The Secretariat
The Secretariat, housed at the World Bank, is led by Priya Basu, the Executive Head, and provides program management and administration services, including support to the Governing Board in the delivery of its responsibilities. The Secretariat manages day-to-day operations, prepares policies and procedures, and manages partner relations and stakeholder engagement. It is comprised of a small team of professional and administrative staff employed by the World Bank or seconded to the World Bank from the WHO.
Priya Basu was appointed as the inaugural Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund at the World Bank in September 2022. During the pandemic she led the Multilateral Leaders Task Force on COVID-19 to address key bottlenecks in vaccine access and delivery, as well as the Bank’s engagement on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response with the G20 and G7 - coordinating across finance and health. She also led the development of the Pandemic Fund, working with a large group of donors and development partners, the WHO, and other stakeholders, including international agencies, philanthropies, private sector, and civil society, mobilizing political and financial support to establish the fund in record time with initial seed capital of $2 billion.
In previous roles at the World Bank, Priya led the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, a multi-donor partnership focused on women's economic empowerment. Prior to that, she managed the World Bank’s $21 billion portfolio of multilateral financing mechanisms and trust funds to address global challenges, such as epidemics and pandemics, climate change, and refugee crises. She also previously served as the Bank's lead financial economist for India, where she led the Bank’s engagement to promote resilient and inclusive financial systems and enabling reforms for private sector-led growth. Priya grew the Bank’s India finance and private sector lending/advisory portfolio from $500 million to over $5.5 billion and oversaw the portfolio.
Prior to the World Bank, Priya worked as an economist at the International Monetary Fund in Washington DC, the Asian Development Bank in Manila, and UNCTAD and International Labour Organization in Geneva. Before that, she worked in investment banking in London.
In a career spanning three decades, Priya has successfully managed complex engagements across regions to solve country-level development challenges as well as developed and managed high-level strategic international partnerships with donors, client governments, international organizations, and other stakeholders to address global development challenges, particularly at the intersection of global health and international finance and mobilized resources to back these initiatives.
Priya brings thought leadership on a variety of international development issues and a deep understanding of development cooperation. She is the author of three books, including Creating Resilient Financial Regimes in Asia: Challenges and Policy Options (Oxford University Press), India’s Financial Sector: Recent Reforms, Future Challenges (Macmillan), and Improving Access to Finance in India (World Bank).
Priya holds a first class B.A (Hons.) degree in Economics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, a B.A (Hons.)/M.A in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics and postgraduate degrees in development economics from Merton College, Oxford University, U.K.
Alejandra works closely with the Pandemic Fund Governing Board Members and Technical Advisory Panel Experts, by providing day-to-day operational support. In addition, she oversees the Secretariat’s budget and office management. She has managed several projects, including the organization of the in-person Governing Board Retreat, the 2023 World Bank-International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings and World Health Assembly side-events and, the high-level event at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City and the in-person Eight Governing Board Meeting in Marrakech, in September and October 2023, respectively.
Alejandra has worked in the World Bank Mexico and Colombia Country Management Unit, the Office of the Senior Vice President of Development Economics and World Bank Group Chief Economist, and the Office of the President.
Before joining the World Bank, Alejandra started her professional career in the private sector as an Intellectual Property Rights Specialist, filing and prosecuting patent and trademark applications worldwide, including PCT applications before the World Intellectual Property Organization. Alejandra is a Mexican national and holds a B.A. in International Relations from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México, and a MSc in Development Economics from the University of Manchester.
Anita leads all external communications efforts (including web and social media), with an objective to position the Pandemic Fund, increase its visibility, and disseminate results. This includes content creation, media and social media engagement, branding, and reputational risk management. Since joining the Secretariat in April 2023, Anita has organized high-level events at the World Health Assembly, United Nations General Assembly, World Bank-International Monetary Fund Annual Meetings, created content for the existing Pandemic Fund website, and relaunched the Pandemic Fund Twitter account. She is currently leading the development of a new external website, and planning for upcoming global events such as COP28.
Anita brings over 15 years of experience in designing and implementing communications strategies for the World Bank and International Finance Corporation, working across different sectors and regions; and focusing on advocacy, media relations, campaigns, reputational risk management, and stakeholder engagement. Previously she led communications for the Energy & Extractives Global Practice.
