The Health Program Officer is responsible for the coordination, implementation, supervision, monitoring, and reporting of all River Blindness and Lymphatic Filariasis activities, including MDAs, surveys, surveillance, and capacity building, at state and locality levels to support disease elimination in Sudan

This position will report to: RB/LF Program Manager and collaborates with Federal and State Ministries of Health, NTD Officers, Surveillance Units, Laboratory Teams, Community Leaders, WHO and other implementing partners

A. Coordination:

• Support the development of annual, quarterly, and activity-specific work plans for RB and LF.
• Participate in national and state-level NTD planning meetings, taskforces, and coordination forums.
• Coordinate with Federal and State MoH teams to align RB and LF activities with national strategies.
• Support micro-planning for MDAs and surveys, including population mapping, village listing, hard-to-reach areas, and timeline development.

B. Mass Drug Administration (MDA) Implementation

• Oversee:
  • Selection, training, and supervision of Community Drug Distributors (CDDs) and team leaders.
  • Community sensitization and mobilization before and during MDA.
  • Drug forecasting, quantification, storage, and distribution.
  • Daily monitoring of coverage and problem-solving in the field.
• Ensure proper recording, reporting, and reconciliation of drugs used during MDA.

C. Capacity Building and Supervision

• Develop and update training materials and guidelines
• Train MOH supervisors, team leaders and CDDs on:
  • MDA procedures
  • Data recording and reporting
  • Health education and awareness raising 

D. Community Engagement and Health Promotion

• Engage community leaders, religious leaders, teachers, and local influencers to improve MDA acceptance.
• Address community misconceptions, rumors, and refusals related to ivermectin and albendazole.
• Support the development and dissemination of IEC materials in local languages.

E. Logistics, Supplies, and Resource Management

• Coordinate with logistics teams to ensure timely availability of:
  • MDA tools
  • Reporting forms
  • Field supplies
• Monitor stock levels and prevent expiries, losses, or misuse.

F. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting

• Prepare and submit weekly, monthly, quarterly, and MDA campaign reports.
• Document best practices, lessons learned, challenges, and recommendations.
• Support donor and partner reporting requirements.
• Participate in post-MDA and post-survey reviews and evaluations.

4. Expected Outputs

• Successful implementation of RB and LF MDAs with WHO-recommended coverage levels.
• Timely completion of all planned surveys with high-quality data.
• Improved data completeness, accuracy, and reporting timeliness.
• Increased community participation and reduced treatment refusals.
• Progress toward LF elimination and Onchocerciasis transmission interruption.

• Bachelor’s degree in public health, Epidemiology, Medicine, Nursing, or related field.
• Master’s degree in public health or Epidemiology is an asset 
• Minimum 3–5 years of professional experience in public health programs.
• Demonstrated experience in:
• Previous experience working with MoH, WHO, or NGOs is highly desirable.
• At least a minimum of (3) years of relevant work experience in implementing health programs, preferably in an NGO environment.
• Excellent technical knowledge on health program implementation as indicated by the duties above
• High-level computer skills
• NTD implementation
• Mass Drug Administration
• Field surveys and supervision

Specialized knowledge, skills, and attributes:

• Excellent communication skills, both written and spoken, with good interpersonal skills and ability to communicate at all levels
• The capacity and willingness to be extremely flexible and accommodating in difficult and sometimes insecure working circumstances.
• Experience working in urban and rural settings 
• Experience working on Health-funded projects.
• Proficiency in Arabic and English

  Skills and Competencies

• Strong understanding of NTD elimination strategies, especially RB and LF.
• Excellent data management and analytical skills.
• Strong leadership, coordination, and supervision abilities.
• Ability to work under pressure and in remote settings.
• Excellent communication skills in Arabic; working knowledge of English required.

 Working Conditions

• Field-based position with extensive travel.
• Long working hours during MDA and survey periods.
• Work in remote and hard-to-reach areas.