Dr. Athaliah Molokomme is the Permanent Representative of Botswana to the UN and other international organisations in Geneva and Ambassador to Switzerland since 2017.

Prior to her current position, she served for 11 years as the first female Attorney General of the Republic of Botswana, where she was Principal Legal Advisor to the Government and ex-officio member of the Cabinet. In this role, she was a member of Botswana delegations to regional and international meetings held under the auspices of the Southern African Development Community, the African Union, the Commonwealth and the United Nations.

She holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Botswana and Swaziland, a Masters in Law from Yale Law School, and a PhD in Law from Leiden University. She also attained a Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIARB) in London, and is a Fellow of the CIARB.

She has served as a Judge of the High Court of Botswana, Senior Programme Officer for Gender at SADC, and Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Botswana. She also authored and published a number of journal articles and book chapters, as well as participated as a speaker and resource person at many conferences, seminars and workshops.

Dr Molokomme has contributed to the founding of a number of Human Rights Organisations at national, legal and international level, and currently serves on international boards including the Nuremberg Principles Advisory Council; Justice Rapid Response and the International Gender Champions Global Board.

During her tour in Geneva, she has served on a number of Committees including as Chairperson of the WTO Trade Policy Review Body; co-Chair of the Informal Working Group on Women and Trade; Chairperson of the ITC Joint Advisory Group for 2021; Chairperson of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body in 2022 and was appointed Chairperson of the WTO General Council in March 2023.

Dr. Alejandra Pizarro Ibáñez is the Health Attaché of Permanent Mission of Chile and, since July 2023, the Chilean negotiator of the international agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, and of Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations. This year, she also became a member of the WHO Executive Board.

Previously, she was an international advisor to PAHO in the Health Emergency Information and Risk Assessment Unit, and before that, during the Covid-19 pandemic, she was head of the Epidemiology Department of the Ministry of Health, coordinating the Chilean response about this emergency. Dr Pizarro Ibáñez also directed the Observatory of Infectious Diseases of the Faculty of Medicine of the Pontificia Universidad Católica of Chile, where she is also a researcher.

Dr Pizarro Ibáñez is medical doctor with a specialization in public health and a Master of Science in Epidemiology.

Ingrid Etoke joined the foundation in 2021 as Senior Program Officer, Health Products, Programs & Markets at the Gates foundation.

She is responsible for the new products introduction and market dynamics of the Malaria drugs, Vector Control and vaccine pipeline.

Before joining the foundation, Ingrid worked for the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) as Senior Market Access Manager.

She started her career in the pharmaceutical industry where she held several commercial roles in Europe and Africa, overseeing infectious and non communicable disease portofolio. Originally from Cameroon, Ingrid holds Masters degrees in Biochemistry and International Marketing from University of Science and Technology of Lille (France).

Anne-Claire AMPROU is the French Ambassador for Global Health and, since April 2022, the French negotiator of the international agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

After starting her career as a hospital director, she joined the Inspectorate-General of Social Affairs. She was a member of the Ebola task force and then Deputy Director General for Health at the French Ministry of Solidarity and Health. Before coordinating the French response to the Covid-19 crisis in 2021, she was Chief General Manager of Universcience, a cultural and scientific institute.

Mrs Clarisse Paolini is Deputy Assistant Secretary for Human development at the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign affairs. She was previously Deputy political coordinator at the French Mission to the UN in New York (2023-2024), Head of cooperation at the French Embassy in Colombia (2019-2023), Deputy Head of the political affairs department in the Directorate for United nations and international organizations at the MEFA (2016-2018), and Advisor to the Secretary General of the MEFA (2015-2016). She also served as Advisor to the Executive Director of the Global Fund to find Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria (2011-2012) and Deputy Head of the multilateral development banks and development aid unit at the Treasury Department in France (2007-2011). She previous worked as a consultant for the public sector at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2005-2007). She holds a Master’s degree from Sciences Po Paris and a Master’s degree from the University of Paris-Dauphine.

Dr. Imanishi is the deputy director general for global issues at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. A diplomat with extensive experience in development cooperation and multilateral diplomacy, he has worked in the Embassy of Japan in Brazil and Australia, and served as minister at the Permanent Mission of Japan in Vienna before his current appointment.

Dr. Yosuke Kita has over a decade of experience in public and global health. As of August 2024, he serves as Director of the Global Health Strategy Division at the International Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of Japan.

Before joining MOFA, Dr. Kita worked extensively within Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), contributing to HIV/AIDS initiatives, revisions of the Immunization Act, and reforms to the long-term care insurance system. From 2009 to 2011, he was seconded to the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, where he managed malaria control strategies. He also gained local governance experience through a secondment to a Japanese local government.

In 2019, Dr. Kita became Director of the Office for Global Strategy of Medical Service and Health Industry at MHLW, playing a key role in handling the 2020 “Diamond Princess” cruise ship response for Covid-19. Subsequently, he served as Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, facilitating critical UN General Assembly High-Level Meetings on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (PPR) in 2023. He also acted as Vice-Chair of the 57th session of the UN Commission on Population and Development.

Dr. Kita holds a medical degree and two master’s degrees—one in public health from Yale University and another in public administration from Harvard University.

