Health Specialist - Health Economics and Financing (Fixed Term)

About the role

UNICEF's Nairobi Centre of Excellence, within the Global Programme Division, is recruiting a Health Specialist (Health Economics and Financing) for a fixed-term P-4 position. The specialist joins the newly established Inclusive Health Economics, Financing and Policy Innovation (IHEFPI) team, which supports governments to expand fiscal space, improve resource allocation and efficiency, strengthen financial protection and develop equitable, sustainable health financing approaches. The work covers economic evaluation and modelling, efficiency and fiscal-space analysis, health technology assessments, public financing and evidence-informed policy reform.

Key responsibilities

• Provide technical advice on strategic planning, policy formulation and review, and generate evidence and economic analysis
• Support domestic resource mobilization and government-led financing, and give technical advice on capacity building
• Advise on financing and service-delivery reforms and coordinate across sectors
• Support the design, costing and financing of national health and immunization strategies
• Undertake economic, fiscal-space, efficiency and budget-impact analyses
• Translate economic evidence into policy recommendations, investment cases and financing strategies
• Strengthen national capacity in health economics and financing and contribute to cross-sectoral policy dialogue

Required profile

• Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in health economics, health financing, public health or health policy, or in economics/finance with an emphasis on health systems strengthening
• At least 8 years of experience in international health and development, with a focus on health economics, policy and financing in low- and middle-income countries
• Demonstrated experience applying economic theory and health financing models in real-world settings, and translating analysis into practical strategies
• Proficiency in English and French; knowledge of another UN official language is an asset
• Desirable: experience with cost-effectiveness, budget impact, investment case and fiscal space analyses, and experience advising ministries of health and finance

Required skills

• Economic evaluation methods (CEA, CBA, ROI), budget impact and financial forecasting models
• Health economic modelling tools such as UNIVAC, OneHealth Tool, LiST, Spectrum, Optima Health, and advanced Excel and R-based modelling
• Statistical software such as R and Stata, and ability to manage large datasets
• Strong quantitative analysis, policy translation and writing skills