2022/July/71
The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as members of the Country-led Assessment for Prioritisation on Immunisation (CAPACITI) Steering Committee. This “Call for experts” provides information about the advisory group (AG) in question, the expert profiles being sought, the process to express interest, and the process of selection.
Background
CAPACITI is a systematic approach for decision-making on immunisation. It aims to strengthen the capacity of low and middle-income countries (LMICs) to evaluate vaccination options according to their priorities and programme context, both to support national immunisation programme and policy decisions and to inform vaccine development decisions. The CAPACITI project, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has been under way since December 2017 (previously referred to as ‘Total Systems Effectiveness’).
The CAPACITI decision-support framework structures and documents an evidence-based, context-specific process for prioritising or selecting between multiple vaccination products, services, or strategies. It supports national advisory or decision bodies to combine evidence and different stakeholder views to come to a legitimate and credible recommendation. There is an Excel-based decision-support tool with accompanying manual to support immunisation programmes in LMICs to follow the steps of the CAPACITI decision-support framework, complemented by webinars, training modules. The next phase of the CAPACITI project will continue to enhance the CAPACITI tools for country evaluation of vaccine products, services, or strategies to both support national immunisation programme and policy decisions and to inform vaccine development decisions.
Functions of the CAPACITI Steering Committee
In its capacity as an advisory body to WHO, the AG shall have the following functions:
- Provide strategic advice to WHO in relation to the CAPACITI project;
- Provide to WHO technical input and insight into the iterative development of tools for country evaluation of vaccine products, services, or strategies;
- Advising WHO on overseeing the implementation of the CAPACITI project;
- Provide feedback and guidance to WHO on CAPACITI messaging and communications;
- Advice WHO on leveraging the networks of respective CAPACITI Steering Committee members to align CAPACITI activities and funding with other relevant initiatives.
Operations of the CAPACITI Steering Committee
The AG shall normally meet at least once each year. However, WHO may convene additional meetings. AG meetings may be held in person (at WHO headquarters in Geneva or another location, as determined by WHO) or virtually, via video or teleconference. Interim teleconferences may be required of the members. The WHO Secretariat may decide to establish smaller working groups of ACVVR members and additional advisors to work on specific issues. WHO may, at its sole discretion, invite external individuals from time to time to attend the open sessions of an advisory group meeting, or parts thereof, as “observers”, which category will include invited presenters and persons invited in an ad hoc capacity for their specific technical expertise. Observers may be invited either in their personal capacity, or as representatives from a government institution, intergovernmental organization, or from a non-state actor. The working language of the group will be English.
Who can express interest?
The CAPACITI SC will be multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to decision-making on immunisation, including vaccine innovation, global vaccine policy, policy development, immunisation programme implementation, and/or information system design. Approximately 6 new members may be selected.
WHO welcomes expressions of interest from academics, immunisation professionals, public health experts, scientists and health regulators with expertise in:
- decision-making on immunisation, including vaccine innovation;
- vaccine product development;
- global vaccine policy;
- immunisation programme implementation;
- priority setting;
- health technology assessment;
- information system design;
- knowledge translation
Submitting your expression of interest
To register your interest in being considered for the CAPACITI SC, please submit the following documents by 24h00 CET (Geneva) on 11 September 2022 to jansenm@who.int using the subject line “Expression of interest for the CAPACITI SC”:
- A cover letter, indicating your motivation to apply and how you satisfy the selection criteria. Please note that, if selected, membership will be in a personal capacity as an expert, and not directly linked to academic or professional affiliation(s). Therefore, do not use the letterhead or other identification of your employer);
- Your curriculum vitae; and
- A signed and completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, available here.
After submission, your expression of interest will be reviewed by WHO. Due to an expected high volume of interest, only selected individuals will be informed.
Important information about the selection processes and conditions of appointment
Members of WHO advisory groups (AGs) must be free of any real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interests for WHO Experts, and the selection as a member of a AG is, amongst other things, dependent on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that any identified conflicts could be appropriately managed (in addition to WHO’s evaluation of an applicant’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).
All AG members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts. AG members will be expected to sign and return a completed confidentiality undertaking prior to the beginning of the first meeting.
At any point during the selection process, telephone interviews may be scheduled between an applicant and the WHO Secretariat to enable WHO to ask questions relating to the applicant’s experience and expertise and/or to assess whether the applicant meets the criteria for membership in the relevant AG.
The selection of members of the AGs will be made by WHO in its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise; experience in international and country policy work and supporting LMICs; communication skills; and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations. The selection of AG members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, especially from LMICs, and for gender balance. If selected by WHO, proposed members will be sent an invitation letter and a Memorandum of Agreement. Appointment as a member of a AG will be subject to the proposed member returning to WHO the countersigned copy of these two documents.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest, to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the AG, disband an existing TAG or modify the work of the AG. WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any applicant, how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process or to state the reasons for not choosing a member.
WHO may publish the names and a short biography of the selected individuals on the WHO internet page. AG members will not be remunerated for their services in relation to the AG or otherwise. Travel and accommodation expenses of AG members to participate in AG meetings will be covered by WHO in accordance with its applicable policies, rules and procedures. The appointment will be limited in time as indicated in the letter of appointment.
If you have any questions about this “Call for experts”, please write to jansenm@who.int well before the applicable deadline.