Project Support Specialist (HSS)

Pan American Health Organization Inc; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 44,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) in Washington, D.C. seeks a seasoned professional to manage and coordinate technical cooperation projects advancing Universal Health Coverage and Primary Health Care across the Americas.

The role supports planning, monitoring, and reporting, working with diverse partners and donors. Essential: five years of national and international project management experience; fluency in English or Spanish with knowledge of the other.

Qualifications

• Essential: Five years combined national and international experience in project management, health planning, monitoring and evaluation.
• Desirable: Experience with international donor agencies.
• Essential: Bachelor's degree in health or social science from a recognized university.
• Desirable: Master's in public health, policy and planning, project management, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Support design, negotiation, implementation, and monitoring of technical cooperation projects to meet donor requirements.
• Coordinate management, implementation, evaluation, and reporting of UHC-P contributions across the Americas region.
• Lead work planning, performance monitoring, and institutional reporting.
• Build partnerships with countries, donors, and other stakeholders to support project results.
• Coordinate budgeting, funding disbursement, and reporting related to voluntary contributions.
• Develop and maintain project tools, briefings, and coordination with WHO teams.

Skills

Languages: English/Spanish

Project management

Stakeholder coordination

Budget & financial analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in health or social science

Master's in public health or related field

Tools

ERP systems

MS Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word)

Job description

Grade: P-2 Salary - Monthly (non-negotiable): 4,670.50 USD Post Adjustment - Monthly: 2,550.09 USD Contractual Agreement: Staff - Professional Non-post Job Posting: August 13, 2026 Closing Date: August 27, 2026, 11:59 PM Eastern Time Primary Location: Washington, D.C. Organization: HSS Health Systems and Services Schedule: Full time

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

Join PAHO’s Department of Health Systems and Services and contribute to advancing Universal Health and Primary Health Care across the Americas. This role supports the effective management, coordination, and implementation of strategic technical cooperation projects and partnerships that strengthen health systems and service delivery in the Region.

SUMMARY OF RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support the design, negotiation, implementation, and monitoring of technical cooperation projects, ensuring delivery against approved plans, timelines, and donor requirements.
• Coordinate the management, implementation, evaluation, and reporting of UHC-Partnership (UHC-P) voluntary contributions across the Americas Region.
• Lead and support planning, performance monitoring, assessment processes, and contributions to biennial work plans, strategic planning, and institutional reporting.
• Build and maintain effective partnerships with countries, technical units, subregional programs, donors, and other stakeholders to support project implementation and achieve expected results.
• Coordinate work planning, resource mobilization, financial monitoring, funding disbursement, quality assurance, and reporting activities related to voluntary contributions.
• Develop and maintain project management and collaboration tools, prepare briefings and presentations for senior management, and support coordination with WHO technical teams and funding partners.

EDUCATION

Essential: A bachelor's degree in health or social science related to the functions of the post from a recognized university.

Desirable: A master's degree in public health, policy and planning, project management, health administration, public administration, management or related field would be an asset.

EXPERIENCE

Essential: Five years combined national and international experience in the fields of project management, health planning, monitoring and evaluation.

Desirable: Experience in working with a wide range of stakeholders including international donor agencies would be an asset.

LANGUAGES

Fluency in Spanish or English with a working knowledge of the other language.

Knowledge of French and/or Portuguese would be an asset.

IT SKILLS

Demonstrated ability to effectively use current technology and software, spreadsheets and presentations, as well as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and management information systems.

Other IT skills and knowledge of software programs such as Microsoft Excel, Outlook, One Drive, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint and Word are considered essential.

COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

For a complete list of competencies and skills, please refer to the post description. The skills required are:

• Practical knowledge of results-based management concepts and tools.
• Knowledge of international technical cooperation and project/program management.
• Strong project planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting skills.
• Ability to manage budgets, financial analysis, forecasting, and resource coordination.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving abilities.
• Ability to build collaborative relationships and coordinate activities across multiple stakeholders.
• Capacity to integrate technical and managerial information into effective recommendations for decision-making.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including report writing and presentations.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a complex organizational environment.
• Adaptability, teamwork, accountability, and commitment to continuous learning.

DURATION OF CONTRACT

This is an initial 11-month assignment, with possibility of extensions, subject to satisfactory performance and funding availability.

PAHO AND HSS HEALTH SYSTEMS AND SERVICES

PAHO, considers official higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in one of the following databases:

• World Higher Education Database (WHED), list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
• Council for Higher Education Accreditation chea.org
• College Navigator, found on the website of the National Centre for Educational Statistics, nces.gov to support the validation process.

The list can be assessed through the link: http://whed.net/

DEPARTMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

PAHO supports an environment of mutual respect and dignity for all applicants.

Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process.

Promoting a work environment that is free from harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and other types of abusive behavior.

Providing a smoke-free environment.

Protecting the people in the communities we serve.

Therefore, we have zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse.

People who commit serious wrongdoing will be terminated and may also face criminal prosecution.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is the specialized international health agency for the Americas. It works with countries throughout the region to improve and protect people's health.

PAHO wears two institutional hats: it is the specialized health agency of the Inter-American System and also serves as Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization (WHO), the specialized health agency of the United Nations.

PAHO engages in technical cooperation with its member countries to fight communicable and noncommunicable diseases and their causes, to strengthen health systems, and to respond to emergencies and disasters.

PAHO is committed to ensuring that all people have access to the health care they need, when they need it, with quality and without fear of falling into poverty.

Through its work, PAHO promotes and supports the right of everyone to good health.

To advance these goals, PAHO promotes technical cooperation between countries and works in partnership with ministries of health and other government agencies, civil society organizations, other international agencies, universities, social security agencies, community groups, and other partners.

PAHO promotes the inclusion of health in all public policies and the engagement of all sectors in efforts to ensure that people live longer, healthier lives, with good health as their most valuable resource.

Under the leadership of its 51 member countries and territories, PAHO sets regional health priorities and mobilizes action to address health problems that respect no borders and that, in many cases, jeopardize the sustainability of health systems.

From its Washington, D.C., headquarters, 27 country offices and three specialized centers in the region, PAHO promotes evidence-based decision-making to improve and promote health as a driver of sustainable development.