Monique Wasunna

Dr Wasunna is currently Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) Africa Ambassador. In this role, she engages African policy leaders and other stakeholders and supports their ambitions to advance universal health coverage, access to treatment, and disease elimination though R&D collaborations that deliver new treatments for the most neglected patients. Previously, she supervised and led DNDi’s activities in eastern Africa for twenty years, from 2003 to 2023 as the Regional Director. She is a founding chair and member of the Leishmaniasis East Africa Platform (LEAP), promoting clinical research for leishmaniasis and capacity building in the region. Dr Wasunna is a physician and an infectious disease and tropical medicine specialist. She holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree from the University of Nairobi. MSc and PhD from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London, and a diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene from the Royal College of Physicians of London. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Fellow Eastern, Central and Sothern Africa College of Physicians. Dr Wasunna was the Chief Research Officer and Assistant Director of Research at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). She has served as the Acting Director/Chief Executive Officer, KEMRI. She was a member of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO, Kenya National Bioethics Committee, the Kenyatta National Hospital and University of Nairobi Scientific and Research Ethics committee, and currently a member of the Expert Committee of Clinical Trials of the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, Kenya. Dr Wasunna is a recipient of the Distinguished Neglected Tropical Diseases Researcher Award, from the ministry of health, Kenya, Collaboration and Partnership with KEMRI Award, a Mycetoma Ambassador Award, and a National Order of Merit “Officier de l’ordre national du mérite”, from the Government of France for her contribution to research, dedication and service to the neglected communities. Dr Wasunna has been a researcher and a principal investigator in numerous clinical trials on neglected diseases with emphasis on visceral leishmaniasis, malaria, and HIV. Her contributions are well-documented in peer-reviewed journals.