Consultant for the Writing of a Full Proposal for Health System Strengthening in Burkina Faso (Funded by USAID)

About Terre des hommes – Lausanne Fondation

Founded in 1960, Terre des hommes – Lausanne (Tdh) is the largest Swiss children’s aid organization. With a presence in Burkina Faso for over 30 years, Tdh is a Swiss children’s aid foundation with no political, racial or religious affiliations, working in the fields of Maternal and Child Health, Nutrition, Health System Strengthening, Food Security and Child Protection against exploitation, abuse and violence in all its forms.

Context

Burkina Faso’s healthcare system faces a number of challenges, including inadequate health infrastructure, a shortage of qualified human resources, and limited access to quality healthcare services and care, accentuated by inequalities in the distribution of care between different regions. The persistent insecurity in the country has had a major negative impact on the health sector. The resulting closures of health centers, coupled with recurrent population displacements, have severely tested the resilience of the health system in terms of supply and access to health services. The consequences of this situation are high morbidity linked to transmissible and non-transmissible diseases, and maternal and infant mortality that is still high, compromising the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.

In order to support the country, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), through its health support program, has decided to finance a project aimed at strengthening the health system. This project will respond to the priorities of the national health policy and the needs identified in the field. To this end, USAID plans to open a call for project proposals (full and open competition) for Burkina Faso during the 1st quarter of 2025.

With this in mind, Tdh is looking for a consultant to draw up a full proposal to strengthen Burkina Faso’s healthcare system, as part of a consortium with other NGOs for which it will act as lead.

Objective

The objective of this assignment is to develop a complete proposal that meets USAID’s requirements and is ready for submission within the donor’s deadline and in the language requested by USAID. This includes context analysis, formulation of objectives, expected results, activities, monitoring/evaluation framework, steering mechanism and implementation strategies.

This work will be carried out in close collaboration with the Tdh teams based in Lausanne (Headquarters), Dakar (Region) and Burkina Faso (Delegation). The overall coordination of the consultancy will be at the level of the Delegation, in close collaboration with the Regional Health Coordinator for technical aspects and Headquarters for administrative aspects and writing support.

However, the consultant will be responsible for the quality of the complete proposal, both in narrative and budgetary terms, ensuring the coherence of the proposed strategy, technical quality, compliance with TDH’s mandate and USAID’s requirements.

Deliverables and expected results :

• Drafting of a project in line with USAID criteria, integrating technical, financial and administrative elements.
• A strategic document detailing project implementation, including activity planning, monitoring indicators, evaluation strategies and the organization of roles and responsibilities with partners.
• Development of a clear logical framework with measurable objectives, expected results and performance indicators.
• A detailed budget forecast in line with project activities and resource requirements.

Main activities of the consultancy

The consultant’s main task will be to assist the team in drafting the project. The consultant will work closely with the Tdh team to define the structure of the project, write the key sections of the document, and ensure compliance with USAID requirements. To this end, he/she will be responsible for :

• Coordinate writing with partners and various Tdh departments (Region, Delegation, Head Office).
• Analyze the context with the support of the Tdh team and its partners, the consultant will analyze the context and identify needs according to the pillars of the health system.
• Develop a coherent project logic: The consultant will help structure a coherent log frame with clear, measurable, and realistic objectives.
• Formulating appropriate strategies: He/she will contribute to the identification of innovative and practical strategies for strengthening the health system’s capacities at different levels, while integrating Burkina Faso’s specific challenges.
• Ensure quality and compliance: Ensure that the project complies with USAID guidelines and quality standards required for international funding. The consultant will ensure that the project is structured to meet expectations in terms of viability, sustainability, and impact.
• Analyze resource requirements: This will help determine the human, material, financial and logistical resources needed to implement the project.
• Propose a narrative according to USAID guidelines.

Duration of the consultancy :

The assignment will take place over the period indicated in the call for proposals (between 4 and 6 weeks), starting from the signing of the contract. The consultant should be available for regular meetings with the Tdh team and its consortium partners and relevant stakeholders throughout this period.

Profile

Professional experience :

• Demonstrated knowledge of USAID, its call and application procedures and guidelines.
• Previous successful experience(s) in proposal writing for USAID.
• Experience of the Burkina Faso context would be a plus (including national policies, stakeholders, sector developments, etc.).
• Experience in developing, editing or evaluating projects/programs in the field of strengthening national health systems in Africa would be an important plus.

Technical expertise :

• Mastery of healthcare systems in sub-Saharan Africa, ideally with an understanding of digital health issues.

Project management skills :

• Ability to design coherent projects, work with multicultural teams and ensure the quality of proposals submitted.

Writing and communication skills :

• Excellent writing skills in English, with the ability to synthesize complex information and present it clearly and concisely.

Academic qualifications :

• Preferably a Master’s degree a health-related field.

Methodology

The consultant will use a participatory approach involving all local stakeholders (Ministry of Health, partner NGOs, local authorities, etc.). Regular consultations and exchanges will be organized to gather the information needed to develop the project. The consultant will have to take into account the sub-regional, regional and global environment of USAID funding for health, and if possible, establish complementarities and synergies of action with this funding. The consultant will also have to coordinate the various Tdh stakeholders (at Delegation, Regional and Headquarters level) and partners.

Budget and remuneration

The consultant will be remunerated on a contractual basis, with payment broken down according to deliverables and validation stages. The consultant’s budget will be determined based on negotiations between the stakeholders.

Location

The place of work must be compatible with the work schedules of the people involved in the writing. The proposal must include a mission to Burkina Faso of at least two weeks.

Working languages

English and French