Job Description

Introduction

Established in 1951, IOM is a Related Organization of the United Nations and the leading UN agency in the field of migration. Working closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners, IOM promotes humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It saves lives and protects people on the move, drives solutions to displacement, and facilitates pathways for regular migration, while providing services and advice to governments and migrants. 

IOM is committed to fostering a respectful, inclusive and supportive workplace where all employees can thrive professionally and feel valued. By creating such an environment, IOM aims to better harness the full potential of migration and strengthen its support to people on the move.

IOM invites candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply and provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process when required. Learn more about IOM’s workplace culture at IOM workplace culture | International Organization for Migration

Project Context and Scope

IOM’s project “Building Resilience through Inclusive Governance and Healthcare Transformation in BARMM (BRIGHT-BARMM), funded by Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), aims to enhance the local capacity of Ministry of Health (MOH), the local provinces and cities/municipalities, to pursue key and cross cutting reforms in health systems. It will strengthen Health Systems (HS), particularly in areas of health governance and leadership, financing, and data and information, to provide a more conducive setting for implementing Safe Motherhood (SM), Adolescent Reproductive Health (ARH), and Global Health Security (GHS) programs. 

Within the GHS component, IOM seeks to strengthen the capacity of the government, health workers, and frontline workers to promote inclusive, preventive, and culturally and gender appropriate health programs for returning migrants and mobile populations. This includes improving access to health information, strengthening referral pathways, and reducing the potential spread of infectious diseases through Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) materials, capacity-building of health workers at Points of Entry (PoEs), and the establishment of referral pathways to strengthen access to screening, counselling, and treatment for returnees and migrants. To support these efforts, IOM will engage a consultant to provide advisory and technical assistance with a focus onReferral Pathways for Returning Migrants and Mobile Populations.

Under the overall guidance of the Head of Sub-Office in Cotabato City, direct supervision of the National Migration Health Programme Coordinator, and in collaboration with the technical leads, the successful candidate will produce analytical papers, finalize the Referral Pathway Toolkit and SOP Manual, and facilitate the development of a Referral Pathway Institutionalization and Sustainability Plan. These outputs will contribute to strengthening national and local capacity to promote inclusive, preventive, and rights-based health programmes for returnees and host communities in areas of return and reintegration.

The objective of this consultancy is to strengthen migration health referral systems in ZamBaSulTa by refining and institutionalizing referral pathways, developing standardized referral tools and SOPs, building the capacity of stakeholders through training and mentoring, and establishing sustainable coordination and governance mechanisms to improve access to health, protection, and other essential services for Returning Filipinos from Sabah (ReFS), migrants and mobile populations. 

Responsibilities

A. FIRST DELIVERABLES: Migration Health Referral Pathway Refinement, Validation, and Operationalization Package

Building on the outputs and recommendations generated during the completed consultation and validation workshop, the consultant shall:

• Review existing and initially drafted health referral systems, protocols, service mapping outputs, and draft referral pathway tools developed under the project, identifying gaps, overlaps, and opportunities for strengthening alignment with national, BARMM, and local referral mechanisms.

• Refine and validate Migration Health Referral Pathway Package for ZamBaSulTa, ensuring that it is practical, context-specific, gender-responsive, protection-sensitive, and responsive to the health and protection needs of Returning Filipinos from Sabah (ReFs), migrants, and mobile populations. The package shall include, at a minimum:

  • Referral pathway flowcharts and process maps;

  • Standardized referral and feedback forms;

  • Referral tracking and monitoring tools;

  • Service mapping and directory templates;

  • Roles and responsibilities matrix for participating agencies and service providers; and

  • Referral coordination and reporting mechanisms.

• Prepare a draft Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) Manual to support the implementation and institutionalization of the referral pathway. The SOP shall clearly define procedures for:

  • Identification and screening of referral cases;

  • Referral initiation, acceptance, and case handover;

  • Follow-up and closure of referral cases;

  • Health, protection, and multisectoral referral coordination;

  • Confidentiality, informed consent, and data-sharing protocols;

  • Documentation, reporting, and referral monitoring requirements; and

  • Roles and responsibilities of Bangsamoro Migration Health Network (BMHN) members and other relevant stakeholders.

