Kundai Chinyenze | Strategic Partnerships and Regional Director
IAVI

Dr. Kundai Chinyenze is a physician with over 23 years of experience in vaccine and biomedical prevention research and development (R&D), as well as in strengthening R&D and healthcare delivery capacity across East and Southern Africa. She currently serves as Strategic Partnerships and Regional Director at IAVI, leading efforts to develop affordable, globally accessible vaccine candidates and other prophylactic biomedical interventions. Dr. Chinyenze previously led IAVI's ADVANCE program, a multi-stakeholder, multi-sectoral initiative aimed at accelerating HIV prevention research outcomes and maximizing global health impact. Her clinical research expertise spans the design and implementation of clinical trials for candidate vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, and microbicides. Throughout her career, Dr. Chinyenze has directed regional programs in collaboration with academic institutions, non-governmental organizations, private sector partners, healthcare providers, and policymakers. She has also engaged extensively with global health bodies such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNAIDS, serving on various expert working groups. Before joining IAVI, Dr. Chinyenze contributed to pioneering HIV/AIDS care efforts in Zimbabwe. As a Government Medical Officer, she was instrumental in establishing the first antiretroviral therapy (ART) clinic at the country’s largest referral hospital and played a key role in the national rollout of ART services.