VACANCY: Consultant Urgently Needed at Ghana NCD Alliance (GhNCDA)

1. BACKGROUND

While we have seen progress in the area of alcohol control since the adoption of the National Alcohol Policy in 2016, there has been a pronounced lag in the development of national alcohol control legislation

Good alcohol regulations have enormous potential to prevent the initiation of alcohol use among young people, reduce affordability and accessibility especially among the poor, increase health outcomes and where prices are increased considerable tax revenue is generated. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes tax and price policies as one of the most effective strategies for reducing alcohol use, especially among young people.

At the National level, it is estimated that 76.7% of Ghanaians aged 15 years and above are either li fetime abstainers or have abstained from drinking alcohol in the past 12 months. This means that 23.3% of this population (aged 15years and above) take alcohol. It is also estimated that 2.1% of the population e ngage in heavy drinking among the same age group (15 years and above). Recorded per capita consumption (15 years and above) stands as follows: a. Beer – 30%, b. Wine – 10%, c. Spirits – 3%, d. Others (locally brewed) – 57%. This implies the need for special strategies to tackle the production, sale and consumption of alcohol.

The Public Health (Act 851) stipulates in section 137(3f) that:

The Minister may in collaboration with relevant bodies, by legislative instrument provide for public health matters in respect of harmful use of alcohol.

As the global disease burden of alcohol continues to cause the death of 33million people globally and especially in developing countries; as evident in the recent outbreak of the COVID -19, it is time to consider the use of a regulatory framework to promote public health. However for any such changes to be acceptable to the Ministry of Health, relevant policymakers and other key stakeholders, evidence through studies are required.

B. PURPOSE OF THE CONSULTANCY

The Ghana NCD Alliance would like the consultant to conduct a comprehensive study to understand the “impact of alcohol on the socio-economic development of Ghana” and to review the legal and policy context of alcohol concerning taxation, marketing, children exposure, advertisement and promotion.

Leverage the existing study on alcohol control and consumption in Ghana to provide a holistic assessment of the impact of alcohol on COVID-19 patients as well as on public health. The result of the consultancy work would be used to justify the urgent need for the passage of a National Alcohol Regulations for Ghana .

The objective of the study is to provide support/recommendation for the Ministry of Health in reducing the harmful use of alcohol by strengthening t implementation of SAFER in countries that will be coordinated by the SAFER Secretariat, which consists of staff across WHO headquarters, regional offices and the Secretariat of the UN Interagency Task Force on NCDs. SAFER will use a set of WHO tools and resources to provide support to countries in implementing the most cost -effective interventions (“best buys”) for preventing and reducing alcohol-related harm.

C.  SCOPE OF WORK

The goal of this study is to provide critical evidence, for use mostly by policymakers for effecting Public Health and Alcohol control policies that contribute to the objectives of the Public Health Act (Act 851) and the National Alcohol Policy (2016) in compliance with Government obligations under the ongoing implementation of the Global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol and other WHO and United Nations instruments – including WHO’s Global action plan for the prevention and control of NCDs and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target 3.5 (i.e. Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful u se of alcohol).

The study will be framed around the five WHO SAFER initiative s as a key indicator of the study area. The report on Trouble Brewing will also be assessed to inform the study report. This will ensure that all the thematic areas are assessed for effective policy recommendations.

The study is also aimed at reviewing research on the impact of alcohol on the socio-economic development of Ghana with a comparative regional and global perspective and make recommendations for alcohol control that contributes to over all objectives of the Public Health Act, and is consistent with the Government obligations under other development frameworks.

The result of the study will inform the alcohol advocacy processes. It is anticipated that the study will generate accurate and reliable data that will provide broad information for alcohol and related sectors in the production, distribution and consumption chain.

The consultancy shall be guided by the following specific tasks.

D.  THE SPECIFIC TASKS INCLUDE

1. Review existing data and documents on alcohol control and consumption in Ghana
2. Review measures aimed at controlling alcohol consumption in Ghana
3. Review Ghana’s alcohol taxation regime against international best practice s
4. Develop a clear and analytical report with relevant recommendation s for both alcohol control and consumption advocacy intervention
5. Examine the negative impact of alcohol from COVID-19 lens
6. Connect the interlink between alcohol , non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and Ghana’s Universal Health Coverage (UHC)
7. Assess Ghana’s health financing for UHC with specific reference to alcohol control and provide recommendations on health financing reforms
8. Undertake primary data collection to generate further and new sup porting information on the areas of the study
9. Present the finding of the study to stakeholders during the stakeholders’ forum
10. In consultation with GhNCDA, identify the relevant stakeholders in the sector for the study as well as subsequent advocacy processes

The study is expected to focus on but not limited to:

• Alcohol situation
• Youth exposure
• Laws/regulations
• Media/ celebrities influence
• Alcohol imports / local production
• Road safety
• Industry interferences and corporate social responsibility
• Alcohol industry activities in the COVID -19 era
• COVID-19 and alcohol
• Price of alcohol and revenue
• Treatment and rehabilitation
• Lived experiences of those affected by alcohol
• Tax incentives to the alcohol industry
• Alcohol and impact on NCDs
• Recommendation for policy action The study activities will include but are not limited to:

• Desk research
• A one on one interview with the public, media practitioners, policy makers, civil society, academic and research institutions
• Online survey

Additionally, the consultant will develop a policy brief and fact sheet for dissemination to a wide range of stakeholders

E. Expected Deliverables

1. An inception report and action plan
2. Data collection and reporting schedule
3. Draft report (review by NCD Alliance and other partners)
4. PowerPoint presentation
5. Final report

F. Duration of the task

The duration of this study is 3 months from 1^st December 2021 – 30^th February 2022.

G. Consultancy Fee

The fee for the consultancy work is six thousand US Dollars ( USD 6,000.00)

H. Qualifications for the Consultancy

1. Must be a publicly registered economic/health research institution / a Public University
2. A minimum of 5 years’ experience and skills in health economic and tax research
3. Experience in public health and policy matters
4. Demonstrate experience of having undertaken similar consultancy
5. Good analytical and documentation/report writing skills
6. Excellent command of oral and written English
7. Cultural awareness and sensitivity to gender and disability issue s

Process to follow

Interested applicants should send a CV and a letter describing interest in position, capability and relevant technical experience to conduct this study to ghanancdalliance@gmail.com and copy labrammusah@valdghana.org by 1^st December 2021, with the subject ‘Impact of alcohol on the socio- economic development of Ghana’ in the email heading.