087-2021-GAVI-RFQ – “Senior Manager, Donor Relations Dose Sharing-COVAX-(Temporary) “

Background and Introduction

Gavi Alliance’s (“Gavi”) mission is to save children’s lives and protect people’s health by increasing access to immunisation in poor countries.

Gavi is a unique organisation that aligns public and private resources in a global effort to create greater access to the benefits of immunisation. It does this with precision and in creative, innovative ways to ensure that donor contributions efficiently save lives and help build self-sufficiency in the world’s poorest communities and regions.

For more information, please visit the Gavi website: http://www.gavi.org/about/mission

Background of the team and purpose of the role

To respond to COVID-19, Gavi is leading on resource mobilisation, innovative finance, deal-making through advance purchase agreements, procurement and delivery for COVAX, coordinating the design and implementation of the COVAX Facility and the COVAX AMC and working with Alliance partners UNICEF and WHO, along with governments, on country readiness and delivery. The COVAX Facility is the global pooled procurement mechanism for COVID-19 vaccines through which COVAX will ensure fair and equitable access to vaccines for all 190 participating economies, using an allocation framework formulated by WHO. The Gavi COVAX AMC is the financing mechanism that will support the participation of 92 lower income countries in the Facility, enabling accelerated early access to donor-funded doses of safe and effective vaccines.

Given the increasing number of emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines by stringent regulatory authorities (SRAs), some countries have secured sufficient doses to begin sharing a portion of those doses rapidly with other countries. Consequently, the Facility is accelerating its work with potential dose-sharing countries, and vaccine manufacturers, to include these doses in the Facility and facilitate their equitable global distribution. These shared doses will complement the early doses procured through the Facility.

As part of this effort, Gavi will continuously engage with countries that have surplus doses in an effort to maximize impact through dose sharing; accelerating the Facility’s goal of ensuring participating countries – primarily AMC-eligible countries, but potentially others – to achieve greater coverage as soon as possible in 2021 and to expand coverage beyond that in 2022.

The Senior Manager, Donor Relations Dose Sharing will support and develop further the COVAX dose sharing agenda laid out in the principles of December 2020. Centralise information and planning to support the agenda within RMPSPIF who interface with donor countries. Push the agenda forward by leading discussions with donors, collating information and learnings; conduct analyses and inform policymaking; develop, and review proposals with donors; make recommendations to inform decision making; advise senior internal and external stakeholders and engage with key cross-sector stakeholders.

Description of Services:

• Contribute to the COVAX Facility’s Principles for Dose-Sharing which provided a framework for higher-income economies to make additional volumes, secured via their own bilateral deals, available through the Facility primarily to Gavi COVAX AMC-eligible economies, on an equitable basis.

• Achieve a maximum number of shared doses negotiations through the COVAX Facility with, at a minimum, WHO prequalification/emergency use listing or licensure/authorization from an SRA

• Collaborate with team members to deliver on the dose-sharing objectives.

Main Duties & Responsibilities:

Senior Manager, Donor Relations Dose Sharing’s specific duties include:

• Responsible for engagement and preparation of future negotiations with donor governments on various modalities being considered for dose sharing;

• Ability to complement and coordinate with efforts of Resource Mobilisation team colleagues (including Legal, Finance and Deals Team) to achieve results;

• Responsible for negotiating with donors, including develop the key positions for the agreements to fulfil the COVAX dose-sharing objectives;

• Support COVAX team working with sharing countries’ contracts/legal personnel where needed in their negotiations with manufacturer.

• Identification and mitigation of financial and contractual risks;

• Draft documents and presentations to support the engagements with internal and external stakeholders.

• Explain to donors in detail how the dose sharing mechanism works, including the legal structure to obtain the doses and how they will be allocated.

• Track and support the donation of doses from informal commitment right the way through to their shipment to the country, working with COVAX, legal, deal team, country, finance and communications colleagues to contribute to a smooth process, providing critical information from the donor where needed.

• Support the sequencing of dose donations engaging with COVAX and country colleagues to ensure that recipient countries are prepared for timely receipt of doses.

• Prepare succinct memos for senior level decision making required for any dose donation offers.

• Track dose donation offers and acceptances and keep an organised file.

• Work with COVAX Office colleagues to ensure that donated doses are shipping on time according to shared order notices.

• Engage, obtain alignment and support from senior stakeholders, and management of Gavi and the Office of COVAX Facility;

• Collaborate with cross-Secretariat teams (Office of COVAX Facility, Market Shaping, Vaccine Forecasting and Grant Operations etc.) and external partners (for example, CEPI, UNICEF, WHO);

• Participate and contribute to COVAX Facility design, policymaking, operationalisation and other related activities as a member of the Office of the COVAX Facility;

• Serve as thought partner to countries that desire to share doses with COVAX, the Resource Mobilisation team and the Managing Director – Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships & Innovative Finance

Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.

Location:Gavi Alliance HQ, Geneva, Switzerland or remote (subject to discussion)

Qualifications and work experience required:

Academic

• Master’s degree in relevant discipline (economics, finance, business or international development).

Work Experience

• Minimum 10 years of relevant experiences;

• Experience in sovereign relations, vaccines or pharmaceuticals industry;

• Expertise in commercial, negotiations, contracting, procurement at global or senior levels;

• Good project management skills

• Demonstrated excellent stakeholder management across various functions, sectors.

• Good understanding of key transformations impacting today’s business, industry and political environment; as well as good overview of development aid work;

• Experience of managing multiple projects within a fast-moving environment

Skills/competencies

• Proven track record in developing and executing large transactions, projects, investments;

• Understanding of vaccine development, contracting, regulatory, legal and production;

• Knowledge of global vaccine industry;

• Excellent analytical and synthesizing capabilities;

• Ability to work independently, under pressure, demonstrating initiative and flexibility;

• Demonstrated ability to work in teams with cross cutting colleagues to achieve results;

• Good understanding of GAVI and GAVI strategic objectives or capability and willingness to acquire this knowledge quickly.

• Ability to influence and negotiate among diverse stakeholders;

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; with demonstrated ability to deliver high quality work independently within tight deadlines;

• Strategic facilitation, negotiation, political acumen; representation, advocacy, diplomacy;

• Proficiency with Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel, Word, Teams;

• Effective relationship-building skills both within and outside the organisation;

Note: short-listed candidates may be asked to complete a timed test to demonstrate their data management, analysis and communication skills.

Languages:

• Written and spoken fluency in English;

• French and/or other languages desirable.

Duration of Assignment: Approximately 12 months

Selection Process and expected timelines

• Interested parties should respond by completing Annex One and returning their application before midnight on the Closing Date;
• Gavi will shortlist and invite for written tests and/or interviews (1-2 weeks)
• Contract negotiation and signature (1-2 weeks)

We are committed to fostering a just, equitable and diverse culture free from racism and discrimination in which all staff, partners and stakeholders feel empowered, safe and heard.