Climate and Health Africa Conference unveils stellar lineup of keynote speakers
By Online Desk
President Emmerson Mnangagwa
The highly anticipated first International Climate and Health Africa Conference has announced its lineup of keynote speakers for the three day event which kicks off in Harare this Tuesday.
Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa will deliver the official opening keynote address.
Dr. Fortunate Machingura
Dr. Fortunate Machingura, Chair of the inaugural International Climate and Health Africa Conference and Lecturer at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (UK), will give opening remarks while Professor Stanley Luchters, Co-Chair of the Conference and Professor at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (UK) and Ghent University (Belgium), will address the conference.
Dr. Modi Mwatsamwa
Dr. Modi Mwatsama who is Head of Capacity and Field Development – Climate and Health at Wellcome Trust (UK), will share insights on climate and health while Dr. Joseph Waogodo Cabore who is the Director of Programme Management at WHO AFRO (Congo), will discuss WHO’s efforts in climate and health.
Dr. Joseph Waogodo Cabore
Other key note speakers include Senegalese Health Minister Dr. Ibrahim Sy who will discuss leveraging Africa’s leadership and advocacy for climate change and health; Zimbabwe’s Environment, Climate and Wildlife Minister Dr. Sithembiso Nyoni will also address the conference while Dr. Douglas Mombeshora Zimbabwe’s Minister of Health and Child Care and Chairperson of the SADC Ministerial Committee on Health, will welcome delegates.
Dr. Douglas Mombeshora
More key speakers include:
Dr. Lul Pout Riek, Regional Director, Africa CDC, Southern Africa Regional Coordinating Center (Ethiopia), who will represent the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Dr. Adelheid Onyango, WHO AFRO UHP Director (Congo), who will summarize key action points and the way forward; Dr. Judy Omumbo, Science for Africa Foundation (Kenya), who will share conference summary and reflections; Professor Gueladio Cisse, Adjunct Professor University Peleforo Gon Coulibaly (UPGC) and Senior Scientist at the Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques (CSRS), Côte d’Ivoire, who will present the Harare Climate and Health Africa Declaration.
Dr. Lul Pout Riek, Regional Director, Africa CDC, Southern Africa Regional Coordinating Center (Ethiopia), will endorse the declaration on behalf of the African Union.
Other notable speakers include:
- Mr. Samson Chidiya, PEPFAR Climate and Health Cluster, Zimbabwe.
- Dr. Brad Newsome, Program Director, Division of International Training and Research (DITR), Fogarty International Center, NIH.
- Dr. Mickey Chopra, Global Solutions Lead for Service Delivery, Health, Nutrition, and Population, World Bank
- Dr. Martin Muchangi, Director for Population Health and Environment, AMREF Health Africa, Kenya
- Dr. Patrick Gitonga, Health and Climate Senior Specialist, Green Climate Fund.
The conference aims to cultivate resilience in health through unified, equitable strategies for climate adaptation and mitigation in Africa. It marks Africa’s pivotal entry into the global discourse at the intersection of the climate crisis and health.
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