Project Manager - Healthier Diets 4 Healthy Lives

Project title: Developing A Double-Duty Food-Based Policy Bundle to Assure Healthier Diets in Ghana (Healthier Diets 4 Healthy Lives Project)

The Healthier Diets for Healthy Lives (HD4HL) Project is seeking highly qualified individuals to apply for the position of Project Manager. The details applicable to the position are provided below.

Project Description:

By 2030, non-communicable diseases are predicted to become the leading cause of death in Africa amidst prevailing challenges of infectious diseases, undernutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies. Unhealthy food environments hinder progress in overcoming this double burden of malnutrition.

There is increasing evidence for and recognition of the effectiveness of a set of policies that change consumer food environments and enable more nutritious diets. Food systems and public health experts, including the World Health Organisation, refer to them as “Best Buys” for their cost-effectiveness and feasibility for combating the double burden of malnutrition in low- and middle-income countries.

Together, these policies aim to inform and empower; guide and influence; incentivize or discourage consumer action within their food environments. These are achieved through bold, and truthful information for all consumers; healthier food availability in public institutions and markets and adjustment of the relative price of foods to equitably promote health and economic value. Globally, an increasing number of countries are implementing these policies, although few from Africa have done so to date.

The HD4HL project aims to build evidence and mobilize multi-stakeholder actions toward developing a policy bundle for healthier and more equitable consumer food environments that reduce the double burden of malnutrition in Ghana. This project is jointly implemented by Ministry of Health, the University of Ghana, the National Development Planning Commission, Food and Drugs Authority and Coalition of Actors for Public Health Advocacy.

The successful candidate will oversee the smooth delivery of the project in collaboration with a team of coordinators in each from the four co-leading institutions and manage and report progress towards project milestones.

Responsibilities

The incumbent will be required to perform the following tasks:

• Develop and manage relationships with multiple stakeholders and project partners
• Convene, moderate, and manage on behalf of the project partners, high-level multi-stakeholder meetings
• Support the project Principal Investigator (PI) with the multiple technical backstopping and high-level administrative tasks.
• Lead the planning and management of all activities associated with the project
• Coordinate and supervise day-to-day tasks of project support staff, which will include reporting on progress and outcomes
• Contribute to writing academic publications, policy, and research briefs
• Contribute to project dissemination activities
• Perform other duties as assigned by the project PI

Qualification Required & Experience

• Applicants are expected to hold a doctoral degree or equivalent from an accredited degree-granting institution. Fields or particular interest are nutrition, public health, food science, agriculture, health economics. An exceptionally strong Candidate with MPhil, MPH, MA, or MSc will be considered.
• Project management experience with proven capability to coordinate various internal and external stakeholders, manage tight deadlines and ensure high-quality results
• A track record demonstrating excellence in empirical research, notably research of food systems, agriculture, food production practices, and/or food system environmental sustainability and which is demonstrated in academic outputs in the form of scientific publications
• Proven ability to formulate original research ideas and conduct research independently
• Ability to communicate research ideas and results and an interest in engaging with stakeholders outside the academic community
• Excellent written and spoken English
• Strong organisational skills and ability to track progress, proactively raise and address issues, and document plans to clearly guide a team to success.

Terms of employment: One-year fixed contract with the possibility of extension.

Location: Accra