WLGH Conference 2020
Speakers
Stay tuned for more speakers to be added each week!
Former Chief Humanitarian Coordinator, Nigeria
Dr. Ayoade Alakija is a globally renowned authority on bridging the humanitarian-development-peace nexus. As Nigeria’s former Chief Humanitarian Coordinator (CHC) at the helm of the Emergency Coordination Centre, she was a high-level interlocutor between state and non-state actors at governmental and intergovernmental levels.
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Programme Manager, Grand Challenges Africa
Moses Alobo is the Programme Manager for Grand Challenges Africa at the African Academy of Sciences (AAS).
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Principal, Rohini Anand LLC
Dr. Rohini Anand was most recently SVP Corporate Responsibility and Global Chief Diversity Officer for Sodexo, the global leader in Quality of Life services.
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Vice President, CorStone
As CorStone’s Vice President and Country Director in India, Gracy Andrew oversees all program implementation, training, certification, assessment and operations in India.
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Founder, WomenLift Health; Senior Associate Dean and Director, Stanford Global Health
Michele Barry, the Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Professor of Medicine and Tropical Diseases, was elected to lead the Board of Directors for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH) in 2019.
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Executive Director, WomenLift Health
Ms. Batson’s 30-year career in global health includes positions with the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, USAID, and PATH where she most recently served as Chief Strategy Officer and VP of Applied Analytics and Learning.
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Executive Director, Public Health Partnerships, Global Vaccines Public Policy, MSD
Dr. Joan Benson leads Merck’s strategic engagement with global public health organizations involved in vaccine policies, immunization programs and funding for vaccines internationally, including WHO, Gavi, UNICEF and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
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Family Medicine Physician & Research Associate, University of South Florida College of Public Health; Board Chair, Women in Global Health
Dr. Joannie Marlene Bewa is a multi-award-winning family medicine physician and researcher (sexual, reproductive health and cancer) at the University of South Florida College of Public Health (USA). She is an influential voice in global health, with over 10 years of experience in healthcare, technical consultancy, advocacy and research in the US and Africa.
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Assistant Secretary-General for Resource Management, UN System Coordination, Sustainability and Partnerships; Deputy Executive Director, UN Women
Ms. Bhatia has had a distinguished career at the World Bank Group, serving in various senior leadership and management positions, both at Headquarters and in the field.
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Editor, NewsWorthy
Anubha Bhonsle is an award winning journalist and author. She is the founder of an independent digital news platform, NewsWorthy, working on the intersection of politics, gender and justice
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Executive Director, UNAIDS
Winnie Byanyima is the Executive Director of UNAIDS and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. A passionate and longstanding champion of social justice and gender equality, Ms. Byanyima leads the United Nations efforts to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.
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Professor of Psychiatry, The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore
Professor Prabha S. Chandra, is a Professor of Psychiatry and in charge of the Perinatal Psychiatry Services as well as the NIMHANS Centre for Well Being at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India.
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Hon. Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury
MP, Speaker, Bangladesh Parliament
Hon. Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury MP is the first woman Speaker of the Bangladesh Parliament and has experience of working with Commonwealth countries and governments.
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African Union Special Envoy on Youth
Aya Chebbi is an award-winning Pan-African feminist. She rose to prominence as a voice for democracy as a political blogger and activist during the 2010/2011 Tunisia’s Revolution. She is the founder of Afrika Youth Movement (AYM), one of Africa’s largest Pan-African youth-led movements, and Afresist, a youth leadership programme and multimedia platform documenting youth work in Africa.
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Director of Leadership Programs at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development
Rumbidzai Chisenga is the Director of Leadership Programs at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development. She leads the Amujae Initiative, the EJS Center’s flagship program that prepares African women to unapologetically take up roles in the highest echelons of public leadership.
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Chair of the Board, International Partnership for Microbicides
Dr. Coutinho is the immediate past executive director of Partners in Health in Rwanda, where he partnered with the government to strengthen health services in three districts that together serve one million people.
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Director, Special Programme on Primary Health Care, World Health Organization
Dr. Suraya Dalil is a senior advisor focused on multilateral diplomacy to Afghanistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and a member of the Afghanistan Lead Council for Peace that spearheads negotiations with the Taliban in an effort to end the long-term conflict the country has endured.
