About GeneConvene

Advisory Board

Christian Borgemeister, Ph.D.

Director, Centre for Development Research, University of Bonn, Germany Dr. Borgemeister is an entomologist whose research has focused on biological control and integrated pest management in the tropics for improved food security, and vector control of infectious diseases like malaria as part of a One Health approach. He has done extensive work in Africa. He previously served as the Director General of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) in Nairobi, Kenya. Dr. Borgemeister is on the Board of Trustees for the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (Nigeria). In addition, he is a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences, the Royal Entomological Society, the Entomological Society of America, and a member of several national and international academic organizations.

Abdallah Daar, D.Phil.

Emeritus Professor of Clinical Public Health; Global Health; and Surgery, University of Toronto. In Toronto he was also Senior Scientist, University Health Network/Toronto General Hospital Research Institute; and Director of Ethics and Commercialization, Sandra Rotman Centre Professor Daar’s academic career has spanned biomedical sciences, organ transplantation, surgery, global health and bioethics. He has worked in various advisory or consulting capacities with the UN, the World Health Organization and UNESCO, and is co-founder of the non-profit Grand Challenges Canada. He was a member of the African Union High Level Panel on Modern Biotechnology, and currently serves on the AU High Level Panel for Emerging Technologies. He is a recipient of the UNESCO Avicenna Prize for Ethics of Science. His major research focus is on the use of life sciences to ameliorate global health inequities, with a particular focus on building scientific capacity and increasing innovation in developing countries. Professor Daar is a Permanent Fellow of the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study. His major work there has been on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease; and more recently on Artificial Intelligence and Digital Diagnostics. In 2017 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada for his work in global health and in establishing Grand Challenges Canada. His 7th book “Garment of Destiny” was published in October 2018.

Yacine Djibo

Founder and Executive Director, Speak Up Africa, Dakar, Senegal Ms. Djibo is the Founder and Executive Director of Speak Up Africa, an advocacy and communications organization that facilitates African leadership and ownership in tackling critical issues affecting the continent. Previously, she worked as the Senegal Country Director for Malaria No More and consulted for NetGuarantee, an innovative finance mechanism that accelerates delivery of mosquito nets to families in Africa. Ms. Djibo coordinated several high-profile campaigns and events throughout Senegal to create an engaging platform for malaria prevention and treatment. Prior to joining the fight for child health, she worked in the private sector in finance, real estate development and insurance as managing director of a life insurance company from 2006–2010.

Ann Kingiri, Ph.D. Senior Research Fellow, Science, Technology & Innovation (STI), African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS), Nairobi, Kenya Dr. Kingiri pursues interdisciplinary research on integrated approaches to agricultural development and innovation with relevance to Africa’s inclusive and sustainable development. She pursues policy oriented research in STI, agriculture and bioenergy, including climate change and gender as cross-cutting themes. She is currently involved in research and advocacy focusing on fourth industrial revolution with relevance to Africa. During her tenure as Director of Research at ACTS, Dr. Kingiri coordinated generation and dissemination of STI knowledge through research, policy analysis and capacity building. She has held appointments and served on committees for the World Economic Forum, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (Task Force on Synthetic Biology and Biodiversity Conservation), and the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (including on the committee for the report “Gene Drives on the Horizon: Advancing Science, Navigating Uncertainty, and Aligning Research with Public Values”).

Bernard Nahlen, M.D.

Director, Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA Dr. Nahlen has spent his career working to address the many diseases that disproportionately impact people in low- and middle-income countries. He has served as the Deputy Coordinator of the US President’s Malaria Initiative and worked to expand that program into 24 high-burden countries in Africa as well as to Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand, as well as developing effective partnerships with Ministries of Health, multilaterals (WHO, UNICEF, UNDP, World Bank, the Global Fund), other bilateral aid agencies in the UK and Australia and other organizations.

Nicholas O. Oguge, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Environmental Policy, Centre for Advanced Studies in Environmental Law and Policy, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya Dr. Oguge’s has more than 28 years of postdoctoral experience spanning academia, research, resource management, project management and community outreach. Professor Oguge was a Coordinating Lead Author for the African Region during the recent Global Assessments of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services by IPBES. He is currently managing a suite of environmental research efforts, including the NIH/IDRC funded Global Environmental and Occupational Health (GEOHealth) East African Hub, where he is the Kenya PI. He is the Chief of Party for the Economics of Natural Capital in East Africa Project, a USAID project managed by Environmental Incentives. He is one of 20 recipients of the UK Research and Innovation grant through the Global Challenges Research Fund, a peer reviewer with NERC (UK) and a past member of the Scientific Review Committee (SRC) at the Socio-Environmental Synthesis Centre (SESYNC), University of Maryland, USA. Professor Oguge is also the founding president of the Ecological Society for Eastern Africa (ESEA) and member of the Editorial Board, African Journal of Ecology.

Elias Zerhouni, M.D.

Professor Emeritus at Johns Hopkins University and member of the FNIH Board of Directors, Maryland, USA Dr. Zerhouni’s academic career was spent at the Johns Hopkins University and Hospital, where he was Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering and Senior Adviser for Johns Hopkins Medicine. He served as Chair of the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vice Dean for Research and Executive Vice Dean of the School of Medicine from 1996 to 2002. He then was appointed by President George W. Bush as Director of the National Institutes of Health, which he led from 2002 to 2008. He served as President, Global Research & Development for Sanofi from January 2011 to July 2018.

Terms of Reference

Summary of Past Advisory Board Meetings

May 2020 Advisory Board Meeting