Consultant - Syphilis

ABOUT EVIDENCE ACTION

At Evidence Action, we deliver data-driven interventions that transform lives at an unprecedented scale. We identify neglected global health issues and deploy proven solutions, forging healthier futures for generations.

Our model operationalizes leading academic research (including from Nobel-winning economists). We measure progress and outcomes at every stage to ensure we’re making a real impact for people living in poverty and suffering from preventable or treatable health issues. Operating across 9 countries, our team of 900+ has reached over 500 million people, working closely with governments to scale these interventions.

• Our Deworm the World program has delivered over 2 billion treatments, significantly reducing worm prevalence and generating more than $23 billion in lifetime productivity gains.
• Through Safe Water Now, we’ve saved the lives of over 15,000 children.
• Our Accelerator explores untapped opportunities in global health, testing low-cost interventions with the greatest potential to save and improve lives.

One of Evidence Action’s initiatives is the Syphilis-Free Start (SFS) Program, in which we partner with Ministries of Health to increase syphilis screening and treatment among pregnant women in an effort to prevent mother-to-child-transmission of syphilis. Leveraging investments in HIV, our aim is to close syphilis screening gaps through the introduction or scale-up of HIV/syphilis dual testing and to close syphilis treatment gaps by implementing strategies to address context-specific treatment barriers for pregnant women who test positive for syphilis.

SFS was first launched in Liberia in 2020. Our efforts in Liberia (in partnership with the Ministry of Health) increased syphilis screening from 7% to 88% within 3.5 years, Now 94% of syphilis-positive pregnant women receive treatment. Within one year of receiving technical assistance, the Liberian Ministry of Health procured the full national need for dual tests and benzathine penicillin via The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM).

We have since scaled this program to Zambia, Cameroon, and most recently to Côte d’Ivoire and are seeing the same promising results. In Zambia, syphilis screening rose from 45% to 75% within the first year of scale-up, with 86% of syphilis-positive pregnant women receiving treatment, leveraging the investments made by PEPFAR and GFATM to supply dual tests to the country.

In recognition of the changing global health landscape, impacting PEPFAR and GFATM’s funding, Evidence Action has received a grant from the Gates Foundation to provide light-touch technical assistance to focal countries to sustain, or increase where feasible, the volume of dual tests and/or benzathine penicillin included in upcoming GC8 agreements and/or domestic funding commitments, where possible.

We are seeking 5-7 consultants to serve as the technical assistance providers among the select focal countries. We anticipate requiring up to 16 hours of support per week.

Note:

Evidence Action will select 5-7 focal countries; we are targeting to contract with one consultant per country though we are open to considering a consultant who can readily support two or three countries. The current countries under consideration are:
Angola, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gambia, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Final selection of countries will run concurrent with recruitment of the consultants.