Monitoring and Research Manager

About MSF

Doctors without Borders (MSF) Southern Africa is a global network of principled professionals who specialise in medical humanitarian work driven by our common humanity and guided by medical ethics. We work together in teams, small and large, to respond to the medical needs of people affected by conflict, disasters, epidemics and those excluded from healthcare.

Doctors Without Borders team members are on the ground, working directly every day. We bear witness and describe what is happening, to raise awareness about the experiences of the people we assist and the situations where we work. We alert the public to emerging crises, acute emergencies and serious challenges, such as lack of access and exclusion from healthcare, and to mobilise support for MSF’s work and social mission, provoking change.

Today, MSF is present in more than 70 countries, where thousands of MSF doctors, nurses, logisticians, water-and-sanitation experts, and other medical and non-medical professionals work together to bring essential health services to people caught in humanitarian crises. MSF South Africa is in Johannesburg, with an office in Cape Town too. MSF SA is governed by the MSF Southern Africa Association, which is made up of more than 300 members from seven countries in the region.

Background/introduction

The Project: ACCESS-LA

MSF is launching ACCESS-LA (Accelerating Community-Centred Equitable Scale-Up of Long-Acting PrEP), a three-year Access Fund initiative designed to catalyse equitable, timely, and affordable access to Long-Acting (LA) PrEP for HIV prevention. The project focuses specifically on the introduction of Lenacapavir (LEN-LA)—a twice-yearly injectable—and other LA formulations (e.g., Cabotegravir) to address the prevention needs of marginalised and criminalised populations who face systemic exclusion from existing health services.

The project operates through three integrated pillars:

1. Advocacy & Communication: Addressing licensing, pricing, and regulatory barriers.
2. Implementation: "Light-touch" support to introduce LA-PrEP in diverse MSF-supported contexts
3. Monitoring & Research: Generating operational and effectiveness evidence to inform global guidelines, procurement, and advocacy.

The Role: Monitoring and Research Manager

• This position is embedded in the ACCESS-LA team, hosted at the Southern Africa Medical Unit (SAMU).
• This role is pivotal in ensuring that implementation is generated alongside robust evidence to support advocacy and informed scale-up.
• Unlike a standard field epidemiologist position, this role focuses on a multi-country, global scope.
• The Monitoring and Research Manager will oversee the design and implementation of operational research and monitoring across pilot sites in Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
• Key responsibilities include managing a centralised global database (REDCap) to analyse uptake, persistence, safety, and equity of LA-PrEP, and supporting teams across implementing sites. The evidence generated by this position will directly feed into high-level advocacy strategies to challenge restrictive licensing and pricing, ultimately shaping national policies and global health norms.
• This position works in close collaboration with the the ACCESS-LA Medical Lead, technical advisors across MSF, and the Advocacy team, bridging the gap between programmatic data and global access policy.

Main Purpose and Accountabilities

• The main purpose of the Monitoring and Research Manager is to lead the design, implementation, and oversight of the "Monitoring and Research" pillar of the ACCESS-LA project, under the coordination of the Medical Lead.
• The primary objective of this role is to generate robust operational evidence—specifically on uptake, persistence, safety, feasibility, and preference of Long-Acting PrEP (LEN and CAB)—to support global advocacy strategies aimed at dismantling barriers to access (pricing, licensing, and regulatory).
• This position will manage a centralised global database (REDCap) across multiple pilot sites in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, ensuring that data is rigorous, comparable, and rapidly available to influence national guidelines, WHO norms, and pharmaceutical policy.
• The Manager bridges the gap between field operations and high-level advocacy, translating programmatic data into narratives for change.

1. Research Strategy & Protocol Design

• Lead the design and implementation of operational research protocols and the global monitoring framework to assess the introduction of Lenacapavir (LEN) and Cabotegravir (CAB) LA-PrEP.
• Operationalise the project’s specific investigation framework to answer four critical questions: demand (uptake, preference ratios), reach (demographics of key populations), feasibility (community vs. clinical delivery), and safety (adverse events in decentralised settings).
• Develop mixed-methods designs to capture both quantitative outcomes (uptake, persistence) and qualitative insights (user acceptability, barriers).
• Ensure all research activities comply with ethical standards and obtain necessary approvals in pilot countries. 

