March 2015
CURRICULUM VITAE
Alessandro Colombo
Current address
Phone
E-mail
Calle Valle Del Roncal 16, apt 322, 28232 Las Rozas (Madrid), Spain
+34 6742 61144
sandrocolombo@live.com; sandroc09@gmail.com; Skype: sandro.colombo
Key Areas of Competence: Public Health, Health Policy and Planning, Health Systems in Conflicts and Post-Conflicts,
Emergency Management
Education
Oct. 1970 Mar 1977
Sept 1981 Sept 1982
Sept. 1984 Jun 1990
Sept 1999
Jun 2003
Medical Doctor Degree, University of Torino, Italy.
MSc in Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), UK.
Postgraduate degree in Hygiene & Preventive Medicine, University of Torino, Italy.
Diploma in Health Systems Management (distance learning), LSHTM, UK.
Languages (Italian native)
Fluent: English, French, Portuguese and Spanish (UN proficiency certificate)
Scientific publications
Author/co-author of 35 articles; co-author of the books: Analysing Disrupted Health Sectors, WHO, 2010; WHO
Handbook for Emergency Field Operations, 2000; contributor to the revised Sphere Handbook and the Health Cluster
Guide 2009; most relevant and recent published articles listed at the bottom.
Employment History (long-term appointments)
June
December
2013
Oct 2012 –
April 2013
Sept 2010 –
Sept 2012
Feb 2008 –
Apr 2010
Senior Advisor, KIT Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
 Providing technical assistance to the Health and Education Areas: missions to Palestine (to
support WHO for the Country Cooperation Strategy and the CAP); Burkina Faso (projection of
HRH for MCH) and Mali (evaluation of a performance-based financing project);
 Coordinating the course Analyzing Disrupted health Sectors;
 Teaching in the M&E and Master of International Health courses;
 Developing a e-learning module on Field Epidemiology in Emergencies.
Country Health Director, ONG Merlin, Cap Haïtien, Haiti
 Providing technical leadership to the Merlin health programme in Haiti (nutrition, cholera
preparedness and response) ,
 Providing technical assistance to MoH at regional and provincial level,
 Contributing to the formulation of the Merlin health strategy for transition from acute
emergency to recovery and reconstruction in Haiti.
Technical Officer, Department for Health System Governance and Service Delivery (HDS), WHO,
Geneva, Switzerland
 Contributing to the management of the International Health Partnership (IHP+) as part of its
secretariat, and to the mainstreaming of IHP+ and Paris Declaration principles and practice on
aid effectiveness within WHO,
 Contributing to the HDS department normative and fieldwork in health systems (health
devolution in Pakistan; WHO country cooperation strategy in Colombia, Global learning
Programme).
Director of Health Systems, Health Unit, International Rescue Committee, New York
 Providing supervision of health emergency staff and technical support to the IRC Emergency
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March 2015
Jul 2001 –
Feb 2008
Jan 1996 –
Dec 1997
Feb 1995 Nov 1995
Mar 1993 Nov 1994
Jul 1991 Feb 1993
Jul 1987 Jun 1990
Jun 1986 -
Response Team in Haiti,
 providing technical assistance to IRC’s health program in the DRC,
 designing and conducting training in: Analysis of Health Systems in complex emergencies
(directed four 2–week courses) with WHO and Merlin; two modules of the course Assessing
Public Health in Emergency Situations, CRED Brussels in 2008-10,
 leading the development of IRC’s policies in post-conflict programming,
 collaborating with the World Bank in the design and organisation of a randomised controlled
trial on RBF in the province of Katanga, DRC;
 representing IRC externally (conferences, meetings) and in the Global Health Cluster; member
of the Health and Nutrition Tracking Service’s Steering Committee, WHO and the Experts
Reference Group, Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), Brussels.
Medical Officer, Health Action in Crisis, World Health Organization, Geneva
 Supporting WHO and MoH in needs assessments and formulation of emergency response and
post-conflict assessments (PCNAs), recovery strategies and preparation of donor conferences
in: Afghanistan, Iraq, Liberia, Sudan (North-South and Darfur), Somalia, and Uganda,
 Team member of the Country Cooperation Strategy in Angola
 contributing to the production of emergency management technical guidelines,
 providing training of health professionals in epidemiology through the design and conduct of
 the WHO Public Health Pre-Deployment course and Health Cluster coordinators course,
 designing and conducting a mortality survey (Darfur, Sudan, 2005),
 collaborating to the design of health projects and programmes.
Coordinator, Rural Health System Rehabilitation Project; EC and MoH, Mozambique
 Planning, management and monitoring of a 22 M EUR health project for the recovery of the
health sector in a province,
 providing technical assistance to the MoH and the EC.
Health Coordinator, UNHCR, Technical Unit, Mozambique
 Providing technical assistance to UNHCR in health needs assessment and monitoring of
projects to support the reintegration of returnees,
 leading a review of the UNHCR Health Sector Reintegration Programme,
 ensuring liaison with the MoH and coordination with agencies active in the sector,
 compiling and disseminating health information concerning national policies, standards, and
guidelines concerning UNHCR projects.
Health Coordinator, UN Peace-Keeping Mission, on secondment from WHO, Mozambique
 Planning, coordination and monitoring of emergency health activities,
 participating in inter-agency assessment and monitoring missions,
 preparing projects for emergency health appeals,
 reviewing proposals and monitoring projects funded from the UNOHAC Trust Fund,
 planning the health component of the Demobilization Programme.
