Ethiopia is experiencing different public health emergencies. An effective and efficient emergency/threat forecast, communication, preparedness and response will reduce mortality, morbidity and associated impact on the affected population.The Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) is committed to strengthening the Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) system to ensure the prevention, timely detection, prediction, and effective response to potential disease outbreaks. As part of this commitment, the Data Analyst and Forecasting Expert plays a critical role in enhancing the capacity of the Early Warning System (EWS) through advanced data analytics, statistical forecasting, and visualization techniques—contributing to a more resilient and responsive public health emergency management system in the country.

The expert will provide high-level technical and strategic support to the Surveillance and Early Warning Directorate in strengthening the surveillance and Early warning system. This includes generating actionable insights from PHEM data, producing timely forecasts for epidemic-prone diseases, and supporting evidence-based decision-making. The role will also involve facilitating capacity building for health professionals in data management, visualization, and forecasting techniques.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Utilize modelling techniques to analyze and visualize geospatial data, including disease surveillance data, environmental variables, and population demographics.

• Provide technical guidance for the implementation of existing initiatives of implementing EWARS tool 

• Work with GIS expert to map public health emergency risky areas

• Collaborate with stakeholders and subject matter experts to strengthen and optimize the existing Early Warning System (EWS).

• Generate regular, evidence-based forecast outputs for priority diseases, integrating epidemiological, meteorological, environmental, and other relevant datasets.

• Design and implement user-friendly dashboards for real-time data monitoring and visualization.

• Provide hands-on training and mentorship for health professionals on data management, analysis, and visualization techniques.

• Ensure quality assurance of data, including completeness, accuracy, and consistency.

• Support the development of technical guidelines, SOPs, and documentation for forecasting processes.

• Contribute to technical reports, bulletins, and policy briefs for timely decision-making.

 Deliverables

•  Regular forecast provisions for priority diseases.

• Support surveillance and risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) activities during emergencies

• Functional disease surveillance dashboards for disease monitoring 

• Generate disease reports, bulletins and insights 

• Training materials development and capacity-building sessions conducted for relevant health professionals

• Technical documentation for forecasting models and data workflows.

Duration & Level of Effort

The contract will be for 12 months with possible extension based on performance and funding availability.

Reporting & Supervision

The Data Analyst and Forecasting Expert will report directly to the Surveillance and disease intelligence team and work closely with the risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) unit and other PHEM units. 

Reports to: Surveillance and Early warning directorate (SEW-d) Duty Station: The expert will be based at Addis Ababa with frequent field travel

Duration: One year with possibility of extension

Number required: One

Job Requirements

Required Qualifications

Education:

• PhD in Biostatistics, Statistics, Epidemiology, or related quantitative discipline.

Experience:

• Minimum of 4 years of relevant experience working in Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM).

Desired Skills:

• Proficiency in using GIS software (e.g., ArcGIS, QGIS) and statistical software (e.g., R, Python, STATA) for sstatistical analysis and modelling.

• Hands on experience on implementing predictive modellings like EWARS, EPIDEMIA and other modeling & forecasting tools

• Knowledge and understanding of disease surveillance, epidemiology and public health practice 

• Demonstrated ability to develop and implement complex spatial models and algorithms.

• Strong data visualization and dashboard development skills (e.g.,Advanced Excel, Power BI, Tableau, Quarto, or equivalent).

• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to effectively present complex findings to diverse audiences.

• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team environment.

• Published at least 3 public health related articles in reputable and peer reviewed journal (at least two of them as a first author);

How To Apply

Interested and qualified candidates can apply through only THIS LINK