Program Officer, Health Advocacy

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) is recruiting a Program Officer, Health Advocacy for its Nigeria Country Office (NCO). Based in Abuja, this full-time role (12-Month Long-Term Extension) reports to the Deputy Director, Policy, Advocacy, and Communications (PAC). The postholder will design and execute targeted health advocacy strategies to influence policy, increase domestic resource mobilization, and strengthen implementation accountability across Primary Health Care (PHC), immunization, maternal and child health, polio, malaria, nutrition, and family planning across Nigeria.

Key Details 

• Job Title: Program Officer, Health Advocacy

• Requisition ID: B021685

• Location: Abuja, Nigeria

• Contract / Employment Type: Full-time (12-Month Long-Term Extension / LTE)

• Travel Requirement: 30% to 40% domestic and international travel

Key Responsibilities

• Strategy & Policy Advocacy: Translate complex public health goals into targeted advocacy and influence strategies to increase political will, secure budget allocations, and accelerate health policy adoption at federal and state levels.

• Domestic Financing & Accountability: Drive advocacy across the complete financing-to-delivery chain—ensuring budgeted funds are released on time, resource usage is tracked, and accountability tools (dashboards, scorecards, investment cases) are actively utilized by policymakers.

• Grant & Partner Management: Oversee health advocacy grants, contracts, and consultants. Ensure partner workplans, theories of change, and milestones align with foundation goals and deliver measurable policy outcomes.

• Strategic Communications & Leadership Support: Translate technical health evidence into actionable policy briefs, leadership talking points, partner toolkits, and briefing notes for senior executive engagements with key government stakeholders.

• Multi-Stakeholder Coalition Support: Build and align partner coalitions, civil society organizations, donor platforms, and technical working groups around shared national and subnational health priorities to reduce duplication.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Education: Advanced degree (Master's level or equivalent) in Public Health, Health Policy, Public Policy, Political Science, International Development, Strategic Communications, or a related field.

• Experience: Minimum of 6+ years of hands-on experience in public health advocacy, policy influence, government relations, or development communications—preferably within Nigeria or similar African public health environments.

• Subject Matter Expertise: Strong working knowledge of Nigeria’s public health systems, health financing structures, federal/state policy mechanisms, PHC initiatives, immunization, MNCH, and family planning strategies.

• Grant & Portfolio Management: Proven experience managing grant portfolios, vendor contracts, consultant engagements, and project delivery frameworks.

• Work Authorization: Valid work authorization in Nigeria (visa sponsorship is not provided).

Core Competencies

• Excellent political acumen, analytical writing, synthesis, and high-level briefing skills.

• Outcome-oriented execution mindset with ability to move beyond general awareness-raising to drive tangible policy, financing, and operational outcomes.

• Diplomatic stakeholder navigation, coalition management, and strategic judgment in complex, politically sensitive environments.