Communication, Emergency Response, Epidemiology, Health Advocacy, Job Skills Training, Policy & Governance, Public Health & Disease Control, Research, Risk Assessment, Technology & Data Analytics
2007
Switzerland
World Health Organization; Federal Government College Enugu; Health Protection Agency; Rubrecht-Karls University, Heidelberg, Germany; Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf; UK, Faculty of Public Health; University of Nigeria; Robert Koch Institute; Nigeria Health Watch; Nigeria Centre for Disease Control; EpiAfric; National Institute for Communicable Diseases
The World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters leadership team consists of individuals with diverse expertise and backgrounds. Dr. Michael Ryan, as the Executive Director of WHOs Health Emergencies Programme, leads the response to disease outbreaks and public health emergencies. Dr. Jeremy Farrar, the Chief Scientist, oversees the Science Division's work on health policies and services. Dr. Samira Asma, the Assistant Director-General for Data, Analytics and Delivery, ensures reliable health data is used to improve global health outcomes. Dr. Bruce Aylward, as the Assistant Director-General of the Universal Health Coverage, focuses on making primary health care accessible to all. Dr. Catharina Boehme, the Assistant Director-General of External Relations and Governance, leads strategic engagement and partnerships. Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu heads the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence. Dr. Ailan Li oversees efforts to promote better health through environmental and social interventions. Dr. Yukiko Nakatani manages equitable access to quality medicines and health products. Dr. Razia Pendse heads the Director-Generals Office, ensuring alignment within WHO. Dr. Jrme Salomon oversees technical programmes covering various health issues. Mr. Raul Thomas is responsible for WHO's budget, planning, and operations. // Chikwe Ihekweazu is a Nigerian epidemiologist and public health physician who has held various leadership positions in organizations such as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). He has extensive experience in infectious disease epidemiology and has worked in different countries including Nigeria, South Africa, the UK, and Germany. During his tenure at NCDC, he transformed the agency into a world-class institution for disease control in Nigeria and Africa, overseeing the response to major outbreaks and establishing key initiatives such as the National Reference Laboratory and Public Health Emergency Operations Centres. Currently serving as the WHO's Assistant Director-General for Health Emergency Intelligence and Surveillance Systems, Ihekweazu leads the WHO Hub for Epidemic and Pandemic Intelligence, focusing on strengthening global pandemic and epidemic intelligence through collaboration with various stakeholders. He has received recognition for his contributions to public health, including prestigious awards and honorary doctorates. // Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu is an Assistant Director General at the World Health Organization (WHO), leading the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence.
Prior to this, Dr Ihekweazu was the first Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and led the agency between July 2016 and October 2021. He acted as Interim Director of the West Africa Regional Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control from January to December 2017.
Dr Ihekweazu trained as an infectious disease epidemiologist and has over 25 years’ experience working in senior public health and leadership positions in several National Public Health Institutes, including NCDC, South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the UK's Health Protection Agency, and Germany’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI). Dr Ihekweazu has led several short-term engagements for WHO, mainly in response to major infectious disease outbreaks around the world. He was part of the first WHO COVID-19 international mission to China, in Februrary 2020.
Dr Ihekweazu is a graduate of the College of Medicine, University of Nigeria and has a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from the Heinrich-Heine University, Dusseldorf, Germany. In 2003, he was awarded a Fellowship for the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) and subsequently completed his Public Health specialisation in the UK. He is widely published in medical peer review journals. Dr Ihekweazu is on the board of the NGOs: African Society of Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS), Public Health Foundation of Nigeria, Health Watch Foundation, Society for Family Health (SFH), Education as a Vaccine (EVA) and the Africa Policy Advisory Board of ONE. Dr Ihekweazu is a TED Fellow and co-founder TEDxEuston. // I was Co-Director of the Centre for Tuberculosis at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), Johannesburg, South Africa and had primary responsibility for the epidemiology section. I was responsible for developing epidemiology capacity and surveillance for the Centre. I led the team implementing a nationwide drug resistance survey for tuberculosis, and the implementation of a new integrated surveillance system for tuberculosis. My last two years at NICD were spent setting up a new Provincial Epidemiology Team. // I have undertaken several short term consultancies with the World Health Organisation, mostly in response to outbreaks of infectious diseases and the implementation of surveillance systems. These include working on WHO’s risk assessment tool for Communicable Disease Control during Mass Gatherings in Geneva, working on WHO-Euro’s project; “Strengthening the Epidemiological Surveillance and Control of Communicable Diseases System in Turkey” and responding to outbreaks of Measles and Ebola in Nigeria and Sudan, as well as implementing polio surveillance in Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Swaziland. // My area of work was hospital-acquired infections. My primary responsibility was the investigation of outbreaks involving hospital-acquired infections, and the analysis of national nosocomial infections surveillance data, focusing on hospitals that had an ‘outlier’ status. // The WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence will strengthen intelligence specifically for pandemics and epidemics by striving for better data, better analytics, and better decisions. Embedded in WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme and building on consultations with hundreds of experts from different disciplines, sectors, and regions, it will leverage WHO’s unique convening power across nearly 200 countries to foster global solutions. // The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control is the National Public Health Institute of Nigeria , with a mandate of protecting Nigerians from the impact of communicable and non-communicable diseases; coordinate capabilities, measures and activities to control outbreaks and reduce the health impact of public health disasters; coordinate public health surveillance activities and communicate information to the public that they need to protect themselves from public health threats. // I managed the South East of England’s Regional Epidemiology Unit (REU). The REU provided surveillance data, professional advice and specialist support for the control of communicable diseases, as well as leading the response to environmental hazards in the South East Region, a population of about 10 million people. // The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control is the National Public Health Institute of Nigeria , with a mandate of protecting Nigerians from the impact of communicable and non-communicable diseases; coordinate capabilities, measures and activities to control outbreaks and reduce the health impact of public health disasters; coordinate public health surveillance