Consultant - TDR’s Research Capacity Strengthening Activities at World Health Organization (WHO)

World Health Organization (WHO) is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Consultant - TDR’s Research Capacity Strengthening Activities

Job ID: 2500171
Location: Anywhere
Job type: Full-time
Contractual Arrangement: External consultant
Contract Duration: 11 months
Organization: HQ/RCS Research Capacity Strengthening SCI

Purpose of consultancy

• The consultant will contribute towards different components of the TDR Clinical Research Leadership, TDR’s implementation Research Leadership Fellowship Programme and TDR’s Postgraduate Training Programme.

Background

• Research Capacity Strengthening (RCS) activities are at the heart of the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training on Tropical Diseases (TDR) strategy 2024–2029, which aims to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and to support Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
• The TDR/RCS objectives refer to the capacity to produce evidence that directly informs public health practice and policy, as well as strengthens low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) research capacity across implementation and clinical research, specifically aiming to build research leadership for the future to:
  • Strengthen capacity in LMICs to conduct interdisciplinary priority research by supporting individuals, institutions and networks; and
  • Promote institutional and individual leadership in health research through postgraduate training grants and clinical research career development fellowships.

This consultancy will contribute towards the TDR/RCS objectives and is essential for an efficient delivery of the activities.
Deliverables:

• Objective 1: To diligently review, edit and update the content of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) reports from eight universities in the TDR Postgraduate Training Programme: (Bamako University, Mali; BRAC, Bangladesh; University of Antioquia, Colombia; University of Cheikh Anta Diop, Senegal; Indian Institute of Health Management University, India; University of Ghana, Ghana; Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, University of Witwatersrand, South Africa).

  • Deliverable 1: A completed M&E dataset is delivered by 15 March 2025.

• Objective 2: To diligently review, edit and update the draft M&E report for Clinical Research Leadership Fellowship cohort 1 and 2.

  • Deliverable 2: A complete set of M&E for cohort 1 and 2 is delivered by 15 April 2025.

• Objective 3: In collaboration with TDR Postgraduate Programme and Regional Training Centres to facilitate the faculty exchange programme and monthly Implementation Research (IR) lectures and IR Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) for the faculty and students across the eight universities.

  • Deliverable 3: IR MOOC courses offered to the MPH students and faculty exchange programme initiated by 15 May 2025.

• Objective 4: To review the selection process of the new cohort of fellows, promoting the profile of the Clinical Research Leadership fellows and to provide input to the clinical trial related projects during the re-integration plan for 20 fellows. 

  • Deliverable 4: The shortlisting and the selection of the new cohort completed by 15 June 2025.

• Objective 5: To review the applications for shortlisting and selection of the candidate for the pilot phase of TDR’s Implementation Science for Public Health Impact.

  • Deliverable 5: Review process completed by July 2025.

• Objective 6: To diligently review, edit and update the content of Progress reports from eight universities in TDR Postgraduate Training Programme: (Bamako University, Mali; BRAC, Bangladesh;  University of Antioquia, Colombia; University of Cheikh Anta Diop, Senegal; Indian Institute of Health Management University, India; University of Ghana, Ghana; Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia; University of Witwatersrand, South Africa).

  • Deliverable 6: The progress reports are quality checked by 15 August 2025.

• Objective 7: Monitor and track the publication records of fellows by utilizing the Web of Science database, ensuring comprehensive documentation and evaluation of their scholarly contributions.

  • Deliverable 7: A list of publications outputs is prepared by November 2025.

• Objective 8: Draft at least two manuscripts related to the area of work for journal submission.

  • Deliverable 8: At least two manuscripts submitted to an international open-access journal by December 2025.

• Objective 9: Provide input to the section related to the Clinical Research Leadership Fellowship and Postgraduate Training and Implementation Research Leadership Fellowship in the Annual Report for Research Capacity Strengthening (RCS).

  • Deliverable 9: The above-mentioned input to the RCS annual report is delivered by end of January 2026.

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages
Educational Qualifications:
Essential:

• Master's degree in public health.

Desirable:

• PhD in a health-related field.

Experience:
Essential:

• Minimum of 5 years experience in research training relevant to public health, and at least 2 years experience in project management.

Desirable:

• At least 3 years’ experience as part of an investigator’s team that was conducting a Good Clinical Trial Compliance clinical trial.

Skills/Knowledge:
Essential:
Technical and health research skills:

• Epidemiology
• Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and  health research ethics
• Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
• Scientific writing
• Data analysis: R, SPSS, MS Excel
• Presentation skills
• Communication and management skills
  • Communication and organizational skills
  • Project management
  • Teamwork 

Desirable:

• Complex statistical methods

Languages and levels required:
Essential:

• Expert knowledge of English

Desirable

• Intermediate knowledge of French.

Remuneration

• Band level B: USD 7,000 - 9,980 per month.

Application Closing Date
4th February, 2025.