Our team

Meet the MVP core team: A variety of age groups and cultural backgrounds, and some 15 nationalities

MVP is a partnership between PATH and WHO. Most team members are located at the PATH office in Ferney-Voltaire, France; at the WHO office in Geneva, Switzerland; and at the WHO Intercountry Support Team (IST) office in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

The director

The team

The director

F. Marc LaForce, MD
Project Director, PATH

Marc LaForce joined the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP) as director in August 2001. He earned his doctor of medicine degree from Seton Hall College of Medicine and Dentistry, N.J., and completed his internal medicine and infectious disease training on the Harvard Service at Boston City Hospital. He is board-certified in internal medicine and infectious diseases and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Marc LaForce has held research and academic positions at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. He served as Epidemic Intelligence Service officer in the Meningitis and Special Pathogen units at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and on immunization advisory committees for the CDC and the American College of Physicians. From 1994 to 2001 he led the Steering Committee on Epidemiology and Field Research for the World Health Organization's vaccine cluster, and from 1998 to 2001 he was president of the Armed Forces Epidemiological Board.

Marc LaForce has published over 150 papers and book chapters in the areas of pulmonary defense mechanisms, clinical infectious diseases, epidemiology, and vaccinology.

The team

Teresa Aguado, PhD
Coordinator for MVP, WHO

Teresa Aguado is coordinator of vaccine product research and development within the WHO Initiative for Vaccine Research (IVR), and she serves as WHO coordinator for MVP. Before joining WHO in 1988, she conducted research for 11 years on autoimmune diseases and immunological tolerance at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and in the United States at both the University of Washington in Seattle and at the Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation in San Diego, California. She joined WHO to manage a committee on New Vaccination Approaches and from 1999 to 2001 was coordinator of the Vaccine Development Team. As this team grew in importance and visibility, she assisted with the development of, and ensured the transition to the present structure, IVR, which currently undertakes all vaccine research and development activities in WHO, including on tropical diseases and AIDS. Teresa Aguado is a biologist and pharmacist, with a PhD in immunology from the University of Barcelona, Spain.

Rodrigue Barry, BA
Advocacy Officer, WHO/AFRO

Rodrigue Barry joined MVP in May 2005 to develop advocacy and social mobilization activities in Africa. A trained journalist with more than 15 years of experience in the field of health communication, he is based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, where he most recently served as health information and promotion officer at the WHO country office. Previous experience includes news anchor (1987–1988), health reporter (1988–1992), and editor-in-chief (1992–1997) at the National Television of Burkina; and director of the Burkinabè National Broadcasting Company (1997–2000). Rodrigue Barry received a BA in journalism from the Center for Information Science and Technologies at Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar, Senegal, and postgraduate training in digital media technologies at the International Institute for Communication in Montréal, Canada, and at the Centre Transméditerranéen de la Communication in Marseille, France. He specialized in health communication and advocacy at Aboney Calavi University in Benin.

Monique Berlier, PhD, MA
Head of Communications, PATH

Monique Berlier is responsible for coordinating, leading, and implementing communication strategies for MVP. Her expertise lies in print journalism and in intercultural and visual communication. Prior to joining MVP in June 2002, she taught journalism at the University of Iowa and worked as an editor-in-chief for Le Soleil de la Floride in Hollywood, Florida, and as an editor at the Center for International and Comparative Studies at the University of Iowa. She holds two graduate degrees in communication, including an MA from the University of Louisiana and a PhD in mass communication from the University of Iowa. She earned her BA in Germanic philology from the Catholic University of Louvain in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.

Enricke Bouma, MA
Project Assistant, PATH

Enricke Bouma joined MVP in May 2008. She is based in Ferney-Voltaire and provides administrative support to the MVP team. Before joining the project she worked as a freelance translator (Dutch and French to English), editor, and international conference reporter in Geneva. She has also worked as a research assistant with various non-governmental organizations and as a teacher in adult language education in London, United Kingdom. She holds a BA and an MA in modern history and politics from the University of London; an LLB law degree from the London School of Economics; and a BA in translation from ITV Hogeschool in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Enricke is bilingual in English and Dutch, and she is fluent in French.

Julie Chaumont, MSc
Clinical Research Associate, PATH

Julie Chaumont joined MVP in May 2007. She is responsible for assisting with aspects of clinical operations related to the MVP clinical trials in Africa. She contributes to the site selection process and to the clinical protocols; she defines, coordinates, and monitors local training at the clinical trial sites; and she acts as the MVP contact person with contract research organizations. Prior to joining MVP Julie worked as a clinical research associate for several organizations coordinating clinical studies in the fields of oncology, infectious diseases, dermatology, and cardiology. Her past international experience includes participation in training courses in the United States; site selection in Italy, Spain, and Sweden; and coordination of clinical trials in Belgium and the United Kingdom. In addition to her clinical research positions, she has experience in the field of information technology as a product developer and trainer. Julie Chaumont has an MSc degree in molecular biology and biochemistry from Rennes University and a degree in computer technology from Nancy University, France.

