through protective laws, supportive law enforcement and access to justice – to end all discrimination towards people living with HIV and other key populations, including health, education and work place settings”.
  • At a meeting of ECOWAS Member States in 2015 dabbed the Dakar Declaration on factoring key populations in the response to HIV and AIDS, the Ministers:
  • Noted that “in general, more than half of the new HIV infections occur within key populations and that they are the most-at-risk people in comparison with the general population;
  • Acknowledged that key populations are “groups of people more likely to be exposed to HIV or transmit it or whose commitment is critical to the success of the HIV response”
  • Recognized that without significant improvement in the AIDS response for key populations, it is impossible t end the AIDS epidemic;
  • Solemnly committed to creating the conditions for increased access and use of HIV and AIDS response interventions to key populations living in ECOWAS region and consequently, jointly undertake to:
  • Invest in stigma reduction programs;
  • Enhance community service provision for key population;
  • Streamline health systems strengthening to better meet the needs of key populations;
  • Relentlessly lay emphasis on key populations as a priority group in national HIV/AIDS response strategies; and
  • Strengthen strategic knowledge or information necessary to plan interventions for key populations and monitor progress towards the attainment of objectives.
  • In 2016, the WCA Catch-Up Plan acknowledged that “punitive laws and policies, and exposure to violence and discrimination, deter key populations from using the available services”.

As can be seen from the foregoing, therefore, addressing the HIV among the key population in Africa, and WCA in particular, is an important priority if the region is to end HIV by 2030. The ACB is therefore seeking to hire a consultant that will support he organization to map the status quo of key population epidemic in Africa, and the WCA region in particular, and provide evidence-informed guidance on how the region can move forward to end HIV in 2030.

Scope of work:

Below is the expected scope of work under this assignment:

  • The consultant is expected to undertake a desk review of the latest available evidence on countries faced with displacement, fragility and instability (COEs) and implications of this phenomena on delivery of HIV, TB and malaria programmes. The consultant must review applicable literature from peer-reviewed and published articles, normative evidence and guidance from leading technical organizations and policy and research think tanks, evaluations and reviews such as the Global Fund, technical organizations like the World Bank, WHO, UNHCR, etc. and other organizations such as the African Union. The consultant will be expected to share these resources for the ACB’s intranet which countries can access to further their work around COEs.
  • An in-depth mapping of countries affected by displacement, fragility and instability in Africa detailing the key trends, the progress and gains being made to meet objectives against HIV, TB & malaria, what’s working and what’s not working, remaining gaps and bottlenecks, best practices, enablers and the opportunities for streamlining HIV, TB and malaria programming in these regions;
  • Identify key global and African commitments relevant to displacement, fragility and instability;
  • Identify, review, analyze and compare applicable policies (similar to the Global Fund’s COE policy) from relevant organizations working in environments fraught with displacement, fragility and instability;
  • Where possible, the consultant shall be expected to interview and engage with key stakeholders to probe for, and validate, research findings. This shall include participating in the planned Constituency engagement sessions being organized by the ACB to identify the continent’s priority health issues and interventions, as part of a process to provide input to the next strategy for the Global Fund; and
  • Make evidence-informed recommendations on how Africa can maximize investments towards ending Malaria, TB and AIDS in regions affected by displacement, fragility and instability. The recommendations must address strategies, gaps, opportunities, enablers and actions needed to be taken by the Global Fund in its post-2022 strategy to streamline implementation of HIV, TB and malaria programs.

Deliverables:

  • Under this assignment, the consultant is expected to deliver the following deliverables:
  • Provide an inception report detaining how the work will be conducted. This should be provided one week after signing the contract.
  • A draft report detailing priority issues identified as strategic to Africa towards the next Global Fund strategy, the key findings and recommendations in word format.
  • A final report, no more than 50 pages[1], and making use of annexes, detailing the key findings, including:
  • A 3-paged Executive Summary of the research providing a synopsis of the key findings and recommendations;
  • Document some best practices globally and in Africa in particular
  •  Recommendations relevant for African countries towards integrating climate change and environment thinking as part of efforts to end the three epidemics by 2030. The recommendations
  • A PowerPoint presentation detailing the key findings and recommendations of the desk review.

Terms of the appointment:

The successful consultant will be expected to complete this assignment within 30 calendar days and should be willing and available to participate in a dissemination meeting with various stakeholders, including countries, technical partners and funders.

Job Requirements

Qualifications:

  • An advanced university degree in health policy, public policy, public health, climate change, environmental health, epidemiology, social sciences, or infectious diseases.
  • A PhD in a relevant field will be an added advantage.

Experience:

  • Preferred: a climate change and health subject matter expert with a minimum of 10 years of relevant experience, including program design and implementation, research and policy development in Africa.
  • Experience with undertaking evaluations of climate change and environment and/or health programs in Africa;
  • Proven experience in conducting qualitative assessments including policy analysis;
  • Experience with publishing peer-reviewed scholarly articles, including on various aspects of climate change and health;
  • Experience with disseminating research findings and making conference presentations with relevant stakeholders; and
  • Good presentation skills.

Applying Instructions

Interested consultants are requested to submit a technical and financial proposal for undertaking this 30-day desk review.

Proposal for this Consultancy should be directed to Info Mind Solutions acb@zebrajobs.com on or before August 30th 2020

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
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