JOB DESCRIPTION
| Job Title | Project Coordinator- SAFEStart+: Scaling up of Accessible, Integrated, and Family Centered EVT Services. |
| Reporting to: | Head of Programs |
| Supervisees: | 4 Regional Community Monitors |
| Duty Station: | ICWEA Secretariat- Ssenge, Wakiso, Uganda |
| Duration: | 1 Year (Renewable-Based on Performance and Funding) |
Introduction
The International Community of Women Living with HIV Eastern Africa (ICWEA) is a regional advocacy network and membership-based organization run by and for HIV-positive women. Established to amplify the voices of women living with HIV, ICWEA operates in five countries: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi. Guided by a vision of achieving holistic health and rights for women and girls living with HIV in their diversity, ICWEA works toward a mission to ensure meaningful involvement, capacity building, strategic partnerships, and advocacy.
ICWEA is one of the implementing partners in the Four-year Country- and Community-Led Scale-Up of Accessible, Integrated, and Family-Centered EVT Plus Services for a Healthy Start (SAFEStart+) project is designed to address barriers to EVT product access and service coverage, including demand and adoption, supply and delivery, quality, and affordability. leading community partner in the SAFEStart+ project, The Project is funded by Unitaid and implemented in partnership with PATH ( as the leading partner) and the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA), and ICWEA. ICWEA and WHA support the scale-up of integrated, family-centered services to eliminate vertical transmission (EVT) of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B.
This will be achieved by scaling up integrated EVT programs in four core-engagement countries (Malawi, Nigeria, Paraguay, and Uganda); addressing specific barriers to EVT scale-up and validation in five focused-activity countries (Brazil, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Senegal, South Africa, and Vietnam); disseminating innovations, successes, and lessons learned to ten peer-learning countries to further increase adoption and scale-up of evidence-based EVT approaches (Cambodia, Cote d’Ivoire, El Salvador, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Philippines, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe); and advancing regional policy, learning, and market-shaping interventions in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to accelerate progress globally.
ICWEA, therefore, is seeking an experienced Project Coordinator to oversee and undertake implementation, coordination, and reporting of all SAFEStart+ project activities. This role will ensure meaningful community engagement, strong partnerships, and effective delivery of results that improve access to quality care for women, girls, and their families.
Job Summary:
The Project Coordinator–SAFEStart+ will lead and coordinate the implementation of the SAFEStart+ project in Uganda, and in other project focus countries; a multi-country, multi-partner initiative focused on eliminating vertical transmission (EVT) of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B through integrated, community-led, family-centered health service models. Under the guidance of the Head of Programs, the coordinator will provide operational coordination for all ICWEA -led Project activities, including the establishment and support of Community Advisory boards (C-CAB and G-CAB), implementation of community led monitoring (CLM), running a small grants scheme; capacity strengthening of civil society networks, and execution of stigma reduction and demand generation campaigns, especially targeting Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) while promoting tailored, integrated EVT models that overcome barriers such as stigma, gender inequity, and poor data quality and fosters trust, accountability, and sustainable improvements The role requires strong coordination, partnership management, and community engagement skills to ensure inclusive rights-based, feminist approaches are embedded in all project outputs. The project Coordinator will serve as the primary focal point between ICWEA and the Consortium Partners and will oversee the timely delivery of quality outputs, documentation of community impact, and alignment with Unitaid’s and ICWEA’s shared objectives for advancing health equity for women living with HIV and their communities.
Main Duties and Responsibilities
Project Coordination and Planning, in collaboration with the Deputy Executive Director, the project coordinator will;
- Provide overall leadership of the SAFEStart+ Project activities in Uganda.
- Lead strategic planning, annual work plan development, and budgeting in line with project objectives and donor expectations.
- Coordinate ICWEA’s participation in weekly project management meetings with WHA and PATH, among others.
- Report to the Program Steering Committee (PSC) and ensure alignment with the ICWEA’s strategic goals.
- Participate in annual core country convenings.
- Prepare quarterly and annual implementation plans for ICWEA-led activities under SAFEStart+.
Coordination of Community and Stakeholder Engagement
- Establish, strengthen, and coordinate Country Community Advisory Boards (C-CABs) and participate in the Global Community Advisory Board (G-CAB), ensuring meaningful participation of WLHIV, AGYW, and key populations.
- Facilitate active participation of C-CAB members in national Technical Working Groups (TWGs) and ensure feedback loops between communities and national policy platforms.
- Mobilize, train, and support diverse C-CAB representatives including AGYW, FSWs, women with disabilities, and others with lived experience of EVT-related conditions.
- Champion anti-stigma, gender-transformative, and rights-based approaches in EVT program design and delivery.
- Support policy dialogue and participation of civil society in national EVT scale-up planning and advocacy.
- Develop and manage terms of reference, identify members, and coordinate quarterly meetings of Country Community Advisory Boards (C-CABs).
- Coordinate with WHA to establish and support Global Community Advisory Board (G-CAB) representation.
- Ensure inclusion of C-CAB voices in Uganda’s national EVT Technical Working Groups (TWGs).
- Lead annual reviews to strengthen C-CAB structures.
- Present situational analysis findings and community feedback through CABs.
- Support CSOs and CABs to design and roll out stigma-reduction, gender equity, and human rights interventions.
- Roll out HCW sensitization packages and facility-based stigma-reduction strategies.
- Oversee the development and dissemination of stigma-reduction communication materials.
Civil Society Capacity Strengthening and Management
- Manage the roll-out of community-led grants to local CSOs and networks of WLHIV, supporting their participation in EVT advocacy, CLM, and demand generation.