Mamoudou Harouna Djingarey, MD, MPH
Epidemiologist, WHO/AFRO 

Mamoudou Djingarey has been in charge of the epidemiology unit at the WHO Intercountry Support Team (IST) office (formerly Multi-Disease Surveillance Center [MDSC]) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, since March 2002. He designs and conducts applied research aimed at enhancing integrated meningococcal disease surveillance and response implementation in meningitis belt countries. Before joining MVP in April 2004, Mamoudou Djingarey served as an intercountry epidemiologist, also at the MDSC, where he supported the implementation of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Guinea, and Mali. Earlier positions include medical officer and director of the national health information system for the Ministry of Health in Niger. Mamoudou Djingarey also provides training to health personnel involved in epidemiology, operational research, epidemic disease management, immunization, and health communication and education. He earned his MD from the University of Abdou Moumouni in Niamey, Niger, and his MPH from the University of California in Los Angeles.

Godwin Enwere, MD
Pharmacovigilance Officer, PATH

Godwin Enwere manages the pharmacovigilance activities for the clinical trials included in the MVP clinical development plan. He also helps with coordinating clinical trial database management and procedures for database lock. Prior to joining MVP at PATH he worked at the World Health Organization in Geneva as a clinical trials expert and was project manager on a multination cholera project. As a consultant to MVP, he was also responsible for pharmacovigilance activities and the development of risk management plans. Godwin Enwere worked for several years at the Medical Research Council Laboratories in The Gambia, where he was involved in several clinical trials as principal investigator and clinical coordinator. Godwin Enwere trained as a paediatrician in Nigeria and is a fellow of the West African College of Physicians. He did further postgraduate training at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He is Nigerian and speaks English and Ibo.

Jacques Hervé, MSc
Clinical Operations Manager, PATH

Jacques Hervé joined MVP in July 2009. He is responsible for clinical operations related to the MVP clinical studies in Africa and India, coordinating site selection and management of contract research organizations and activities of clinical research associates. He is also closely involved in the preparation of all clinical trial documents. Jacques Hervé comes to PATH with over 13 years of experience in clinical trials, most recently at ORION Clinical Services in Melbourne, Australia. Before joining ORION, he worked for Sanofi-Synthelabo and Bristol Myers Squibb, both in Paris, France. He has worked as a monitor and project manager of clinical trials in a wide range of fields, including oncology, HIV, urology, dermatology, and childhood vaccines. He received a BSc in animal physiology and an MSc in drug development, both from the University of Rennes, France.

Karen Ivinson, MSc
Clinical Research Associate, PATH

Karen Ivinson joined MVP in December 2009 and is responsible for assisting with the clinical operations aspects related to the MVP clinical trial in Ghana. She defines, coordinates, and monitors local training at the clinical trial site, and she acts as the MVP contact person with contract research organizations. Before joining MVP, Karen Ivinson worked in Australia and the United Kingdom on many international clinical trials, as a clinical team lead and clinical research associate, coordinating and monitoring studies in the fields of pediatric vaccines, infectious diseases, neurology, and nephrology. Prior to her clinical research positions, Karen worked at a biotechnology company based in the United Kingdom in preclinical research and development of recombinant therapeutic vaccines, and as a research assistant in the field of infectious diseases. Karen Ivinson has a MSc in microbiology and immunology from Melbourne University, Australia.

Denis Kandolo, PhD
Surveillance Officer, WHO/AFRO

Denis Kandolo is based at the WHO Intercountry Support Team (IST) office (formerly Multi-Disease Surveillance Center [MDSC]) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, where he supervises meningitis epidemic surveillance in 14 countries of the African meningitis belt. He has over 25 years of experience in laboratory management, having held several directorships, including general director, at the Institut Supérieur des Techniques Médicales in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Prior to joining MVP, he worked at WHO/AFRO in Kinshasa where he was program leader in charge of public health laboratories and traditional medicine. In this capacity, he developed and implemented a rehabilitation plan for provincial laboratories in DRC, established a control and quality plan for laboratory activities, and evaluated existing surveillance systems in four African countries. Denis Kandolo earned his degree in laboratory techniques from the Institut Supérieur de Techniques Médicales in Kinshasa, DRC, and his BSc in biomedical technology and his PhD in microbiology from the Catholic University of Louvain in Brussels, Belgium.

Kim Kertson, MBA
Project Administrator, PATH

Kim Kertson is the project administrator for pharmaceutical, clinical, and regulatory activities within MVP. She oversees the administrative, financial, contractual, and logistical requirements of the project and provides support to the clinical team. She joined the MVP team in Ferney-Voltaire in April 2006, coming from PATH's Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition Strategic Program in Seattle, where she had worked since 2000. Prior to joining PATH Kim Kertson worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development, as both a program officer and a project officer, first in Washington, DC, then in Egypt and Sri Lanka. She has expertise in strategic planning, program budgeting, and project evaluation. Previous positions include executive director of a shelter for battered women and director of a child abuse prevention agency. Kim Kertson holds a BA in economics and an MBA in international management from the American Graduate School of International Management in Glendale, Arizona.

