MSI Reproductive Choices is one of the world’s leading providers of sexual and reproductive healthcare. We believe that everyone should have the right to choose. From contraception to safe abortion and life-saving post-abortion care, we are committed to delivering compassionate, affordable, high-quality services for all.

Today, our organisation has over 9,000 team members working in 37 countries across the world. Our success lies in the fact that MSI teams are locally led, entrepreneurial and results-driven, and are passionate about delivering high quality, client-centred care in their own communities. As a social business, we focus on sustainable delivery, efficiency, and funding models that are built to last, so that the women and girls we serve today will have a choice in the future too.

We know that access to reproductive choice is life changing. For some, it can mean the ability to complete an education or start a career. For others, it means being able to look after the family they already have. For everyone, it means the freedom to decide their own future, creating a fairer, more equal world.

About the programme

Operating in Tanzania since 1989, MSI Tanzania (MST) – an affiliate of MSI Reproductive Choices (MSI) – is among the country’s largest providers of voluntary Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services and information. Over the last 24 years, MST provided accurate information and high quality SRH Services to Tanzanian women and girls – with a focus on high-quality long-acting and permanent methods (LAPM), to increase method choice and complement existing access and availability to short term methods – enabling them to make informed choices. MST also provides maternal and child health services, cervical cancer screening and treatment of precancerous lesions, and sexually transmitted infection management.

MST has established itself as a household name, complementing and supporting the Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and People with Special Needs (MoCDGWPWSN) and the President’s Office Regional Administration and Local Government (PO RALG).

Over the last 5 years MST has reached over 7 million women, men, adolescents, and young people with high quality, client-centered voluntary FP services. In 2023 alone, MST served over 1.60M voluntary FP clients, generated an estimated of 5.38M FP couple-years of protection (CYPs), averting an estimated 2.66M unintended pregnancies and 3.25K maternal deaths. We estimate that 21% of the total demand for FP in Tanzania in 2023 was satisfied by services supported by MST, contributing to an increase in the modern contraceptive prevalence rate.

MST’s programming is specifically designed to meet the needs of the most vulnerable groups, with a focus on adolescents, those living in poverty, those without alternative access to care, and other marginalized groups, such as people with disability, and survivors of gender-based violence. MST differentiates itself from others in the sector through our: client-centred care; clinical expertise; focus on service delivery at scale; use of evidence to constantly improve; and our emphasis on ensuring last-mile voluntary contraceptive access, beyond the reach of existing health infrastructure. As a service delivery organization, MST is well placed to gain community, facility, and client-level insights on what works for those with the greatest need.

MST has national reach, with service delivery channels across all regions of Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar (1 Centre in Unguja). The programme currently operates eight centres, one maternity hospital located mainly in urban areas, 28 mobile outreach teams, 40 embedded nurses serving remote rural populations in partnership with government providers, and provide support to over 240 public sector facilities, through our proven health systems strengthening program. MST is strengthening its Social Marketing channel, improving access to high quality, affordable and diversified SRH products.

The role

The Country Director, Tanzania, is responsible for delivering results for women and their families, driving programmatic excellence, and implementing best practice at scale in Tanzania. They provide high quality services where they are needed the most, and their work directly contributes to preventing maternal deaths and making a sustainable impact on the lives of thousands of people every year. The CD is also responsible for ensuring Tanzania’s social business model has a strong footing on both the social and business side.

The Country Director, Tanzania, is a key leadership position. The CD represents the organisation in Tanzania and is responsible for the overall strategy, management (programmatic, financial, and administrative), and development of Tanzania’s national family planning and SRH programmes. They lead skilled, professional country teams to deliver life-saving services through clinical centres, mobile outreach teams, social franchising, and social marketing.

In addition, they are responsible for preparing and executing annual budgets, marketing plans and work plans; developing new business opportunities; overseeing financial, administrative, and logistical resources; ensuring adherence to MSI minimum standards; and assuring quality operations in line with annual and long-term strategic goals and objectives. The Country Director manages for results, valuing and rewarding high performance, accountability, speed and efficiency and innovation, while keeping the client at the heart of everything we do.

The Country Director is Tanzania’s senior representative in the country of assignment. Reporting to Africa Regional Office of MSI, MSI Tanzania (MST) is an implementing partner of the MoH, with whom MST works closely across all its projects and service delivery channels partnering at national, provincial, district and facility level. They work closely with government to overcome barriers that prevent women and men from accessing safe, affordable, reliable family planning and other sexual and reproductive health services

About you

We want individuals who support our mission of eliminating unsafe abortion by 2030 and who work with us to build an enabling environment to increase access to safe services everywhere. We expect all team members to share our vision and commitment to achieving our mission whilst promoting equality and safeguarding the welfare of all clients and colleagues.

To perform this role, it is essential that you have the following skills:

Proven experience of driving impact, quality and sustainability in programmes and improving operational standards
Effective interpersonal skills, with the ability to inspire, lead, motivate and guide Country teams.
Proven ability to effectively communicate ideas, proposals, issues and implications at senior level
Excellent project management skills related to organisational development projects and international, cross- functional teams with a proven history of delivering results.
Highly developed problem solving, diplomatic, networking and negotiation skills.
Demonstration of ‘making things happen’, operating at pace and delivering effectively through others.
To perform this role, it is essential that you have the following experience:

Experience of developing and successfully implementing business plans and growth strategies, with a track record of aligning resources with key priorities, keeping management teams engaged and focused on critical milestones and consistently achieving results.
Experience of communicating a range of complex issues with the ability to convey an inspiring vision and purpose both within operations and where appropriate across other business functions
An understanding of major policies/ issues of large bilateral/multilateral donors strong working knowledge of business practices • An international mindset, with an understanding of, and empathy for, the development sector, together with an appreciation for cultural differences
Experience in leading a social business preferably in a developing country.
Experience of formulating and controlling budgets to ensure effective monitoring takes place.
Understanding of the issues surrounding provision of reproductive health care services internationally
A reputation for ‘making things happen’, operating at pace and delivering effectively through others
Location: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Full-time: 40 hours per week.

Contract type: 3-year fixed term appointment.

Salary: Competitive Salary + Bonus + Benefits

Salary band: BG11

Closing date: 8th March 2024 (midnight GMT). Interviews may take place before this date for exceptional candidates.

For internal staff applying from an MSI country programme, the role will be positioned within the existing salary structure of the country. Local terms and conditions of the country will apply.