JOB DESCRIPTION

Job title:Country Director, Cambodia and Vietnam

Reporting to:Head of Programmes – Asia and Latin America

Responsible for:All HPA staff in Cambodia and Vietnam

Base:The post is based in Phnom Penh with regular travel to Vietnam and their provinces.

Background

Health Poverty Action has been working to strengthen poor and marginalised people in their struggle for health for over 30 years.

In this time much has been achieved – but much more remains to be done. We look to the future with hope, and with our passion and commitment as strong as ever.

Inspired by a vision of Health for All, we work with those whose health suffers as a result of injustice, to strengthen their voice and increase their power over the determinants of their health – so that they are able to access their rights.

We are part of the worldwide People’s Health Movement, approaching health as not solely a medical challenge but a multi-sector responsibility – and above all a fundamental issue of justice and human rights.

Three factors give our work a distinctiveness that has proven extremely effective:

  1. We emphasise the need for justice rather than charity

We work to tackle not just the symptoms of poor health, but its root causes. In particular, we recognise the profound importance of the social, economic and political determinants of health – hence our name, Health Poverty Action.

  1. We prioritise people missed out by others

International development initiatives tend to cluster together, the same factors leading numerous organisations to particular places. This can leave large populations with almost no support at all. They may be living in hard to reach areas, or difficult to support for other reasons. We make these most marginalised and neglected populations our priority.

  1. We specialise in an integrated approach

This is especially important for the poorest and most marginalised people, who face so many threats to their health. Tackling one problem in isolation might give the appearance of success, but actually do little more than change the cause of death. Addressing multiple factors together can be mutually reinforcing – and give rise to creative combinations and innovation.

Our work falls into four categories:

  1. In-country development programmes

We work with communities across Africa, Asiaand Latin America, to help them tackle the factors denying them their health rights. This includes improving health systems and disease control, food security and nutrition, water and sanitation, gender justice and eradicating harmful local practices (such as FGM), and income generation and social enterprise.

  1. Influencing policy and practice

We lobby and campaign to change the unjust policies and practices that deny poor and marginalised people their health rights.

  1. Responding to emergencies

When a crisis arises, and when we are in a position to contribute positively, we work with those affected to respond – doing so not as an isolated external intervention, but as integrated support to their ongoing struggle for health justice.

  1. Provision of contracted services (such as consultancy)

These can provide valuable social benefits in their own right, while also generating income for Health Poverty Action – which is ploughed back into our work.

Until 2010 Health Poverty Action was called Health Unlimited. Today we work in 15 countries, benefiting many millions of people each year. We employ approaching 500 staff overseas, mostly recruited from the populations they serve, and around 25 people work in our HQ/London-based head office. Our annual income is currently around £15 million.

Over the years, Health Poverty Action has developed close relationships with marginalised communities who have learnt through bitter experience to trust few others. They might be marginalised because of ethnicity, culture, gender, geography, politics, economics – or even all of these.

Health Poverty Action is proud to be one of a small number of organisations recognised as being structurally part of the global People’s Health Movement. This quote from the founding document of this movement, the People’s Health Charter, sums up the essence of Health Poverty Action’s values and identity:

“Health is a social, economic and political issue and above all a fundamental human right. Inequality, poverty, exploitation, violence and injustice are at the root of ill-health and the deaths of poor and marginalised people. Health for all means that powerful vested interests have to be challenged, and that political and that economic priorities have to be drastically changed. This Charter encourages people to develop their own solutions, and to hold accountable local authorities, national governments, international organisations and corporations.”

Health levels and poverty levels are inextricably bound together. Each is both a cause and a consequence of the other. Put positively, this means there is great power in an approach that addresses both of them. Improvements in one yield improvements in the other. This is the approach Health Poverty Action is committed to. It makes health first and foremost not a medical challenge – though that plays its part – but a fundamental issue of justice and human rights.

Our programmes attach a high priority to strengthening health systems. We have helped increase the capacity of staff, buildings, equipment and supplies. We have also supported areas such as immunisation programmes, safe birthing and prevention of life-threatening diseases such as malaria, TB, HIV, diarrhoea and other dangerous infections. Health education initiatives promote safer motherhood, improved sexual and reproductive health, and other aspects of health-seeking behaviour. Health Poverty Action’s programmes also attach great importance to other factors that affect health, such as sexual and gender based violence, nutrition, water and sanitation, income generation, and other social, economic and environmental determinants of health.

If you feel passionate about the cause Heath Poverty Action serves, then the role of Cambodia and Vietnam Country Director is one in which you will be able to put that passion to immensely valuable use. It will be a fantastic home for someone who has a progressive heart, an entrepreneurial and opportunistic spirit, and an enthusiasm to develop new and innovative approaches that will inspire, persuade, and engage large numbers in effective action for change.

It can be a demanding job. But it is also a fantastic job. You will have the chance to do varied and exciting things, be part of a warm and friendly team, and work with some wonderful people in the wider movement. Above all, you will have the opportunity to make a profoundly powerful contribution to a truly great cause.