2. Global Data Management & Surveillance

• Develop, deploy, and manage a centralised global database (REDCap) to enable consistent data collection and analysis across all participating MSF pilot sites.
• Establish and oversee a lean pharmacovigilance framework to monitor safety signals, specifically injection site reactions and adverse events.
• Implement systems to monitor drug resistance among people who seroconvert.
• Coordinate with field teams to ensure data quality, comparability, and timeliness across diverse epidemiological contexts.
• Ensure disaggregated equity analysis for key and marginalised populations, generating evidence to challenge exclusionary policies.

3. Analysis & Evidence for Advocacy

Synthesise research findings to directly inform advocacy strategies, producing data that substantiates access initiatives, including challenges to restrictive licensing and calls for affordable generic access. 
Lead the analysis of preference (Injectable vs. Oral PrEP) and reach statistics to demonstrate demand among marginalised populations often excluded from standard care (e.g., sex workers, men who have sex with men and transgender people, migrants). 
Oversee costing studies in LMIC settings to assess the affordability and efficiency of LA-PrEP delivery models. 
Provide rapid, evidence-based inputs for campaign moments, policy briefs, and negotiations with donors (Global Fund, PEPFAR) and manufacturers. 

4. Dissemination & Scientific Engagement

Coordinate the production of at least 2 peer-reviewed publications, policy briefs, and conference abstracts (e.g., IAS, ICASA) to accelerate knowledge transfer and shape global norms. 
Maintain partnerships with academic institutions, civil society research bodies, and technical agencies to strengthen the credibility of the evidence base.
Represent MSF’s scientific position on LA-PrEP in technical working groups and external forums.

5. Technical Support & Capacity Building

• Provide technical support and training to field epidemiologists, data encoders, and medical teams on the project’s monitoring tools, protocols, and data systems.
• Work closely with the technical advisors, and the medical lead to troubleshoot operational challenges identified through data monitoring.
• Support sites in "Cluster 2" and "Cluster 3" (countries with restricted access) to document the human cost of IP barriers and exclusion.

Requirements

Education

• A medical or paramedical profile is a prerequisite.
• Postgraduate training in Epidemiology (such as an Advanced Field Epidemiology Training Programme) or in Public Health with specific training and practical competence in epidemiology and medical statistics.

Experience

• Experience as an epidemiologist in MSF or another medical/humanitarian organisation, including experience in emergency settings.
• Experience working on HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health (SRH), or programs targeting key and vulnerable populations (e.g., adolescent girls, MSM, transgender people, sex workers).
• Proven experience in protocol writing and applying research methodologies commonly used in operational research.
• Demonstrated experience in the design, implementation, and oversight of research activities intended to support medical, policy, and advocacy objectives.
• Experience overseeing data collection, analysis, and synthesis from multiple field sites, or external sources.
• Practical experience applying mixed methods designs to capture both quantitative outcomes (e.g., uptake, persistence) and qualitative insights (e.g., user acceptability).
• Experience in establishing and maintaining partnerships with academic institutions, civil society organisations, and technical agencies.

Languages

• Spoken and written English is essential.
• Working knowledge of French and/or Spanish is highly valued.

Knowledge

• Strong skills in analytical methods, data analysis and visualisation, including the use of statistical software (R as a minimum).
• Demonstrated proficiency in designing and managing centralised databases, specifically REDCap.
• Familiarity with setting up or managing lean pharmacovigilance frameworks and safety surveillance systems.
• Knowledge of other health information software (e.g., DHIS2) and GIS software suites (e.g., ArcGIS or QGIS) is an advantage.

Competencies

• Solid scientific rigour, honesty, transparency, and attention to detail to ensure findings are robust and credible for global advocacy.
• Ability to handle multiple projects or activities simultaneously, synthesising data rapidly to inform timely advocacy outputs and deliver quality work within deadlines.
• A high degree of initiative, work autonomy, and team interaction, with the diplomacy required to interact with medical departments, civil society, and external technical agencies.
• Flexibility for regular travel (up to 40% of working time) to support site readiness and provide field-based mentoring, with the ability to function in difficult and unstable contexts.

Contract conditions and benefits

• Three-year fixed-term contract – Full-time
• Based in Africa, Asia or Central/South America. · Monthly gross salary will depend on the location, professional experience and years of MSF experience.
• Hospitalisation insurance, transport allowance.

APPLY HERE

Closing date: 14 May 2026

Contract start date: June 2026

• This job description may be amended in line with the activities or evolution of the project.
• By signing, the employee acknowledges that he/she has read, understood and accepted this document.

MSF is a civil society initiative that brings together individuals committed to the assistance of other human beings in crisis. As such, MSF is by choice an association. Each individual working with MSF does it out of conviction and is ready to uphold the values and principles of MSF.