Senior Program Officer – Data and Measurement, Learning and Evaluation (6 Months LTE)

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

This role sits within the Foundation’s Africa Offices (AIO) and is based in Ethiopia as part of the Ethiopia Integrated Health Team (EIHT), working in close partnership with the Government of Ethiopia, development partners, and implementing partners to strengthen primary health care through stronger data systems, measurement, and evidence-based decision-making.

The Foundation’s health and nutrition program in Ethiopia aims to address system inefficiencies, develop data-driven insights, and pilot new delivery approaches and innovations with the potential for scale. It contributes to Ethiopia’s achievement of critical primary health care outcomes — including immunization, nutrition, and reproductive, maternal, neonatal, and child health — as set out in the Government of Ethiopia’s Health Sector Development and Investment Plan (HSDIP II), a three-year roadmap spanning 2026/27 to 2028/29. The EIHT’s support spans service delivery; data systems; supply chain; health financing; innovation, research, and scale; and nutrition.

The team views government-led data systems and data use as core foundations for improving health service delivery, increasing efficiency in resource-constrained settings, enhancing transparency and accountability, and tracking performance — grounded in country ownership, a “One Foundation” approach to internal coordination, and long-term investment in national institutions.

Application Deadline: November 11, 2026.

The Role

The Senior Program Officer (SPO) will lead the development and management of a portfolio of strategic investments (grants and contracts) to strengthen Ethiopia’s health data systems and data use, and will lead the Foundation’s monitoring, learning, and evaluation (MLE) of its integrated health and nutrition program in Ethiopia.

This role is designed for a senior data and measurement leader with deep expertise in health information systems, data analysis and use, surveys and surveillance, and program monitoring and evaluation. Experience working alongside Ministries of Health to strengthen national and subnational data systems and analytic capacity is strongly preferred.

Working closely with the Government of Ethiopia, development partners, NGOs, research institutions, and multilateral agencies, the SPO will serve as a technical advisor and honest broker to Ethiopian data partners, a strong grant maker, and an excellent connector who can crowd in internal, national, global, public, and private partners around common agendas. The SPO will identify key issues and priorities emerging from Ethiopia’s health sector, represent the Foundation in national and global technical forums, and partner closely with team leadership to shape the team’s strategic vision and goals.

The role has both an external and an internal focus. Externally, the SPO will strengthen government-led data systems and data use for decision-making, and help sequence and prioritize data, digital, and surveillance reforms. Internally, the SPO will lead MLE for the Ethiopia Integrated Health Program (EIHP) — tracking the Foundation’s contribution to the HSDIP, health system performance, and service coverage outcomes, and enabling adaptive management and learning.

This is a six-month, limited-term backfill position based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Candidates must have a strong understanding of Ethiopia’s health system and be fluent in Amharic

What You’ll Do

1. Portfolio Strategy, Investment Design & Grantmaking

• Inclusively lead, shape, and manage the Foundation’s data systems strengthening portfolio, including administrative data systems, surveys, and implementation research
• Design, negotiate, and manage complex grant portfolio(s), collaborating with grantees to achieve the desired impact of investments
• Identify new investment opportunities and contribute to the design of new strategies, collaborations, and implementation plans that ensure long-term sustainability and impact
• Ensure appropriate grant documentation, budgeting, and reporting, as well as operational efficiency and effectiveness, in compliance with Foundation policies and standards
• Use this LTE period to review and assess performance of existing investments and research prospects for future investment design?

2. Investment Oversight & Portfolio Management

• Provide oversight of active grants and contracts — conducting site visits when appropriate, providing technical guidance, convening meetings, and applying and evaluating milestone-based performance objectives
• Support small-scale testing of innovations and hypotheses in measurement and digital health, generating credible evidence of cost viability and effectiveness before pushing for scale
• Independently identify issues, formulate and design plans, and operationalize ideas for major initiatives, exercising sound judgment in selecting methods, techniques, and evaluation criteria

3. Government Engagement & Data Systems Strengthening

• Serve as a strategic thought partner and honest broker to the Ministry of Health and other national and subnational health ecosystem partners in the data, digital, and surveillance space
• Strengthen and align with government measurement systems rather than creating parallel or vertical measurement approaches
• Deepen support for domestic institutional capacity at national and subnational levels in health information systems, data science, and data analysis and use for program implementation
• Support the Government of Ethiopia in identifying viable and practical approaches to measuring and tracking progress on health impact goals
• Spend time understanding the realities of key health delivery staff and functions, including health extension workers, and critically interrogate how measurement systems enhance or detract from effective service delivery