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CEO and Founder, Safe Hands for Girls
Activist Jaha Dukureh was appointed Regional UN Women Ambassador for Africa in 2018. A survivor of FGM, and forced into child marriage at age 15. Ms. Dukureh dedicates her efforts to support UN Women’s advocacy to end female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage in Africa, with focus on mobilizing youth.
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Award-winning TV Journalist; Washington Post Columnist
Barkha Dutt is an award-winning TV journalist, anchor and columnist with more than two decades of reporting experience.
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Director, Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
Dr. Carissa F. Etienne was elected by the Member States of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) for a second term as the Director of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau on 27 September 2017, during the 29th Pan American Sanitary Conference.
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Professor of Epidemiology, Vice Chair for Research of the Department of Epidemiology and Associate Dean for Research Resources at the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University
Dr. Pam Factor-Litvak is a globally known expert on the effects of environmental contaminants on children’s health.
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Director, Wellcome Trust
Jeremy Farrar is Director of the Wellcome Trust – a politically and financially independent global charitable foundation that exists to improve health by helping big ideas to thrive.
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Director of Global Programs, Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation
Professor Senait Fisseha is a globally-recognized leader in reproductive health & rights and a lifelong gender champion. She currently serves as the Director of Global Programs at the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, as well as Chief Advisor to the Director General of the World Health Organization.
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First Lady, Republic of Namibia
Monica Geingos is a qualified lawyer with extensive corporate experience. Before assuming the First Lady role in 2015, she was a co-shareholder and Managing Director of Namibia’s largest private equity fund for over a decade served on the Boards of large public and private sector companies as either Chairperson or Deputy Chairperson.
Global Chief Executive Officer, Amref Health Africa
A passionate advocate for pro-poor Universal Health Coverage, Githinji Gitahi joined Amref Health Africa as the Global Chief Executive Officer in June 2015.
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27th Prime Minister of Australia and Chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership
Julia Gillard was 27th Prime Minister of Australia. She is currently the inaugural Chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at Kings College London, which through research, practice and advocacy, is addressing women’s under-representation in leadership.
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Founder and CEO, LifeBank Nigeria
Temie Giwa-Tubosun studied International Public Management from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. She has over 10 years of health management experience with the Department For International Development (DFID), World Health Organization, UNDP, and the Lagos State Government.
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Chief Planetary Doctor, PH Lab
Renzo Guinto, MD DrPH is one of the staunchest voices for the new field of planetary health and for decolonizing the field of global health. Dr. Guinto is the Chief Planetary Doctor of PH Lab – a “glo-cal think-and-do tank” for advancing the health of both people and the planet.
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Senior Advisor, 3D Program for Girls and Women; Global Advisory Board Chair, WomenLift Health
Geeta Rao Gupta, PhD is currently a Senior Fellow at the United Nations Foundation and Senior Advisor of the 3D Program for Girls and Women.
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Director of the Centre for Gender and Global Health at University College London
Sarah Hawkes is the Director of the Centre for Gender and Global Health, and a medical doctor with a degree in sociology and a PhD in epidemiology.
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Journalist & Editor in Chief, Voicepk.net Pakistan’s First Digital Media Platform for Human Rights
Munizae Jahangir is a broadcast journalist and documentary filmmaker, currently anchoring a flagship current affairs show on one of Pakistan’s leading media news network Aaj TV, called, ‘Spotlight with Munizae Jahangir.’
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Minister of Health, Republic of Liberia
Honorable Dr. Wilhemina S. Jallah, MD, MPH, CHES, FLCP, FWACP, serves as the Minister of Health of the Republic of Liberia. She is a dedicated and patriotic medical doctor with over 25 years of national and international work experience in clinical services and public health management.
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Rapper and Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) Activist
King Kaka is a popular Kenyan hip hop artist, songwriter, video director, executive producer and entrepreneur. He has raised awareness around the urgent need to improve the menstrual health of young Kenyan girls and keep them in school.
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Founder, The Colour Blue
Daanika Kamal specializes in human rights law, focusing on access to justice and rights protections of the most marginalized segments of society. She is an internationally published author and editor in the fields of gender empowerment, law and mental health.
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Executive Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals
Dr. Shobana Kamineni is the Executive Vice Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited and a member of its founding family.
