Muso (or Muso Health) is a POST: Technical Assistance Director (745) / Ivory Coast
Technical assistance, combined with direct service implementation and operational research, is Muso’s main lever for impact: it enables governments to adopt, finance and manage rapid care themselves at the national level, without Muso intervening in the provision of services. Technical assistance is based on three pillars: adaptability (governments adopt the system without Muso being its provider), flexibility (partners adopt components, not the whole system) and sustainability (partners can continue their efforts without constantly depending on Muso).
The TA portfolio has three components:
Main duties
Long-term partnerships ("major investments"). More than 10 years of engagement with governments to transform health systems nationally. Today: Mali, Côte d’Ivoire and Zambia (launched July 2024). Muso integrates specialists within ministries, who join government commissions, develop policies, establish budgets and cost estimates, coordinate donors and partners, and gradually transfer operational and budgetary responsibilities. Recent results include the Malian decree of 2022 recognizing professional community health workers (PCHs) and the 2025 regulatory framework allowing their remuneration from national funds, nationwide training on the DISC-Mali digital platform, the National Community Health Strategy 2022-2025 Côte d’Ivoire and the national deployment of a dedicated monitoring system, as well as Zambia’s demand for a performance management system for more than 11,000 ASCp.
Job overview
Integrated partnerships in the short and medium term in new contexts. Engagements of one to three years, usually with civil society or government intermediaries (e.g. FOHSEN in Senegal, Nubia Health in Sudan, Instiglio and the Government of Morocco), to test rapid care approaches and build partner capacity.
Education / Qualifications
Technical assistance resources available to partners. A lighter offer of manuals, procedures, tools and guidance (recruitment, training, supervision, quality improvement), grouped in a quick-care toolbox: tools adaptable to different contexts.
In all three areas, technical assistance (TA) is based on evidence, policy changes, financial support, implementation support and evaluation of processes and outcomes. It is guided by Muso’s values (justice-focused, proactive, community-driven, adaptable, effective and data-driven) and by four axes: patient and person at the center, processes and mechanisms, partnership and political context. Muso is focused on mobilizing national funding and developing a national funding strategy with each major government partner. The missions are selected according to a precise evaluation grid: share of the ProCCM program adopted, type of partner, population served, funding context, Muso’s capacity and adequacy with its mission and values.
About the role
The Director of Technical Assistance leads Muso’s technical assistance department and is part of its management. He is responsible for Muso’s strategy and technical assistance portfolio: he determines the areas of intervention, leads long-term government partnerships, develops short-term and open source offers, provides the team and tools needed to implement them and ensures that each commitment leads to sustainable reforms supported by public authorities. This position involves cross-functional collaboration with the Research, Programmes, Learning and Innovation, Finance, Operations and Development departments, and represents Muso to ministries, donors and national, regional and international bodies.
Responsibilities
Strategy and portfolio
Lead the implementation and periodic updating of Muso’s technical assistance strategy, including the three-pronged portfolio and its sequencing.
Implement the partnership selection process (dashboard, exclusion and strategic value criteria, decision-making rights of department heads, management team and CEO); say no or direct towards light support when a commitment does not match Muso’s mission or capabilities.
Define what the term “support” means in each mission (perimeter, level of effort, staff, key steps), with SMART objectives and results frameworks agreed with the partner.
Government Partnerships and Policy Changes
Provide high-level strategic and diplomatic leadership for partnerships with the governments of Mali, Côte d’Ivoire and Zambia, maintaining confidence at ministerial, parliamentary and technical levels despite leadership turnover.
Guide the integrated teams supporting national professionalization and compensation reform of CSAs, dedicated supervision, free care, strengthening community and primary health centers, and digital health.
Use power mapping, relationship development and process mapping to identify and seize opportunities for policy change; act as an evidence intermediary with decision makers.