-Activities shall be completed by 30 October 2026, with all required deliverable reports submitted by email to IOM no later than 30 November 2026 (30% of overall contract value)

B. SECOND DELIVERABLES: Referral Pathway Training Package and Capacity Building

Building on the refined Migration Health Referral Pathway Package and draft SOPs, the consultant shall develop and deliver a comprehensive capacity-building programme to support the effective implementation, institutionalization, and sustainability of referral mechanisms for migrants, ReFs, and mobile populations in ZamBaSulTa.

The consultant shall:

• Co-develop with the RCCE Consultant the refinement of the training design, curriculum, agenda, and learning materials for the RCCE and Referral Pathway Training to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders serving returning migrants and mobile populations.

• Develop a comprehensive Migration Health Referral Pathway Training Package, ensuring that all materials are culturally sensitive, gender-/age-/ability-inclusive, and accessible to the diverse stakeholders involved in referral management and service delivery. The package shall include, at a minimum:

  • Facilitator's Guide

  • Participant's Manual

  • Presentation materials

  • Pre- and post-training assessment tools

  • Case studies and practical referral scenarios

  • Referral pathway simulation and tabletop exercises

• Conduct a training workshop for Bangsamoro Migration Health Network (BMHN) members, frontline POE workers, local health workers in referral facilities in ZamBaSulTa, and other service providers on referral pathways. Using the training materials and package developed, and referencing the IOM Health, Border, and Mobility Management (HBMM) framework, DOH/MOH referral structure, IOM Protection Handbook, and Sphere standards, the sessions shall cover, as applicable, the following topics: 

• Understanding the migrant context and mobility patterns of ZamBaSulTa, including, informal and irregular movements of Returning Filipinos from Sabah (REFs)

• Health risk identification and prioritization, facilitating and institutionalizing referral pathways, and monitoring and tracking of referral cases.

• Monitoring and evaluation on the effectiveness of referral pathway, and implementing continuous improvement to maintain effective referral

• Prepare and submit a Training Completion Report summarizing the training methodology, participant profile, pre- and post-training assessment results, key findings, recommendations, and proposed actions to support the operationalization and institutionalization of the migration health referral pathway in ZamBaSulTa.

-Activities shall be completed by 30 November 2026, with all required deliverable reports submitted by email to IOM no later than 30 December 2026 (30% of overall contract value)

C. THIRD DELIVERABLES: Finalization, Institutionalization, and Handover Package

Building on the validated Migration Health Referral Pathway Package, SOPs, and capacity-building activities, the consultant shall finalize all technical outputs and support their institutionalization for sustained implementation by the BMHN and relevant stakeholders.

The consultant shall:

• Finalize and integrate all revisions arising from stakeholder consultations, validation workshops, training activities, and technical reviews into the Migration Health Referral Pathway Package, ensuring consistency, usability, and alignment with national, BARMM, and local referral systems.

• Finalize the Referral Pathway Toolkit, including referral flowcharts, standardized referral and feedback forms, referral tracking and monitoring tools, service mapping directories, coordination mechanisms, and roles and responsibilities matrices.

• Finalize the Referral Pathway SOP Manual and incorporate recommendations to support institutional adoption, implementation, monitoring, and sustainability of referral mechanisms for migrants, Returning Filipinos from Sabah (ReFs), and mobile populations in ZamBaSulTa.

• Develop a Referral Pathway Institutionalization and Sustainability Plan outlining recommended governance arrangements, coordination structures, monitoring and reporting mechanisms, capacity development needs, and actions required to support the long-term operationalization of the referral system through the partner agencies.

• Prepare and submit all final digital reports and outputs in editable formats to facilitate future reproduction, updating, dissemination, and utilization by BMHN, MOH-BARMM, local government units, and relevant stakeholders.

• Present the final referral pathway package and key recommendations to IOM through a turnover and dissemination session.

