South Sudan: Malaria Indicator Survey Coordinator Consultant, South Sudan

Malaria Indicator Survey Coordinator (Consultant)

Based in Juba, South Sudan

Reports to the Country Representative, South Sudan

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We seek a Malaria Indicator Survey Coordinator. Since 2011, Population Services International (PSI) has been an integral development partner in the Republic of South Sudan. The Global Fund grant for malaria is managed by PSI on behalf of the Ministry of Health. In order to track progress and impact, a national Malaria Indictor Survey (MIS) was conducted under the Global Fund Round grant in 2013; a follow-up survey is now being planned for 2017. The National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) will implement the 2017 MIS with support from PSI and other Roll Back Malaria partners. Financial support for the 2017 MIS is provided by Global Fund.

Objectives of the MIS

The 2017 South Sudan Malaria Indicator Survey (SSMIS) is a comprehensive, nationally representative household survey designed following the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) Monitoring and Evaluation Reference Group guidelines.

The specific objectives of the 2017 SSMIS are to:

• Measure the level of ownership and use of mosquito nets
• Assess coverage of the intermittent preventive treatment for pregnant women
• Identify treatment practices, including the use of specific antimalarial medications to treat malaria among children under 5
• Identify diagnostic trends prior to receiving antimalarial medications for treatment of fever and other malaria-like symptoms
• Measure the prevalence of malaria and anaemia among children age 6-59 months and pregnant women
• Assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices of malaria among women age 15-49 years

A secondary objective of the 2017 SSMIS is to strengthen the capacity of the NMCP and partners for future implementation of the survey.

The 2017 SSMIS will follow the methodology used in the 2013 South Sudan MIS, which was guided by the RBM guidelines for Malaria Indicator Surveys. The SSMIS is expected to be conducted from September to December 2017. In order to ensure that the timely implementation of the SSMIS and the transfer of knowledge to build national capacity, the PSI Country Office is seeking to hire a MIS Consultant to work closely with the lead implementation agency, National Malaria Control Program. Day-to-day technical assistance and support will be provided by the MIS Consultant to ensure that the NMCP's role in designing, implementation, analysis and dissemination of data are achieved with highest quality.

This position will be based in Juba, South Sudan.

Sound like you? Read on.

Your contribution

Purpose of the Consultancy

Under the overall supervision of the Country Representative, the MIS Consultant will:

• support and provide technical guidance to the NMCP and PSI Country Office for the preparation, implementation, and completion of the 2017 MIS in South Sudan.
• advise NMCP, sampling and data processing experts, during survey planning, questionnaire design, sampling, training, fieldwork, data processing, data analysis, dissemination, and archiving, ensuring that MIS protocols and recommendation are being followed at all times.
• communicate effectively between PSI and NMCP, responding promptly to MIS related needs and issues as they arise.

The consultant will work in close collaboration with the survey team, the stakeholders, and the Technical Working Group and will represent PSI in meetings and workshops in relation to the survey as needed.

Main Consultancy Tasks

1. Provide technical and managerial support to the MIS survey;
2. Present the MIS methodology, tools, and guidelines to partners/stakeholders (e.g. ministries, UN Agencies, etc.);
3. Finalize in collaboration with national partners and PSI, the Survey Plan and Budget, including timetable and share with the PSI Country Office
4. Oversee each stage of the survey process and ensure that the MIS protocols and standards are followed by the NMCP, more specifically during training and field supervision visits
5. Communicate regularly with the PSI Country Office responding to all MIS related issues in a timely manner; while working closely with NMCP
6. Provide progress reports on MIS activities to PSI on a monthly basis;
7. Coordinate the work of NMCP experts and PSI regional research staff and other resource persons assigned by PSI to support different survey stages
8. Ensure that external technical reviews by experts are carried out at key survey stages and coordinate the feedback and response between PSI and the NMCP
9. Ensure that all survey related documents and deliverables (questionnaires, manuals, expert reports, final report, datasets, etc.) are properly archived throughout the survey process
10. Participate in all MIS Technical Working Group meetings
11. Ensure that lessons learned, problems, and good practices are documented throughout the MIS process and rapidly shared with the Technical Working Group through all means available
12. The consultant will be assigned any other MIS coordination function as identified from time to time by NMCP during the assignment

Specific Activities

In consultation and collaboration with PSI and NMCP, the consultant will be responsible for ensuring the following activities have been undertaken following the MIS guidelines and will contribute to the coordination of these activities:

1. Survey Planning:

2. A Technical Working Group comprised of all relevant technical experts and relevant line ministries is established

3. The Survey Plan and Budget, including timetable is finalized and shared with all stakeholders

4. Survey supplies are procured and distributed in time for training, data collection, and data entry;

5. Sample design

6. Sample design is finalized by the sampling expert of NMCP/National Bureau of Statistics with the guidance and review of PSI

