Prof Violet Naanyu is a social scientist and global bioethicist. Photo/Ampath
Leading Kenyan bioethicist Prof Violet Naanyu is
one of the 16 experts chosen globally to advise the World Health Organisation
on behavioural sciences.
Prof Naanyu, a Moi
University don who is also a visiting scholar at the Aga Khan University, will serve
on the WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on Behavioural Sciences for
Better Health for the next two years.
The WHO said it chose the 16 from a pool of 340 experts across 71 countries.
“This group will provide scientific advice to channel behavioural science
evidence into policy to achieve better health outcomes,” WHO said in a press statement.
Prof Naanyu is a social
scientist and global bioethicist interested in evaluations to improve research
and healthcare in resource-limited settings.
The statement said she will
help shape how the WHO
and its partners incorporate behavioural insights into health policy,
especially in low- and middle-income countries.
Her appointment
reflects her extensive experience working in East and Southern Africa, often in
resource-limited settings.
“Integrating behavioural insights into policies is key to advancing health
equity efficiently and effectively,” said Dr Ailan Li, assistant director-general of the WHO. “Understanding human
behaviour is essential to designing effective strategies. WHO has a very
important leadership role in channelling behavioural sciences evidence into
policy to achieve public health impact on the ground and global health
outcomes.”
Elena Altieri, head
of WHO’s Behavioural Insights Unit, said: “Providing evidence-based advice is
central to WHO’s mission, and the Technical Advisory Group will ensure that
advice is based on the latest behavioural science.”
The WHO noted that understanding
and integrating behavioural evidence at the individual, community, and
population level is essential to design effective policies and programmes.
The appointment follows the
World Health Assembly’s 2023 adoption of a resolution calling for the
mainstreaming of behavioural sciences to achieve more effective, equitable, and
people-centred health policies.
Separately, in March this
year, Prof Naanyu was elected a fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS), one of the
highest honours for a scientist on the continent.
The AAS noted that Fellows are recognised for their “excellence in their publications record,
innovations, leadership roles and contribution to policy and society.”
“The AAS Fellowship
recruitment, follows a rigorous
evaluation by the AAS Membership Advisory Committees (MACs) in various fields
of specialisation,” said AAS President Prof Lise Korsten.
The academy called
on Prof Naanyu to participate in high-level working groups, policy think tanks
and scientific review panels that influence continental research direction.
Prof Naanyu is also the
founder of the AMPATH Qualitative Research Core, and co-founder of the Focus Projects
and Research Organization in Kenya.She sits on the National Scientific and Ethics Committee of Kenya,
and is a board member
of the International Centre for Reproductive Health, and a committee member of the Bioethics
Society of Kenya member.
Her research spans maternal and child health, HIV, chronic diseases, and
health system strengthening. She has worked across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania,
Malawi, Mozambique, Gambia, and South Africa.
She holds academic training in sociology from Indiana University (USA),
medical anthropology from the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands), and global
bioethics from Universidad Anáhuac (Mexico).