Program Manager, South Africa - Vital Strategies

Job Title: Program Manager, South Africa

About Vital Strategies:

Vital Strategies is an international public health organization. Our programs strengthen public health systems and address the world’s leading causes of illness, injury and death. We currently work in 73 countries, supporting data-driven decision making in government, advancing evidence-based public health policies, and mounting strategic communication campaigns. Vital Strategies’ priorities are driven by the greatest potential to improve and save lives. They include non-communicable disease prevention, tobacco control, road safety, obesity prevention, overdose prevention, environmental health, and vital statistics systems building. Our programs are primarily concentrated in low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. Please visit our website at www.vitalstrategies.org to find out more about our work.

About Lead Poisoning Prevention Program:

Vital Strategies is expanding our program that addresses the issue of lead poisoning in low- and middle-income countries. We plan to build upon existing efforts and interest by collaborating with governmental agencies in countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to strengthen health systems and build local expertise in childhood lead exposure to enact sound, cost-effective policies to address exposures. 

Job Purpose:

The Program Manager will provide technical support in enhancing health systems' capacity to reduce lead poisoning and to oversee our field research in South Africa. The manager will offer epidemiological and programmatic support, including supporting the design, implementation, and monitoring of blood lead surveillance in South Africa. The role involves collaborating with a team of environmental health scientists, epidemiologists, clinicians, public health professionals, and statisticians, and partnering with high-level government officials. 

Duties and Responsibilities:

Technical and Programmatic Support:

• Collaborate with a team to provide technical support in designing and implementing the lead poisoning prevention program; 
• Assist in guiding and building the capacity of government and non-government staff to implement the lead poisoning prevention program; 
• Provide support in the development of a surveillance framework, standardizing surveillance procedures, and obtaining ethical approval; 
• Train and monitor activities of field surveillance teams; 
• Support organizing technical discussions, journalist training; 
• Provide support on policy analysis; 
• Facilitate training sessions for health officials, frontline workers, journalists, and other stakeholders.   

Stakeholder Management:

• Assist in developing and maintaining partnerships with government and non-government stakeholders across various sectors, including health, environment, academic and research institutions, etc; 
• In collaboration with the supervisor, serve as the Vital Strategies focal point and representative for key stakeholders. 

Data Management:

• With designated personnel, monitor data collection, ensure data quality, and manage data sets; 
• Provide on-ground monitoring through regular visits to selected surveillance sites;     
• Work with senior epidemiologists to clean, analyze, and report surveillance data, ensuring the quality of surveillance data.

Communication

• Create presentations, technical reports, and non-technical summaries for varied audiences, including policy-makers and the general public;
• Disseminate and present report findings to stakeholders and promote data use for policy and planning.

Operations and Administration 

• Supervise and support a small, dispersed team; 
• Assist with program start-up, logistics, contracting, expense monitoring, activity reporting, and procurement; 
• Oversee payment processing for program team members and vendors, collaborating with the Finance and Operations teams of the Vital Strategies office; 
• Submit program and financial updates and project reports for South Africa; 
• Coordinate activities with the initiative’s partner organizations; 
• Assist with other duties assigned by the supervisor. 

Qualifications:

Education:

Master’s degree in public health, epidemiology, environmental science, or related public health field (e.g., biostatistics, demography) or public administration.

Experience:

Required

• Minimum of six to seven years of experience in epidemiology, environmental health, global health, and/or program implementation; 
• Experience in supporting the design and monitoring of health surveillance programs at the national level or previous experience managing large health-related surveys; 
• Experience working with government health departments, regulatory bodies, and public health facilities; 
• Experience in using data analytic software (e.g. R, Stata, SAS, Excel) and/or data visualization platforms (e.g., Shiny, Tableau); 
• Experience in conducting training sessions;  
• Experience in supervising a small team. Ability to manage a team of 2-3 staff and other program stakeholders at the national level. 

Preferred

• Experience managing complex data flows;
• Demonstrated experience in communicating scientific and health information to varied audiences;
• Experience in using project management platforms such as Monday or Airtable is a plus.

Skills & Abilities

• Demonstrated familiarity with public health systems, health programs, disease surveillance programs, and health and environmental risk assessment; 
• Understanding of advocacy for evidence-based interventions and how to navigate bureaucratic processes; 
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines; 
• Ability to work independently while coordinating with diverse teams and stakeholders; 
• Ability to be flexible with colleagues across time zones.
• Excellent communication skills to convey technical information to diverse audiences. Professional oral and written proficiency in native language and English; 
• Proven ability to interpret public health data, generate actionable insights, and support policy recommendations; 
• Ability to anticipate challenges, develop solutions, and adapt to evolving program needs; 
• Solid knowledge of Microsoft Office suite; 
• Passion for addressing environmental health challenges and improving community well-being; 
• Ability to build strong, ongoing, impactful relationships at all organizational levels and across a diverse range of cultural, generational, ethnic, racial, educational, and social backgrounds; 
• Demonstrated commitment to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive working and learning environment. 

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• This is a full-time position that can be based remotely from Johannesburg or Pretoria, South Africa.
• This Vacancy Advertisement is open to South African nationals and candidates holding a valid work resident permit for South Africa.
• The selected candidate must be based in either Johannesburg or Pretoria to attend in-person meetings as required.
• Relocation support is not offered for this position; candidates are expected to be based in or able to independently relocate to the role’s required location.
• The successful candidate will be hired on Vital’s Employer of Record.
• The salary range for this position is ZAR 833,000 to ZAR 1,070,000.
• Willing to travel for in-person meetings and field visits in South Africa as needed and occasionally travel internationally to attend meetings.

Vital Strategies is committed to building a diverse, equitable and inclusive (DEI) organization. We believe our programs are strengthened when they are developed and supported by individuals with diverse life experiences, whose understanding of social and cultural issues can help make our work and workforce more inclusive. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. 

How To Apply

Interested and qualified applicants can send their updated cv through email:"[email protected]t" using the subject line Program Associate, South Africa - Vital Strategies