The National Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Policy Revision Task Force, herein referred to as The Task Force, has been established to oversee and provide direction to the Lead Consultant who will be hired to lead the review and revision of the existing SRHR Policy which expired in 2022.

The Task Force will report to the Director of the Reproductive Health Directorate (RHD) and then to the Safe Motherhood Technical Working Group.

Objectives:

The overall objective of the task force is to work with the consultant to provide direction on the general organization of the SRHR Policy document and is expected to be available for any consultation and feedback from the consultant regarding the progress on the assignment.

Specific Objectives:

The task force shall be responsible for the following:

To review the ToRs, draft scope of work, timelines, and the Budget for the assignment and endorse them after a consensus is reached by members of the task force.
Organizing meetings with the consultant to receive and provide updates on the work completed as per the timelines and the scope of work of the assignment.
Review the work submitted by the consultant, provide feedback on the quality of the work, and make any comments accordingly.
Provide direction through the consultative meetings with the Lead Consultant on the organization and content of the document.
Work with the Lead Consultant to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats during the implementation of the revised policy.
Assist the Lead consultant (through consultative meetings) to carry out a capacity assessment of human resources, training needs, and commodities necessary for the implementation of the SRHR Policy.
Facilitate the endorsement of the SRHR Policy by the MoH Senior Management Team and propose a roadmap for the launch and dissemination of the revised policy to relevant stakeholders for SRHR.
The Task Force shall have the mandate to mobilize the resources from local donors for the assignment (Fee for the Lead Consultant, support for the meetings, copy editing, printing. Validation/endorsement, and dissemination of the policy document).

Responsibility

Within their respective mandates, as appropriate, the responsibility of the members of the task force shall be:

• To provide an oversight role during the process of reviewing and revising the SRHR Policy.
• To coordinate the meetings and be available for any consultations initiated by the Lead Consultant, regarding the content or the general organization of the document.
• To report the progress of the work to the Safe Motherhood TWG in collaboration with the Lead Consultant.
• To coordinate the endorsement of the SRHR Policy by the Senior Management Team in the Ministry of Health, and
• To coordinate the dissemination of the SRHR Policy to the SRHR stakeholders.

Leadership:

The Reproductive Health Directorate (RHD) shall lead and coordinate the process of the review and revision of the National Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights Policy. RHD shall chair all the scheduled meetings, liaise with the secretariate for Safe Motherhood TWG on the timely production and circulation of minutes, follow up on action points, and make sure that the deliverables of the Lead Consultant are achieved as outlined in the Scope of Work for the SRHR policy revision assignment.

Operational Modalities & Accountability:

The Task Force meetings shall be held once every month or as advised by the Lead Consultant and the date of these meetings shall be communicated by the leadership of the Task Force (RHD).  Meeting invitations, agenda, minutes from previous meetings (including updated action points), and supporting documents will be circulated to all members at least 1 week before the scheduled meeting date.  Meeting minutes will be circulated 1 week after the meeting.

Administrative Arrangements for the Task Force Team Members:
Partners will be expected to support the Task Force meetings where necessary and shall be responsible for meeting their own expenses in relation to activities under the Task Force (including, but not limited to, travel and subsistence allowances during the meetings in and outside Lilongwe.

Expected Timeliness:
The task force team is expected to work with the consultant from the time that he/she is recruited until the policy is endorsed by the Senior Management Team and disseminated to SRHR stakeholders.

Scope of Work:

The Lead Consultant will work with the Task Force and Key stakeholders to review and revise the current National SRHR Policy which expired in 2022. 

The successful consultant is expected to complete the following suggested tasks:

• Prepare background information on the situation of SRHR issues in Malawi and the National or International Policy environment relevant to the framing of the National SRHR Policy for the period 2024-2030.
• Conduct stakeholder consultations to gather as much information as possible on the current status and desired future status of the SRHR program in Malawi.
• Review the existing SRHR service delivery and other relevant data to come up with the SRHR services implementation gaps and make recommendations for the implementation arrangements of the revised SRHR Policy.
• Review the current SRHR service delivery guidelines, training manuals, Strategic Plans, and International declarations on SRHR and other relevant literature related to SRHR services in Malawi.
• Present the Inception report for the assignment to the Task Force and the Safe Motherhood TWG.
• Present the draft SRHR Policy to the Safe Motherhood TWG for their review and comments, and then incorporate any comments from the members of the TWG and stakeholders to make the strategy ready for validation and endorsement by the Senior Management Team.
• Present the final SRHR Policy to the Senior Management in the Ministry of Health for final approval.

Deliverable for the Assignment:
The final deliverable for this consultancy will be an evidence-based SRHR Policy which will guide the implementation of SRHR services in Malawi for the period 2024-2030.

Required Qualifications:

Qualifications and Experience:

• Obstetrician and Gynecologist/ Registered Nurse Midwife with master’s degree and special skills in Public or Global Health and experience in the development and revision of sexual and reproductive health policies in the Malawi setting.
• Those with a Ph.D. and experience in reproductive health policy development and revisions or evaluation will be preferred.
• At least 5 years of experience working in the policy space with a special bias in the Reproductive Health policies.

Competencies:

• Excellent research and analytical skills.
• Excellent report writing, communication, and computer skills.
• Demonstrated experience in developing or revision national health policies with bias in reproductive health policies.
• Willingness to work during odd hours and result-oriented.

Languages:

• Fluency in English.