John Snow Health (JSH) Zambia is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Michael Mulimansenga Chanda as Executive Director. Dr. Chanda is an expert in public health, a leader in the development of health policy and systems strengthening, and a strategic thinker with extensive organizational development knowledge, skills, and experience.
“JSH undertook an open and extensive search for its Executive Director, and we are thrilled to welcome Dr. Chanda to this new role,” said JSH Executive Committee Chair Dr. Muka Chikuba-Mcleod.
Over the past two decades, Dr. Chanda has held positions of increasing responsibility in the medical and public health sectors in Zambia. “I began my career in 1997 after graduating from the University of Zambia (UNZA). Since then, I’ve had the privilege to work at all levels of the Zambian health sector, from rural to urban areas and facility level to district, provincial, and national levels. I began my career in the public sector and later transitioned to the NGO world, holding strategic management positions in both,” said Dr. Chanda.
Most recently, he served as deputy chief of party and technical lead for the USAID Supporting an AIDS-Free Era (SAFE) project, a $142 million investment to reduce HIV mortality, morbidity, and transmission while improving nutrition outcomes and family planning integration in three provinces in Zambia with the highest HIV burdens.
Dr. Chanda is passionate about incorporating public health objectives into the overall national development agenda. “As public health practitioners, I believe we too are development workers,” he says. “Our primary purpose is to improve the quality of life of the individuals that make up the communities we serve, giving them the potential to make significant contributions to Zambia’s development.”
Dr. Chanda brings a wealth of public health expertise to JSH, having served as Deputy Chief of Party in four USAID-funded projects working with JSI, holding medical superintendent and executive director positions in both public and private sector health institutions, serving as technical lead on HIV response integration into Parliamentary core mandates. Additionally, Dr Chanda has been an advocate of greater and meaningful engagement of traditional, religious and youth leaders in HIV and emerging health issues. He is a a part-time public health senior lecturer at the University of Lusaka, focusing on health policy and health systems development..
“Considering the impact JSH is already having, I am optimistic and excited about the future of public health in Zambia and the region. Our three key strengths in health system and service delivery enhancement, research, and consultation means we can help pave the way for more resilient, effective, equitable, and efficient public health systems by working with our partners, donors, and the Ministry of Health,” said Dr. Chanda.
About JSH
John Snow Health (JSH) is a Zambian organization dedicated to working with government, non-government entities, and communities to improve the provision of public health services and to improve the health of individuals and communities in Zambia. Founded in 2019, JSH won its first project, a supply chain information system initiative funded by USAID, in 2020. Since then, JSH has won 11 projects and subcontracts funded by UNICEF, the Global Fund, USAID, and others. Some of its biggest awards include the Electronic Supply Chain Management Information System (eSCMIS) project, a private sector engagement project called the Zambia Accessible Markets for Health (ZAM-Health), and the Controlling HIV Epidemic for Key and Underserved Populations (CHEKUP-II) Activity.