Technical Director

The Technical Director (TD) will provide operational and management leadership for an upcoming U.S. Department of Defense (DOD)-funded project to support the Defense Force of Zambia (DFZ) to reach sustainable control of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The Technical Director, in close collaboration with Program Director and project teams, is responsible for providing leadership and technical guidance in the development and implementation of HIV prevention, treatment, care and support programs to support Zambia Defense Force (ZDF) to achieve and sustain HIV epidemic control by 2030 across all specific populations, focusing on capacity building, integration of services, scaling up of HIV prevention and treatment care for impact, quality assurance, innovations to improve access and utilization of services/resolve bottlenecks and sustainability.  This position will provide strategic leadership to achieve project objectives, and in collaboration with the project team and partners, support the design of service delivery strategies, based on sound and current scientific evidence.

• Provide technical oversight, strategic direction, ensure appropriate support for the implementation of program activities and create a technically sound HIV program across the two projects
• Provide technical guidance in the development and implementation of quality evidence-based HIV/AIDS technical approaches at DFZ sites ensuring integrated approaches for the following: i. HIV prevention programs (VMMC, PrEP, and GBV), ii. HIV testing services (HTS) and Linkage, iii. Care and treatment including differentiated services delivery (DSD) models, elimination of mother to child transmission of HIV (eMTCT), TB/HIV services, cervical cancer screening and treatment and VL services, iv. Laboratory and supply chain.
• Support the implementation of targeted HTS, same day ART initiation for those clients who test positive, treatment continuation, DSD including multi-month dispensing of ARVs, strategies to welcome back clients who interrupted treatment, viral load monitoring to ensure sustained viral suppression for all people living with HIV receiving ART, Optimized Pediatric ARVs, eMTCT, and TB prevention and treatment and HIV collaborative activities
• Adapt evidence-based clinical materials, performance support tools, SOPs, supervisory systems and other learning materials across HIV prevention and treatment cascade as well as laboratory and supply chain needed for implementation of the project to meet the needs of DOD Zambia project and in line with National guidelines
• Ensure close collaboration and consultation with, and capacity building for, ZDF

• Identify learning and service delivery gaps across HIV continuum of care and by sub-population living with HIV (e.g. militaries, pregnant and breastfeeding women, AGYW, men), and formulate and test sustainable solutions, utilizing cross-cutting approaches such as performance and quality improvement and training
• Advocate with national, district and community-level health institutions to raise awareness about their role in improving HIV health outcomes among specific sub-populations such as men, adolescents and youth

• Ensure that project is technically sound, evidence-based and responsive to the needs of Zambia, its people and donors
• Provide mentoring, capacity building, training, follow-up support and supportive supervision as necessary with activities and develop evidence-based, gender-appropriate clinical training materials and standards, supervisory systems, and other materials needed for implementation in relation to HIV prevention and treatment continuum of care as well as laboratory and supply chain
• Work with Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) staff to develop M&E frameworks and use regularly data to guide program implementation, course correction and effectively track data/results

• Actively participate in all MOH HIV Technical Working Group Meetings, and represent Jhpiego in professional forums
• Provide regular technical updates to the Program Director, program and technical staff, of successes, challenges and lessons learned

• Coordinate the identification and dissemination of best practices and new technical strategies and approaches
• lead the development of innovative long-term strategies and reporting
• Contribute to data collection, documentation and report writing
• Use knowledge and best practices from different projects to create synergy across all technical areas in the country office.

Management

• Supervise technical staff
• Help build the capacity of technical staff according to project need
• Manage technical contributions of sub-grantees, including providing scopes of work
• Maintain excellent relationships with MOH, DOD, DZF and in-country stakeholders and develop rapid responses to Mission requests
• Work with partners and consultants as required
• Work closely with the Country Director on setting program priorities and directions, and responding to requests for support from local counterparts
• Work with Strategic Information Director and team, to design and implement a plan to track data/results at site, district and region level and monitor progress towards project targets and deliverables

• Ensure timely implementation of all program inputs including planning and implementing assessments, site strengthening, follow-up and supervision, advocacy, demand creation, policy support, capacity-building and M&E across program sites, in close collaboration with DOD and ZDF, the MOH, and relevant stakeholders

• Lead the preparation of donor reports and project reports, including technical reports and expenditure reports
• Oversee data collection, analysis and development of conclusions and recommendations to further strengthen program implementation
• facilitate the procurement of equipment and supplies required for project implementation

• Coordinate and monitor the efficiency and effectiveness of the work of short-term consultants as required

• A medical degree or an advanced degree in Public Health, Medicine, Midwifery, or Nursing, or related field
• Eight or more years of progressively senior experience in successful implementation and management of Zambia or international clinical HIV /AIDS programs, including PEPFAR-funded programs
• Proven experience on data use to guide program implementation
• Ability to coach, mentor and develop technical capacity in regional and national programs and technical staff
• Knowledge of performance improvement/quality improvement approaches
• Strong skills in facilitation, team building and coordination
• Excellent verbal, written and presentation skills
• Ability to develop productive working relationships with counterparts in other agencies and organizations
• Demonstrated experience in more than one of the following technical areas: HIV prevention and treatment care including, VMMC, PrEP, targeted HTS, index testing, same day ART, DSD models, MMD 3-6, advanced HIV disease, TB/HIV services, HIV/FP integration, GBV, along with other HIV integrated technical areas
• Previous experience working in Zambia, with intimate understanding of local health system and HIV testing, prevention, care and treatment gaps and opportunities, and solid relationships at government agencies
• Experience hiring and supervising personnel and ensuring they acquire the necessary training and skills to meet evolving project needs
• Experience in working effectively with district, provincial and national government authorities
• In-depth knowledge of DOD/DHAPP projects, regulations, compliance and reporting requirements
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 suite, including word processing
• Ability to travel nationally
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