Data FI Kenya Country Director / Governance and Policy Lead at Palladium International

Primary Duties and Responsibilities: 

• Provide strategic leadership for Data.FI Kenya to advance bilateral cooperation between the Government of Kenya and the United States under the America First Global Health Strategy.
• Ensure robust interagency coordination with US CDC, State Department, and other USG entities to advance shared global health security goals, surveillance strengthening, and digital transformation agendas that protect both Kenyan and American public health interests.
• Maintain close and deliberate collaboration with the DHA and the CDC-funded KeHMIS project, ensuring harmonized implementation of digital architectures, aligned workplans, cost-effective implementation, and a unified USG presence in support of Kenya’s digital health priorities.
• Support the DHA in national-scale implementation of digital health solutions; ensuring they strengthen surveillance, improve service delivery, and contribute to early warning and rapid response capabilities.
• Support DHA in instituting system-wide HIS strengthening including maturity assessments, digital readiness reviews, interoperability alignment, governance reforms, and national standards adoption to improve the integrity, completeness, and timeliness of health data.
• Lead project planning, budgeting, compliance, and performance management for USG funds, ensuring transparency, accountability, and adherence to federal standards, while reinforcing Kenyan government institutional capabilities.
• Guide evidence generation, implementation science activities, and strategic analytics that inform GOK, DHA and USG decision-making on surveillance, digital transformation, and national health security priorities.
• Supervise and mentor multi-disciplinary teams: technical, operational, financial, and digital health specialists, to ensure disciplined execution, high-quality outputs, and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Represent Data.FI and USG-supported digital health investments in national digital health technical forums, interagency coordination meetings, and security-sensitive health information discussions.

Required Qualifications:

• Master of Public Health (MPH) or an advanced degree in computer science, digital health, health informatics, epidemiology, health systems management, or a related field.
• At least 15 years of senior leadership experience supporting national digital health, HIS, surveillance, or public health systems, including extensive engagement with the Kenya Ministry of Health and DHA.
• Demonstrated experience co-creating and institutionalizing national digital health governance frameworks, interoperability standards, and policy instruments with government, in line with the Kenya Data Protection Act and Digital Health Act.
• Strong experience working across USG interagency structures, including familiarity with State Department priorities, coordination mechanisms, and global health security expectations.
• Proven ability to coordinate or complement the CDC-funded KeHMIS program, ensuring aligned implementation, efficiency gains, and a coherent USG technical presence to minimize fragmentation and duplication.
• Track record implementing national-scale digital health solutions, including EMRs, POC systems, community digitization platforms, surveillance data tools, and unique patient identifier frameworks, with clear results in system performance and data quality. 
• At least 10 years of progressive leadership experience managing large, USG-funded health or digital-transformation programs. 
• Proven experience in governance, policy engagement, and institutional capacity development.
• Strong program and financial management capability, including multi-award oversight, forecasting, risk mitigation, compliance with USG financial controls, and alignment with national legal frameworks.