More than 21,000 people in Africa contracted mpox in 2024—a bad number that could have been much worse without the help of Nicaise Ndembi, then senior adviser to the director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and now the deputy director general of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). In his time at Africa CDC, Ndembi helped manage the continent-wide response to mpox—strengthening surveillance and screening and providing vaccines and medicinal therapeutics—and the Partnerships for African Vaccine Manufacturing, which created a framework for regional vaccine manufacturing and self-reliance. In his new role at the IVI, he will work to establish home-grown vaccine research and development, accelerating vaccine availability and distribution across Africa’s 54 countries.
Correction, May 12
The original version of this story misstated Ndembi's former position and mischaracterized his roles in the mpox response and Partnerships for African Vaccine Manufacturing (PAVM). He was formerly senior adviser to the director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, not the head of the organization. He did not solely lead the mpox response in Africa or establish the PAVM; he was part of teams that did so.