About Me: Amref Health Africa Group Chief Executive Officer, Dr Githinji Gitahi
Dr. Gitahi joined Amref Health Africa in June 2015. Amref Health Africa is the largest Africa-based non-profit working in over 35 African countries serving over 13 million people with essential health services. Until his appointment at Amref Health Africa, Dr. Gitahi was the Vice President and Regional Director for Africa, Smile Train International, where he successfully launched a sustainability program in Rwanda known as Rwanda Smiles and established partnerships for long-term sustainability with various African governments. He oversaw over 65,000 free cleft-lip repair surgeries and grew the number of free surgeries provided from 2,000 per year to over 10,000 per year. Prior to that, he worked with the Nation Media Group, where he was the Managing Director for Monitor Publications in Uganda as well as General Manager for Marketing and Circulation in East Africa. He was instrumental in improving the key pillars of technology and innovations. He also held progressively senior positions at GlaxoSmithKline where he created lasting relationships with Kenya’s key medical bodies such as the Kenya Medical Association, Kenya Dental Association and Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya, among others. He also worked at the Avenue Group and in the insurance industry.

Dr. Gitahi has a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Nairobi, and a Masters in Business Administration, majoring in Marketing from United States International University. He also has a Certificate in Marketing from the Marketing Society of Kenya and is completing a Certificate for Strategic Perspectives and Non-profit Management at Harvard University. As a medical doctor, Dr. Gitahi practiced Gynecology, Pediatrics and internal medicine. While in medical school, Dr. Gitahi was honored with the Gandhi Memorial Award for Best Final Year Medical Student, and an award for the Best Final Year Student in Medicine & Surgery from the Kenya Medical Association.

Dr Gitahi is a Co-Chair of the UHC2030 Steering Committee and a passionate advocate for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Africa; member of the Private Sector Advisory Board of Africa CDC; and also of the World Health Organization’s Community Health Worker Hub. He holds many Board positions across Amref Health Africa offices in Africa.

Select Volunteer Positions – Current
Member, Advisory Board, Africa CDC Private Sector Advisory Board – Ethiopia
Member, WHO CHW advisory committee – Kenya
Chair, Secondary School Board (appointed by the Minister for Education) – Kenya
Member, Board of Directors, AMREF Flying Doctors – Kenya
PTA Executive Member, Moi Girls Secondary School – Kenya

Select Speaking Engagements and Media Interviews
Keynote speaker at the opening ceremony of KMA Annual Scientific Conference and AGM, April 2017
Panel discussant at Amref Health Africa’s side session at the World Health Assembly on the role of CHWs in achieving UHC and WHA goals, May 2017
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore USA, September 2017
Keynote, 1st Dr. Margaret Mungherera Memorial Lecture, Uganda Medical Association, September 2017
Invited to give the keynote address at World Healthcare Students Symposium, November 2017