Who we are
D-tree International is a leading digital health organization. We work to improve the quality of health systems in low and middle-income countries by exploiting digital technology in innovative ways. We are an interdisciplinary organization, working at the intersection of global health and technology. Expertise in both domains is essential to design and deploy systems which are both appropriate to particular contexts and effective in improving health outcomes. D-tree has been working in Zanzibar since 2010 on projects focused on maternal and child health. In close collaboration with the Zanzibar Ministry of Health, D-tree has trained more than 400 Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) who serve more than 80% of the population as part of the Safer Deliveries program. D-tree has scaled up this program throughout all of Zanzibar to support Community Health Volunteers to utilize digital tools to provide high quality care to pregnant women to encourage facility deliveries and postpartum follow up in order to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality.
Building on the success of the Safer Deliveries program, D-tree anticipates receiving two additional grants to expand and institutionalize the digital platform in Zanzibar. Over the next three years, D-tree will support the Ministry of Health in integrating child health counseling, care, and referrals into the digital health platform to support CHVs in providing care to under-five children. Additionally, we will adapt the platform for Zanzibar’s urban population and introduce the program into Zanzibar’s Urban district and urban parts of neighboring West District. As we expand the health content and geographical coverage of our program, we will significantly increase the number of CHVs involved in our program—from 400 to 1,300. Finally, we will partner with community health and health system strengthening partners to support the Ministry of Health in laying the foundation for institutionalizing the digital health platform. This includes supporting the MOH in developing guidance around community health volunteers, building MOH capacity to absorb responsibility for the digital health platform, and devising sustainable financing and management mechanisms.
Who you are
We are seeking a full-time Program Manager, based in Stone Town, Zanzibar, to work closely with the Program Director and manage the expanded Safer Deliveries program portfolio. This is a dynamic and challenging role requiring an individual with experience managing projects, leading and building the capacity of teams, engaging with a diverse group of stakeholders, and who has a passion for using technology and innovation in daily work.
You are someone who is just as comfortable developing work plans, schedules, and budgets as you are engaging in strategic conversations with the Ministry of Health and development partners. You have the ability to see the big picture, but also have an acute attention to detail. You enjoy thinking analytically about problems and logically developing protocols and processes to support workflows. You are a strong writer and you enjoy writing program briefs, reports, and technical documents. You are a systems thinker and are excited to think strategically about scaling programs and integrating them into government systems. You love data and enjoy analyzing data to understand and inform program planning. You are passionate about managing staff and committed to capacity building and mentoring.
What you will do
You will be a key member of the D-tree team and an integral part of the Zanzibar office. Your main role will be to work with the Zanzibar Program Director in managing the portfolio of programs. The portfolio includes: 1) the Safer Deliveries program, a four-year, Saving Lives at Birth funded cooperative agreement administered through USAID which runs through May 2019, 2) an 18 month Gates Grand Challenges immunizations pilot, 3) two anticipated awards (27 months and 36 months duration) that support the platform’s expansion to include child health and institutionalization within the government health system. You will support management of a team of nine – twelve staff in Unguja and Pemba to implement the program and continuously monitor and modify to meet program objectives and improve Ministry of Health ownership and integration. You will collaborate with the Program Director to support program administration and finances and reporting activities to USAID and other donors. You will also actively identify areas for collaboration and explore additional funding opportunities to expand D-tree’s portfolio in Zanzibar.
You will also learn about the technology used in D-tree’s work so that you can collaborate with D-tree technology staff to plan modifications and expansion of our mobile applications and program dashboards. As a result of understanding the technology, you will be better able to communicate the potential of D-tree’s work to existing and future partners. While based in Zanzibar, you will be an integral part of D-tree’s global team and regularly communicate with colleagues based in other offices, both in mainland Tanzania and internationally.
Project management
- Support Program Director with staff management and mentorship. Ensure that staff are motivated, empowered and given professional development opportunities
- Be accountable for finance, administration and donor compliance for the Zanzibar office
- Approve staff timesheets
- Approve advances and expenses
- Authorize mobile money and bank payments
- Ensure integrity of petty cash, mobile money account, and bank account
- Liaise with the Dar es Salaam based team on issues around procurement, finances and operations as needed
- Ensure compliance with D-tree and funder procedures and policies
- Manage grants across the Zanzibar portfolio, including general administration, information management, and budget monitoring and compliance with donor agreements.