Before joining the World Bank in 2009, Anita worked at a Washington political consulting firm, Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research. A Polish national, Anita holds a M.A. degree in Italian Literature from Warsaw University.
Dr. Dalia Samhouri is a highly esteemed public health expert boasting over two decades of extensive experience across diverse domains of health emergency preparedness, readiness, and response. Recently appointed as the Lead Health Specialist for the Pandemic Fund, following her secondment from the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Samhouri brings forth her wealth of expertise to tackle global health challenges.
In her previous role, Dr. Samhouri held the position of Regional Manager of Health Emergency Preparedness and International Health Regulations at the WHO Office for the Eastern Mediterranean Region. There, she led the development and execution of comprehensive health security preparedness strategies, focusing on all-hazard preparedness, disaster risk reduction, emergency care systems, and community engagement. Dr. Samhouri played a pivotal role in orchestrating responses to health emergencies, taking the lead role in the areas of international travel and cross border collaboration, deploying social listening for collecting behavioural insights to inform public health interventions, trauma care and deploying emergency medical teams and ensuring the utilization of emergency operation centres to coordinate the response operations.
Prior to this, Dr. Samhouri undertook various responsibilities at the WHO regional office, including the monitoring and evaluation of International Health Regulations and providing support for risk assessment, preparedness, and response to major public health events such as the Zika outbreak (PHEIC, 2015-16), Ebola outbreak (PHEIC, 2014-15), MERS-CoV (2012-2016), cholera outbreaks in various countries, influenza, dengue, Congo Hemorrhagic Fever, and chemical weapon attacks. She also contributed significantly to the establishment and strengthening of disease surveillance systems, with a focus on influenza, and the development of pandemic influenza vaccine deployment plans.
Before her tenure at the WHO Regional Office, Dr. Samhouri served in the WHO Country Office for the West Bank and Gaza, showcasing her versatility by coordinating humanitarian activities, ensuring continuity of health services, and enhancing preparedness and response capacities to emergencies. Prior to joining the WHO, Dr. Samhouri worked as a medical laboratory technician and was involved in various public health projects in Gaza Strip.
Throughout her distinguished career, Dr. Samhouri has exhibited exceptional leadership, advocacy, and policy dialogue skills, particularly in advancing health-related Sustainable Development Goals and designing multisectoral public health programs. She possesses extensive experience in managing complex issues, leading capacity-building initiatives, and fostering strategic partnerships to mobilize resources and achieve tangible results in health security, One Health, risk communication, and management of health emergencies.
Dr. Samhouri is renowned for her adeptness as a team builder and player, navigating culturally diverse and sensitive environments with strong analytical and communication skills. She holds a PhD in Biomedical Science with a major in Global Health from the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and a Master's degree in Public Health with a focus on Epidemiology and Biostatistics from Tulane University, USA, with a track record of publications. Currently pursuing a post-doctorate diploma in travel medicine from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, Dr. Samhouri continues to make significant contributions to the advancement of global public health.
Katherine works on developing and running Calls for Proposals, supporting program and portfolio management, and overseeing the process to accredit Implementing Entities of the Pandemic Fund.
Katherine has been involved with the Pandemic Fund since its establishment in September 2022, when she was working in the World Bank’s Health-Nutrition-Population (HNP) Western & Central Africa team. Prior to joining the World Bank, Katherine worked for Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance in Geneva, Switzerland. First, she worked in the Risk Team within the Executive Office and then she worked directly for the Director of Country Support, providing cross-cutting support to the Routine Immunization portfolio. She was also involved in the early COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to countries through COVAX.
Before joining Gavi, Katherine worked as a strategy consultant for Boston Consulting Group (BCG) based in Johannesburg, South Africa, working across the African continent on projects with public sector and financial institutions. Earlier in her career she worked as a consultant for the African Development Bank in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire and for Kaiser Economic Development Partners in Cape Town, South Africa. She also completed a fellowship with the Tony Elumelu Foundation in Lagos, Nigeria. Katherine is a U.S. national. She holds an MBA from Johns Hopkins University in Finance and Healthcare Management.
Mouna Couzi joined the Pandemic Fund in May 2024 as Operations Officer working on management of calls for proposals/funding rounds, portfolio management and progress reporting, as well as coordinating with Implementing Entities and overseeing the process to accredit potential Implementing Entities of the Pandemic Fund.
