The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to our mission of saving lives and reducing the burden of disease in low-and middle-income countries. We work at the invitation of governments to support them and the private sector to create and sustain high-quality health systems.

CHAI was founded in 2002 in response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, with the goal of dramatically reducing the price of life-saving drugs and increasing access to these medicines in the countries with the highest burden of the disease. Over the following two decades, CHAI has expanded its focus. Today, along with HIV, we work in conjunction with our partners to prevent and treat infectious diseases such as COVID-19, malaria, tuberculosis, and hepatitis. Our work has also expanded into cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and other non-communicable diseases, and we work to accelerate the rollout of lifesaving vaccines, reduce maternal and child mortality, combat chronic malnutrition, and increase access to assistive technology. We are investing in horizontal approaches to strengthen health systems through programs in human resources for health, digital health, and health financing. With each new and innovative program, our strategy is grounded in maximizing sustainable impact at scale, ensuring that governments lead the solutions, that programs are designed to scale nationally, and learnings are shared globally.

At CHAI, our people are our greatest asset, and none of this work would be possible without their talent, time, dedication and passion for our mission and values. We are a highly diverse team of enthusiastic individuals across 40 countries with a broad range of skill sets and life experiences. CHAI is deeply grounded in the countries we work in, with the majority of our staff based in program countries. Learn more about our exciting work: http://www.clintonhealthaccess.org

CHAI is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and is committed to providing an environment of fairness, and mutual respect where all applicants have access to equal employment opportunities. CHAI values diversity and inclusion, and recognizes that our mission is best advanced by the leadership and contributions of people with diverse experience, backgrounds, and culture.

Program Background:

Following the announcement of the Stop Work Order by the United States Government in February 2025, the Government of Zambia like other LMICS that were affected by this abrupt announcement began to evaluate how to navigate this change in the country’s health financing landscape. At the request of the Ministry of Health, CHAI has been working with the MOH to ensure that the health system remains resilient in the face of these external funding shifts.

In line with this, CHAI is seeking the services of a health Economist to be part of the team that is working with the Ministry of Health (MOH) as a thought partner to strategize and implement strategies to enable the health system to remain resilient in the short-term, while rebuilding for long term sustainability. This support will primarily be delivered through technical assistance, often in the form of “Technical Support Units” (TSUs), embedded in Ministries of Health. TSUs are agile rapid response teams that help leaders collect and use evidence to make decisions, ensure these decisions are implemented and course correct as needed, acting as a “control tower” across multiple departments or agencies. CHAI has experience deploying such technical assistance to navigate periods of massive change and uncertainty, from national reforms to disease outbreaks.

CHAI will work with the Government of Zambia on three areas: (i) gap identification, (ii) maximizing existing resources through generating efficiencies; and (iii) supporting the government to sustainably manage and finance the health sector. Combined, these catalytic activities will lay the groundwork for a fundamentally reimagined health system, shifting away from a dependency on external aid towards more efficient, integrated, and sustainable national systems.

Position Overview:

In this regard, CHAI Zambia is looking for a highly motivated individual with outstanding technical capabilities to fill the role of Health Economist for the Technical Support Unit to be based at the Ministry of Health Headquarters. The incumbent will be responsible for supporting the MOH and other key Ministries and government agencies through provision of technical expertise to translate and localize regional and global guidance on trends and developments in health care financing and sustainability response mechanisms. S/he will support the MOH in strategizing, designing and implementation of technical strategies, interventions, and approaches to developing a sustainable health care system in line with national priorities.

The Health Economist will be seconded to the Ministry of Health, reporting into the Director, Policy and Planning and will work closely with the leadership of the Sustainability Steering Committee which is a multi- departmental leadership team set up by the Ministry of Health to lead the process of developing a sustainable health care system that will withstand the effects of reduced external funding to health.

Planning, Budgeting, Allocation and Prioritization

• Support government to strengthen national and sub-national health planning and budgeting processes to adapt to funding and implementation gaps.
• Provide technical assistance in undertaking Economic Evaluation of Health programs to facilitate setting of priorities based on cost-effectiveness, disease burden, equity, and financial sustainability.
• Use data to facilitate transparent, participatory processes for resource allocation and prioritization across competing health needs.
• Support the development, review of and use of resource allocation formula to support MOH prioritization needs.
• Support cost modelling and financial projections to inform funding decisions and donor negotiations.
• Support the periodic review and costing of the Essential Care Package for Zambia as a key tool in resource allocation and priority setting.

Technical Efficiency

• Support undertaking of Public Expenditure Tracking surveys to use in identifying inefficiencies in health system and support government to implement reforms that improve value for money.
• Provide Technical Support towards the regular production of the National Heath Accounts.
• Analyse program costs and performance data to inform strategies for more efficient service delivery, particularly at the primary care level.
• Support design and implementation of strategic purchasing reforms (e.g., performance-based financing, capitation, output-based payments etc).
• Coordinate financial data inputs from multiple donors and implementing partners.

Domestic Resource Mobilization

• Support government to assess and advocate for increased public funding for health, aligned with macro-fiscal realities and competing national priorities.
• Support the review of current financing sources and mechanisms, including donor and domestic funding.
• Provide technical support in the development of investment cases for high priority health programs for use in lobbying for resources from Ministry of Finance and Development partners.
• Provide analytical inputs to support dialogue between Ministries of Health and Finance, including return-on-investment analyzes and health investment cases.
• Development of sustainability plans to help in reducing dependency on foreign resources.
• Help design and assess innovative financing mechanisms and approaches that enhance predictability, efficiency, and performance of health financing.

Capacity Building, Sustainability and Institutionalization

• Build capacity of MoH staff in economic analysis and financing tools.
• Support the institutionalization of regular efficiency assessments and resource tracking mechanisms, including the Public Expenditure Tracking Surveys (PETS) and the National Health Accounts.
• Provide technical support to strengthen the capacity of health planners in health economics and health system development and planning integrated PHC services.
• Provide technical support towards running short term courses in health systems and health economics at national and sub-national levels.
• Support and participate in the sustainability steering committee working group meetings.

Strategic and Operational Flexibility

• Take on other strategic and operational priorities as needed, in line with evolving team and organizational goals.

• Master’s degree in Economics, Public Policy, Health Economics, Public Health, International Development, or a related quantitative discipline.
• A minimum of 10+ years of experience in a relevant field (e.g health management or health system strengthening) in the public or private sector with increasing responsibilities.
• Demonstrated experience using quantitative and economic analysis to inform health sector policies, with preference for candidates familiar with cost-effectiveness, fiscal space, or efficiency analyses.
• Proven track record of working with or supporting low- and middle-income country governments, statutory bodies and donor agencies.
• Exceptional analytical and problem-solving skills, with proficiency in Excel and statistical tools (e.g., Stata, R) and a strong understanding of health system performance metrics.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing high-quality policy briefs, technical reports, and presentations for government and donor audiences.
• Ability to manage multiple workstreams independently and adapt to changing priorities in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment.
• Understanding of national, regional and global health care financing.
• Prior experience working with MoH, statutory bodies, and donor agencies.
• Vast experience in providing technical assistance in health systems strengthening and capacity building.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including a high proficiency in use of computers.

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