National consultant to support the National Tuberculosis Program in the procurement and supply chain management of anti-TB drugs and commodities

CALL FOR CONSULTANCY SERVICE

A national consultant to support the National Tuberculosis Program

in the procurement and supply chain management of anti-TB drugs and commodities

I. Background:

The global LHSS project helps low- and middle-income countries transition to sustainable, self-funded health finance systems that support high-performing overall health systems. The LHSS activity in Vietnam will work with the Government of Vietnam (GVN) to advance greater local ownership of HIV and TB prevention and control. Led by Abt Associates, the four-year activity will support Vietnam in increasing its domestic financing for HIV and TB services in the context of declining donor funding, in using government resources more efficiently, and in assuming local ownership of HIV and TB prevention and control activities. Specific objectives are: (1) Support the GVN to strengthen its public financial management systems for public sector health and find greater efficiencies in social health insurance (SHI), (2) Increase and improve the efficiency of domestic financing of HIV prevention and treatment services; (3) Strengthen the capacity of Vietnam’s supply chain management system; and (4) Integrate TB services into SHI. As per LHSS Vietnam's objectives on strengthening domestic financing for and quality of HIV treatment services transitioned to SHI, LHSS Vietnam will mobilize a senior expert to assist cities/provinces with high burden of HIV such as Ho Chi Minh City to support provincial health management agencies to ensure smooth implementation of SHI examination and treatment for HIV.

To continue USAID's technical assistance to the National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) in improving the implementation of drugs and commodities procurement and supply chain management (PSM), LHSS will recruit a full-time national consultant on PSM.  The consultant will support the NTP to strengthen the national procurement and supply chain of SHI TB drugs and commodities. Specifically, the consultant will provide technical assistance in planning, developing, organizing, and tracking all procurement and management of drugs, commodities, and supplies needed for the implementation of the NSP activities

II. Key Responsibilities and Deliverables:

Strengthened NTP network capacity to procure and manage the supply chain of TB drugs and commodities:

• Provide technical support to the NTP network, to strengthen the quality of drugs and commodities quantification, distribution, and management.
• Support the NTP supply chain team to coordinate supervision and monitoring of procurement and supply chain management at provincial TB facilities.
• Provide recommendations to improve the NTP drugs and commodities supply chain.

Improved TB drugs and commodities procurement processes:

• Work closely with NTP’s technical teams and partners to develop annual and ad-hoc plans for drugs and commodities procurement.
• Support the NTP in the implementation and monitoring of procurement plans to ensure timely initiation of procurement.
• Provide technical support to the NTP program and technical staff throughout the procurement process.

Strengthened procurement and tracking systems to reduce or eliminate interruptions in the supply of TB drugs and commodities to the NTP provincial and district network:

• Work closely with the NTP program and technical staff to develop, implement, and monitor drugs and commodities distribution plans to ensure uninterrupted supply of TB drugs and commodities to TB facilities at provincial and district levels.
• Support the NTP to maintain procurement and distribution tracking and reporting systems.

Deliverables

• Consultant monthly reports on the progress of task implementation and supporting documents.
• A final consultancy report.

III. Skills/Knowledge Required:

• Minimum 7 years of pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, and supplies procurement and supply chain management technical experience with a master’s degree in health sciences, business management, supply chain management, or other relevant field or at a minimum of 9 years of relevant technical experience with bachelor’s degree.
• Experience working with NTP and organizations working on the TB network supply chain.
• Experience in summarizing best practices that can be shared across a diverse group of stakeholders in supply chain management.
• Strong interpersonal skills and excellent oral communication and writing skills. 
• Strong team building and collaboration skills.
• Demonstrated flexibility and openness in responding to changing work priorities and environments.
• Language requirement: Vietnamese. The ability to speak English would be an advantage.

IV. Location and Timing:

The consultant will work at the NTP office in Hanoi. Traveling to provinces if required shall be approved by both the NTP and LHSS.

V. Management of the assignment

• The consultant will be based at the NTP and work in close collaboration with LHSS Vietnam. The consultant will receive technical direction from the NTP Manager who will serve as the consultant’s onsite Manager.
• All deliverables must be reviewed by the LHSS Supply chain specialist and approved by the Technical director. The consultant can direct questions to the LHSS Technical director throughout the consultancy.

The assignment is planned for the period from January through June 2024 for a total of 140 working days.

To apply, please send your application documents to the following email: [email protected]

Deadline: 15 January 2024

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for interviews.