4. Representation on Coordination Platforms & Governance Bodies

• Represent the Foundation in national technical working groups, partner coordination platforms, and governance bodies, including:
  • Government of Ethiopia-led data and health information systems working groups
  • Partner coordination platforms on surveys, surveillance, and measurement
  • Other strategic coordination mechanisms
• Represent the Foundation at national, regional, and global conferences and forums to share Ethiopia’s experience and learn from other countries’ approaches applicable to the Ethiopian context

5. Technical Leadership in Data, Digital Health & Measurement

• Play a critical advisory role in sequencing and prioritizing reforms and investments in data use and analytics, health information, surveillance, and operational systems, linked to tangible deliverables and problem solving
• Help distinguish between what is “hype” and what is truly tested and capable of scale in measurement and digital health
• Where appropriate and based on pragmatic sequencing, identify opportunities where investments in digital health can improve health service delivery and data use
• Support research agendas that address bottlenecks to effective service delivery and help reduce maternal and child mortality
• Translate complex data and analysis into clear, actionable recommendations for diverse audiences, including senior government and Foundation decision-makers

6. Monitoring, Learning & Evaluation of the Ethiopia Integrated Health Program

• Lead and effectively communicate internal MLE strategies to inform Foundation programming and leadership decision-making
• Track, assess, and evaluate the Foundation’s contribution to the HSDIP, health system performance, and service coverage outcomes
• Review, refine, and monitor the key performance indicators agreed for EIHP 2.0, update reporting tools, and lead analysis to relay the implications of the data to internal partners
• Oversee progress toward EIHP goals, ensuring expected deliverables are met and that delays are understood, documented, and addressed through timely adjustments
• Regularly analyze and triangulate data to interrogate team hypotheses, support better decision-making, and create opportunities for adaptive management and learning

7. Partnerships & Donor Coordination

• Cultivate strong working relationships with government, development partners, and national collaborators to strengthen Ethiopia’s data ecosystem, including growing local data ecosystems
• Enhance coordination, reduce fragmentation, and achieve efficiency gains by pooling resources to tackle common measurement challenges — from stronger administrative data systems to regular population coverage surveys and greater in-country modelling and analytic capability
• Proactively identify and pursue alignments, areas of leverage, and opportunities for co-managed and co-financed collaborations to achieve Foundation and country goals

8. Cross-Foundation Collaboration

• Support the execution of the Foundation’s integrated country health and nutrition plan of support in close partnership with fellow EIHT members, ensuring responsiveness to the Ethiopian context and health sector needs
• Foster linkages, alignment, and the sharing of lessons learned on data and MLE across the Foundation’s wider Africa team, and connect teams to global public goods that can enhance domestic service delivery
• Foster an inclusive and collaborative culture by modeling Foundation values and embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into day-to-day work, interactions with colleagues, and investments

Your Experience

• Advanced degree or equivalent demonstrated experience in statistics, measurement, evaluation, or a related field
• A minimum of 8 years of experience strengthening national data systems and analytic capacity, program design, and MLE plan development
• Senior-level experience in program monitoring and evaluation, with the ability to critically design and evaluate MLE tools, surveys, surveillance systems, and evaluations
• Demonstrated data experience across the reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) spectrum, health informatics, digital health, and the health system building blocks — service delivery; health workforce; information; medical products, vaccines, and technologies; financing; and leadership and governance — is preferred
• Proven experience working with, coaching, and mentoring government staff to improve data analysis and measurement systems; understanding of the Ethiopian context at both national and subnational levels is a plus
• Work experience in low- and lower-middle-income country (LMIC) contexts; experience working in Ethiopia is preferred
• Experience designing, negotiating, and managing complex grant portfolios, including milestone-based performance management, budgeting, and reporting

Other Attributes

• Comfortable in a wide range of cultural, geographic, and operational situations, demonstrating culturally sensitive behavior with a diverse range of people
• Ability to travel up to 25% domestically and internationally, with the majority of travel being domestic to gather deep insights into data realities in Ethiopia
• Deep expertise in national health data systems — administrative and routine health information systems, population surveys, surveillance, and data governance
• National health data systems — administrative and routine health information systems, population surveys, surveillance, and data governance
• Must be able to legally work in the country where this position is located without visa sponsorship

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

We’re committed to providing an inclusive and accessible hiring experience for all candidates. If you have a disability or medical condition and need an accommodation at any stage of the application or interview process—such as an ASL interpreter, alternative interview format, or physical accessibility support—we’re happy to help. Please contact HR@gatesfoundation.org with the position number and a brief description of your accommodation needs. Requests will be handled confidentially.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.