Health Officer, World Health Organization; Emergency Programme, Mozambique.
 Providing technical assistance to the MoH and UN agencies in needs assessment, planning,
fund-raising, coordination and monitoring of health emergency operations,
 monitoring health and nutritional status; preparation of emergency appeals,
 participating in the formulation of projects for emergency response.
Advisor to the Human Resources Department of the MoH, Italian Cooperation, Mozambique
 Planning and direction of a two-year course for mid-level preventive health workers
 Organisation and supervision of training activities, including field work in two provinces;
 Teaching of epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine.
Advisor to the Unit of Epidemiology of the MoH, Italian Cooperation, Mozambique
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March 2015
 Design, conduct of health surveys (EPI, MCH and nutrition programmes),
 analysis and evaluation of the health information system,
 supervision of health workers at provincial and district level,
 training of health workers in statistics, epidemiology and computing.
Dec 1982 - Epidemiologist, Local Health Authority, Torino, Italy
May 1986
 Design, implementation and monitoring of city’s health information system,
 evaluation of health services for drug addicts and elderly persons.
Oct 1979 – Epidemiology fellow, Italian Association for Research on Cancer, Torino, Italy, Research on breast
Oct 1981
cancer epidemiology; technical assistance to the Regional Cancer Registry.
Jun 1987
SHORT TERM ASSIGNMENTS
Sept-Dec 2014; Madrid; consultant to the SCFUK-Merlin-IMC consortium, contracted by WHO; developing a Health
Cluster professional development strategy, including the structure and didactic materials for the Health Cluster
Coordinators initial training.
July-Dec 2014; Madrid: Consultant to WHO, Department fro Health Systems Governance and Financing; writing a
chapter: Policy and Planning in Fragile States for the Handbook on national health policies, strategies and plans
towards universal health coverage.
May 2014 - to date; Madrid: Senior expert, ITAD consortium contracted by WHO; providing distance technical
support to MoH and partners in Mozambique and DR of Congo in the 4th round of M&E of International Health
Partnership (IHP+) for aid effectiveness in the health sector
Jan-Feb 2001: Peru: Consultant and Team Leader, DFiD, Peru Office; Evaluation of a DFID reproductive health project.
Apr-Nov 2000: London, Geneva, Consultant/researcher, WHO, Emergency and Humanitarian Action, Health as a
Bridge for Peace, Geneva, Comparative study of the Angola and Mozambique health sectors, 1975-2000.
Feb-Mar 2000: Mozambique, Team leader, Swiss Development Cooperation; Evaluation of the SDC Health Programme
in Mozambique, 1989-1999.
Jun-Jul 1999: Mozambique, Consultant, Swiss Development Cooperation, Evaluation of the MoH MCH programme.
Mar 1999 and Nov-Dec 1998: Kenya, Somalia, Egypt, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Switzerland and Denmark; Consultant, WHO Emergency and Humanitarian Action Programme, Review and field-test of
the WHO draft Handbook for Emergency Field Operations.
1998: Mozambique, Spain: contribution to the development of a teaching unit in health emergency for the LSHTM;
contribution to the book: International Trade in Health Services, edited by WHO & UNCTAD.
Mar-Jun 1991: Italy, Epidemiologist, Local Health Authority, Torino. Development and test of a computerised
information system for a breast cancer screening programme for the city of Torino (1 M inhabitants).
Recent teaching: Health Systems through Conflict and Recovery, Pisa (2014 and 2012); Analysing Disrupted Health
Sectors: Amsterdam 2013, Hammamet (Tunisia) 2008, 2009, 2011; Assessing Public Health in Emergency Situations:
Brussels, 2009 and 2010.
References:
Richard Brennan, Director Health Emergency, WHO Geneva (former Director Unit, International Rescue Committee,
New York, US) brennanr@who.int, phone: +41 79 204 4101
David Nabarro, UN Ebola Special Envoy and Coordinator Influenza and Food Security, Geneva, Switzerland,
David.nabarro@undp.org. ph.+ 41 78 610 2625. .
Phyllida Travis, Coordinator IHP+; Department for Health System Governance and Service Delivery, WHO Geneva,
travisp@who.int, phone: +417 92
Selected articles
Spiegel PB, Checchi F, Colombo A, Paik E; 2010; Health-care needs of people affected by conflict: future trends and
changing frameworks; the Lancet 375: 341–45
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Nabarro D, Loretti A, Colombo A; 2003, Increased equity in post-conflict reconstruction; the Lancet 362, 1673
Valenciano M, Coulombier D, Cardozo BL, Colombo A et al; 2003; Challenges for communicable disease surveillance
and control in southern Iraq, April-June 2003; Journal of the American Medical Association, 290(5):654-658.
doi:10.1001/jama.290.5.654
Pinto A, Saeed M, El Sakka H, Rashford A, Colombo A et al; 2003, Setting up an early warning system for epidemicprone diseases in Darfur: a participative approach; Disasters, 29, 4: 310–322
Pavignani E and Colombo S, 2010; Analyzing Disrupted Health Sectors; WHO
Pavignani E and Colombo S, 2001, Providing health services in countries disrupted by civil wars: a comparative
analysis of Mozambique and Angola, World Health Organisation
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