Project Manager - Pandemic Fund

Job Posting Organization:
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, WHO's mission is to promote health, keep the world safe, and serve vulnerable populations. With over 7,000 employees in more than 150 countries, WHO works in various areas including disease prevention, health systems strengthening, and emergency response. The organization operates globally, focusing on health issues that transcend national boundaries and require coordinated international action.

Job Overview:
The Project Manager for the Pandemic Fund will play a crucial role in coordinating and overseeing the implementation of both Multi-Country and Single-Country Pandemic Fund grants. This position requires a strategic approach to ensure that all activities, budgets, and deliverables align with approved grant proposals and donor requirements. The Project Manager will act as the primary liaison between WHO, implementing partners, government counterparts, and other stakeholders, ensuring effective communication and collaboration. The role involves monitoring implementation progress, identifying bottlenecks, and addressing challenges to ensure timely delivery of project objectives. The Project Manager will also be responsible for leading quality assurance activities, managing financial performance, and ensuring compliance with WHO standards and donor requirements.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The Project Manager will have a comprehensive set of responsibilities including: coordinating the overall implementation of grants, ensuring alignment with approved proposals and workplans, serving as the primary coordination point among stakeholders, monitoring implementation progress, leading capacity assessments and quality assurance reviews, managing compliance issues, overseeing contract and financial management, monitoring deliverables and performance, and providing regular updates to WHO management. The role also includes preparing consolidated reports, maintaining a grant reporting calendar, and ensuring timely submissions to governance structures. The Project Manager will be expected to implement corrective actions identified through reviews and audits, and maintain a centralized corrective action tracker.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess strong project and programme management skills, with a deep understanding of donor-funded programme implementation and governance. Knowledge of risk management, compliance monitoring, and quality assurance is essential. The ability to coordinate multiple stakeholders and manage competing priorities is crucial. Candidates should also have advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and project tracking tools, along with excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Strong analytical, report-writing, and presentation skills are also required to effectively convey project progress and compliance status.

Educational Background:
The ideal candidate should have an advanced university degree (Master’s level or equivalent) in Public Health, Health Systems Management, Project Management, Business Administration, Finance, Health Economics, Epidemiology, International Development, or a related field. Additional training or certification in project management, grant management, monitoring and evaluation, risk management, or quality assurance is desirable.

Experience:
Candidates should have at least seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in project management, programme coordination, grant management, or public health programme implementation. Demonstrated experience managing donor-funded programmes and coordinating multiple stakeholders is essential. Experience in monitoring and evaluation, compliance oversight, financial management, and reporting is also required. Desirable experience includes working with the Pandemic Fund, Global Fund, Gavi, World Bank, UN agencies, or similar donor-funded programmes, as well as conducting quality assurance reviews and assessments.

Languages:
Excellent written and spoken English is required for this position. Proficiency in additional languages may be considered an asset but is not mandatory.

Additional Notes:
This position is based at the WHO South Africa Country Office in Pretoria and is a full-time role. The consultant will report directly to the Team Lead of the Health Emergencies Programme and will work closely with various technical units and stakeholders. The role may involve travel within South Africa and internationally for project-related activities, with specific travel requirements determined by WHO policies. Remuneration will be based on WHO consultancy rates and approved budget provisions, with travel costs excluded.