Apply for Africa CDC's Public Health Informatics Fellowship

Organisation: Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)

Location: Hosted within African Union (AU) Member States

Duration: 2 years (3 months of in-person training in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, followed by 21 months of applied field placement)

Application Deadline: 26 August 2026

Overview

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has developed the African Epidemic Service (AES) Programme, a flagship training initiative designed to strengthen the capacity, capabilities, and partnerships of Africa’s public health institutions.

The programme aims to equip mid-level public health professionals with the skills needed to prevent, detect, control, and respond to disease threats and outbreaks through science, policy, and data-driven interventions while promoting best practices across the continent.

The African Epidemic Service consists of three training tracks:

Epidemiology
Laboratory Leadership Fellowship
Public Health Informatics

Fellowship Benefits

The fellowship is designed to equip African professionals with public health informatics competencies needed in the digital age, enabling them to develop, manage, and lead informatics-driven health organisations while improving population health outcomes across Africa.

The AES Public Health Informatics (AES-PHI) Fellowship is a full-time, two-year programme consisting of:

80% practical training
20% classroom (didactic) training delivered through both in-person and virtual sessions

The programme adopts a competency-based, learning-by-doing approach. Successful participants will receive a certificate of completion after undertaking practical placements at designated host institutions, including Ministries of Health and National Public Health Institutes.

Africa CDC will cover all fellowship-related costs, including:

Travel expenses
Monthly stipend
Hardware and software
Learning and training materials
Health insurance

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants must:

Be a citizen of an African Union Member State.
Be under the age of 35, in accordance with the African Union’s definition of youth.
Hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a health-related field, Computer Science, Data Science, Information Technology, or a related discipline.
Have at least three (3) years of relevant professional experience.

Applicants with a health-related degree must demonstrate experience in computer science, data science, or information science projects within the health sector.

Applicants with a computer science or related degree must demonstrate experience in Health Informatics, Medical Informatics, Clinical Informatics, Bioinformatics, Public Health, Biostatistics, or Epidemiology.

Applicants should also:

Have basic knowledge of Excel, R, SQL, Python, ODK, KoboToolbox, and Power BI.
Be currently employed by a Ministry of Health (MoH), National Public Health Institute (NPHI), an organisation working closely with these institutions, or a relevant private-sector organisation.
Be employed in an African country at the time of application.
Obtain written permission from their employer confirming approval to attend the two-year fellowship and guaranteeing reinstatement upon completion.
Be proficient in at least one African Union official language (English, French, Arabic, Portuguese, Spanish, or Kiswahili). Knowledge of an additional AU official language is an added advantage.

Note: Advanced Field Epidemiology Training Programme (FETP) Fellows and Graduates are not eligible to apply.

Required Documents

Applicants must submit the following through the online application portal:

A copy of a valid passport from an African Union Member State.
An official letter from the current employer confirming employment and granting permission to attend the two-year fellowship while guaranteeing return to employment after completion.
A letter of support from a government institution (such as the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Civil Service, the National Public Health Institute, or an equivalent).
Two professional letters of recommendation.
Certified copies of degree certificate(s) and academic transcripts.
An updated Curriculum Vitae (CV) using the African Union template.
A motivation statement (maximum 500 words) explaining why you are a suitable candidate and how the fellowship will help strengthen public health in your country.