Global Fund Selects Roslyn Morauta as Board Chair, Bience Gawanas as Vice Chair
April 21, 2023
Geneva– The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announces that its Board of Directors has selected Ms Roslyn Morauta as Chair and Ms Bience Gawanas as Vice-Chair, two women of exceptional leadership and international expertise who will join the Global Fund’s governance.
Mrs Morauta Many years of extensive and multifaceted experience at the Global Fund: In addition to serving as Vice Chair of the Board for the past four years, she represents the Western Pacific Regional Constituency as an alternate Board member and chairs the Papua New Guinea National Coordinating Mechanism. She has been a longtime and strong advocate for health, HIV programs and gender issues.
“The Global Fund has an exceptional governance model where affected communities sit at the board table alongside governments, the private sector, civil society and other stakeholders. It ensures that we do our part for those affected by the diseases we are trying to end the best choice,” Ms. Roslyn Morauta, newly elected Chair of the Global Fund Board of Directors, said“It has been an honor and a privilege to represent the Global Fund as Vice-Chair since 2019 and I am very grateful for the trust placed in me to now continue as Chair of the Board.”
Mrs Morauta has long been an advocate for good governance and health, especially in the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. She is a tireless advocate for the Global Fund’s core values, particularly gender equality and human rights, and works closely with civil society organisations. As Board Vice Chair, she prioritizes high governance standards and inclusivity among all Board members, including the voices of disease-affected communities.
Beans Galvanas is an experienced political and development policy leader. Her career has included important international and domestic posts, including serving as the first African Union Commissioner for Social Affairs and the United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser for Africa. She has a long record of advocating for global public health causes and the rights of marginalized populations and civil society, and has extensive experience in complex governance environments.
“The Global Fund is an extraordinary partnership that has saved 50 million lives over the past two decades and made a huge difference for humanity,” said Bience Gawanas, newly elected Vice-Chairman of the Global Fund Board of Directors. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this fight to ensure everyone, everywhere, has the right to the health care they need.”
Ms. Gawanas is known as a “bridge builder” and institutional liaison. She has over 30 years of experience in social justice, gender equality, women’s empowerment, human rights and good governance. The New Africa publication named her one of the 100 most influential Africans.
At the conclusion of the 49th Global Fund Board Meeting in Vietnam on 11 May, Dr Donald Kaberuka will conclude his term as Chairman of the Board and Ms Morauta and Ms Gawanas will begin their three-year terms as Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively.
Dr. Kaberuka and Ms. Morauta were elected Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Board in 2019, respectively, for a two-year term, with one-year extensions in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Board leadership terms have now been extended to three years.
“It is a rare opportunity to chair the board during some of the most challenging times as we strive to eliminate AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as public health threats,” Dr Donald Kaberuka, outgoing Chairman of the Global Fund Board of Directors, said“The days ahead are very difficult. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, rising costs and increasing number of conflicts will complicate this work more than ever. But the strength and determination of the Global Fund partnership is unparalleled Yes, under the leadership of Mrs Roslyn and Beanes, I am confident they will succeed.”
Ms. Morauta and Ms. Gawanas were selected by the Global Fund Board of Directors following a competency-based selection process designed to identify the best leadership mix for the Global Fund. The process was led by a Board-appointed Nominating Committee, and the full Board concluded on April 20, 2023 with a vote to approve the new Chair and Vice-Chair.
Biography, Incoming Chair
Mrs Roslyn Morauta In May 2019, he became the Vice Chairman of the Global Fund Board of Directors.
She has lived and worked in Papua New Guinea since 1982. Before that, she worked in publishing in the UK, taught political science at universities in Ghana and Australia, and was an Australian civil servant.
In Papua New Guinea, she has worked in the National Planning Office and the Ministry of Finance (through the United Nations Development Programme), consultancy management at Coopers & Lybrand and is now a manager of Morauta family business interests.
As First Lady of Papua New Guinea from 1999 to 2002, she advocated for health, HIV and gender issues and has continued this work since.
Ms Morauta has a longstanding association with the Global Fund, having previously served as an Alternate Board Member for the Western Pacific Regional Constituency and Chair of the Papua New Guinea National Coordinating Mechanism. Her role in the CCM has given her an in-depth understanding of the Global Fund’s strategy and processes, the work of the Secretariat, and the practical implementation of grants at the country level.
She also serves on the boards of the Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance (APLMA), Anglicare (PNG) and Friends of Pacific Global Health. Other board and committee members include the Papua New Guinea National AIDS Council, the Asia Pacific HIV/AIDS Leadership Forum and the Papua New Guinea Civil Society Organization Coalition to Fight HIV/AIDS.
Biography, Incoming Vice Chair
Beans Galvanas Careers have spanned a wide range of senior leadership roles in Namibia, Africa and internationally.
A lawyer by training, she worked as a Public Service Commissioner and was Namibia’s first female Ombudsman post-independence and was subsequently appointed by the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and Government as the first Commissioner for Social Affairs. She was most recently UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Advisor for Africa, after serving as Special Advisor to the Minister of Health and Social Services and Minister of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare of Namibia.
Bience Gawanas has been invited to serve on various public and private boards, working groups and committees, including as a member of the Global Readiness Monitoring Board. She is also currently a member of the IPPF Board of Directors, Chair of the Board’s Anti-Racism Subcommittee and a Board member of the European Center for Development and Policy Management (ECDPM).
Throughout her career, Bience Gawanas has advocated for the rights of marginalized populations and has been a vocal advocate for social justice and global public health, including the rights of women and children. Among other honors, she was named one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New Africa publication and received the IPPF Award for Most Outstanding Contribution to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights.
Bience Gawanas holds an LLB Honors degree from the University of Warwick and a Barrister’s degree from the Institute of Legal Education Law School/Lincoln’s Inn. She also holds an Executive MBA from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of the Western Cape. She was called to the English Bar and admitted to the High Court of Namibia.
