Pathfinder
Editor, Senior Moderator
Acceleration of Africa’s Health Security and Sovereignty: Appointment of Senior Advisors
Translation Google
Addis Ababa, 20 May 2026 – The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) are pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum as Special Advisor for Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention and Response; Mukesh Chawla as Senior Advisor on Health Economics and Strategic Finance; Dr. Karim Bendhaou as Senior Advisor on Institutional Strengthening, Strategic Partnerships and Private Sector Engagement; and Christian Lusakweno as Senior Advisor on Crisis Communication and Mass Communication.
Together, they bring exceptional expertise in epidemic preparedness and response, health economics, strategic finance, institutional strengthening, public-private partnerships, strategic communications, and crisis information management, as Africa CDC advances the African Health Security and Sovereignty (AHSS) agenda. Their appointments will help amplify Africa’s voice in global health decision-making, strengthen domestic and innovative health financing, accelerate local manufacturing and market structuring mechanisms, and build resilient public health systems across the continent.
In their new roles, the senior advisors will provide strategic, technical, political, and intellectual advisory support to the Director General of Africa CDC. Their work will include advising on Africa's positioning in the reform of the global health architecture; strengthening sustainable and sovereign health financing; supporting pandemic preparedness, prevention, and response; advancing local manufacturing and market structuring mechanisms; deepening high-level political engagement and strategic partnerships; and contributing to flagship strategic thinking and policy positioning outputs for Africa CDC and the African Union.
They will also contribute to establishing and mobilizing strategic alliances with governments, African Union member states, multilateral institutions, development finance institutions, philanthropic actors, scientific partners, and the private sector. In their advisory roles, they will support Africa CDC's transition from dependence to sovereignty, from fragmentation to coordination, and from vulnerability to resilience.
“I am delighted to welcome Professor Muyembe Tamfum, Mukesh Chawla, Dr. Karim Bendhaou, and Christian Lusakweno to Africa CDC. Their experience, judgment, and networks will be invaluable as we deepen our partnerships, open new avenues, and accelerate the implementation of our mission. At a time when Africa needs to speak with greater authority and act with greater ambition on the future of health, their guidance will be a significant asset to Africa CDC and the continent,” said Dr. Jean Kaseya, CEO of Africa CDC. These appointments reflect Africa CDC’s ongoing commitment to mobilizing top-level African and global expertise to advance the continent’s health security, sovereignty, and development.
https://africacdc.org/news-item/acc...d-sovereignty-appointment-of-senior-advisors/
Translation Google
Addis Ababa, 20 May 2026 – The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) are pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum as Special Advisor for Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention and Response; Mukesh Chawla as Senior Advisor on Health Economics and Strategic Finance; Dr. Karim Bendhaou as Senior Advisor on Institutional Strengthening, Strategic Partnerships and Private Sector Engagement; and Christian Lusakweno as Senior Advisor on Crisis Communication and Mass Communication.
Together, they bring exceptional expertise in epidemic preparedness and response, health economics, strategic finance, institutional strengthening, public-private partnerships, strategic communications, and crisis information management, as Africa CDC advances the African Health Security and Sovereignty (AHSS) agenda. Their appointments will help amplify Africa’s voice in global health decision-making, strengthen domestic and innovative health financing, accelerate local manufacturing and market structuring mechanisms, and build resilient public health systems across the continent.
| Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum, Special Advisor for Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention, and Response. Professor Muyembe Tamfum is a Congolese virologist and a world-renowned public health official. He is the Director General of the National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB) and Professor of Microbiology/Virology at the University of Kinshasa. Known for his work on Ebola since the first known outbreak in 1976 and during subsequent outbreak responses, he brings unparalleled expertise in epidemic preparedness, diagnostics, response coordination, clinical research, and science policy. |
| Mukesh Chawla , Senior Advisor on Health Economics and Strategic Finance , PhD, is a leading health economist and strategic finance expert with over three decades of experience advising governments and development partners in Africa, Asia, and Europe. At the World Bank, he served as an advisor on health, nutrition, and population, as well as coordinator of the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility. He brings extensive experience in health security financing, pandemic risk financing, domestic resource mobilization, reform design, and the development of investment cases for resilient public health systems. |
| Dr. Karim Bendhaou, Senior Advisor for Institutional Strengthening, Strategic Partnerships, and Private Sector Engagement. Dr. Karim Bendhaou (MD, MBA) is a pan-African healthcare industry leader with extensive experience in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, strategic partnerships, and business development. He spent over 18 years as President of Merck's North and West Africa operations, covering 40 African countries, before leading Merck's Africa office. He will advise Africa CDC on institutional strengthening, public-private collaboration, private sector engagement, access to innovation, sustainable supply, and local manufacturing. |
| Christian Lusakweno, Senior Advisor for Crisis and Mass Communication, is a Congolese media executive, journalist, and founder/director of Radio Top Congo FM, one of the Democratic Republic of Congo's most influential radio stations. For over two decades, he has built a trusted broadcasting network and hosted live public affairs programs during periods of political, social, and security sensitivity. He brings practical expertise in public trust, message discipline, multilingual public communication, rapid dissemination in crisis situations, and information management in crisis situations. |
They will also contribute to establishing and mobilizing strategic alliances with governments, African Union member states, multilateral institutions, development finance institutions, philanthropic actors, scientific partners, and the private sector. In their advisory roles, they will support Africa CDC's transition from dependence to sovereignty, from fragmentation to coordination, and from vulnerability to resilience.
“I am delighted to welcome Professor Muyembe Tamfum, Mukesh Chawla, Dr. Karim Bendhaou, and Christian Lusakweno to Africa CDC. Their experience, judgment, and networks will be invaluable as we deepen our partnerships, open new avenues, and accelerate the implementation of our mission. At a time when Africa needs to speak with greater authority and act with greater ambition on the future of health, their guidance will be a significant asset to Africa CDC and the continent,” said Dr. Jean Kaseya, CEO of Africa CDC. These appointments reflect Africa CDC’s ongoing commitment to mobilizing top-level African and global expertise to advance the continent’s health security, sovereignty, and development.
https://africacdc.org/news-item/acc...d-sovereignty-appointment-of-senior-advisors/