- Build the capacity of CSOs and grassroots actors in CLM, community data use, and quality improvement strategies.
- Mentor and supervise grantee partners in planning, implementation, financial accountability, and reporting.
- Facilitate regular peer learning, exchange, and knowledge-sharing across community grantees.
Community-Led Monitoring and Accountability
- Work with the CLM Project Coordinator and team to ensure integration of the EVT into the CLM tools, strategies, plans, and operationalization of the EVT Community-Led Monitoring (CLM) Toolkit in Uganda.
- Coordinate the implementation of CLM and ensure timely collection, analysis, and use of community data to influence service delivery.
- Support the integration of CLM findings into national and sub-national TWGs and performance improvement plans.
- Document and disseminate community-led findings and recommendations through community scorecards, briefs, and high-level dialogues.
- Facilitate CSO and community stakeholder training with support from WHO and PATH.
- Ensure CLM findings are reviewed quarterly through C-CABs and integrated into national decision-making.
Demand Generation and Literacy Campaigns, working with the Advocacy and communication team, the project coordinator will;
- Coordinate the design and deployment of awareness, literacy, and demand creation strategies, including materials and media campaigns targeting AGYW.
- Oversee co-creation of messaging with women-led networks and translation into user-friendly and culturally sensitive formats.
- Leverage digital platforms and social media (e.g., TikTok, Instagram, WhatsApp groups) to reach underserved and high-risk groups.
- Work with partners to track and evaluate reach, engagement, and behavioural outcomes of campaigns.
- Co-create and disseminate youth-friendly, rights-based demand creation content through digital and offline platforms.
- Use social media and community dialogue sessions to engage AGYW and marginalized groups.
- Guide design of AGYW-centered service delivery models including in safe spaces, pharmacies, drop-in centers, and CHW/PrEP/ART sites.
- Track reach and behavioural outcomes of demand generation campaigns.
Health Systems Strengthening and Service Integration
- Coordinate EVT situational analysis including stakeholder engagement, tool adaptation, and data contextualization.
- Support deployment of integrated EVT service delivery models.
- Develop SOPs and facilitate in-service training for CHWs, peer educators, and traditional birth attendants.
- Guide CQI/Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles and community action plans.
- Document gaps identified by C-CABs and ensure alignment with national systems and donor-funded projects.
- Facilitate rollout of EVT curricula and support MOH alignment.
Policy, Learning, and Regional Advocacy,
- Facilitate C-CAB mapping of policy environments and gaps.
- Support development and documentation of policy objectives informed by project evidence.
- Disseminate CAB recommendations and CLM results to stakeholders and decision-makers.
- Working with Advocacy and Communication, compile and package data for use in national and global investment cases (PEPFAR, GFATM, Gavi).
- Lead ICWEA’s participation in regional learning exchanges, peer trainings, and uptake of ICWEA’s digital learning platforms.
Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning, and Reporting
- Ensure proper documentation and reporting of ICWEA-led activities under SAFEStart+.
- Collaborate with the MEL Officer and consortium MEL structures to contribute to routine monitoring, learning reviews, and evidence generation (including input into values and preferences surveys).
- Prepare high-quality donor and internal reports, project briefs, and periodic updates.
- Contribute to knowledge sharing and learning at consortium, national, and regional level
- Compile and share lessons learned with regional and peer-learning platforms.
Key Deliverables
| Area | Key Outputs |
|
EVT Platforms |
1 C-CAB functional; 4 quarterly meetings held; G-CAB representative engaged; S&D campaign materials disseminated. |
|
Sub granting |
5+ CSO subgrants awarded annually; AGYW-targeted interventions rolled out; CSOs trained in advocacy and outreach. |
|
CLM |
EVT CLM toolkit adapted and used; quarterly reviews with C-CAB; 2 scorecards published; findings shared regionally. |
Demand Generation |
3000+ AGYW reached annually; 4 dialogue sessions per year; social media analytics and feedback captured. |
|
Health Systems |
Situational analysis report finalized; integrated EVT models implemented; SOPs and training completed for providers. |
|
Policy & Learning |
2 policy briefs annually; investment cases shared with donors; ICWEA hosts 1 regional learning event. |
|
MEL & Reporting |
Quarterly reports, donor briefs, and internal updates completed; contribution to consortium MEL outputs and reviews. |
Qualifications and Experience
- Minimum of a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
- A Post Graduate in Project Planning and Management is an added advantage.
- Minimum of 5 years’ experience in project management in HIV/health-related programming in Africa.
- Technical knowledge of HIV/AIDS, and working with people affected by or living with HIV and Key and vulnerable populations.
- Extensive knowledge in community work – particularly working with networks of people living with HIV and key and vulnerable populations
- Demonstrated knowledge of eliminating vertical transmission (EVT) programming and civil society engagement.
- Proven experience working with community-led models, civil society networks, and rights-based approaches.
- Proven track record in donor project reporting, stakeholder coordination, and grant management.
- Expertise in engaging stakeholders spanning community, national, and global levels;
- Thorough understanding and application of Monitoring and Evaluation in project’s management.
Application Procedure
- While Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, all interested applicants must submit their applications, including CV, a cover letter, and attach the relevant academic documents via email as a single file in PDF: hr@icwea.org and cc: jkomujuni@icwea.org
- OR hand deliver your application to the address below;
International Community of Women Living with HIV Eastern Africa (ICWEA)
P.O.Box 32252, Kampala, Uganda
Plot 1106, Ssenge – Kawanda Road, Off Kayunga
Kampala – Hoima Road
Application Deadline
Interested candidates are required to submit their applications not later than 08th August, 2025, by 5:00 pm. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Women living with HIV who meet the set criteria will be prioritized.