Funding and resource mobilization
Lead, in collaboration with the health care finance specialist, national funding strategies and investment files with each partner government and mobilize institutional and partner resources (e.g. World Bank, Global Fund, GFF, bilateral donors, foundations).
Support the coordination of partners so that donors align with government-led plans.
Team Leadership
Build, recruit, mentor and retain a multidisciplinary technical assistance team composed of partnership managers, project coordinators, finance, evaluation, learning and digital specialists, as well as national and integrated staff.
Other information
Deploy and coordinate specialists from other departments of Muso; maintain a clear internal operating model so that technical assistance commitments are aligned with research, monitoring and evaluation, learning and innovation, and finance.
Promote a culture of humility, solidarity and service, as well as strong national leadership within the team.
Tools, Learning and Evidence
Collaborate with Learning and Innovation and Research/M&E to develop the Rapid Care toolkit and ensure that tools are context-adaptable and simple enough for governments to use.
Establish a monitoring, learning and evaluation system for each mission; diagnose the root causes of slippages and quickly rectify the situation.
Experience
Learn from international experience and contribute to publications, site visits, conferences, and advocacy that evolve global standards into proactive, free-of-charge care led by community health workers.
Representation and management
Represent Muso on national advocacy committees, technical working groups and international forums.
Report monthly to senior management and board of directors as required; manage technical assistance budget and work plan; meet weekly with supervisor and technical assistance team.
Candidate profile
Applicants must hold a higher level degree, have significant experience in providing technical assistance to ministries in sub-Saharan Africa and be proficient in both French and English.
Graduate Diploma (MPH, MD, MPA or a degree in health policy, health economics, international development or a related field).
Progressive leadership in global health or health system strengthening, including demonstrated excellence in providing technical assistance to, or integrated with, a ministry of health or comparable public institution in sub-Saharan Africa.
Proven contribution to national reform (policy, strategy, funding and implementation) in the area of community health or primary care.
Proven ability to mobilize domestic and international funding for public sector strategies.
Demonstrated excellence in supporting public sector partners to implement evidence-based strategies, with fidelity and impact.
Experience in leading and developing multidisciplinary and geographically dispersed teams, as well as managing complex budgets.
Professional mastery of French and English, both orally and in writing.
Preferred
Experience in West Africa/French-speaking Central or Zambia, and knowledge of departmental planning and budgeting cycles.
Experience with digital health platforms in national systems (for example, the Community Health Toolkit) and operational or implementation research.
Proven experience in mobilizing funds from major institutional donors or national budgets.
Basic skills
The ideal candidate combines an in-depth knowledge of health systems and funding with a strong political sense and a great humility in the way they help.
Health systems design and community health: in-depth understanding of community health worker programs, supervisory systems, primary health care, removal of user fees and universal health coverage; adaptation of models rather than reproduction.
Health financing: analyses and creates fiscal room for manoeuvre, advises on national and international funding mechanisms and develops investment files.
Political sense and diplomacy: mastery of government institutions, power dynamics and leadership turnover; enjoys high credibility with ministers, technical directors, donors and communities.
Partnership and “technical assistance with humility”: comfortable as a reflection partner, listens first, promotes local ownership, plans the transition and is committed to decolonizing global health practices.
Strategic judgement: establishes priorities, rejects requests that do not correspond and evaluates the feasibility of the policy in relation to its impact (e.g. component-by-component adoption in relation to the whole scheme).
Evidence Analysis and Interpretation: Critical analysis of research, translating evidence into policy and practice, and designing research, learning and evaluation activities.
Leadership and management: team building, mentoring, performance management and interdepartmental collaboration.
Execution: project management, planning, budget management and constant delivery within tight deadlines.
Communication: responsible, proactive and timely; persuasive writing, proposal and report development, public speaking and advocacy.
Resilience and tenacity: perseverance in complex and politically sensitive environments; availability for frequent travel.
Alignment of values: A commitment to justice, fairness and the principle that no one should die while waiting for care.
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