7. Household Listing and Mapping operations are reviewed by PSI and carried out on the field according to MIS recommendations

8. The final selection of households is reviewed

9. Pre testing training and workshops

10. Liaise with NMCP on the organization of pre-test and main data collection workshops

11. Liaise with NMCP for the writing of pre-test report

12. Pre-test report is reviewed by Technical Working Group

13. Finalize pre-test report based on feedback from Technical Working Group

14. MIS questionnaires

15. The Technical Working Group are involved in reviewing the customization of relevant sections of the MIS questionnaire

16. Questionnaires undergo translation and back translation process

17. Questionnaires are reviewed by PSI before finalization.

18. Manuals

19. All MIS fieldwork manuals are customized for the country specific context and translated

20. Data Entry Templates

21. Data entry template is customized by the data processing expert of NMCP/National Bureau of Statistics

22. Data entry template is reviewed by the PSI before finalization

23. Household Listing and Mapping, Training, Fieldwork, and Data Entry

24. Household listing and mapping is planned and performed according to MIS guidelines

25. Training schedules are adequately adapted to the county context while following MIS guidelines

26. Appropriate resource persons are identified to facilitate training (i.e. nutritionists for anthropometry training, survey expert for methodology, etc.)

27. Contribute to the fieldwork training

28. Fieldwork and fieldwork monitoring visits are planned and performed according to MIS guidelines

29. Field Check Tables are produced on a weekly basis, immediately analyzed by survey managers, and main findings reported to field team supervisors for action.

30. Data entry room, hardware, and software are properly arranged and a working data entry and backup system is established

31. Monitor data entry and processing

32. Monitor secondary data editing and processing

33. Data Analysis and Report Writing:

34. Sampling Weights are included in the datasets and reviewed by sampling expert of NMCP/National Bureau of Statistics with the guidance and review of PSI staff

35. MIS tabulation plan and standard syntax are used in generating (Stata) dataset and tables

36. Dataset/Tables including the wealth index and country-specific tables are substantively reviewed by technical (e.g. sampling expert) and subject matter experts at NMCP, as well as by the Technical Working Group before the report writing commences

37. Ensure that the MIS survey archive (questionnaires, manuals, sampling frame, field reports, database, tables, etc.) is being produced by NMCP/National Bureau of Statistics.

Deliverables

1. Monthly Progress Report of activities to PSI South Sudan Country Office and East Africa regional office;

2. Specific reports at the end of each of the following survey activities:

3. Sample design,

4. Questionnaire design,

5. Listing and Mapping, Pre-test,

6. Fieldwork training,

7. Data collection, Data editing and cleaning,

8. Data processing and tabulation;

9. Field trip reports;

10. Presentations and training materials used in trainings, workshops, and other meetings;

11. Raw data sets and data sets following secondary data editing (in Stata), together with an analysis codebook and analysis syntax files.

Estimated Duration of the Contract

The duration of the contract is 4 months. The position will be based in Juba, South Sudan from August 28^th, 2017 through December 2017 (4 months). Only candidates who can commit for this minimum time in-country will be considered.

What are we looking for?

The basics

• University degree in Social Sciences, Demography, Statistics, Epidemiology or any other related technical field is required.
• At least eight years' experience in the coordination and/or management of large-scale quantitative household surveys (prior MIS, Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) or MICS coordination experience highly desirable)
• Strong computer skills and strong expertise in statistical analyses (familiarity with data processing and data analysis software, particularly Stata and SPSS)
• Training experience and ability to organize and facilitate training and presentations
• Experience in data analysis and survey report writing
• Excellent oral and written communications in English
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Familiarity and previous experience of working in South Sudan and/or in the region highly desirable
• Ability and willingness to travel extensively in-country
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and to establish harmonious and effective relationships both within and outside the organization
• Demonstrated leadership, managerial and supervisory ability

Office Arrangements and Travel Requirements

The consultant will be based in PSI's offices in Juba. PSI will arrange for the necessary office equipment including a laptop computer with relevant software installed. During the contract period, the consultant is expected to travel to and within South Sudan. Travel costs will be covered by PSI.

PSI reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if work/output is incomplete, not delivered, or for failure to meet deadlines.

Conditions

• All payments must be within the contract agreement paid monthly against deliverables
• No contract will commence unless the contract is signed by both PSI and the consultant(s)
• The consultant is expected to work independently with minimum supervision

PSI is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages applications from qualified individuals regardless of actual or perceived race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, personal appearance, matriculation, political affiliation, family status or responsibilities, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, childbirth, related medical conditions or breastfeeding, genetic information, amnesty, veteran, special disabled veteran or uniform service member status or employment status.

PI99149737

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