Position Title: HRH Program Officer

Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (with field travel)

Employment Type: Full-time

Duration: 2 years (renewable based on performance and project needs)

Salary: Negotiable

Reports to: HRH Project Technical Lead

Background

MERQ Consultancy PLC is an evidence-driven organization working at the intersection of Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, and Quality Improvement (MERQ) in health and the humanities. MERQ serves as a technical and MEL partner for governments, development agencies, and implementing organizations across Africa.

MERQ is implementing a three-year Gates Foundation-funded project to enhance the productivity and efficiency of the health workforce in Ethiopia’s Health Extension Program. In close partnership with the Ministry of Health and Regional Health Bureaus, the project begins with a comprehensive review of HRH challenges to identify systemic bottlenecks and opportunities. Using a Human-Centered Design approach, MERQ will then facilitate the co-creation of contextually relevant interventions with key stakeholders, ensuring solutions are grounded in local realities. The project involves a rigorous evaluation of these priority interventions, contributing to sustainable HRH solutions and improved health system performance.

To support this effort, MERQ is recruiting an experienced HRH Program Officer to coordinate and provide technical oversight of the project’s daily operations across all three implementation phases.

Summary:

The HRH Program Officer will play a central role in ensuring smooth coordination, technical quality, and timely implementation of project activities. The officer will work closely with FMOH, IPHC-E, regional health bureaus, and other partners to implement, test, and refine HRH optimization packages.

Key Responsibilities

1. Coordination and Implementation

• Coordinate daily implementation of HRH project activities across the three phases—diagnostic, design, and implementation/testing.
• Facilitate planning, activity scheduling, and progress tracking with the MERQ core team and partners.
• Ensure timely communication and coordination with FMOH, IPHC-E, and regional health bureaus.
• Organize and follow up on meetings, workshops, field visits, and review sessions with all stakeholders.
• Facilitate IRB submission and approval process

2. Technical Oversight

• Provide technical input to the design, testing, and adaptation of HRH optimization packages.
• Support development of analytical frameworks, implementation protocols, and data collection tools.
• Participate in analysis and interpretation of data to inform adaptive implementation.
• Contribute to technical documentation, reports, and learning products.

3. Partner Engagement

• Serve as a focal point for coordination between MERQ and partners
• Support the establishment and functioning of governance structures
• Ensure alignment with national HRH strategies, the HRH Compact, and HEP Roadmap.

4. Monitoring, Learning, and Reporting

• Track progress of key deliverables, timelines, and outputs.
• Support documentation of lessons learned, success stories, and implementation challenges.
• Contribute to quarterly and annual technical reports.
• Facilitate learning sessions and reflection meetings

5. Capacity Building and Support

• Provide mentorship and on-site technical assistance to regional implementation teams.
• Facilitate training and orientation sessions for project staff and government counterparts.
• Work with implementers at different levels to quantify and prioritize supplies and other needs.

Qualifications and Experience

1. Master’s degree in Public Health, Health Policy, Human Resources for Health, or a related field.
2. Minimum of 5 years of professional experience, including at least 3 years in HRH or health systems strengthening projects.
3. Demonstrated experience in program coordination, stakeholder management, and partner engagement.
4. Demonstrated experience in designing, implementing, and communicating health system research with a focus on HRH.
5. Experience in intervention design and strategy development through participatory approaches (e.g., Human Centered Design)
6. Strong technical understanding of PHC, HEP, and HRH systems in Ethiopia.
7. Experience in managing multi-partner projects and providing technical oversight.
8. Excellent communication, facilitation, and report-writing skills (local languages and English).
9. Proficiency in Microsoft Office and project management tools.

Competencies and Attributes

• Strong organizational and multitasking skills.
• Analytical and solution-oriented mindset.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and cultural sensitivity.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Commitment to MERQ’s values of rigor, pragmatism, collaboration, and utilization-focused learning.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified applicants who meet the requirements should submit their updated CV and Cover letter addressed to the office should be attached on the MERQ online application form with the subject line “Application – HRH Program Officer.” through the following link:

Click here to start job application

Submit your CV and cover by November 20, 2025, 5pm Addis Time.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled and only those candidates that are short listed for interviews will be notified.

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