The African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) is a premier research-to-policy institution, generating evidence, strengthening research and related capacity in the African research and development ecosystem, and engaging policy to inform action on health and development. APHRC seeks to drive change by developing strong African research leadership and promoting evidence-informed decision-making (EIDM) across sub-Saharan Africa. APHRC seeks to recruit a Data Standards and FAIR Implementation Officer to lead the design, documentation, and implementation of data models and metadata workflows across the network in the Data Science Program (DSP).

DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

The Data Science Without Borders (DSWB) project aims to strengthen the use of advanced data science tools in health across Africa through co-designed, locally led strategies. The initiative focuses on harmonizing data, implementing AI/ML tools, and promoting FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data practices across partner institutions in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Senegal, and Kenya.

This role will drive technical leadership in deploying the OMOP Common Data Model (CDM), streamlining metadata workflows, and embedding FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data principles into practice. As a key contributor to the Data Science Without Borders (DSWB) project, this position will advance data harmonization, interoperability, and reuse across partner institutions, fostering collaboration and evidence-based insights. With the growing demand for standardized, high-quality data, the specialist will be instrumental in building robust data infrastructure, promoting consistent best practices, and enabling secure federated data sharing. By doing so, s/he will help establish scalable, sustainable data science ecosystems that empower research and decision-making across Africa.

Under the supervision of the DSWB Project Technical Lead and in collaboration with Pathfinder institution data teams, the incumbent will: –

• Design and implement data harmonization pipelines using OMOP CDM, Pentaho, and associated OHDSI tools.
• Develop and maintain machine-readable metadata workflows (e.g., Schema.org, DDI Lifecycle, JSON-LD).
• Lead the configuration of a FAIR-compliant data catalogue that supports federated search and linked data integration.
• Standardize vocabularies and terminologies used in longitudinal and clinical health datasets.
• Support Pathfinder institutions in implementing ETL processes and reproducible research practices.
• Conduct capacity-building workshops and mentorship sessions on FAIR, metadata standards, and health data interoperability.
• Work with institutional data stewards to document FAIR Implementation Profiles and metadata schemas.
• Support the implementation of cloud-based collaborative analysis under the federation learning system.
• Contribute to collaborative publications and technical documentation.

Qualifications, Skills, and Experience

• A master’s degree in Epidemiology, Data Science, Health Informatics, or Information Technology.
• Minimum of five (5) years post first-degree experience in data management, data harmonization, and implementation of FAIR data principles within health research or related domains.
• Proven experience implementing FAIR data principles and using metadata standards like DDI, Schema.org.
• Proficiency with OMOP CDM, OHDSI tools (e.g., ATLAS, Achilles), and ETL processes.
• Strong command of R, Python, SQL, and visualization tools like Power BI, Apache Superset.
• Experience working with health surveillance, EHR data, or clinical research datasets.
• Record of peer-reviewed publications or technical documentation in relevant areas.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills