Research Scientist - Turkana County (Kakuma/Kalobeyei) at Kenya Medical Research - KEMRI

Key Responsibilities:

• Design, optimize, and implement molecular laboratory protocols for pathogen, vector, host, and environmental sample processing.
• Coordinate laboratory workflows including nucleic acid extraction, PCR assays, sequencing library preparation, quality assurance, and sample tracking.
• Perform comprehensive bioinformatics analyses of high-throughput sequencing datasets including quality control, genome assembly, alignment, variant detection, phylogenetic analysis, transcriptomics, metagenomics, and population genomics.
• Develop, optimize, and maintain reproducible computational pipelines using Python, Linux shell scripting, and workflow management systems.
• Integrate genomic, epidemiological, entomological, environmental, and climate datasets to investigate disease transmission dynamics and climate-health interactions.
• Perform advanced statistical analyses and develop informative visualizations, dashboards, and scientific figures for reports, publications, and stakeholder engagement.
• Manage research databases and ensure data quality, integrity, reproducibility, and compliance with institutional and national data governance policies.
• Interpret genomic findings and translate complex scientific results into actionable recommendations for project partners, county governments, and humanitarian stakeholders.
• Contribute to manuscript preparation, conference presentations, technical reports, and grant applications.
• Provide mentorship and technical training in molecular laboratory methods, bioinformatics, and scientific programming to project staff and students.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to ensure successful implementation of laboratory and computational research activities.
• Maintain laboratory documentation, bioinformatics workflows, analytical reports, and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Ensure compliance with biosafety, biosecurity, ethical guidelines, and the Kenya Data Protection Act (2019).
• Perform any other research-related duties assigned by the Principal Investigator or Project Supervisor.

Vacancy Requirements:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Genetics, Genomics, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Computational Biology, or a related biological science.    Mandatory
• At least 2–3 years of research experience in molecular biology, genomics, bioinformatics, or related disciplines.    Mandatory
• Demonstrated experience in molecular laboratory techniques including nucleic acid extraction, PCR, quantitative PCR, gel electrophoresis, library preparation, and DNA/RNA quality assessment.    Mandatory
• Hands-on experience working with High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) platforms such as Illumina, Oxford Nanopore Technologies, PacBio, etc.    Mandatory
•  Strong bioinformatics skills for processing and analyzing next-generation sequencing (NGS) datasets, including quality control, genome assembly, read mapping, variant calling, transcriptomics, metagenomics, or phylogenomic analyses.    Mandatory
• Proficiency in Linux/Unix environments and shell scripting.    Mandatory
• Strong programming skills in Python for genomic data analysis, workflow automation, and statistical computing.    Mandatory
• Experience using bioinformatics tools such as BWA, Bowtie2, Minimap2, SAMtools, BCFtools, GATK, BEDTools, FastQC, MultiQC, Kraken2, SPAdes, IQ-TREE, Nextflow, Snakemake, or equivalent tools.    Mandatory
• Experience in statistical analysis and data visualization using Python (Matplotlib, Plotly, Seaborn), R (ggplot2), or equivalent analytical platforms.    Mandatory0
• Excellent scientific writing, communication, and presentation skills.    Skills & Competencies
• Communication skills    Skills & Competencies
• Interpersonal skills    Skills & Competencies
• Team player    Skills & Competencies