Technical Officer (Vaccine Preventable Diseases and Immunization)

About the role

The WHO Representative Office for Samoa, American Samoa, Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau is recruiting a Technical Officer to support the control, elimination and eradication of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs). The post works under the direct supervision of the respective officer and the overall guidance of the head of the country office, and focuses on reaching missed and zero-dose children, scaling up priority and new vaccines and strengthening preventive vaccination campaigns.

Key responsibilities

• Support the delivery of technical advice to governments and national stakeholders on immunization strategies, policies, work programmes and plans, including sustainable programme financing.
• Monitor the national burden of VPDs through health information systems and research, including programme reviews, coverage surveys, seroprevalence studies and evaluation of new interventions.
• Help Ministries of Health plan and organize national and subnational vaccination campaigns aligned with strategic goals.
• Support governments in implementing activities recommended by the Sub-regional Verification Committee for Measles and Rubella Elimination in the Pacific.
• Contribute to work plans, budget implementation and resource mobilization, and coordinate the adaptation of norms, standards, guidelines and tools.
• Provide technical input on information, education and communication materials for community awareness.

Required profile

• University degree in medicine, nursing, public health or a related science; training in immunization, VPDs, surveillance or a related field desirable.
• At least two years of experience supporting public health, capacity-building policies and programmes on VPDs and immunization at national level.
• Experience providing technical services to Member States and partners in resource-limited settings.
• Desirable: experience in immunization service delivery, disease surveillance and analysis of life-course data.
• Relevant experience with WHO, UN agencies, health clusters, NGOs or humanitarian organizations.
• Excellent written and spoken English; a record of integrity and professionalism is essential.

Required skills

• Programme management, including planning, training, monitoring and evaluation of immunization and surveillance interventions.
• Coordinating multi-sectoral public health programmes with stakeholder input.
• Developing locally adapted tools and working with government officials, NGOs and international partners.
• Advocacy and communication of life-course immunization messages.

What we offer

• Annual base salary starting at WST 77,024, subject to mandatory deductions for pension and health insurance.
• 30 days of annual leave.