Cluster MNH Coordinator

Organization:

Ethiopian Midwives Association (EMwA) is a legally registered, autonomous, and not-for-profit professional association established in 1992 and re-registered under the new civil society proclamation. Ethiopian Midwives Association (EMwA) operates in all regions of Ethiopia by using and works for the quality of midwifery education and care. EMwA has been a member of the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) since 1993.

In partnership with Jhpiego (the prime partner), EMwA is implementing the Reaching Impact Saturation and Epidemic Control (RISE) Project—a one-year, multi-regional initiative focused on improving maternal, newborn, child health, and nutrition (MNCHN), enhancing infection prevention and control (IPC) practices, and strengthening health security nationwide. The project uses a geographic clustering model to ensure efficient, context-sensitive implementation across pastoralist, agrarian, and semi-urban woredas. EMwA is recruiting MNH technical experts to be based in one cluster coordination office Semera where they will work collaboratively with other cluster-based professionals to execute joint plans under a unified team-management approach.

Position summary:

Under the guidance of an MHN country office expert, the EMwA MNH Coordinator will provide strategic technical leadership in the design, implementation, and monitoring of maternal and newborn health programs across assigned clusters. Based at the cluster office, the coordinator will report to EMwA project manager and functionally to the Cluster MNCHN Coordinator and work in close collaboration with woreda-level project staff.

The coordinator will directly support health facilities and government health offices leading the implementation of MNH capacity building and system improvement efforts of the project. This role also focuses on strengthening the capacity of local teams and supporting woreda health offices and health facilities to enhance the quality, utilization, and impact of MNH services. The coordinator will play a key role in ensuring evidence-based practices are adopted and sustained, contributing to improved health outcomes for mothers and newborns

Roles and Responsibilities:

Technical Leadership & Program Implementation

• Provide strategic technical support for the design, rollout, and monitoring of maternal and newborn health (MNH) programs within assigned clusters.
• Ensure that interventions are aligned with national MNCHN policies and adapted to the specific needs of agrarian, semi-urban, and pastoralist communities.

Service Delivery Strengthening

• Work closely with woreda health offices and health facilities to improve the quality and integration of key MNH services—including antenatal care (ANC), skilled birth attendance (SBA), postnatal care (PNC), emergency obstetric and newborn care (EmONC), and newborn care—alongside nutrition and child health services.

Capacity Building & Supportive Supervision

• Facilitate on-the-job training, mentorship, and joint supportive supervision for healthcare providers in collaboration with the project and the public sector woreda level staff and local health authorities.
• Strengthen the technical and facilitative competencies of frontline workers to deliver high-quality MNH services.

Contextualized Service Delivery Model

• Support the implementation of differentiated service delivery approaches tailored to hard-to-reach and underserved communities.
• Provide feedback and field-level insights to inform national-level adaptation and scale-up of effective models.

Data Use & Adaptive Learning

• Promote the use of routine health data to monitor service quality, identify bottlenecks, and guide evidence-based decision-making.
• Collaborate with monitoring and evaluation teams to ensure data-driven planning and continuous improvement.

Stakeholder Coordination & Planning

• Engage with regional health bureaus, zonal and woreda health offices, and implementing partners to coordinate MNH activities.
• Participate in cluster-level planning, review, and coordination meetings to ensure harmonized implementation and alignment with national goals.

Knowledge Sharing & Documentation

• Document best practices, lessons learned, and implementation challenges from the field.
• Contribute to technical reports and knowledge products that inform national strategies and promote cross-regional learning.

Other Duties

• Carry out additional tasks as assigned by the national MNH manager to support the overall success, adaptability, and responsiveness of the project.

Job Requirements (Must Criteria)

Education: MSc in Midwifery, MSc/MPH with midwifery background or BSC in Midwifery

Professional Experience:

• At least 8/ 10 years of experience of progressive experience in maternal and newborn health (MNH) programming in both facility and community settings.
• Demonstrated experience working with regional and woreda health offices, and supporting health system strengthening efforts.
• Experience in implementing MNH interventions in the specific geographic contexts you are applying for.
• Ethiopian Midwives association member

Technical Competencies:

• Strong understanding of MNH service packages including ANC, SBA, PNC, EmONC, and newborn care.
• Proven ability to facilitate training, mentorship, and supportive supervision for health workers.
• Familiarity with national MNCHN policies, guidelines, and global standards.
• Experience in data use for decision-making, monitoring program performance, and adaptive learning.

Collaboration & Communication:

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to work effectively in multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams.
• Experience collaborating with professional associations, implementing partners, and government stakeholders.
• Ability to document and share technical insights, lessons learned, and best practices.

Other Requirements:

• Willingness to be based in cluster offices and travel frequently to remote woredas.
• Fluency in English and at least one local language relevant to the assigned cluster.
• Strong organizational and time management skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities.

Languages

• Fluency in spoken and written English and Amharic

Desired Criteria (An Asset)

• Proficiency in local languages (spoken and written) is an asset.
• Prior experience working in international or local NGOs (I/NGOs) is advantageous.
• Completion of relevant MNH-related training such as BEmONC, Skills-On-the-Job Training (SOJT), Mentorship ,PMTCT, Preconception Care, ANC, and PNC is highly desirable

Required Skills

• Adaptability
• Patience
• Patient care and assistance
• Acute care