ROLE PROFILE
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Job Title
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Specialist
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Functional Area
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Health System Strengthening
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Reports To
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Senior Deputy Director-Gender
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Location
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Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
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Travel Required
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As per requirement
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Effective Date
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August 18, 2026
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IHAT PURPOSE AND PRIORITIES:
India Health Action Trust was instituted in 2003 as a Charitable Trust with a vision to meaningfully impact the lives of vulnerable and marginalised people by addressing health and social inequities. The Trust is working towards reducing inequities by developing comprehensive and sustainable programmes to improve population health. Since its inception, IHAT has working closely with the Government of India and state governments, including Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Bihar to achieve public health goals. Our work is focused in areas of prevention and control of HIV and Tuberculosis, in achieving significant improvements in Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health, improved Nutrition among mothers and children, and strengthening health systems. We use program science to optimise and scale public health programs while partnering with the governments and communities.
ABOUT PROGRAM:
The Uttar Pradesh Technical Support Unit (UPTSU) provides integrated Technical Assistance (TA) to the government of Uttar Pradesh (GoUP), which focuses on accelerating progress in reproductive, maternal, new-born and child health, and nutrition (RMNCHN). UPTSU works closely with the GoUP at the state, district and local levels to optimize RMNCHN programs and services. The technical assistance provided by UPTSU is integrated within the GoUP’s health system response for scale-up and sustainability. UPTSU focuses on interventions to improve outcomes in Family Planning, Maternal and New-born Health, and Nutrition, along with Routine Immunization, Digital Health, and other initiatives.
ROLE PURPOSE:
The primary responsibility of this position would be to provide technical support for integrating gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches across health programmes. They will lead documentation and support secondary and primary research, along with co-ordination for gender integration across other project verticals. The Specialist will lead evidence generation to inform programme and policy decisions, and strengthen the capacity of programme teams and government counterparts to institutionalise gender-responsive practices across health systems.
DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE:
Key Deliverables expected from the Job Role:
- Lead process documentation of various initiatives under the gender vertical.
- Foster cross-programme collaboration to ensure consistent integration of gender-responsive approaches across RMNCH, health systems strengthening, and other programme areas.
- Support the development of tools, study designs, processes and approaches that continuously improve technical excellence and impact in the area of transformative approaches to women’s increased access to quality care.
- Support gender and power analyses, effectiveness and efficacy studies, evaluation and needs assessments as required by the program.
- Assist with quantitative/qualitative assessments in targeted communities to assess effectiveness of interventions and impact.
- Lead the design and implementation of gender integration strategies across programme verticals, ensuring alignment with organisational priorities and government health programme.
- Provide technical guidance for integrating gender and intersectionality into programme design, implementation, monitoring, learning, and evaluation.
- Work closely with other technical teams to support integration of gender across program components.
- Build the technical capacity of programme teams, frontline health workers, and government counterparts through training, mentoring, and supportive supervision.
Key Inputs expected from the Job Role:
- Coordinate with the different teams, define expectations, and provide technical support as needed
- Support the use of information and communication technologies for project as required.
- Support proposal development, technical reviews, donor reporting, and strategic planning related to gender integration.
- Contribute to organizational knowledge management by synthesizing evidence, documenting lessons learnt, and disseminating best practices.
- Plan for regular opportunities to identify lessons learned and implications for the project’s next steps.
Miscellaneous:
- Carry out other vertical related tasks requested by the reporting officer or organization from time to time
- Additional tasks as may be added to the Job Description from time to time for the job role
QUALIFICATIONS:
- MPhil/ Masters in Social Work/ Women’s Studies/ Managementdegree/Public healthand other social sciences
EXPERIENCE:
- Experience working with government health systems and development partners is highly desirable.
- Relevant experience required 6-8 years
CRITICAL COMPETENCIES:
- Strong technical understanding of gender equality, gender integration, intersectionality, and social norms programming.
- Excellent written and interpersonal communication skills.
- Demonstrate excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Must be flexible and able to work in a challenging environment.
- Sound understanding of RMNCH component of public health.
- Demonstrated advanced knowledge in computer skills, including analytical software packages.
- Ability to be effective in high pressure situations, handle multiple tasks simultaneously and set priorities.
KEY RELATIONSHIPS:
Internal: IHAT UPTSU/IHAT State Teams
External: Directorate of Medical Health/NHM/Senior Government Officials across relevant departments, and academic institutions.
IHAT’S VALUES IN PRACTICE:
Community Centric: It is the communities we serve and the community at IHAT that drives us forward.
Think Sustainability: We believe in engaging with the government and communities to scale up and sustain positive outcomes
Scientific and Innovative: We relentlessly pursue scientific rigour and adapt our work in the face of new evidence. We encourage out of the box thinking and challenge ourselves to do better.
Interdisciplinary: We foster discussion, debate and deliberation across disciplines to arrive at the best possible solution.
LEVEL OF CONTACT WITH CHILDREN:
Low Contact – Low frequency of interaction with children
HOW TO APPLY:
Interested candidates should visit https://www.ihat.in/vacancies/specialist-2/ page to submit their application by August 18, 2026. Only a complete application submitted through the online portal before the closing date will be considered.
IHAT provides a safe working environment for all its employees; follows the principle of equal opportunity and encourages women applicants. Physically challenged with required skills /knowledge and willing to travel are also encouraged to apply.
We will be following a systematic selection process to fill this position based on experience, competency and suitability. Shortlisting for the posts will take place soon after the closing date. Only shortlisted candidates will be invited for an interview. Unfortunately, we can only contact applicants who have been shortlisted for the interview. If you have not heard from us within 6 weeks of the closing date, please assume that the current IHAT positions are unable to accommodate you at the moment. It is also not possible for us to provide you with specific feedback because of the volume of applications we receive.
IHAT does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing, or other fees in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it.