-Activities shall be completed by 30 December 2026, with all required deliverable reports submitted by email to IOM no later than 15 January 2027 (40% of overall contract value)

Qualifications

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Master’s or Higher degree in Public Health, Health Systems Management, Global Health, Sociology, Communications, Emergency/ Disaster Management, Health Systems/Operations, or any related field from an accredited academic institution with ten years of relevant professional experience. 

• Advanced knowledge and proven experience in public health, global health security and migration health. 

Demonstrated experience on the following:

• Referral systems, health systems strengthening, case management, community health, health emergency preparedness and response, or related fields.

• Development and institutionalization of referral pathways, referral systems, SOPs, case management, coordination mechanisms, and service delivery protocols;

• Development of technical guidance documents, toolkits, manuals, analytical reports, and operational plans

• Migration Health programming, including addressing the health needs of migrants, returnees, displaced populations, and other mobile and vulnerable group;

• Experience in conducting RCCE training, would be an asset; 

• Effective facilitation of stakeholder consultations, validation, and capacity-building activities is considered an asset.

   

• Experience working in complex health system environments, preferably in the Philippines or similar contexts, and strong understanding of Population Mobility Mapping, Health Mobility and Border Management, WHO Risk Communication and Community Engagement toolkits, Bangsamoro Migration Health Network and other international standards are desirable. 

• Prior working experience with the International Organization, UN, Development Organization, National, and BARMM government is highly desirable. 

• Familiarity with the issues, policies, structure, and context of the Global, Philippines, and Bangsamoro context on public health is highly desirable. 

• Strong analytical, communication, and training skills are required to build capacity among health staff at various system levels effectively. 

• Excellent analytical, report writing, facilitation, communication, and stakeholder engagement skills, with demonstrated ability to produce high-quality technical outputs and recommendations.

Languages

For this consultancy, English; Tagalog

Proficiency of language(s) required will be specifically evaluated during the selection process, which may include written and/or oral assessments.

Required Competencies

IOM’s competency framework can be found at this link. Competencies will be assessed during the selection process.

Values - all IOM staff members must abide by and demonstrate these five values:

• Inclusion and respect for diversity: Respects and promotes individual and cultural differences. Encourages diversity and inclusion.
• Integrity and transparency: Maintains high ethical standards and acts in a manner consistent with organizational principles/rules and standards of conduct.
• Professionalism: Demonstrates ability to work in a composed, competent and committed manner and exercises careful judgment in meeting day-to-day challenges.
• Courage: Demonstrates willingness to take a stand on issues of importance.
• Empathy: Shows compassion for others, makes people feel safe, respected and fairly treated.

Core Competencies – behavioural indicators

• Teamwork: Develops and promotes effective collaboration within and across units to achieve shared goals and optimize results.
• Delivering results: Produces and delivers quality results in a service-oriented and timely manner. Is action oriented and committed to achieving agreed outcomes.
• Managing and sharing knowledge: Continuously seeks to learn, share knowledge and innovate.
• Accountability: Takes ownership for achieving the Organization’s priorities and assumes responsibility for own actions and delegated work.
• Communication: Encourages and contributes to clear and open communication. Explains complex matters in an informative, inspiring and motivational way.

Notes

IOM covers Consultants against occupational accidents and illnesses under the Compensation Plan (CP), free of charge, for the duration of the consultancy. IOM does not provide evacuation or medical insurance for reasons related to non-occupational accidents and illnesses. Consultants are responsible for their own medical insurance for non-occupational accident or illness and will be required to provide written proof of such coverage before commencing work. 

Any offer made to the candidate in relation to this vacancy notice is subject to funding confirmation.

Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, security clearances.

IOM has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and IOM, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities.

IOM does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process (application, interview, processing, training or other fee). IOM does not request any information related to bank accounts.

IOM only accepts duly completed applications submitted through the IOM e-Recruitment system (for internal candidates link here). The online tool also allows candidates to track the status of their application.

No late applications will be accepted. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

For further information and other job postings, you are welcome to visit our website: IOM Careers and Job Vacancies

Required Skills

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