Prior to this, Mouna was the Head of Lebanon Operations, World Bank, based in Beirut and Program Manager of two Multi-Donor Trust Funds, the Lebanon Financing Facility for Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction, and the Lebanon Syrian Crisis Trust Fund. Prior to joining the Bank in January 2000, she worked for 5 years in the Treasury and Financial Department of Solidere, the Lebanese company in charge of the reconstruction and development of Beirut Central District following the end of the country’s civil war in 1990. From 1992 to 1995, she held two positions in Lafferty Group, a major provider of advisory and knowledge services to the banking industry worldwide, namely Public Relations Manager, based in London, and Business Development Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Region, based in Dublin. From 1988 to 1993, she worked in DCC Plc, a venture capital and corporate finance company, also based in Dublin.
Ms. Couzi holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) from University College Dublin, an Advanced Diploma in Financial Services from the Institute of Commercial Management in the UK, and a Master’s Degree in Public Governance in the Euro-Arab Region from Universidad de Granada.
Nicola Stellino joined the Pandemic Fund Secretariat in May 2023 as a consultant, responsible for supporting the 1st Call for Proposals and, as of March 2024, he covers the position of Junior Professional Associate. His current duties are to provide support and expertise to the Health Technical and Monitoring and Evaluation workstream of the Secretariat.
In previous roles, Nicola worked at the Dutch Economic Research Center in the Competition Secretariat, where he studied new and innovative models to make economic and political predictions.
Moreover, he was also employed at the Dutch Healthcare Authority (branch of the Dutch Ministry of Health) where he worked in collaboration with the long-term care, and the risk adjustment Secretariats to research possible reforms to improve the Dutch long-term care system.
An Italian national, Nicola holds a B.A. in International Business Administration and a MSc in Economics from the University of Tilburg in The Netherlands.
Nicolas Isla, a microbiologist with an MSc in Technology and Innovation Management from the University of Sussex. Over the span of 15 years, he has dedicated his career to the field of global health security and public health preparedness and response. His extensive experience in WHO spans a number of areas. He was technical lead for health preparedness at major events like the FIFA World Cup and Olympics, as well as various sporting, religious, and cultural gatherings. Cementing the need for multisectoral collaboration.
He has also operated at the nexus of health and security; Nicolas has concentrated on preparing for and responding to deliberate caused health threats. He has collaborated with international organizations such as the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, and Interpol. At the WHO HQ, he served as the focal point for alert and response under the International Health Regulations (IHR).
During the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, Nicolas led WHO's operational efforts, overseeing readiness initiatives in high-risk countries and leading missions to more than 15 countries and deploying more than 500 individuals. He also led WHO's work on developing a toolkit for after-action reviews within the framework of IHR monitoring and evaluation in 2016.
In March 2018, Nicolas transitioned to the role of Team Lead for Capacity Monitoring and Evaluation within the WHO Health Emergency Programme at the WHO Regional Office for Europe. His team focused on assisting Member States in implementing comprehensive assessments for IHR core capacity building, including State Party Annual Reports, Joint External Evaluations, simulation exercises, and incident reviews. Nicolas facilitated the development and endorsement of national action plans for health security across WHO European Member States, with the goal of securing sustainable funding for prevention, preparedness, and response to health emergencies across sectors and partners.
Nicolas Isla is a Senior Health Specialist in the Pandemic Fund Secretariat coordinating and working primarily with the Pandemic Fund Technical Advisory Panel.
Samuel Mills, MD DrPH, joined the Health Nutrition & Population Global Practice, World Bank Group (WBG) in 2004 initially as a Reproductive Health Specialist. He led the results monitoring of the Global Practice for over a decade and organized quality enhancement reviews of new health projects in all regions. He led the development of the interagency multisectoral 2015–2024 Global Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Scaling up Investment Plan and the development of the 21st-century CRVS e-Learning course which is delivered as part of the WBG Open Learning Campus and has been taken by over 7,000 people from about 140 countries. He was the Task Team leader of the transformative project that has helped to revamp the health sector in The Gambia.
Selomé brings extensive experience in administration and office management from her previous roles at the Front Office of the Global Partnership for Education of the World Bank, the United Nations, and the African Union Commission.
Selomé is a native of Ethiopia, has excellent command of both English and French, and holds an associate degree from Addis Ababa University School of Commerce and Certificates from Uhuru Institute of Management Training in Cape Town and Richland College in Texas.