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Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal Sciences, CMC Vellore
Professor Gagandeep Kang is Professor at Wellcome Trust Research Laboratory, and the Division of Gastrointestinal Sciences at the Christian Medical College (CMC) in Vellore.
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Associate Scientific Director CAPRISA & Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, Columbia University
Quarraisha Abdool Karim, PhD is a South African infectious diseases epidemiologist, professor in Clinical Epidemiology at Columbia University, Pro-Vice Chancellor for African Health at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and UNAIDS Special Ambassador for Adolescents and HIV.
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Director of Programmes/AESA Platform, The African Academy of Sciences
Tom Kariuki is the Director of Programmes/AESA Platform at the African Academy of Sciences (AAS). He leads the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa (AESA Platform).
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Technical Officer – Reproductive Health, World Health Organization, India
Dr. Priya Karna is the Technical Officer for Reproductive Health at the WHO Country Office for India. She is a medical doctor from Nepal, trained as a public health specialist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore-USA.
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Technical Specialist, International Center for Research on Women, Asia
Sapna Kedia works as a Technical Specialist at the International Center for Research on Women, Asia, and is a co-founder of the Women in Global Health, India Chapter, which seeks to achieve gender equality in global health leadership, with a specific focus on India.
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Motivational Speaker and Activist; Founder, Pill Power Uganda
Barbara Kemigisa is a Ugandan HIV Activist and Motivational Speaker living with HIV. As a victim of sexual abuse, teenage pregnancy and rejection, she uses her story to inspire, mentor and engage children and youth infected and vulnerable to HIV to create a safe, healthy and empowered generation.
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Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Sehat Kahani
Dr. Sara Saeed Khurram is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sehat Kahani.
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Technical Coordinator (East & Southern Africa), Community Health Academy, Last Mile Health
Tracy Kobukindo is a two-time award-winning writer, Nurse & Public Health Specialist.
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Executive Director, African Population & Health Research Center (APHRC)
Dr. Catherine Kyobutungi holds a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Heidelberg, and a Master of Science in Community Health and Health Management. She is the Executive Director at the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC).
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Professor of Anthropology and Director, The Vaccine Confidence Project, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Prof. Heidi J. Larson is an anthropologist and Director of The Vaccine Confidence Project (VCP); Professor of Anthropology, Risk and Decision Science, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, LSHTM; Clinical Professor, Department of Global Health, University of Washington,Seattle, USA, and Guest Professor at the University of Antwerp, Belgium.
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President, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation
Nísia Trindade Lima holds a Ph.D. in Sociology and a master’s degree in Political Science. She has authored books and articles with an emphasis on Brazilian social thinking, history of ideas in public health, and the Brazilian construction of the National State.
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President & CEO, The Story Kitchen
Jaya Luintel is a prominent, nationally acclaimed journalist and women’s rights activist. She is the founder of The Story Kitchen in Nepal, which aims to amplify women’s voices and their stories by utilizing both traditional and new media tools.
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CEO, Ipas Development Foundation
Vinoj Manning is the CEO of Ipas Development Foundation, an Indian NGO that works to improve the environment for safe abortion and increase access to comprehensive contraceptive care in the country.
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CEO, EDGE Americas
Pat Milligan is CEO of EDGE Americas. Previously, she had multiple leadership roles at Mercer Consulting over her 15-year tenure, and was most recently the Global Leader of Mercer’s Multinational Client Group and the architect of Mercer’s When Women Thrive program.
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Director, The Foundation for Medical Research
Dr. Nerges Mistry is a microbiologist and immunologist by training and the Director of the Foundation for Medical Research and the Foundation for Research in Community Health, Pune/Mumbai.
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Regional Director for Africa, World Health Organization
Dr. Matshidiso Rebecca Moeti is the World Health Organization Regional Director for Africa and the first woman to occupy this position. Over the past five years, she has led a Transformation Agenda that is widely acknowledged to have improved the performance and effectiveness of the Organization. Dr. Moeti is a medical doctor and public health expert, with more than 38 years of national and international experience.
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UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health; Commissioner at the Commission for Gender Equality
Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng is the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, a Commissioner at the Commission for Gender Equality, a medical doctor and a Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) expert.
