The Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) continues to strengthen its contribution to health research and evidence-based public health interventions in Tanzania and beyond. As a leading research institution, IHI plays a central role in advancing scientific knowledge, improving healthcare delivery systems, and supporting national and global disease control programs through rigorous research and innovation.
This February 2026 recruitment round presents 2 important openings supporting maternal and neonatal health research as well as advanced malaria modelling initiatives. These roles are critical to strengthening Tanzania’s health systems, enhancing clinical research capacity, and supporting national malaria control strategies through data-driven decision-making. Both positions offer an opportunity to work within high-impact research programs contributing to global health improvements.
Employer: Ifakara Health Institute
Location: Ifakara Branch
Project: TARSI Project – Prevalence and Microbiological Patterns of Surgical Site Infection After Cesarean Section in Rural Tanzania conducted at SFRRH
Job Summary:
Ifakara Health Institute is seeking a qualified Assistant Nursing Officer who will be stationed at Ifakara Branch to support TARSI Project. A successful candidate will provide nursing care and perform clinical assessment, patient follow-up, specimen collection, and documentation of maternal and neonatal outcomes.
Responsibilities:
Timely screening and enrolment of eligible caesarean section patients and ensuring completion of 30-day post-operative follow-up for enrolled participants.
Proper documentation of wound assessments, vital signs, infection indicators, maternal and neonatal outcomes.
Immediate reporting of adverse events, maternal sepsis, and deaths.
Ensure that samples for culture and sensitivity are collected timely and correctly with proper labelling and documentation.
Supervise and ensure safe transfer of samples to the laboratory.
Support reporting laboratory results to clinicians or study PI for patient care.
Timely and accurate entry of all study data into the electronic database and perform regular verification of entered data against source documents.
Supporting documentation and proper storage of paper forms needed within the study.
Maintenance of data and participant confidentiality.
Ensuring all necessary medical and non-medical equipment are in good condition and available for study.
Working in full agreement with IHI, Hospital, GCP and government (MoHCDGEC) regulations.
Participating in compulsory meetings and assisting in research coordination activities.
Any additional task assigned by the PL and/or Director of SFRH when necessary.
Required Skills:
Good team work skills
Leadership skills
Essential Qualifications:
Diploma in Nursing
Registered with the Nursing Council of Tanzania
Training in Good Clinical Practice (GCP)
Required Experience:
Experience in research and electronic data capture systems (e.g., REDCap) – not mandatory
Experience in maternal and neonatal care preferred
Preferred Language:
Fluent in Swahili and English
Opening Date: 28-Feb-2026
Closing Date: 14-Mar-2026
Employer: Ifakara Health Institute (IHI)
Project: Malaria Atlas Project (MAP) East Africa (EA) Node
Job Summary:
Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) is seeking a Senior Research Scientist with advanced modelling skills to contribute to MAP EA Node’s mission of developing advanced geospatial analytical architectures to estimate malaria burden, assess intervention impact, and provide National Malaria Control Programmes (NMCPs) with high-quality evidence for optimal resource allocation.
Responsibilities:
Provide statistical expertise in development and implementation of spatiotemporal models for malaria research.
Guide analysis outputs, interpretation of results, and relevant conclusions.
Manage academic research and administrative activities including project coordination.
Lead collaboration and engagements with NMCPs to translate modelling outputs into decision-making tools.
Work with data scientist and engineering teams on data pipelines and computation infrastructure.
Collaborate with wider MAP scientists to produce malaria estimates.
Scrutinize model results for deliverables and refine theories appropriately.
Maintain rigorous data and code management practices.
Contribute to research income generation and scientific publication preparation.
Present findings at regional and international conferences.
Travel to collaborators across MECs, Europe, United States, Africa, and Asia.
Comply with institutional safety policies and procedures.
Desired Skills:
Experience working with ministries of health in LMICs and funding agencies
Understanding of malaria epidemiology and public health surveillance
Proficiency in R/Python, Stata or similar statistical software
Essential Qualifications:
PhD in biostatistics, mathematics, or similar quantitative discipline with epidemiological knowledge
Required Experience:
Expertise in Bayesian modelling using Gaussian processes
Experience in scaling models globally and conducting validation and sensitivity analysis
Experience with INLA, TMB or similar libraries
Strong code documentation and source control practices
Experience working with national disease programmes and senior stakeholders
Experience analysing routine health data in LMICs
Mentoring junior staff and managing research milestones
Track record of publications in peer-reviewed journals
Experience with NMCPs and DHIS2
Experience delivering training
Preferred Language:
Excellent communication skills (oral and written)
Opening Date: 23-Feb-2026
Closing Date: 06-Mar-2026
Applicants must submit their applications through the official Ifakara Health Institute recruitment portal:
Ifakara Health Institute Recruitment Portal
Applicants should open the provided application link to access the complete submission requirements and full job details.
ASSISTANT NURSING OFFICER – Closing Date: 14-Mar-2026
SENIOR RESEARCH SCIENTIST – Closing Date: 06-Mar-2026
These positions offer an opportunity to join a respected research institution committed to improving health outcomes in Tanzania and across malaria-endemic regions. Whether supporting maternal and neonatal infection research or leading advanced malaria modelling initiatives, each role contributes directly to evidence-based healthcare improvement.
Qualified candidates are encouraged to submit their applications promptly before the stated deadlines. This recruitment round represents a significant opportunity to contribute to impactful scientific work while advancing professional growth within a globally recognized research environment.
