The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) seeks to recruit a Research Associate to support vector surveillance under the Wellcome-Trust funded project: Modelling dengue and chikungunya transmission patterns in the Horn of Africa. The Research Associate will be involved in field and laboratory activities that will include deploying traps in field sites, harvesting, classifying and counting vectors sampled and measuring environmental data that can be used to characterise the niches of vectors sampled. The Associate will also support the screening of the vectors collected for a range of arboviruses in our biosciences laboratories.
ILRI works to improve food and nutritional security and reduce poverty in developing countries through research for efficient, safe and sustainable use of livestock. It is the only one of 15 CGIAR research centres dedicated entirely to animal agriculture research for the developing world. Co-hosted by Kenya and Ethiopia, it has regional or country offices and projects in East, South and Southeast Asia as well as Central, East, Southern and West Africa. www.ilri.org
About the position:
This position will support vector surveys under the Wellcome-Trust funded project: Modelling dengue and chikungunya transmission patterns in the Horn of Africa.
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop protocols for trapping mosquitoes with the project team, putting into consideration factors that affect mosquito density such as land use/land cover, climatic factors and availability of hosts
- Maintain an inventory of traps, other sampling equipment, chemicals (such as attractants) and reagents that are required for mosquito sampling. The inventory will be needed to replenishments with time
- Deploy traps in selected sites within the project areas as per the field sampling protocols developed
- Harvest mosquito and other vectors trapped, characterize them by species based on morphological and molecular characteristics
- Process mosquitoes collected for laboratory analyses to determine their sources of blood meal and arbovirus infection levels
- Enter the various data collected in an on-line database that will be developed for storing data from the project
- Participate in the development of technical reports and manuscripts that will utilize the data generated from the vector surveys implemented
- Perform any other related duties as may be requiredPerform any other related duties as may be assigned
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in science, Zoology, BSc Technology and Innovation or a related field
- Demonstrated experience of at least two years in field research, specifically on trapping mosquitoes, identifying them by species using morphological keys, analysing data collected and writing back to office reports
- Excellent communication and writing skills in English
- Good knowledge and experience on standard software for managing and analysing data including Microsoft Excel, STATA, R or Python among others
- Ability to manage their own workload, develop workplans and seek support when needed
- Excellent written and spoken English
Post location: The position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya
Terms of Appointment
This position is at job level HG 11and it is only open to Kenyan nationals.
The position is a 2-year contract. ILRI offers a competitive salary and benefits package which includes pension, medical and other insurances.
How to apply: Applicants should send a cover letter and CV expressing their interest in the position, what they can bring to the job and the names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience to the Head of People and Culture through our recruitment portal by clicking on "Apply Now" on or before 4th February 2026. The position title and reference number REF: RA/2099/2026 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the cover letter.
We thank all applicants for their interest in working for ILRI. Due to the volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
ILRI does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing or training). ILRI also does not concern itself with information on applicants' bank accounts.
To find out more about ILRI, visit our websites at http://www.ilri.org/