Natalia Kanem

Natalia Kanem serves as distinguished scholar at the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy.

In a career spanning four decades, she has devoted her efforts to improving the health and lives of women and children, leveraging her combined expertise in medicine, philanthropy and diplomacy to advance the reproductive health of women and girls, and to uphold human rights and dignity for all.

Dr. Kanem co-chairs the Lancet Commission on 21st-Century Global Health Threats, an independent expert body examining critical global health challenges that significantly impact human health, with a long-term lens until the year 2100.

A world-recognized leader in public health and philanthropy, Dr. Kanem was appointed as United Nations under-secretary-general and executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) from 2017 to 2025.

During her tenure at the United Nations, she successfully mobilized the requisite talent and billions of dollars in resources to harness the power of population data and to champion effective, far-reaching programs for access to voluntary contraception, reduction of maternal mortality, ending gender-based violence and improving women’s mental health and wellbeing.

Among many awards and accolades, Dr. Kanem has received honorary university degrees as well as chieftancies from communities and institutions across Africa, Europe, and the Americas.