Sharonann Lynch has worked for 25 years in the global health field. She is currently Co-Director of the Center for Global Health Policy and Politics (GHPP) at Georgetown University’s O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law. Previously, Sharonann worked with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) for 15 years, including four years with MSF projects in southern Africa and as the Senior HIV and TB Policy Advisor for MSF International. She currently serves on the UNAIDS Advisory Group and Unitaid Board as alternate member for the NGO delegation.

Professor Brook K. Baker is a senior policy analyst for Health GAP (Global Access Project), a professor at Northeastern U. School of Law, U.S.A., and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of KwaZulu Natal, S. Africa.  His legal activism focuses primarily on intellectual property, trade, human rights, and access to optimal treatment for people living with HIV.

Haitham El-Noush, Senior Advisor, Innovation in Health and Development, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation

Mr. Haitham El-noush has been, during the past nine years, managing the innovation portfolio within global health for the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad); promoting and scaling-up innovative tools and approaches for health and development; through pursing tasks related to policy, partnerships, and operations. He was also the project manager for the UN Every Woman Every Child (EWEC) Innovation Working Group (IWG); through which he led the creation of thriving partnerships that inspired to consensus building, out-of-the-box thinking, and mobilization of financial and non-financial resources.

El-noush has a long international cooperation career with work experience from nine countries representing three continents; working for both governments, INGOs and the UN. Throughout his career, he has been providing thought-leadership, building and pursuing new initiatives as well as novel work streams and approaches constructed around innovation and digital tools. He has an extensive leadership experience from managing large and complex operations and portfolios.

El-noush has a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture science with agriculture economics as major from University of Khartoum in Sudan, a Master of Science degree in development economics and international development with microfinance as thesis topic from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, and a Diploma in pedagogy from Nord (Northern Norway) University. Moreover, he earned a Diploma in impact investing from Saïd Business School at Oxford University; and has recently obtained a course certificate on global health from University of Copenhagen.

Marte Bøe Wensaas is working as a Senior Advisor in Global Health for the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). Marte has during the past 20 years been working on the Global Health agenda. In her current role she is responsible for managing parts of the Norwegian development aid in global health and provides technical advice related to Norwegian ODA for global health to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norwegian embassies, and partner organizations/institutions.  Her principal responsibilities include areas like public health, SRHR Commodities, HSS and MNCH.  She has also been working in Norway’s GAVI and GFATM teams. Previous to her current position she worked for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Recently she came back to Norway after heading of health portfolio at the Norwegian Embassy in Malawi for several years.

Professional with more than 20 years of experience in Development cooperation, with long time work in developing and fragile context such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Nicaragua and Dominican Republic, in NGO sector and mainly with the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). Since 2021, based in HQ of AECID where she is Chief of Multilateral and EU Cooperation Department. Graduate in Journalism and Master in Development and International Cooperation and Master in Corporate Social Responsibility.

Ian is the Head of the Manufacturing and Market Shaping Unit at the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). He has over a decade of senior engagement in Health & the Life Sciences including at the UK’s Medicines Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the European Commission, the OECD and United Nations. Most recently he led the FCDO’s global pharmaceuticals and diagnostics response to COVID-19, including as Chair of the WHO/ACT-Accelerator Pharmaceuticals and Diagnostics Group bringing together Governments, civil society, global health institutions and industry to examine the challenges to access during the pandemic.

He is also an Advisor to the World Health Organisation on Regional Manufacturing and Board Member of the Access to Medicines Foundation, bringing an in-depth knowledge of institutional and delivery architectures, alongside a well-established understanding of regulatory and policy frameworks.

Rob joined FCDO in 2019, having previously worked across UK Government departments including tax, education and the environment. He worked on FCDO’s flagship humanitarian demining programme, before moving to Kinshasa (DRC) to help lead the UK’s response to Ebola, COVID-19 and other infectious disease outbreaks. Rob previously sat on the Strategy Committee for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative for 2022-23. He has been the FCDO lead for UK funding to Unitaid since January 2024.

Appointed in April 2023, Dr Jérôme Salomon oversee a broad portfolio of technical programmes covering HIV, viral hepatitis, sexually-transmitted infections, tuberculosis, malaria, neglected tropical diseases, mental health, substance use disorders, and noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases and cancer.

Dr Salomon previously served as the Director-General for Health at the Ministry of Health and Prevention of France. He was a Member of the WHO Executive Board prior to his appointment as a WHO Assistant Director-General and has extensive experience in health systems management, communicable diseases and international public health.

Dr Salomon holds a medical degree, a Master of Public Health and a PhD in epidemiology.

Issa Matta is Senior Legal Officer who joined WHO in 2003. His principal responsibilities include legal and governance support to WHO partnerships and alliances, the WHO Foundation, the WHO Academy and on legal matters relating to engagement with non-state actors, as well as commercial and contractual issues.

In 2008, Issa spent a year as a senior lawyer at the Global Fund. He also acquired significant private sector legal experience during his time as corporate counsel with the pharmaceutical company Merck-Serono as well as in-house attorney with the global consulting firm Andersen. Issa began his career as a legal consultant in the Abu Dhabi Office of a leading New York based international law firm.

Issa has a J.D. from the University of Virginia and is admitted as an attorney before the New York bar. Prior to his legal studies, Issa specialized in international relations with a focus on the Middle East.

Issa is from Lebanon and also lived in Jordan, Kenya, Iraq, UAE, and the USA.