- Monitor and report on progress on all project objectives; ensure staff and partners are kept on track to achieve results. Support writing workplans and reports for donors and the Ministry of Health.
Technology
- Gain a basic understanding of Mangologic software and mobile applications in order to support development of application specifications including flowcharts, detailed protocols, and tools
- Communicate about any bugs or updates to the mobile application with technical team to ensure usability of mobile applications
- Work with D-tree Program Coordinators to institute mobile application technical support and troubleshooting strategy to accommodate significant growth in number of CHVs utilizing the platform.
Program Implementation
- Collaborate with Program Director to develop program strategies and annual work plans and with Program Coordinators to develop quarterly and monthly work plans and budgets.
- Work with the Ministry of Health to develop child health content for the digital health platform. This includes devising child health counseling messages and triage and referral logic.
- Collaborate with team to devise and implement a strategy for training, deploying, and managing over 800 new CHVs and 100 new supervisors throughout Unguja and Pemba.
- Develop monitoring, supervision, and evaluation frameworks
- In collaboration with the D-tree team, develop and oversee implementation of mixed methods program evaluations, including the development of tools, oversight of data collection, and analysis.
Partnership building
- In close collaboration with the Program Director and Ministry of Health consultant, foster effective working relationship with Zanzibar government at all levels; collaborate on strategic planning and reporting activities
- Establish strategic alliances with other implementing organizations and donors in Zanzibar to explore areas for collaboration and expansion
- Support the Program Director and Ministry consultant to develop and implement strategies to support the institutionalization of the digital health platform. This may include supporting the Ministry in developing guidelines, policies, internal processes or structures, and building staff capacity.
- Communicate effectively through available forums at regional, district, ward and village level the position or/and role of D-tree International
- Working with the Program Director and Ministry of Health consultant, represent D-tree to senior government officials/personnel and with NGO partners
- Present project highlights and results at meetings and forums/conferences
What we are looking for
We are looking for a motivated, passionate individual who is willing to wear multiple hats and do what it takes to make our programs succeed. The following attributes are a general overview, but we will consider individuals who do not meet all of the details below if you have the right skill set and attitude.
Basic requirements
- Minimum 3-5 years’ work experience, including experience managing projects
- Experience managing, motivating and mentoring a team
- Experience living in a developing country strongly preferred
- Master’s degree in a relevant field desired, but not required (e.g. public health, global development)
- Superior analytic skills; ability to think logically and rationally about problems
- Must be able to work independently, multi-task, collaborate with a distributed team, be persistent and work under tight deadlines with minimal supervision
- Experience collaborating with and/or consulting for government agencies—Ministry of Health preferred
- Experience in developing and implementing strategies to efficiently expand and scale programs, while maintaining program quality
- Strong quantitative skills with the ability to interpret data and measure impact
- Excellent written and spoken English and Swahili (preferred)
- Experience working with funding from a diverse set of donors, including USAID and DFID (preferred)
Desired characteristics
- A can-do attitude: You remain optimistic in the face of adversity and creatively solve problems to get things done.
- A systems thinker: You are able to understand linkages and interactions between individual components in a health system, and design solutions to strengthen the overall system.
- An innovator: You enjoy thinking outside of the box and want to use that thinking to solve pressing global health problems.
- A detail oriented & strategic thinker: You pay attention to small details and focus on quality and consistency, but also have the ability to see the big picture and think strategically.
HOW TO APPLY:
To apply for this role please follow the instructions below. Applications which do not meet these requirements will not be considered.
Email the following documents to jobs@d-tree.org
Cover letter, clearly and concisely explaining how you meet each of the required skills and experience specified above
Your current Curriculum Vitae (CV) or resume, showing your work history & achievements
A writing sample
Include subject: “Zanzibar Program Manager”
Deadline for applications: Open until filled
If you are not contacted within 30 days please assume that your application has not been successful on this occasion. Due to the expected high level of interest in this role it will not be possible for us to contact those candidates who have not been shortlisted for interview.
This position is contingent upon execution of anticipated awards.