activities and communicate information to the public that they need to protect themselves from public health threats. // EpiAfric is a Nigerian-led, world class public health organisation, working to improve population health through expert research, data analysis, programme design, management and evaluation; advocacy and training. EpiAfric combines expertise in public health with an in-depth understanding of the Nigerian context to bring value to our clients. // I was Co-Director of the Centre for Tuberculosis at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), Johannesburg, South Africa and had primary responsibility for the epidemiology section. I was responsible for developing epidemiology capacity and surveillance for the Centre. I led the team implementing a nationwide drug resistance survey for tuberculosis, and the implementation of a new integrated surveillance system for tuberculosis. My last two years at NICD were spent setting up a new Provincial Epidemiology Team. // Nigeria Health Watch is a platform managed by the Health Watch Foundation a non-profit organisation that uses informed advocacy and communication to seek better health and access to health care with have dual strengths in health and communication. // I managed the South East of England’s Regional Epidemiology Unit (REU). The REU provided surveillance data, professional advice and specialist support for the control of communicable diseases, as well as leading the response to environmental hazards in the South East Region, a population of about 10 million people. // World Health Organization; Federal Government College Enugu; Health Protection Agency; Rubrecht-Karls University, Heidelberg, Germany; Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf; UK, Faculty of Public Health; University of Nigeria; Robert Koch Institute; Nigeria Health Watch; Nigeria Centre for Disease Control; EpiAfric; National Institute for Communicable Diseases // Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu is a seasoned public health expert with over 25 years of experience in infectious disease epidemiology and leadership roles at various National Public Health Institutes. Currently serving as an Assistant Director General at the World Health Organization, he leads the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, focusing on enhancing global intelligence for pandemics and epidemics. Previously, Dr. Ihekweazu was the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and played a pivotal role in leading the agency. His extensive background includes working with organizations like the South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the UK's Health Protection Agency, and Germany’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI). Dr. Ihekweazu has also been actively involved in responding to major infectious disease outbreaks worldwide and has a strong publication record in medical peer-reviewed journals. // I am infectious disease epidemilogist working to reduce the impact of infectious diseases in the world and mitigate the impact of epidemics and pandemics. // Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu is a distinguished Nigerian epidemiologist and public health physician with over 25 years of experience in infectious disease epidemiology. Currently serving as the Assistant Director-General at the World Health Organization (WHO), he leads the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, focusing on enhancing global intelligence for pandemics and epidemics. Dr. Ihekweazu has held key leadership positions at organizations like the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and has played a pivotal role in transforming disease control in Nigeria and Africa. His expertise lies in strengthening global pandemic and epidemic intelligence through collaboration with various stakeholders, and he has a strong publication record in medical peer-reviewed journals. // Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu is currently Assistant Director General at the World Health Organization (WHO) for Surveillance and Health Emergency Intelligence and is leading the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, based in Berlin, Germany.
Prior to this, Dr Ihekweazu was the first Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and led the agency between July 2016 and October 2021, where he built up this national public health agency from a small unit to leading public health agency in Africa, cooperating closely with the Africa Centres for Disease Control. He acted as Interim Director of the West Africa Regional Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control through 2017.
Dr Ihekweazu trained as an infectious disease epidemiologist and has over 25 years’ experience working in senior public health and leadership positions in several national public health institutes, including NCDC, South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the UK's Health Protection Agency (HPA), and Germany’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI). Dr Ihekweazu has led several short-term engagements for WHO, mainly to build surveillance systems and in response to major infectious disease outbreaks around the world. He was part of the first WHO COVID-19 international mission to China, in February 2020.
Dr Ihekweazu is a graduate of the College of Medicine, University of Nigeria and has a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from the Heinrich-Heine University, Dusseldorf, Germany. In 2003, he was awarded a Fellowship for the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) and subsequently completed his Public Health specialisation in the UK. He has over 150 publications in medical peer review journals mostly focused on the epidemiology of infectious diseases. Dr Ihekweazu is on the board of the NGOs: African Society of Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS), Public Health Foundation of Nigeria, Health Watch Foundation, Society for Family Health (SFH), Education as a Vaccine (EVA) and he is on the Africa Policy Advisory Board of ONE.
He was a TED Fellow, and co-founded and delivered the TEDxEuston event from 2009 to 2019.
He is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Science (DSc) awarded by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK, the National Productivity Order of Merit and Officer (NPOM) of the Order of the Niger (OON) awarded by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for his service to Nigeria. // Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu is a distinguished Nigerian epidemiologist and public health physician with over 25 years of experience in infectious disease epidemiology. Currently serving as the Assistant Director-General at the World Health Organization (WHO), he leads the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, focusing on enhancing global intelligence for pandemics and epidemics. Dr. Ihekweazu has held key leadership positions at organizations like the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and has played a pivotal role in transforming disease control in Nigeria and Africa. His expertise lies in strengthening global pandemic and epidemic intelligence through collaboration with various stakeholders, and he has a strong publication record in medical peer-reviewed journals. // Epidemiologist // technology, education, data collection, led, public health, data, equity, job skills training, infectious disease, emergencies, data management, africa, research, disease control, public health - advocacy, design, data and analytics, leadership, policy, public health surveillance, covid, women, data analysis, advocacy, risk assessment, women's health, epidemiology, children, health impact, science, governance, environmental hazards, communication, microbiology, pandemic, surveillance, disease, capacity building // Abuja|Switzerland|Berlin|Nigeria|Germany|South Africa|Geneva|Lagos|UK
Abuja|Switzerland|Berlin|Nigeria|Germany|South Africa|Geneva|Lagos|UK