Dakar, Senegal (24 September, 2024) – VillageReach is pleased to announce the appointment of Cheikh Oumar Seydi to its Board of Directors. Mr. Seydi brings over three decades of experience and expertise in international development finance, global health and organizational leadership to VillageReach. Mr. Seydi recently retired as Africa Director of the Gates Foundation.
Leading the Gates Foundation’s work in Africa from 2018 to 2024, he oversaw a significant expansion of the Foundation’s programming and presence on the continent across all priority areas, including global health, gender equality and economic opportunity.
Before joining the Gates Foundation, Mr. Seydi served as regional director for sub-Saharan Africa at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. In this role, he managed IFC’s investment and advisory operations across 49 countries in the region. He has also held various leadership positions at IFC, including Global Director of Human Resources.
“We are honored to welcome Cheikh Oumar Seydi to the VillageReach Board of Directors,” said Emily Bancroft, VillageReach President & CEO. “The depth of his experience across the African continent, coupled with his extensive experience in global health and international development finance with decades of investment and advisory experience, will be invaluable as we continue to scale our impact and use innovative models to help governments build responsive primary health care systems that support under-reached communities.”
“I am excited to join the VillageReach Board of Directors and contribute to the organization’s mission of improving health care delivery in under-reached communities,” said Mr. Seydi. “VillageReach’s mindset as fearless explorers of new technologies, practices and sustainability approaches, coupled with the organization’s commitment to making a lasting impact, align perfectly with my values and priorities.”
Mr. Seydi’s extensive experience in global health, development and financial leadership will help VillageReach meet its ambitious 2030 goal of improving health care delivery for 350 million people through national health systems in 15 countries.
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About VillageReach
VillageReach transforms health care delivery to reach everyone. We are driven by a vision of a world where each person has the health care needed to thrive. VillageReach works with governments, the private sector, partners and communities to build responsive primary health care systems that deliver health products and services to the most under-reached. As a locally driven and globally connected organization working across Africa, VillageReach’s primary goal is to reduce inequities in access to quality primary health care for 350 million people by 2030.