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Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations
Before becoming United Nations Deputy Secretary-General in early 2017, Amina J. Mohammed was the Minister of Environment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Prior to this, she supported the UN Secretary-General as Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning where she was instrumental in bringing about the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
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Managing Executive, Corporate Citizenship, Absa Group
Sazini Mojapelo is a trisector leader whose expertise lies in the development and execution of strategic plans linked to business development, focused on the small enterprise development, creating shared value, sustainability and financial inclusion.
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PhD Student, KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP)
Yumna Moosa is an amateur mathematician who became a doctor, inspired by a naive desire to “help people.”
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Journalist and Filmmaker
Kiki Mordi is a multi-award-winning investigative journalist, radio presenter and filmmaker. She has worked in various capacities as writer, presenter, voiceover artist, filmmaker, reporter, and as an advocate for gender equality.
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United Nations High-Level Commissioner on Health, Employment & Economic Growth
One of the leading global health and inclusive security experts of her generation, Dr. Alaa Murabit is a medical doctor, Canadian Meritorious Service Cross recipient, UN High-Level Commissioner on Health Employment & Economic Growth, and one of 17 Global Sustainable Development Goal Advocates appointed by the UN Secretary-General.
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Founder & CEO, mHealth Kenya
Dr. Cathy Mwangi is the Founder and CEO of mHealth Kenya. She has over 25 years’ experience in business, digital health management, public health, impact evaluations and research in the private and public sector.
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Founder, AfriGal Tech
Bonita Beatrice Nanziri is a Health Tech innovator and Entrepreneur. She is a Software Engineer with a burning passion for Children, Health and Women in STEM.
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Assistant Professor, Section of Global Health and International Emergency Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Yale School of Medicine
Dr. Christine Ngaruiya is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine (DEM) at Yale University.
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Special Assistant of Pakistan’s Prime Minister; Federal Minister, Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Ministry; Chairperson BISP
Dr. Sania Nishtar is Special Assistant of Pakistan’s Prime Minister, and Federal Minister, Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Ministry, Government of Pakistan.
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Co-Founder, iMed Tech
Nneile Nkholise was born in South Africa and is a BTech Mechanical Engineering graduate from Central University of the Free State. She is a mechanical engineering technologist with eight years’ experience in the construction and biomedical sectors, having developed biomedical products ranging from prosthesis to bio-implants.
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Director of Programs, Jinsiangu
Alesandra Ogeta is a transgender activist working in Kenya as the Director of Programs for Jinsiangu, a locally registered Kenyan CBO based in Nairobi.
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Board Chair – Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, WHO & AU Special Envoy on COVID-19 & Former Finance Minister, Nigeria
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is an economist and international development expert with over 30 years of experience. She served twice as Nigeria’s Finance Minister, from 2003-2006, 2011-2015, and briefly as Foreign Minister, the first woman to hold both positions. She is Chair of the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and of the African Risk Capacity (ARC). She is Co-Chair of The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate. She also sits on the Boards of Standard Chartered PLC and Twitter Inc.
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Founder, Adelle Onyango Initiative
Adelle Onyango is a Kenyan media personality, podcaster and founder of the Adelle Onyango Initiative, an organization that works to create programs that prepare Kenyan youth for employment or entrepreneurship and give African women who have survived rape access to psyco-social support.
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Global Health & Development Specialist and Founding Curator & CEO, The Women’s Storytelling Salon
Dr. Nandini Oomman is a Global Health Specialist, and the Founding Curator & CEO of The Women’s Storytelling Salon™. Previously, Dr. Oomman was the Director of The HIV/AIDS Monitor at The Center for Global Development (CGD), influencing the role of big donors to increase the effectiveness of aid dollars.
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Canada Research Chair, Epidemiology & Global Health, McGill University; Director, McGill Global Health Programs & International TB Centre
Madhukar Pai is a Canada Research Chair of Epidemiology & Global Health at McGill University, Montreal, where he serves as Director of the McGill International Tuberculosis Centre.
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President of the Canadian Association of Midwives, Indigenous Registered Midwife
Nathalie Pambrun is President of the Canadian Association of Midwives (CAM), a position she has held since 2018.
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Program Manager, Grand Challenges Brazil
Claude Pirmez is a physician and scientist, currently managing the Grand Challenges Brazil program, a joint initiative between the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Brazilian Ministry of Health.
