Operations
Our ability to generate high-quality science, attract and manage competitive funding, and sustain a thriving research ecosystem depends on robust and efficient operational systems.
We prioritise the optimisation of our operational platform by strengthening fiver operational domains:
- People and culture
- Health and Safety
- Finance
- Facilities and transport
- Information Technology
People and Culture
The Programme is committed to building and sustaining a capable, motivated, and high-performing workforce that can effectively deliver on its scientific, capacity development, and operational ambitions. We seek to provide an enabling and inclusive work environment where talented individuals are empowered to grow, innovate, collaborate, and contribute meaningfully to impactful research and public health outcomes. Central to this commitment is the establishment of fit-for-purpose career progression frameworks and schemes of service that respond to the diverse needs of all staff cadres. These frameworks are designed to strengthen accountability, promote continuous learning, and support professional growth while reinforcing a culture of high performance.
Through structured leadership development, mentorship, coaching, and succession planning, the Programme is intentionally cultivating values-driven leaders who can sustain excellence, drive innovation, and ensure long-term institutional impact. We are equally committed to fostering a positive, inclusive, and enabling organizational and research culture grounded in equity, psychological safety, well-being, collaboration, flexibility, and mutual respect. By embedding gender, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles across all people practices, and by leveraging people-centred technology and workforce insights, we aim to create an environment in which all staff feel valued, supported, and empowered to thrive.
Health and Safety
We take a systematic approach to occupational safety and health risk management, making managing work activities easier, efficient and more effective. It aims at continuously trying to work out, the best and safest method of conducting each key work activity and make sure that everyone uses the same approach every time. Doing this reduces the level of organisational risk and ensures compliance with applicable occupational safety and health laws and regulations with minimal effort.
Finance
The Finance Department at the Programme is responsible for all the fiscal management at the Programme. The department is tasked with grants, asset, inventory and procurement management. This is done through industry standard Finance Management System (FMS) to streamline and digitize financial management at the Programme. The system is instrumental in integrating financial systems between the Programme sites and reporting back to our funding partners.
Facilities and Transport
Facilities and Transport encompass three units namely Maintenance, Housekeeping and Transport. Those units ensure that the facilities, equipment and systems are well maintained and serviceable; the facilities and working environment are clean and safe for use by staff and visitors; that safe and reliable transport services are readily available for the Programme to meet its core objectives. We endeavour to provide services that respond to our customer needs, within a reasonable time frame and to a high quality.
Information Technology
The IT strategy aligns technology investments aims to modernize the core IT ecosystem through a structured transition to cloud computing. This includes strengthening the cybersecurity posture by deploying and maintaining enterprise-grade tools to ensure threat detection, data loss prevention, and compliance with GDPR, and the Kenya Data Protection Act (KDPA). Aligning with current technology growth the Programme aims to adopt a structured, ethical, and phased AI adoption roadmap aligned with WHO guidance on AI for health. Central to this is continuous digital capacity building across our teams through structured upskilling.