Consultant, GTFCC Cholera Country Support Platform (CSP) Research Agenda Progress Review

March 8, 2024

In 2024, according to the Global Task Force for Cholera Control (GTFCC) around 55 countries are still affected by cholera. The number of people living in cholera hotspots is estimated to be between 40 and 80 million. The burden of disease remains extremely high with 1.3 to 4 million cases every year, including 21 000 to 143 000 deaths globally.

The GTFCC is a partnership of more than 50 institutions, including NGOs, academic institutions, and UN agencies, with a secretariat hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO).

In 2017, the GTFCC launched the Global Roadmap to 2030 which aims to eliminate cholera in 20 countries and reduce the number of cholera deaths reported every year by 90%. Recognising the importance of research for effective management and control of cholera, the GTFCC Research Agenda was launched in 2021, to define the most pressing research priorities for achieving the goals of the global roadmap.

The research agenda was developed using a consultative approach involving 138 experts in 33 countries, who were mostly implementing partners and researchers working in the areas of epidemiology, OCV, and WASH. The key priorities highlight that research should be focused on:

• optimizing the delivery of existing interventions to maximize impact on populations in need
• developing new interventions/strategies

The priorities were categorised by five technical pillars (OCV, WASH, Surveillance, Case Management, and Community Engagement as a cross-cutting theme) and reviewed by the GTFCC technical working groups for each pillar. The outputs provided in the Research Agenda are:

• Top 20 research priorities for the Cholera Roadmap
• Top 5 research priorities for each technical pillar (OCV, WASH, Surveillance, Case Management)
• Top 20 research priorities for respondents from cholera-endemic countries

The full list of priorities can be found in the GTFCC Research Agenda.

The GTFCC would like to review progress against the research priorities outlined in the agenda, as well as reporting wider research progress for each of the GTFCC technical pillars. This data will inform the next steps for the GTFCC research agenda, which may include advocacy around the existing agenda, updating the research agenda for 2025-2030 to align with current context and new priorities, and resource mobilisation efforts for cholera research.

Job purpose

The GTFCC Country Support Platform

In 2019, Cholera-affected countries called for additional technical support from the GTFCC in the development and implementation of their multisectoral National Cholera Plans for control or elimination (NCPs). In response to countries’ needs, the GTFCC established a Country Support Platform (CSP) that supports efforts – primarily at national level – to control and eliminate cholera.

The CSP was launched in 2020 and it is hosted by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC).

The CSP is supporting cholera-affected countries by working towards the following outcomes:

• Cholera-affected countries have an NCP and a multisectoral coordination mechanism to align government, national actors, GTFCC partners and key stakeholders towards a shared strategy.
• The cholera-affected countries have mobilized resources toward the funding needs identified in their NCPs.
• The cholera-affected countries receive multisectoral technical support and capacity building for the formulation and the implementation of their NCPs.

The consultant will work within the CSP team and should consider how the agenda and priorities have been utilised by countries as part of their NCPs and ongoing cholera responses.

Alignment to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) objectives and strategy

Strategic Priority 3: Growing gaps in health and well-being

IFRC’s Strategy 2030: The IFRC supports National Societies to work with vulnerable communities to achieve better health and reduced vulnerabilities as well as to improve water and sanitation conditions in chronic and acute contexts during emergencies.

The IFRC was appointed in 2020 to be the operational arm of the GTFCC for the CSP project. This positions the IFRC and the network at the heart of global and regional partnerships for inter-agency coordination for eventual cholera elimination.

Global Flagship Initiatives: Reduce cholera related deaths by 50%. Cholera continues to threaten the lives of millions of people and yet with the provision of safe water and sanitation so many lives can be saved. The IFRC’s Global Water and Sanitation Initiative (including OneWASH) will be expanded to ensure equitable, sustainable and affordable access to water and sanitation to reduce cholera related deaths by 50% by 2025.

Job duties and responsibilities

The overall objectives of the consultancy are to:

• Provide an in-depth literature review of progress against the GTFCC research agenda priorities, including:
  • Questions adequately addressed, highlighting key publications
  • Questions yet to be addressed
  • Ongoing research studies to address priorities, where applicable
  • Funding calls for research aiming to address priorities
• Provide a summary of literature for each of the GTFCC research pillars (WASH, OCV, Case Management, Lab/diagnostics, Surveillance) between 2010-2023.
• Identify key researchers working on areas identified in the research agenda.
• Highlight potential gaps and recommendations to be taken into the next phase of the GTFCC research agenda.

Deliverables

• Output 1: Methodology and inception report for literature review developed in collaboration with the GTFCC Senior Research Officer and Research Focal Point of the WHO cholera team.
• Output 2: Database of key publications, categorised by research priorities and GTFCC technical pillars.
• Output 3: Report on progress against the GTFCC research agenda priorities, including a brief summary of other literature for each technical pillar, remaining gaps, how they have been utilised by countries, and recommendations for the next phase of the GTFCC research agenda.
• Output 4: List of researchers working on cholera technical pillars.
• Output 5: Presentation summarising findings of the report.

Suggested timeline

• 1st April: Contract initiated and onboarding completed
• 8th April: Methodology agreed and inception report completed
• 19th April: Literature extracted; database and researcher list developed
• 10th May: Literature reviewed and analysed
• 31st May: Report and presentation drafted
• 14th June: Report and presentation finalised
• 17th – 21st June: Presentation of findings to internal and external colleagues

Total = 65 days
Support to be provided to the consultant

The GTFCC Senior Research Officer will brief the consultant on the expected outcomes, support the development of the methodology, and provide ongoing assistance to guide the production of the final report. This will be provided remotely, or in-person if the consultant is based in London or Geneva.

The consultant will be provided with access to: peer-reviewed publications; the GTFCC cholera research tracker; IFRC and WHO archives, documentation used for the development of the Global Research Agenda; introductions to cholera research stakeholders, as required.

Job Requirements

Education

Required

• Relevant university degree in Biomedical Science, Public Health or similar fields.
• Advanced Research degree in relevant subject area.

Experience

Required

• Published research in the field of cholera or infectious diseases, in peer reviewed or grey literature.
• Research consultancy experience and/or evidence of leading research studies on public health topics.

Preferred

• Experience in operational research for public health or infectious disease interventions.
• Experience of research uptake and/or policy implementation of research findings.

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

Required

• Fluent spoken and written English.
• Thematic background in cholera, infectious diseases, WASH, or other relevant area.
• Ability to review and critically assess scientific literature from a range of fields.
• Strong scientific writing and editing skills.
• Skilled in preparing and delivering presentations.

Preferred

• Fluent spoken and written French.

How to apply

• Please submit your application via IFRC website.
• Please submit your application in English only.
• Please include in your motivation letter your availability and your current Daily Fee Rate in CHF.