Infrastructure Engineer – Health Facility Renovation and Expansion to Improve Maternal and Newborn health Project

Background:  

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to saving lives and improving health outcomes in low- and middle-income countries by enabling the government and private sector to strengthen and sustain quality health systems. CHAI has worked in Ethiopia since 2005 in partnership with the Ministry of Health, supporting programs including Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), Maternal and Newborn Health (MNH), HIV Access, Lab Services, Vaccines, Child Survival/Essential Medicines, and Health Financing.

The Beginning Fund investment, designed with the Government of Ethiopia (Ministry of Health), aims to accelerate reductions in maternal and neonatal mortality and prevent stillbirths through the renovation/expansion of 25 health facilities across eight regions. Health infrastructure — facilities, equipment, supplies, and communication systems — is foundational to service delivery and emergency/chronic-care readiness. Ethiopia’s facilities face substandard designs, poor maintenance, weak planning, and lack of standardization; addressing these gaps through standardized, region-specific designs is central to improving service quality and cost-effective construction.

Ethiopia has made significant progress in reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) through strong political commitment, decentralization, and expansion of primary health care. The maternal mortality ratio declined from 871 per 100,000 live births in 2000 to approximately 141 in 2025, and under-five mortality fell from 166 to 55 per 1,000 live births over the same period. [Confirm source/citation for these figures.] Neonatal mortality, however, remains high at around 25 per 1,000 live births, accounting for nearly half of infant deaths. Persistent inequities, limited emergency obstetric and newborn care, inadequate infrastructure, and poor access to lifesaving commodities continue to challenge progress.

Within this partnership, CHAI’s RMNCH program addresses priority reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health service-delivery gaps innovative, high-impact, scalable interventions designed and tested in collaboration with the Government of Ethiopia, with the aim of scaling successful approaches to achieve national targets. In particular, the project focuses on expanding BEmONC/CEmONC capacity and OR-block infrastructure which are foundational to reducing mortality through closing infrastructural gaps.

Position Summary

The Infrastructure Engineer will provide technical leadership and day-to-day oversight of the renovation and expansion of 25 health facilities (18 Health Centers, 3 Primary Hospitals, and 5 General Hospitals) under the Maternal and Newborn Health Infrastructure Program. The position ensures that all construction activities are implemented in accordance with approved designs, technical specifications, national building standards, environmental and social safeguards, infection prevention and control (IPC) requirements, and donor quality standards.

Working closely with the Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, design consultants, supervising engineers, contractors, and CHAI technical teams, the Infrastructure Engineer will coordinate project implementation from construction mobilization through commissioning and handover. The position will play a critical role in ensuring timely delivery, quality assurance, cost control, contract compliance, and effective risk management while minimizing disruption to ongoing health services during construction.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership and Construction Oversight

• Coordinate implementation of renovation and expansion activities across all project sites.
• Review and verify engineering drawings, technical specifications, Bills of Quantities (BoQs), and construction methodologies before implementation.
• Ensure compliance with Ethiopian Building Code Standards, Ministry of Health infrastructure standards, and international best practices for health facility design.
• Monitor construction quality through regular site inspections and verify compliance with approved designs and technical specifications.
• Coordinate with supervising consultants to ensure timely resolution of technical issues.

Contract and Construction Management

• Monitor contractor performance, construction schedules, and implementation milestones.
• Review contractor work plans, progress reports, payment certificates, variation orders, and claims.
• Verify completed works before payment certification.
• Monitor budget utilization and recommend corrective actions where necessary.
• Support procurement, contract administration, and management of consultants and contractors.

Quality Assurance and Compliance

• Establish and oversee quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) systems throughout construction.
• Ensure construction materials and workmanship comply with approved standards.
• Monitor compliance with occupational health and safety (OHS), environmental management plans, infection prevention and control (IPC), disability accessibility standards, and safeguarding requirements.
• Identify construction risks and ensure corrective actions are implemented promptly.

Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the primary technical focal point between CHAI, the Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, contractors, supervising engineers, consultants, and health facility management.
• Organize and participate in technical coordination meetings, site review missions, and progress review meetings.
• Support Ministry technical teams during supervision and monitoring visits.

Monitoring, Reporting, and Documentation

• Monitor physical and financial progress against approved implementation plans.
• Prepare weekly and monthly construction progress reports, risk registers, quality assurance reports, and technical updates for project management and donors.
• Maintain comprehensive project documentation, including site inspection reports, technical correspondence, and construction records.

Commissioning and Handover

• Coordinate practical completion inspections, commissioning of completed works, and facility readiness assessments.
• Verify completion of punch-list items before final acceptance.
• Facilitate handover of completed facilities to the Ministry of Health.
• Monitor contractor performance during the Defects Liability Period and ensure timely correction of identified defects.

Other Activities

• Carries out other duties as appropriate and as assigned by immediate supervisors

Reports To: Program Manager

Duty Station, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with frequent travel to project sites across the country estimated at over 60%.

Contract Duration

• Project-based (one year with possibility of extension)

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree (preferred) or Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering, Construction Engineering and management , Structural Engineering, Architectural Engineering, or a related field.
• Renewed professional registration/license with the Ethiopian engineering regulatory body such as Ethiopian Construction Authority (ECA) is Mandatory.

Experience

• Minimum 10 years of progressively responsible experience in infrastructure design, construction, or project management.
• At least 5 years’ experience managing hospital or health facility construction or renovation projects.
• Demonstrated experience with donor-funded infrastructure projects (World Bank, AfDB, Global Fund, USAID, UNICEF, UN agencies, or similar).
• Experience in contract management, construction supervision, quality assurance, and engineering design review.
• Proven experience coordinating multidisciplinary engineering teams and government stakeholders.

Technical Competencies

• Health facility planning and construction
• Engineering design review and construction supervision
• Contract administration and FIDIC principles
• Bills of Quantities (BoQs) and cost estimation
• Quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC)
• Construction scheduling and project management
• Occupational health and safety (OHS)
• Environmental and social safeguards
• Risk management and problem-solving
• Proficiency in AutoCAD, REBIT, MS Project/Primavera, and Microsoft Office