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Head of Communicable Disease Control, Health Protection Agency, Maldives
Dr. Nazla Rafeeg has worked in Public Health since 2010. As Head of the Division of Communicable Disease Control, for the last 5 years she had led the teams for national disease control programs such as TB, HIV and STIs, the National Immunization Program and is also responsible for directing outbreak management.
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Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer, Medtronic
Dr. Sally Saba is the Chief Inclusion and Diversity (I&D) Officer at Medtronic, a newly created role to strengthen and elevate the company’s longstanding commitment to inclusion, diversity, and equity.
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Immediate Past President, Beyond Beijing Committee (BBC) Nepal
Shanta Laxmi Shrestha is an advocate of gender equality, women’s human rights and sustainable development. She is one of the SRHR champions and initiated SheDecides movement in Nepal in March 2019 in cooperation with the ARROW.
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Co-CEO, Grand Challenges Canada
Karlee Silver is Co-CEO of Grand Challenges Canada, giving leadership and oversight to all aspects of the organization’s activities together with Co-CEO Jocelyn Mackie.
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Regional Director for South-East Asia, World Health Organization
Dr. Poonam Khetrapal Singh, an Indian national, became the first woman to assume the office of WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia on 1 February 2014. Before WHO, as Member of the Indian Administrative Services, she served as Health Secretary Punjab, India.
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Deputy Executive Director, Management, UNICEF
Hannan Sulieman was appointed Assistant Secretary-General and UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, Management, on 6 August 2020.
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Chief Scientist, World Health Organization
Dr. Soumya Swaminathan is the Chief Scientist at the World Health Organization, after serving as the Deputy Director-General of Programmes. A paediatrician from India and a globally recognized researcher on tuberculosis and HIV, she brings with her 30 years of experience in clinical care and research and has worked throughout her career to translate research into impactful programmes.
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Secretary, Department of Biotechnology Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India
Dr. Renu Swarup is the Secretary, Government of India, heading the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology.
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Deputy Director, Global Partnerships & Grand Challenges, Discovery & Translational Sciences, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Kedest Tesfagiorgis leads the Global Partnerships & Grand Challenges team within the Discovery & Translational Sciences program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
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Journalist and Award-winning Author
Redi Tlhabi is a highly distinguished South African Journalist, Producer, Radio and Television Presenter, Columnist, Award Winning Author and Moderator.
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Founder and CEO, Zain Verjee Group
Zain Verjee is one of the world’s most respected and recognized journalists, with an action-packed background and experience as a storyteller, entrepreneur, communicator, and interviewer. She is well known as a former CNN anchor and correspondent, and has made a successful transition into the world of communications and creative entrepreneurship.
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Regional Director, International Center for Research on Women
As Regional Director for the International Center for Research on Women’s (ICRW) Asia Regional Office in New Delhi, India, Dr. Ravi Verma leads ICRW’s local and regional efforts to conduct research, provide technical support, build capacity and partake in policy dialogue on an array of issues concerning women and girls empowerment and promoting gender equality.
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Chief Executive Officer, Aga Khan Hospital, Kisumu Cluster
Jane Wanyama is the Chief Executive Officer at The Aga Khan Hospital, Kisumu. She possesses over 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry, with more than 15 years in hospital management.
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Assistant Professor, London School of Economics & Political Science
Clare Wenham, PhD is Assistant Professor of Global Health Policy at London School of Economics and Political Science. She specialises in global health security and pandemic preparedness and outbreak response policy.
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Director of Strategy, AfriLabs
Nekesa Were is the Director of Strategy at AfriLabs, a Pan African network of 225 hubs across 47 African countries.
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Gender and Inclusion Lead and Programme Development and Funding Officer, Teach A Man To Fish; Project Leader, Hablemos Ingles
Lucy Lu Wilson was born and raised in the United Kingdom, and studied and worked in Latin America for two years.
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Director of Vaccine Development and Surveillance, and Enteric and Diarrheal Diseases, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Anita Zaidi is the Director of the Vaccine Development and Surveillance, and Enteric and Diarrheal Diseases programs at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
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Co-founder, Growing Ambitions
Umba Zalira is an African intersectional feminist passionate about Sexual Reproductive Health for girls and young women.
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