Project Lead

Organisational background

Established in 2003, Malaria Consortium is one of the world’s leading non-profit organisations specialising in the comprehensive prevention, control and treatment of malaria and other communicable diseases among vulnerable and under privileged populations. We increasingly find our work on malaria can be effectively integrated with other similar public health interventions for greater impact and therefore expanded our remit to include child health and neglected tropical disease interventions.

We work in Africa and Asia with communities, governments, academic institutions, and local and international organisations, to ensure effective delivery of services, which are supported by strong evidence.

Our areas of expertise include:

• disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment
• disease control and elimination
• systems strengthening
• research, monitoring and evaluation leading to best practice
• behaviour change communication
• national and international advocacy and policy development

Country and project background

Malaria Consortium Chad is one of the country offices within the West and Central Africa region, whose regional hub is based in Abuja, Nigeria.

In Chad, Malaria Consortium currently supports the implementation of Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) in 48 health districts across the provinces of Barh El Gazal, Tandjilé, Logone Occidental, Mayo Kebbi West, and Mayo Kebbi East. The organization also supports the delivery of Oral Rehydration Salts and Zinc (ORSZ) in 26 health districts located in Mayo Kebbi West and Mayo Kebbi East provinces. SMC and ORSZ interventions are implemented through mass campaigns conducted in three to five monthly cycles during the rainy season. In addition, Malaria Consortium implements a severe malaria case management project in Beinamar Health District, located in Logone Occidental province.

Looking ahead, Malaria Consortium’s portfolio in Chad is expected to expand, with interventions ranging from national-level policy support to the direct implementation of programs in malaria control, nutrition, and selected neglected tropical diseases.

The N’Djamena office serves as the central coordination hub for all Malaria Consortium programs in Chad.

This project focuses on strengthening severe malaria management in children under-five years old in Beinamar District, Chad, where malaria remains a leading cause of illness and death. Beinamar is classified as a high malaria transmission area, with incidence exceeding 450 cases per 1,000- the highest transmission category in Chad.  Current malaria prevention and control measures in the district are limited. LLINs (long lasting insecticidal nets) are distributed and community-based malaria management is implemented. Due to Beinamar’s epidemiological profile, effective SMC would require more than five monthly cycles, which exceeds the scope of the current national SMC strategy. Although other districts report higher overall malaria incidence nationally, Beinamar was selected for this project because routine surveillance data indicate a persistently high incidence of confirmed severe malaria in the district. Consequently, SMC has not yet been authorised for implementation in Beinamar by the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP), and the district currently does not receive SMC.

Beinamar is a remote district, with many villages located far from health facilities, limited resources, and significant barriers to timely diagnosis and treatment. District surveillance data show a persistently high rate of severe malaria relative to uncomplicated malaria, suggesting gaps in early detection, treatment seeking, and referral, which increase the risk of progression to severe disease. These challenges reflect broader health system constraints common in isolated areas, including limited diagnostic capacity and delays in accessing higher-level care.

The project will strengthen the continuum of care through targeted health system support. This includes training, mentoring, and supportive supervision for clinicians, nurses, laboratory staff, CHWs, and district health managers; strengthening triage and paediatric emergency care; improving laboratory quality assurance; and enhancing data collection and use for programme monitoring. Ahead of the peak malaria transmission period, the project will support pre-positioning of rectal artesunate at community level and injectable artesunate at health facilities to ensure timely pre-referral treatment and effective management. Referral pathways will be strengthened, and the project will pilot support for transport costs for caregivers of referred children to generate operational learning on whether transport constraints affect care-seeking and referral uptake.

The project will be implemented in close collaboration with the Chad Ministry of Health and aligned with the National Malaria Strategic Plan, national treatment guidelines, and existing referral systems. This grant contributes to Malaria Consortium’s 2025 Strategy by expanding coverage of locally led implementation in malaria management (SO1) and by documenting a model of integrated severe malaria care that generates operational and impact evidence (SO3). By demonstrating that strengthened diagnosis, referral, and emergency care can reduce morbidity and mortality among children under five in Beinamar, the project will provide a scalable, institutionalised model for adoption in other high-burden districts and inform national policy and practice.

Job purpose

Under the direct supervision of the Country Technical Coordinator, the Project Lead is responsible for the overall technical, operational and managerial leadership of the project aimed at strengthening the continuum of care for severe malaria among children under five in Beinamar District, Chad. The Project Lead will ensure full alignment of project design and implementation with Ministry of Health (MoH) priorities, the National Malaria Strategic Plan, and national clinical guidelines for severe malaria management. The role includes representing Malaria Consortium in relevant national, district and sub‑district coordination forums with government and non‑government stakeholders.

The Project Lead will coordinate, plan and oversee the implementation of project activities at district, health facility and community levels, including capacity building, supervision, service delivery strengthening, MEAL, reporting, and partner engagement. The position will be based in Beinamar District, with regular travel to health facilities and communities within the project catchment area.

