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Zipline is the world's largest autonomous drone delivery service, operating on four continents and completing millions of deliveries of blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products. The company has flown over 140 million commercial autonomous miles and is redefining logistics and healthcare access globally.
In this role, you will lead government engagement for Nigeria from Abuja, establishing and maintaining durable relationships with federal, state, and local government institutions critical to Zipline's market entry and expansion. You will serve as the primary liaison between Zipline and Nigeria's government stakeholders, translating public-sector priorities into actionable pathways for the company.
Key responsibilities include:
- Developing and executing Zipline's government engagement strategy in Nigeria, mapping federal, state, and local stakeholders, their decision-making structures, and influence on operations
- Building trusted relationships across ministries, agencies, legislatures, public-health institutions, and community/traditional leaders
- Coordinating cross-functional market-entry pathways, clarifying dependencies, owners, and next steps with internal teams
- Monitoring non-aviation laws, regulations, budgets, and policy developments; developing evidence-based positions with subject-matter experts
- Assessing political and institutional risks affecting facilities, shipments, partners, employees, or service continuity
- Preparing stakeholder briefs, meeting objectives, talking points, and follow-up plans for senior leaders
- Tracking engagement progress through pathway readiness, stakeholder coverage, and advocacy outcomes
- Partnering with the Commercial Director on state-level opportunities toward approval and signature
- Mapping each state's decision-makers, funding/procurement routes, required approvals, and authorized signatories
- Planning Governor-level engagements with clear decision requests and agreed follow-up actions
- Tracking proposal, budget, procurement, legal, and approval milestones; flagging blockers
- Building and maintaining stakeholder and commitment trackers with named owners, deadlines, and escalation routes
- Supporting the Country Director in maintaining relationships with key sponsors and decision-makers
- Monitoring federal policy, budget, and leadership changes; briefing leadership on implications
- Surfacing expansion opportunities and coordinating with Commercial, Legal, and Operations teams
Requirements:
- Substantial experience in government affairs, public policy, public-sector partnerships, or closely related field in Nigeria, with a record of navigating complex government institutions
- Strong, credible relationships with senior government leaders and decision-makers in Nigeria (federal level); ability to build effective relationships with state and local leaders
- Practical understanding of Nigeria's political and institutional landscape, including federal/subnational governments, public agencies, public health systems, community/traditional leaders, and regional institutions
- Demonstrated ability to develop and execute stakeholder engagement strategies, assess political/institutional dynamics, and adapt to changing leadership and priorities
- Experience coordinating across functions to solve market-entry or policy challenges, with sound judgment about distinct roles of Government Affairs, Commercial, Legal, Finance, and Operations
- Strong policy analysis, advocacy, writing, and briefing skills; ability to translate complex developments into clear options and recommendations for senior leaders
- Excellent relationship-building, negotiation, and communication skills; discretion and sound judgment in politically sensitive situations
- Fluency in English; ability to travel within Nigeria as needed. Fluency in Yoruba, Hausa, or Igbo is advantageous
- Bachelor's degree in public policy, political science, law, international relations, communications, or related field, or equivalent professional experience
- Experience navigating state government approval, budget, procurement, and contract-signing processes
- Ability to convert senior government access into well-prepared meetings, clear decisions, and reliable follow-through
