Database Systems Engineer and Administrator (LTTA) – Nairobi

BACKGROUND

The USAID Africa Trade and Investment (ATI) Activity is designed to bolster the U.S. Government’s ability to boost trade and investment to, from, and within the African continent. The continent-wide program is USAID’s flagship effort in support of the Prosper Africa initiative and will expand and accelerate two-way trade and investment between African nations and the United States.

Driven by market demand, ATI embraces innovative approaches to achieve its goals. ATI is designed as a small, core set of centrally coordinated technical and institutional support activities, and a large, flexible performance-based subcontracting and grants under contract facility designed to support the needs and opportunities that USAID Missions and the private sector identify.

Overview of Job Description:

This hybrid role requires the skills and responsibilities of a data engineer and a database administrator. This role is responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining data pipelines, data storage solutions, and data integration processes in a cloud-based environment, as well as ensuring the performance, security, and availability of relational databases and database servers. This role requires a high level of technical expertise, problem-solving abilities, and collaboration skills.

Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and maintain data pipelines, ETL processes, and data storage solutions using various cloud services and tools.
• Administer and manage relational databases and database servers, including configuration, security, backup, restore, performance tuning, and troubleshooting.
• Implement data quality checks, validation rules, and monitoring frameworks to ensure the accuracy and reliability of data assets.
• Work with data architects, data scientists, and business analysts to understand and deliver data solutions that meet business needs and align with data strategy.
• Conduct unit tests, integration tests, and system tests to validate the functionality and performance of data pipelines and databases.
• Create and maintain documentation of data pipelines, databases, and data workflows, including data lineage, data dictionary, and transformation logic.
• Ensure compliance with data governance, data security, and legal requirements.
• Identify and troubleshoot data issues and anomalies using various data quality tools and techniques.
• Collaborate with data analysts, data scientists, and other stakeholders to understand their data needs and provide solutions.
• Keep abreast of the latest technologies and best practices in data engineering and database administration.
• Develop and maintain reports and dashboards that provide insights into data quality, performance, and trends using various reporting tools and platforms.
• Design and implement data validation and testing frameworks to ensure the accuracy and reliability of data products and services.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 9+ years of experience in data engineering and database administration, with a strong focus on cloud-based services and tools.
• Expertise in ETL tools (e.g., Spark, Airflow, Data Factory) and programming/scripting languages (e.g., SQL, Python).
• Deep understanding of data modeling, database design, and data warehousing principles.
• Experience with administering relational databases and database servers, including performance tuning, security, backup, and restore.
• Familiarity with data integration and migration techniques and tools.
• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Strong communication and collaboration abilities.
• Proficiency in report development using various tools and platforms.

Reporting:

The Database Systems Engineer and Administrator reports to the DC Portfolio Lead or designee on the ATI project. S/he will collaborate regularly and frequently with DAI’s Technology team at DAI headquarters, serving as an extension of their team dedicated to the ATI activity.

ABOUT DAI

DAI is a global development company with corporate offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, EU, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Palestine and project operations worldwide. We tackle fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability. DAI works on the frontlines of global development. Transforming ideas into action—action into impact. We are committed to shaping a more livable world.

DAI and its employees are committed to confronting racism and holding ourselves accountable for positive change within the company and in the communities, cultures, and countries in which we live and work. DAI is committed to attracting and retaining the best employees from all races and backgrounds in our continued effort to become a better development partner.

DAI upholds the highest ethical standards. We are committed to the prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment as well as other ethical breaches. All our positions are therefore subject to stringent vetting and reference checks.

APPLICATION LINK: https://fs25.formsite.com/DupOTo/vajmk1iuvs/index

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Select the position in which you are interested in applying, fill out the required information, and upload your CV. Please indicate what location you are applying for. Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as interviews will be conducted soon. Please note, due to the volume of applications that we receive and the urgency to fill up positions, only shortlisted applicants will receive notification on the next steps.