UN FOUNDATION APPOINTS DR. AHMED OGWELL OUMA AS VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL HEALTH STRATEGY

The United Nations Foundation today announced that Dr. Ahmed Ogwell Ouma has been selected to serve as its next Vice President of Global Health Strategy. Ogwell will spearhead one of the UN Foundation’s largest portfolios spanning global health policy, advocacy, convening, and grantmaking, in support of the United Nations and its health-related causes.

“We are delighted to welcome Ahmed to the Foundation,” said Elizabeth Cousens, President and CEO of UN Foundation. “Recent years have made abundantly clear how interconnected we are as a global community and just how essential international cooperation and institutional innovation are to address the world’s greatest public health challenges. Ahmed’s wealth of experience with health diplomacy, policy, institution-building, and delivery will be invaluable to the Foundation’s work of strengthening multilateral solutions to tackle global health challenges.”

Ogwell brings 28 years of experience in public health at national, regional, and global levels to the UN Foundation. He most recently served as Acting Deputy Director-General at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), after a long tenure that also included serving as Acting Director and the founding Deputy Director, during a period of significant growth and transformation for the Continent’s public health agency. At Africa CDC, he led the development of a new Statute for the agency, as well as driving its vision of Africa’s New Public Health Order. He managed the institution’s response to COVID-19 and a range of other health threats. Prior to joining Africa CDC, Ogwell held distinguished roles at the World Health Organization and with Kenya’s Ministry of Health in health policy and health diplomacy, working on issues ranging from noncommunicable diseases to health emergencies.

“The UN Foundation has long been a catalytic player in the global health community, spearheading innovative new platforms and partnerships to advance international cooperation on health,” said Dr. Ahmed Ogwell Ouma. “I look forward to joining the Foundation at this pivotal moment for global health, as we work toward a future where everyone can realize their right to good health and well-being.”

The UN Foundation has prioritized global health since its establishment in 1998. This has included bringing the UN and partners together through new platforms for collective action, such as the Measles & Rubella Partnership; designing novel, pooled financing instruments, including the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund which ultimately raised over $250 million; and building impactful campaigns to strengthen constituencies for the UN’s work on sexual and reproductive health and rights, immunization, and malaria.

In recent years, the UN Foundation has sharpened its global health policy analysis and influence to motivate smart, effective collective-action solutions to some of the world’s biggest health challenges — from Universal Health Coverage to health services access for displaced populations, to antimicrobial resistance, and pandemic preparedness and response.

Ogwell will be based in the Foundation’s Washington, D.C. office.

About The UN Foundation
For 25 years, the UN Foundation has built novel innovations and partnerships to support the United Nations and help solve global problems at scale. As an independent charitable organization, the Foundation was created to work closely with the United Nations to address humanity’s greatest challenges and drive global progress. Learn more at www.unfoundation.org