Data Scientist at Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) – November 2026

Location: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | Job Type: Full-Time | Positions: 1

Application Deadline: 19 November 2026

About Ifakara Health Institute (IHI)

Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) is a leading research organization in Africa with a strong track record in developing, testing, and validating innovations for health.

Driven by its core strategic mandate for research, training, and services, the Institute’s work spans biomedical and ecological sciences, intervention studies, health-systems research, service delivery, and policy translation.

Position Summary

Ifakara Health Institute, under its Maternal and Newborn Health Program, is seeking a qualified Data Scientist to be based at its Dar es Salaam station, reporting to the Data Manager.

The successful candidate will analyse and translate maternal and newborn health data into actionable insights to inform programme implementation, performance monitoring, quality improvement, and evidence-based decision-making.

The position will use advanced statistical methods, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to identify trends, assess programme performance, and support predictive analysis of maternal and newborn health outcomes.

The Data Scientist will work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) team to develop interactive dashboards, conduct data quality assessments, support health facility assessments, and generate analytical reports for programme management and stakeholders.

Working closely with the MEL team, statisticians, health workers, and Ministry of Health and government counterparts, the position will also strengthen data literacy, analytical capacity, and routine data use at national, regional, district, and facility levels.

The ideal candidate must be ready and available to assume duties immediately upon appointment.

Key Responsibilities

1. Data Analysis: Analyse maternal and neonatal data as assigned by the programme, generating actionable insights and programmatic recommendations.

2. Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence: Apply machine learning and AI tools to analyse health data, identify trends, and support predictive modelling for maternal and neonatal health outcomes.

3. Dashboard Development: Design and maintain interactive data visualisations using R Shiny or Python to support programme monitoring and reporting.

4. Training and Capacity Building: Collaborate with statisticians to conduct data literacy training for healthcare workers at various levels, including the Ministry of Health, regional, district, and PO-RALG levels.

5. Data Visualisation: Create compelling visual reports and presentations to communicate findings to stakeholders and non-technical audiences.

6. Data Quality Assessments: Conduct regular Data Quality Assessments (DQA) to identify trends and address systematic data collection issues.

7. Supervision: Provide support and supervision during Health Facility Assessments (HFA) to ensure data consistency and adherence to research protocols.

8. Methodology Review: Regularly review and update data analysis protocols to incorporate new statistical methods, machine learning approaches, and programme requirements.

9. Reporting: Prepare regular analytical reports and dashboards to inform programme decision-making and donor reporting.

Required Skills and Competencies

Statistical Programming

• Advanced skills in Python, R, Shiny, and STATA for statistical reporting and data visualisation.

• Proficiency in R or Python for data wrangling, statistical analysis, visualisation, and reproducible reporting.

Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence

– Knowledge and practical experience with machine learning algorithms and AI tools for health data analysis and predictive modelling.

Programming and Data Manipulation

• Working knowledge of Python for data analysis and scripting.

• Expertise in handling large datasets, including data cleaning, recoding, and validation.

Database Management

– Working knowledge of SQL and MySQL for querying relational databases.

Training and Capacity Building

• Strong ability to train and manage teams effectively.

• Experience building healthcare workers’ data literacy capacity.

Communication and Collaboration

– Excellent interpersonal skills to collaborate with statisticians, healthcare professionals, and government organisations.

Real-World Data Analysis

– Demonstrated ability to analyse messy, multi-source, routinely collected data and generate credible, actionable insights under real-world constraints.

Statistical Reasoning

– Solid grounding in statistical reasoning, including bias, confounding, missing data, and uncertainty.

Advanced Statistical Analysis

– Advanced proficiency in statistical analysis and familiarity with other statistical software, such as Stata, SAS, and HLM.

Analytical and Visualisation Tools

– Familiarity with advanced analytical and visualisation tools, including Shiny, ggplot2, plotly, pandas, matplotlib, NumPy, and SciPy.

Data Ethics and Security

– Awareness of data security, responsible data use, and ethical considerations in low-resource health system contexts.

Required Qualifications

– A Master’s degree in Data Science, Biostatistics, Computer Science, Statistics, Health Informatics, or a related field.

Required Experience

• Minimum of 2–5 years of experience in data analysis or data science roles, especially within health-related projects.

• Proven experience working with health datasets, including data extraction, cleaning, analysis, and visualisation.

Number of Positions

1 Position

Preferred Language Skills

• Good written and spoken English.

• Good written and spoken Kiswahili.

Remuneration

An attractive and competitive remuneration package shall be offered to the successful candidate in accordance with IHI salary scales.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Ifakara Health Institute is an equal employment opportunity employer committed to providing a workplace free from discrimination and harassment.

The Institute prohibits discrimination of any kind during recruitment and employment. All employment decisions are based solely on job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications, in compliance with the labour laws of Tanzania.

Important Notice to Applicants

Ifakara Health Institute does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process.

Applicants are advised to disregard any written or oral requests for payment in exchange for a job offer or interview that they believe may be fraudulent or suspicious.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified candidates should submit their applications online through the official Ifakara Health Institute recruitment portal.

Applicants should ensure they meet the stated qualifications and experience requirements and submit their applications before the deadline.

Application Link:

CLICK HERE TO APPLY