WHO

4 days ago

Program Officer for Research and Medical Countermeasures, UNV

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Job Summary

Provide technical and operational support to WHO AFRO to coordinate regional research preparedness and medical countermeasure activities, with a primary focus on supporting the Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD) research agenda. Coordinate clinical and operational research workplans, partner collaboration, and evidence generation across Member States. Develop and disseminate guidance, tools, protocols, and monitoring systems, and support study readiness, vaccine and therapeutic preparedness, and policy- and program-ready outputs for emerging outbreaks.

Location: Nairobi

Workplace: Onsite

Employment Type: Volunteer · 12 months

Job Function: Research & Scientific (R&D)

Seniority: Mid level

Key Responsibilities

•Coordinate the regional response to Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD) with focus on research, vaccine preparedness, and medical countermeasure readiness.
•Support implementation of the regional BVD research agenda by coordinating priority research activities, facilitating partner collaboration, and monitoring workplans and deliverables.
•Develop, adapt, and disseminate regional technical guidance, operational tools, protocols, and training materials to strengthen BVD research preparedness and implementation capacity.
•Support BVD vaccine preparedness and readiness planning, including target population identification, operational planning, vaccination monitoring, and post-introduction evaluation.
•Maintain research coordination and knowledge management systems (e.g., trackers, dashboards, databases, repositories) and provide policy- and operational-ready evidence through reporting, briefings, and technical consultations.

Key Requirements

•Bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences, Public Health, Medicine, Health Sciences, Epidemiology, or a related field.
•Minimum of 2 years of progressively responsible professional experience in public health, epidemiology, infectious disease surveillance, outbreak response, vaccine programmes, or clinical research.
•Experience working in humanitarian, emergency, fragile, conflict-affected, or resource-constrained settings, including outbreak investigations or emergency response operations.
•Strong knowledge of epidemiology, infectious diseases, public health research methodologies, vaccine-preventable disease programmes, observational studies, and vaccine effectiveness evaluations.
•Excellent written and spoken English; working knowledge of French is desirable.

Experience:2+ yearsPublic healthEpidemiologyInfectious disease surveillanceOutbreak responseVaccine programmesClinical researchHumanitarian settings

Education:Bachelor's in Biological Sciences, Public Health, Medicine, Health Sciences, Epidemiology (or related field)

Skills:TeamworkCommunicationAnalytical thinkingPartneringPlanning and organizing

Languages:EnglishFrench

Tech Stack:Knowledge management systemsResearch trackersStudy dashboardsVaccine databasesRepositoriesMonitoring tools

Company Brief

WHO

The World Health Organization is a United Nations specialized agency responsible for international public health, coordinating global health initiatives, setting standards, providing guidance, and supporting countries in disease prevention, emergency response, and health systems strengthening.

Industry: International Organizations

Company Size: Enterprise (1,001+ employees)

Growth: Government & Public Sector

Funding: Government Funded

Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland

Founded: 1948

Website LinkedIn

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WHO