National Individual Consultant: Health Financing and Costing Consultant

UNFPA is the lead United Nations agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is intended, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled. The UNFPA Strategic Plan for 2026-2029 articulates the organization’s response to a complex global environment, providing a roadmap for resilience and renewal. It is designed to accelerate the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. This mandate is pursued through a focus on four interconnected outcomes: ending the unmet need for family planning; ending preventable maternal deaths; ending gender-based violence and harmful practices; and adapting to demographic change through evidence and rights-based policies.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff who embody these international norms and standards and will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates who transform, inspire, and deliver high-impact sustained results, ensuring effective external relations, communications, partnership-building and resource mobilization in a rapidly changing development and funding landscape. We need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them, and who commit to delivering excellence in programme results.

The primary goal is to conduct a comprehensive financial analysis of the national strategic direction for nurses and midwives (NSDNM2026-2030) in Nigeria and develop a multi-year costed operational action plan. The final deliverables will enable stakeholders to understand the financial expenses required to implement the NSDNM (2026-2030), identify funding gaps, and map funders to secure sustainable financing.

The Health Financing/Costing Consultant will facilitate the development of a five (5) year costed operational action plan for the NSDNM2026-2030, providing robust data for budgeting, tracking funding gaps, and enabling donor engagement or financial sustainability.
S/He is expected to carry out the following assignment:

The Health Financing/Costing Consultant will facilitate the development of a five (5) year costed operational action plan for the NSDNM2026-2030, providing robust data for budgeting, tracking funding gaps, and enabling donor engagement or financial sustainability.

S/He is expected to carry out the following assignment:

• Situational Analysis: Review the finalized NSDNM2026-2030, national health workforce strategy, the midwifery model of care, health financing landscape, current domestic and external spending on reproductive and maternal health, and baseline workforce capacity.
• Costing Framework Development: Design a transparent, multi-year costing model capturing direct programmatic costs (training, deployment, retention), capital expenditures (equipment, infrastructure), and operational overhead.
• Stakeholder Workshops: Facilitate workshops and key informant interviews with the NSDNM Technical Working Group and the Federal Ministry of Health & Social Welfare, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, donor agencies, and midwifery associations to validate assumptions and gather missing data.
•  Reporting: Lead the drafting of the Design and Validation Workshop reports workshops, including the comprehensive financial narrative report of the costed operational plan.

• Preliminary Costing Model (Week 1): Draft budgeting tool with initial estimates including detailed objective and activity mapping.
• Design Workshop (Week 2): Presentation of draft costing model and assumptions including budget categorization to key stakeholders for feedback and consensus building.
• Draft Costed Operational Plan (Week 3): including narrative report detailing operational breakdown by pillar, implementation roadmap, multi-year funding requirements, financial gap analysis, donor mapping and engagement matrix, and resource mobilization action plan including risk/mitigation.
• Validation Workshop (Week 4): Presentation of second draft costed operational plan to key stakeholders for feedback and consensus building.
• Final Costed NSDNM (2026-2030) Operational Plan (Week5): including a comprehensive narrative of the context and strategic alignment, implementation roadmap, budget breakdowns, financial gap analysis, donor mapping and engagement strategy, resource mobilization action plan, and risk mitigation.
   

• She/he must possess a Masters degree in Health Economics, Public Health, Public Financial Management, or a related field.
• At least two (2) years of relevant experience in costing health sector strategic plans, ideally with a focus on human resources for health (HRH) or maternal and reproductive health.
• Proven proficiency with global health economic modeling tools (e.g., OneHealth Tool, LiST, EQUIST).
• Experience working with UN agencies, government, NGOs, or youth/civil society groups with demonstrated success in building and sustaining national advocacy coalitions.
• Knowledge of Nigeria’s health system and services, policies, and socio-cultural context.
• Excellent analytical, stakeholder facilitation and communication skills.
• Strong drafting and writing skills with attention to detail.
• Computer literacy and proficiency in Microsoft Office and digital collaboration tools are mandatory.

The Costing Consultant will be paid according to the payment schedule below:

a. An initial 30% of the consultancy fees upon presentation of the draft costed operational plan.

b. A final payment of 70% of the fees at the submission, and clearance by UNFPA and FMOHSW, of the finalised Costed   NSDNM (2026-2030) Operational Plan.

• English Language

• Exemplifying integrity, 
• Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system, 
• Embracing cultural diversity, 
• Embracing change

• Achieving results,
• Being accountable,
• Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen,
• Thinking analytically and strategically,
• Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships

UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Individuals from the minority ethnic groups, indigenous populations, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA's workforce - click here to learn more.

Selection and appointment may be subject to background and reference checks, medical clearance, visa issuance and other administrative requirements.

UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process and does not concern itself with information on applicants' bank accounts.

Applicants for positions in the international Professional and higher categories, who hold permanent resident status in a country other than their country of nationality, may be required to renounce such status upon their appointment.