Main Functions of Post

  1. Provides overall management for ongoing programme in Cambodia and Vietnam ensuring good financial and general management of the programme, staff, office and resources.
  1. Develops and implements a country strategy which is consistent with HPA’s Strategic Framework, and which includes identification and development of new project initiatives for Cambodia and Vietnam.
  1. Represents HPA in Cambodia and Vietnam in the promotion of excellent relationships with central and local government departments, donors, international organizations, other NGOs and in-country donors. Seeks opportunities to influence policy, raises funds for HPAprojects from in-country donors, and increases the profile of HPA in Cambodia and Vietnam.
  1. Maintains communication with HPA HQ/London on project development, funding, financial matters and social/economic/political developments in Cambodia and Vietnamthat may affect current/future HPA operations.

Specific Responsibilities

  1. Overall Programme Management and Administration

Programme Management

  • Oversight of the Key Managers in the development and implementation of annual workplans, outputs and activities as per the projects’ design
  • Oversee the Key Managers in formulating adequate and timely responses to internal and external influences which affect or have the potential to affect project progress, and report on these changes to HPA HQ/London
  • Ensure that the Cambodia and Vietnam programme is effectively monitored and evaluated, closely oversee the Country Senior Management Team.
  • Report to HPAHQ/London on the progress and problems of current HPA projects in Cambodia and Vietnam, and any other future Projects in accordance with HPA and donor guidelines

Financial and Budget Management

  • Oversight of the Key Managers to prepare annual and monthly budgets in accordance with donor contract
  • Oversight of the preparation of monthly project accounts, ensuring that these comply with HPA’s requirements for submission to HPA HQ.
  • Ensure that project expenditure is monitored against budgets, reporting monthly and quarterly on variances
  • Ensure that efficient and secure financial management systems are maintained in the projects and are documented in office policies
  • Ensure that all HPA assets are maintained, stored securely and used in accordance with agreed activities
  • Monitor and identify appropriate sources for match fund requirements and coverage of funding gaps
  • Provide timely and effective oversight of the financial position of the country program including identification and implementation of required changes to match funding levels
  • Maintain effective and coordinated budget monitoring processes for grant funds and occasional discretionary funds

Human Resources Management

  • Recommend project staffing levels and job descriptions to HPA HQ.
  • Develop and maintain human resource policies and procedures for national and international staff in line with the HPA Global Human Resources Policies and Procedures and the Cambodia and Vietnam labour code and guidance
  • Oversee all required national staff recruitment, orientation/briefings, training and performance appraisals
  • Provide support and assistance to project staff in an emergency situation
  • Promote team-building activities and carry out conflict resolution, as necessary.

  1. Country Strategy and Programme Development

  • Develop and maintain a detailed understanding of relevant health, social, economic and political developments in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Finalise a country strategy for Cambodia and Vietnam consistent with HPA’s global vision, mission, and strategic planIdentify and recommend possible new projects for HPA in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Draft project proposals for submission to donors
  • Where appropriate, support the development of national NGOs in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Seek out and develop partnerships with international and/or national NGOs in Cambodia and Vietnam where such a partnership will add value to the work of HPA.

  1. Representation, Coordination, Policy Influencing and Fundraising

  • Develop a funding strategy for current and future projects in Cambodia and Vietnam, in consultation with HPA HQ/London
  • Develop good relationships with the representatives of donors based in Cambodia and Vietnam, and negotiate with them for funding
  • Build strong relationships with donors, government, and other stakeholder to raise the profile of Health Poverty Action in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Seek opportunities for HPA to influence policy and practice in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Liaise with central and local government departments, international organisations, and other NGOs, especially those related to the health sector
  • Represent HPA in appropriate national networks
  • Represent HPA in Cambodia and Vietnam ensuring all legal requirements are met.

  1. Communications

  • Maintain communication with HPAHQ/London and advise on developments in the health sector, as well as on social, economic and political developments in Cambodia and Vietnam
  • Facilitate good communication between HPACambodia and Vietnam staff and project partners

  1. Additional duties

  • Contribute to the development of HPA globally through input into strategic development etc.
  • Undertake other duties as may reasonably be requested by HPA HQ/London

Person specifications

Essential requirements
  • Significant experience as a health and/or development manager, preferably in South East Asia
  • Significant experience of project cycle management
  • Masters degree in relevant discipline such as public health, development, human rights
  • Detailed knowledge of priority public health and poverty issues in South East Asia
  • Extensive knowledge and experience of project accounting, budgeting and financial management
  • Representational skills, diplomacy and the ability to communicate and negotiate at all levels
  • Proven experience at building relationships with donors, government, and other key stakeholders
  • Proposal and report writing skills
  • Extensive programme development and fund raising experience, prior experience with European, US and international donors
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
  • Demonstrable computing skills (word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, internet)
  • Identification with HPA’s vision
  • A capacity to be flexible under difficult, stressful conditions
  • Experience supervising and managing a multi-disciplinary team in a cross-cultural setting;
  • Strong communication and inter-personal skills; must be a strong team player;

Desirable

  • Experience of working in and/or managing health projects in South East Asia.
  • Experience of designing public health interventions, preferably in Asia.
  • Experience of developing and managing relationships with donors
  • Knowledge of Cambodia and/or Vietnam’s government system
  • Experience of working in Cambodia and/or Vietnam

Salary and benefits

Gross salary and benefits starting at approximately USD 60,000/GBP 47,000 annually, depending on experience, inclusive of annual pension, annual living allowance, annual rental allowance, and annual home leave / flight allowance. 30 days of annual leave (including home leave) per year.

Closing date for applications:31st October 2016, midnight UK time

Interviews:Week of 5 November likely, negotiable

Expected start date:December, negotiable

Thank you for considering working for Health Poverty Action