Public Health and Environment

WHO India Country Office collaborates with the Government of India and relevant stakeholders within the framework of the collaborative Country Cooperation Strategy, to actively support the development and implementation of national health policies, strategies and plans aiming at promoting access to and utilization of affordable and quality health services and improving the financial protection against health-related risks.–> To collaborate with national authorities to improve health and quality of life through promotion of environmental health especially in the areas of water supply and sanitation, chemical safety, food safety, occupational health, air pollution, climate change, building healthy cities, health risk assessments and management.–> To collaborate and support related areas of work such as prevention and control of water and sanitation linked diseases, burden of disease attributable to environmental factors, climate change, preparedness and response to chemical and radio-nuclear events and sustainable development. To liaise with other related teams such as communicable and non-communicable diseases, health through the life-course, food safety and health system development for coordination of various health related activities.

Underlying Values and Core Functions of WHO WHO’s mandate revolves around six (6) leadership priorities specifying (i) advancing universal health coverage (ii) health related sustainable development goals (iii) addressing the challenge of non-communicable diseases and mental health, violence and injuries and disabilities (iv) implementing the provisions of the International Health Regulations (2005) (v) increasing access to quality, safe, efficacious and affordable medical products (vi) addressing the social, economic and environmental determinants of health. The South – East Asia Region (SEAR) of WHO is made up of 11 countries, with over 1.9 billion people, with India’s population of 1.4 billion. All the Member States of WHO/SEAR (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor Leste), share the common value of the highest attainable standard of health as a fundamental human right. All of WHO actions are based on this and rooted in the underlying values of equity, solidarity and participation. The mission of WHO India is to improve quality of life of the 1.4 billion people in India by supporting the government in eliminating vaccine preventable and other communicable diseases, reducing maternal and neonatal mortalities, promoting healthy lifestyles, addressing determinants of health, preparing and responding to health emergencies and strengthening health systems for universal health coverage.

Duties:

Under the overall guidance of the WHO Representative, and the direct supervision of Deputy Head of WHO Country Office, and in collaboration with relevant technical units in the Country Office, the incumbent will perform the following duties:

• Provide technical support to the country in planning, monitoring and evaluating environmental health interventions with a focus on the provision of safe drinking water, adequate sanitation and hygiene, improving air quality, healthy workplaces, health care waste management, and the sound management of chemicals and pesticides throughout their life-cycle.
• Collaborate with partners to develop national strategies and institutional capacities on primary prevention interventions, particularly those related to the safety of drinking water, sanitation, waste management, occupational health and to mitigate the health impact of air pollution and climate change.
• Provide support to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) and other related Ministries, Government of India (GoI) for development of Strategies on Environmental Health, Water and Sanitation, air pollution, and climate change based on national context.
• Formulate, evaluate and oversee the technical support to national and state environmental health programmes in the areas of community water supply and sanitation, chemical and pesticide safety, occupational health, healthy settings, environmental health risk assessment and management.
• Provide technical support – advising/ coordinating/ guiding – on issues concerning climate change and its impact on health, environmental epidemiology, air pollution, occupational health, water, sanitation and hygiene and waste management in the context of sustainable development. The activities include preparation of work plans, programme budget, implementation and monitoring the progress of work.
• Provide technical advice and support to the MOHFW on water sanitation and hygiene, assisting and proactively participating in the design and implementation of water and air quality monitoring and surveillance as appropriate.
• Support capacity-building of national program managers to promote safe water, sanitation, hygiene and sound waste management in the community, in health-care facilities and in the workplace, and to support capacity-building in other priority areas of environmental health.
• Liaise with concerned National counterparts of the technical units/departments , WHO/SEARO and WHO/HQs, collaborate with other clusters in areas i.e. communicable and non-communicable diseases, family, gender and life-course, health systems development for coordination of various health related activities ;and with donors and development partners (bilateral and UN) to harmonise recommendations on policies and strategies relating to environmental health cluster are suitably adopted to the Indian context.
• Promote development of studies and research on the environmental health areas, including water, sanitation, air quality and climate change, in close coordination and collaboration national authorities, WHO collaborating centres, national centers of excellence and national R & D institutions, dissemination of research information to all stakeholders.
• Coordinate and participate in inter-agency working group meetings/workshops and strengthen Inter-agency collaboration and liaise with external /donor agencies.
• Support information brokering/exchange function of WCO India through contributions to the health repository at the WCO India by collation, analysis and sharing of relevant information and statistics.
• Prepare technical reports, as necessary and perform any other duties as may be assigned by WR-India and DWR.

Education:

Essential:

• University Degree in environmental sciences such as water and sanitation and environmental engineering from a recognized University

Experience:

Essential:

• At least five (5) years of experience in Public Health/Environmental Engineering/Environmental Management programme at national level.

Skills:

• The incumbent should identify with the core values of World Health Organization.
• Thorough knowledge of the situation in India with regard to adolescent health and development with good understanding of country’s needs and priorities.
• Very good knowledge of WHO policies, programmes and guidelines in the related areas.
• Sound technical and policy advisory skills, based on evidence.
• Leadership skills with demonstrated ability to work effectively with government and colleagues in a team setting at national and international levels, to share information and data and make oral and written presentations on technical issues.
• Very good ability to build and maintain relations and network with national authorities and other stakeholders across relevant sectors.
• Understanding of the potential motivating factors within national context and ability to adjust to new approaches in an increasingly complex environment.
• Modern management skills including planning and evaluation.
• Capacity to prepare terms of reference and to prepare and monitor and manage the implementation of contractual agreements.
• Capacity to convey information and options in a structured and credible way; ability to speak and write clearly.
• Proficiency in computer applications and ability to draft reports.
• Knowledge of WHO /UN agencies programmes and practices will be an advantage

Language Skills:

Essential:

• Expert knowledge of English. Expert knowledge of Hindi.

Source: https://careers.who.int/careersection/ex/jobdetail.ftl?job=2408932