John N. Nkengasong is a Cameroonian-American virologist serving as the Global AIDS Coordinator in the Biden administration since 2022. He previously worked as the Director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention from 2016 to 2022, as well as at the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nkengasong was appointed the WHO Special Envoy for Africa. Early life and education Nkengasong is from Cameroon. He became interested in biology, chemistry and mathematics whilst he was at high school. Nkengasong earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Yaoundé I. During his undergraduate degree he met Peter Piot, who encouraged him to visit Antwerp as a graduate student in virology. He ended up studying biomedical sciences at the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp. After completing his second degree, he moved to the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, where he earned a master's degree in medical sciences. After earning his master's degree, Nkengasong joined the research group of Guido van der Groen and Piot. His doctoral research was the first to characterise all of the genetic subtypes of HIV in Africa. He later completed a management qualification at the John F. Kennedy School of Government. Research and career Early beginnings In 1993 Nkengasong joined the World Health Organization, where he served as Chief of Virology. He was based in the Collaborating Centre for HIV/AIDS Diagnostics in the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp. He has worked on the diagnosis, pathogenesis and drug resistance of HIV/AIDS. US CDC, 1994–2016 After a couple of years, Nkengasong moved to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention where he worked as Chief of Virology in Abidjan. In preparation for this job he was trained in Berkeley as part of the John E. Fogarty International Center. Nkengasong worked alongside Mike Hendry, who was running the HIV diagnosis programme at the California State Laboratory. In 2011 Nkengasong helped to establish the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM). The ASLM looks to support African researchers in developing their laboratory medicine capabilities and ability to care for patients. Africa CDC, 2016–2022 In 2016 Nkengasong joined the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, where he was made the inaugural Director. At the Africa CDC Nkengasong oversees the Regional Integrated Surveillance and Laboratory Networks (RISLNET). He believes that to keep infectious diseases in check in Africa it is essential to empower