Scope of work

The Project Lead will coordinate the delivery of all project components across the full continuum of severe malaria care, ensuring technical quality, operational efficiency, and learning generation.

The postholder will:

• Ensure alignment of Malaria Consortium’s interventions with Chad’s malaria policies, treatment guidelines, referral systems and health information systems;
• Lead project planning, implementation, monitoring, adaptive management and learning;
• Support engagement with donors and contribute to identification of future funding and scale‑up opportunities;
• Manage and supervise the Clinical Officer, M&E staff and Driver, ensuring timely, high‑quality delivery of activities;
• Coordinate closely with district health authorities, health facility staff, and community health workers (CHWs);
• Ensure strong collaboration with Country Office functions, including SMC Programme, Finance, HR, Logistics, and Supply Chain

Key working relationships

The Project Lead will maintain close and collaborative working relationships with:

Internal:

• Country Technical Coordinator
• Country Director and Country Office teams (Finance, HR, Logistics, Procurement, SMC Programme)
• Other Malaria Consortium project teams as required

External

• Ministry of Health, particularly the NMCP
• Regional and District Health Authorities (Beinamar District Health Management Team)
• Management teams of supported health facilities and the district hospital
• Community Health Workers and community leaders
• Implementing partners and technical stakeholders active in malaria and child health

Key Responsibilities:

Ministry of Health Engagement and Coordination (30%)

• Ensure project alignment with MoH priorities, national malaria strategies and severe malaria treatment guidelines.
• Liaise, with guidance from line manager, with NMCP and other relevant MoH departments on project planning, implementation and reporting.
• Represent Malaria Consortium in national, provincial and district coordination forums related to malaria, child health and health systems strengthening.
• Share regular project updates, results and operational learning with government counterparts.
• Maintain up‑to‑date understanding of national malaria policy developments and ensure timely project adaptation.

Partner Coordination and Collaboration (20%)

• Participate in coordination meetings with partners operating in Beinamar District.
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with government and non‑government partners.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration, learning exchange, and avoidance of duplication.
• Monitor partner activities relevant to severe malaria, referral systems, SBC, and health systems strengthening.
• Provide timely feedback to the line manager and contribute to strategic positioning of Malaria Consortium

District level activities (20%)

• Coordinate implementation of project activities at district, health facility and community levels.
• Support district and health facility teams in planning, scheduling and implementing project interventions.
• Oversee capacity building, mentoring and supportive supervision for clinicians, nurses, laboratory staff and CHWs.
• Support strengthening of referral pathways, emergency care, triage and pre‑referral treatment systems.
• Coordinate logistics for training, supervision and drug pre‑positioning.
• Monitor implementation progress and identify risks, bottlenecks and mitigation measures

Management (15%)

• Provide line management to the Clinical Officer and M&E, ensuring clear objectives, work plans and performance monitoring.
• Support staff through mentoring, coaching, and regular performance reviews.
• Oversee project budgeting, expenditure monitoring and financial compliance in coordination with the Country Office.
• Ensure project activities comply with Malaria Consortium policies on ethics, safeguarding, quality programming and risk management.

Reporting and documentation (10%)

• Ensure timely collection, quality assurance and use of routine monitoring data.
• Support implementation of the project MEAL framework, including baseline, process and endline evaluations.
• Ensure regular analysis and use of DHIS2 and project data to inform adaptive management.
• Prepare high‑quality monthly, quarterly and donor reports in collaboration with the MEAL and technical teams.
• Support dissemination of results and learning with MoH and stakeholders.

Administration (5%)

• ·  Coordinate logistical and administrative arrangements for district‑level activities.
• ·  Ensure compliance with Malaria Consortium policies, donor requirements, and national regulations.
• ·  Perform any other duties as required by the line manager in support of project objectives.

Person Specification

Qualifications and experience

Essential

• Training in  Medicineor a relevant public health field e.g. community health.
• At least 5 years of work experience in public health with at least 3 years in a similar NGO.
• Solid experience in working with health district, and community levels
• Good experience in design, coordination and implementation of malaria or child health programmes
• Extensive experience in conducting community health projects
• Demonstrated experience liaising with the MoH and NMCP, including representing a project or organisation in coordination forums.Partnership experience working with key health partners, including those active on the district or provincial level.

Desirable

• Experience in severe malaria case management, emergency paediatric care, referral systems or continuum of care interventions.
• Experience contributing to donor reporting and learning agendas for large institutional donors.

Work-based Skills and competencies

Essential

• Good knowledge of health system
• Good communication skills
• Ability to make regular field visits: at least 30% travel time
• Ability to work under pressure
• Proven leadership and team management skills
• Proven diplomacy skills
• Excellent planning, management, and monitoring/evaluation skills
• Excellent report writing and presentation skills
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Excellent computer skills with high proficiency in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook