Capacity Building Specialist (Public Health) – Thailand–Myanmar Border

A. About Asian Disaster Preparedness Center ADPC is an autonomous international organization established for scientific, educational, developmental, and humanitarian purposes with a vision of safer communities and sustainable development through disaster risk reduction and climate resilience in Asia and the Pacific and Africa. Established in 1986 as a technical capacity-building center, ADPC has grown and expanded its role to serve scientific, educational, developmental, and humanitarian purposes. ADPC employs a wide range of professional expertise typically required for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Climate Resilience (CR). ADPC develops and implements cross-sectoral projects/programs on the strategic themes of Risk Knowledge and Geoinformatics, Policy and Institutional System, Effective Localization for Resilience, Climate Services, Resilient Planning and Implementation, Preparedness and Anticipatory Action, Nature based Solutions, Financing for Resilience, Resilient Recovery, Food and Water Security, Disaster Risk Finance Insurance, Health Risk Management, Urban & Infrastructure Resilience, Private Sector Engagement, and ADPC Knowledge Academy. Our strategic themes are complemented and underpinned by the cross-cutting themes of gender equality and social inclusion, disaster and climate innovations, and regional and transboundary cooperation. Through its work, ADPC supports the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the New Urban Agenda, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the agenda defined at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, and other relevant international frameworks. For details, please refer to the ADPC website at http://www.adpc.net/ . B. Department Introduction The Preparedness and Climate Action Department (PCA) strengthens the capacities of governments, response organizations, civil society, private sector actors, and at‑risk communities to prepare for, respond to, recover from disasters and adapt to the increasing risks associated with disasters and climate change. PCA emphasizes locally led preparedness and adaptation, ensuring that resilience-building efforts are rooted in local systems, institutions, knowledge, and leadership. PCA contributes to ADPC’s regional mandate by designing and implementing programs aligned with ADPC’s strategic priority areas, including Climate Services, Preparedness and Anticipatory Action, Resilient Planning and Implementation, Health Risk Management, Nature‑based Solutions, Resilient Recovery, and Financing for Resilience, among others. These programs support countries in advancing the Sendai Framework, SDGs, and the Paris Agreement, while strengthening institutional, community, and system-wide resilience. The department also ensures that all interventions incorporate ADPC’s core cross‑cutting themes, Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI), Disaster and Climate Innovations, and Regional and Transboundary Cooperation, as foundational elements across program design, implementation, monitoring, and knowledge generation. PCA is structured into three functional units that work together to deliver integrated preparedness and climate action programming: Climate Action and Impact (CAI) – driving climate action strategies, impact measurement, monitoring and evaluation systems, and evidence generation. Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) – strengthening preparedness capacities, emergency response planning, and health risk management. Resilience Building and Localization (RBL) – supporting resilient recovery, localization approaches, and capacity development at national and subnational levels. Through multi‑country operations, technical advisory services, and strategic partnerships, PCA ensures coherent, evidence‑based, and impact‑driven delivery of ADPC’s mandate across Asia and the Pacific. C. Statement of Intent: The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) seeks to strengthen its regional programming and technical capacity for public health emergency preparedness and response across the Asia-Pacific region. Building on its experience in disaster preparedness, emergency response, regional cooperation, and multi-country program implementation, ADPC aims to strengthen its support to countries and communities in preparing for and responding to emerging and re-emerging infectious disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies. Effective public health emergency preparedness and response require timely and coordinated action, supported by strong technical and operational capacities, effective coordination mechanisms, and capable national and local response actors. Through partnerships with governments, regional institutions, UN agencies, civil society organizations, academic and research institutions, and technical networks, ADPC promotes nationally and locally led approaches that strengthen preparedness, response, and recovery capacities. Within this broader commitment, ADPC is a consortium partner in the Local Engagement and Response Network (LEARN): Strengthening Localized Multi-Sectoral Readiness and Response to Infectious Disease Outbreaks in Humanitarian Settings, led by International Medical Corps (IMC). LEARN aims to strengthen Local First Responders (LFRs), particularly Local and National Non-Governmental Organizations (L/NNGOs), to improve their readiness and multisectoral response to infectious disease outbreaks of epidemic or pandemic potential in humanitarian settings. As a consortium partner, ADPC will provide technical and implementation support for LEARN activities in South and Southeast Asia, including the Thailand–Myanmar border region. ADPC will lead field implementation in approved project locations on the Thai side of the border, including stakeholder engagement, organizational and capacity assessments, contextualization and delivery of capacity-strengthening activities, and ongoing technical assistance and mentoring for participating L/NNGOs. To support this role, ADPC seeks to engage a Capacity Building Expert (Public Health) based in Mae Sot. The consultant will serve as the field implementation focal point, working closely with the ADPC project team, IMC, participating L/NNGOs and relevant stakeholders. A key focus of the assignment will be to ensure that LEARN's capacity-strengthening approaches and resources are practical, context-appropriate, and responsive to the humanitarian, public health, and operational realities of the Thailand–Myanmar border, while strengthening the capacity of local organizations and first responders to prepare for and respond effectively to infectious disease outbreaks. Note: It is not the intent of this TOR to cover every aspect of the position requirements, rather to highlight the most important areas of personal and joint responsibilities. D. Duties and Responsibilities: Under the overall guidance of the Unit Head, Emergency Preparedness and Response/LEARN Program Lead of ADPC, the Capacity Building Expert will serve as ADPC’s field-based technical and implementation focal point for LEARN activities in approved locations on the Thai side of the Thailand–Myanmar border. The consultant will work closely with participating L/NNGOs, relevant stakeholders, the ADPC project team and IMC to translate LEARN technical approaches into practical, context-appropriate capacity-strengthening activities responsive to identified organizational and operational needs. The consultant will undertake the following key responsibilities: 1. Technical and Capacity-Building Support Provide technical expertise in public health emergency preparedness and response to support the implementation of LEARN capacity-strengthening activities in the Thailand–Myanmar border context. Lead field planning, contextualization, preparation and delivery of training, exercises and other capacity-development interventions for participating L/NNGOs and local first responders, in accordance with the approved workplan and in coordination with the ADPC project team. Adapt relevant training materials, tools and technical resources in consultation with participating organizations and relevant stakeholders to reflect organizational capacities, priorities and border realities. submit substantive technical products to the ADPC LEARN team for technical review and quality assurance before use, and incorporate agreed feedback. Review English-to-Burmese translations of LEARN training materials, tools and guidance for accuracy, clarity, consistency of public health terminology and suitability for participating organizations. Coordinate with translators to resolve technical ambiguities before use. Apply adult-learning, participatory and practical training methodologies to strengthen the application of knowledge and skills by participating organizations. Provide technical support according to assessed needs on infectious disease preparedness and response, including Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) or equivalent response mechanisms, health emergency management (HEM) systems, activation and escalation arrangements, emergency operations/incident coordination, community-based surveillance and reporting, risk communication and community engagement (RCCE), infection prevention and control (IPC), water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), referral pathways and multisectoral coordination. Apply the 7-1-7 framework as an additional ADPC technical framework, rather than an existing LEARN contractual requirement, with participating L/NNGOs and local first responders as appropriate to their roles and public health systems: detect a suspected infectious disease outbreak within seven days of emergence, notify the appropriate public health authority within one day of detection, and complete priority early response actions within seven days of notification. Integrate relevant 7-1-7 concepts into assessments, training, coaching and exercises to identify bottlenecks and enabling factors in detection, notification and early response, and strengthen reporting, activation and coordination pathways. Organizational support will contribute to wider system performance within each organization’s mandate; the Consultant will not be responsible for measuring national 7-1-7 performance. 2. Organizational Capacity Strengthening and Technical Assistance Lead field organizational and readiness assessments of participating L/NNGOs using agreed tools, documenting strengths, gaps and baseline capacities, validating findings with organizations. Translate validated assessment findings into organization-specific capacity-strengthening action plans with participating L/NNGOs, identifying priorities, responsible persons, timelines, training and coaching requirements, and evidence of progress. Align implementation with the Program’s approved workplan and available resources. Provide ongoing technical assistance, mentoring, practical exercises and just-in-time coaching to participating organizations to implement agreed capacity-strengthening priorities and apply learning in their preparedness and response arrangements. Support L/NNGOs to develop, test and update organizational preparedness arrangements and community response plans, including roles, activation triggers, reporting and referral pathways, coordination and resource needs, based on assessed priorities. Monitor progress against organization-specific action plans through documented follow-up, evidence of practical application and reassessment where appropriate; identify additional coaching needs, support problem-solving, and escalate unresolved technical issues and operational constraints to the Program Lead. Promote approaches that build on existing local systems, structures and capacities and support locally led preparedness and response. 3. Stakeholder Engagement and Field Coordination Lead day-to-day field engagement and coordination with participating L/NNGOs, local first responder networks, public health and humanitarian actors, community-based organizations and other relevant stakeholders in approved Thai-side project locations, under the overall direction of the ADPC LEARN team. Support technical screening, organizational selection and onboarding using agreed criteria and stakeholder mapping and assessment findings; document recommendations for ADPC/LEARN decisions. Lead participatory stakeholder mapping exercises and periodically update the mapping of L/NNGOs, local first responders, community-based organizations, public health authorities, health facilities, surveillance and laboratory actors, humanitarian coordination mechanisms and technical partners relevant to approved project locations. Analyze stakeholder roles, capacities, geographic and population coverage, coordination relationships, referral and reporting pathways, and potential gaps or duplication to inform capacity-strengthening priorities and strengthen linkages with existing preparedness and response mechanisms. Maintain an updated stakeholder map/database using appropriate data protection procedures and share relevant information with the ADPC team. Maintain regular communication with participating organizations to support effective implementation of capacity-strengthening activities and identify emerging technical and operational needs. Facilitate consultations, technical discussions, workshops and other project engagements as required. Provide contextual updates to the ADPC LEARN team on developments in the humanitarian, public health and operational environment that may affect project implementation. Facilitate peer learning among participating organizations and cross-site technical exchanges with the relevant LEARN partners to share tools, lessons and practical solutions while maintaining context-specific implementation. 4. Outbreak Readiness and Response Support Maintain awareness of emerging infectious disease events and public health threats relevant to participating organizations and project locations, and communicate significant developments and potential support needs to the ADPC LEARN team. Where an outbreak or other public health emergency creates a need for additional LEARN support, provide field-level technical and coordination assistance to participating L/NNGOs subject to ADPC/LEARN authorization, available resources, security considerations and defined project scope. Support will be coordinated with responsible public health authorities and relevant response mechanisms and remain within the Consultant’s competencies and authorized role. Support rapid identification of organizational operational needs, capacities and gaps, and translate findings into priority actions. As authorized and appropriate, assist activation of RRTs or equivalent mechanisms, coordination, information management and reporting, community engagement, referral pathways, IPC/WASH and response planning; provide just-in-time coaching. Document operational bottlenecks, enabling factors and lessons from response support, using 7-1-7 or Early Action Review principles where appropriate, and integrate agreed learning into organizational action plans, community response plans and subsequent preparedness activities. 5. Monitoring, Documentation and Reporting Monitor capacity-strengthening activities and organizational progress against agreed workplan milestones, action plans and LEARN indicators in coordination with the ADPC project team; distinguish activity delivery from evidence of improved readiness and practical application. Maintain training attendance and participant profiles, learning assessments, exercise findings, coaching logs, stakeholder mapping records, organizational action trackers, technical review records and evidence of follow-up, using agreed formats and safe data-management procedures. Disaggregate participation data by sex, age and disability where feasible, appropriate and safe. Provide regular technical and implementation updates to the Program Lead and project team including achievements, action-plan progress, challenges, emerging needs, agreed corrective actions and responsibilities for follow-up. Contribute technical inputs and supporting information to ADPC's periodic LEARN progress reports, monitoring requirements and other project documentation. Document feedback, lessons learned, capacity-development results, good practices and emerging needs from participating organizations and field implementation. Propose improvements to technical tools, learning resources and guidance based on assessment findings, implementation experience and organizational feedback, and submit substantive technical revisions to project team for review and quality assurance. Support continuous improvement of capacity-strengthening approaches and facilitate the application of relevant lessons across participating organizations and project locations. 6. Cross-Cutting Responsibilities Integrate Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI), safeguarding, conflict sensitivity and do-no-harm principles throughout stakeholder engagement, organizational assessments, training, coaching, community response planning and monitoring. Facilitate safe, inclusive and accessible participation, taking into account language, disability-related needs, displacement-related barriers and other relevant contextual considerations. Protect confidential organizational and community information, apply appropriate data protection and information-sharing procedures, and report safeguarding concerns through established ADPC and partner mechanisms. Undertake other related technical and capacity-strengthening responsibilities as may be reasonably required to support effective implementation of LEARN in the Thailand–Myanmar border area. Working Principles: In performing the duties and responsibilities outlined above, the Consultant will report directly to the LEARN Program Lead, who will provide overall programmatic, contractual and management oversight, including workplan and budget management, coordination with IMC, and approval of major implementation decisions. The Consultant will work closely with other project/program managers and technical specialists within ADPC’s Preparedness and Climate Actions (PCA) Department to ensure effective coordination and implementation of LEARN activities in accordance with agreed roles and responsibilities. E. Required Qualifications: Required Qualifications and Specifications Education: Advanced university degree (Master's degree preferred) in Public Health, Epidemiology, Global Health, Health Emergency/Disaster Management, Community Health, International Development, or another relevant field. A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline combined with substantial relevant professional experience may be considered. Professional Experience: At least 8 years of relevant professional experience in public health, humanitarian health, infectious disease preparedness and response, health emergency management, community health, disaster preparedness or a closely related field. Demonstrated experience in capacity strengthening, training facilitation, mentoring and/or coaching of local organizations, health workers or community-based responders. Practical experience in infectious disease outbreak preparedness and/or response, public health emergency management or related programming. Proven experience working with government/public health institutions in Thai-Myanmar border, health emergency coordination mechanisms, local government structures, NGOs and technical partners in Thailand–Myanmar border. Demonstrated experience working with local and national NGOs, civil society organizations and/or community-based organizations. Experience conducting or supporting organizational/capacity assessments and translating identified gaps into capacity-development interventions. Experience adapting or contextualizing technical training materials for local implementation. Experience facilitating participatory, competency-based and/or scenario-based training is highly desirable. Experience with RRTs, emergency operations, community-based surveillance, risk communication and community engagement, IPC/WASH, community response planning or related technical areas would be an advantage. Knowledge of contemporary outbreak readiness and response frameworks, including 7-1-7, is highly desirable. Experience supporting real-time outbreak response, RRTs, emergency operations/incident coordination, Early Action Reviews, after-action reviews or comparable operational learning processes would be an advantage. Previous experience working in humanitarian, conflict-affected, displacement and/or cross-border settings is strongly preferred. Demonstrated knowledge and experience of the Thailand–Myanmar border operating context is highly desirable. Language Professional proficiency in Burmese/Myanmar language is required, including the ability to facilitate discussions and capacity-strengthening activities with local organizations. Good written and spoken English is required. F. Performance Competency Core competencies Integrity: Demonstrates the highest level of commitment and demonstrates respect for persons of concern to ADPC, partners, and colleagues in all aspects of work. Ensures that personal and professional behavior is of the highest standard. Diversity Awareness: Able to embrace the uniqueness of all individuals along several dimensions such as race, religious beliefs, ethnicity, age, gender, physical abilities, political beliefs, socioeconomic status, disability, political conviction, or any other distinguishing features. Equality Awareness: Understands that each individual has an equal opportunity to make decisions, participate in social activities, perform any work at the organization, and make the most of her/ his life and talents. Teamwork and Collaboration: Works constructively within and across teams in ways tha tallow shared objectives to be achieved. Works effectively with colleagues and partners. Fosters a positive and collaborative environment. Preparedness and Climate Action Department Functional Competencies: Teamwork and collaboration: Works constructively within and across teams in ways that allow shared objectives to be achieved. Works effectively with colleagues and partners. Fosters a positive and collaborative environment. Results Orientation: Focuses on delivering agreed-upon results through effectively managing internal and external resources to achieve results. Demonstrates a commitment to both personal and organizational excellence, with an emphasis on results. Analytical Problem-Solving Skills: Displays analytical thinking by identifying, defining, and analyzing information, situations, and problems. Arrives at viable solutions through a variety of approaches. Demonstrates critical thoughts, methodical review of implications, intuition, and rational conclusions. Adaptability: Demonstrates flexibility, both intellectually and behaviorally, to adapt to and work effectively in various situations, often under demanding conditions, and to cope with the unforeseen or unexpected. Looks for opportunities presented by change and is not "paralyzed" by new and unusual scenarios. Creates opportunities to improve how they work. Duty Station: Mae Sot, Tak Province, Thailand. Field activities will cover approved LEARN project locations on the Thai side of the Thailand–Myanmar border and relevant border-serving organizations. Specific locations and travel will be agreed through the approved workplan and ADPC authorization. Any mission into Myanmar requires separate authorization, access and security clearance, and must remain within project scope. Duration: November 2026 – September 2027 (11 months) Itinerary: During official missions outside the duty station, the Consultant will be entitled to local/international travel, daily subsistence allowance, accommodation, and other related travel costs as per ADPC financial policy. Condition of payment: The Consultant will receive a monthly payment upon submission of completed timesheets. In addition, the Consultant is eligible for reimbursement of any program-related expenses incurred in the implementation of project activities, subject to the prior approval of the Program Lead.