Marie-Paule Kieny, PhD
Senior Advisor for MVP, WHO

Marie-Paule Kieny is the director of the WHO Initiative for Vaccine Research (IVR), a position she has held since 2001. The IVR conducts and coordinates activities related to product research and development and implementation research for vaccines and delivery devices. Marie-Paule Kieny has a distinguished career in vaccine research and development. She worked as assistant scientific director of Transgene S.A., where she managed several human and veterinary vaccine projects, including the development of a recombinant rabies vaccine. She earned a PhD from the Montpellier Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Agronomie. She has received several scientific awards and was conferred the title of Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite by the French Ministry of Research in 2000. She is the author of over 150 articles and reviews, mainly in the areas of infectious diseases, immunology, and vaccinology.

Clément Lingani, MSc, BSN
Data Manager, WHO/AFRO

Clément Lingani has over 25 years of experience in epidemiology and data management and has been data manager for MVP since 2003 when he joined the MVP team at the WHO Multi-Disease Surveillance Center (now WHO/AFRO Intercountry Support Team [IST]) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Clément Lingani has university diplomas in epidemiology, data management/cartography, and statistical analysis, in addition to certificates in community public health and primary healthcare. He received the advanced health technician diploma from the National School of Public Health in Burkina Faso and was a consultant for the polio and measles national immunization days campaigns. Previously he contributed to the development and integration of a national surveillance system into the Burkina Faso Ministry of Health. He has also been a data manager in the epidemic surveillance unit and the AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases surveillance service in Burkina Faso. He is experienced at conducting trainings and developing training materials in epidemiology and data management. Clément Lingani has studied and worked in Angola, Belgium, Canada, France, and Mali.

Marie-Françoise Makadi, BA
Clinical Assistant, PATH

Marie-Françoise Makadi provides administrative support to the MVP clinical team including document preparation for ethical review, clinical filing, and meeting coordination. Prior to joining MVP in October 2007 she spent several years at the WHO Initiative for Vaccine Research group, providing administrative and travel planning support and meeting coordination. She has also worked with the World Intellectual Property Organization, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and the International Computing Centre of the United Nations. Marie-Françoise Makadi has a keen interest in clinical research and was a member of the WHO Ethics Review Committee for three years. She completed two web-based courses on clinical research and basic health research ethics. She received a BA in history and geography from the University of Lyon, France.

Lionel Martellet, MA
Clinical Research Associate, PATH

Lionel Martellet joined MVP in December 2005 to provide administrative support to the MVP clinical team. Since December 2006, he has worked on the clinical operations aspect of MVP clinical trials in Africa and India. He contributes to the development of clinical protocols and study guidelines, trial site selection, and site training process. He manages activities with contract research organizations and the clinical sites. Prior to joining MVP, he worked for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in a technical and administrative support role for regional workshops in Africa and Asia on issues of trade, development, and competition. He has also worked for the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research. Lionel Martellet has an MA in international relations from Sussex University, United Kingdom, and a BA in business administration from Temple University in Philadelphia. He is fluent in French and English and is currently learning Mandarin Chinese.

Colleen Ottoson, JD, MPH
Senior Counsel, Legal Affairs, PATH

Colleen Ottoson drafts and negotiates agreements for MVP. She has worked for PATH since March 2001, and she joined MVP in August 2002. Prior to her employment with PATH, she served as in-house counsel to the United States Pharmacopeia and a health maintenance organization, where she specialized in transactional law and health law. She has a JD from the University of Maryland, an MPH from Johns Hopkins, and a BA in psychobiology from Oberlin College.

William A. Perea, MD, MPH
Epidemiological Officer/Project Leader, WHO

William Perea is project leader in the WHO Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response division and responsible for implementing enhanced meningococcal disease surveillance activities in the African meningitis belt. He has worked in public health for the past 25 years in Nicaragua (Centers for Disease Control), France (Epicentre, WHO Collaborating Center), Cambodia (AEDES/UNICEF), New Caledonia (New Caledonia AIDS Committee), Colombia (Territorial Health Direction), Malawi, and Sudan (Médecins Sans Frontières). His areas of expertise include project management, operational research, epidemiology of communicable and tropical diseases, epidemiological surveillance, and emergency preparedness and response. He received his MD from the Universidad del Rosario in Bogota, Columbia, and a master of public health and tropical medicine from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. He also earned a certificate in applied epidemiology from the Institut pour le Développement de l'Epidémiologie Appliquée and the Centers for Disease Control at Veyrier-du-Lac in Haute-Savoie, France.

Jean-Marie Préaud, MSc
Senior Technical Officer for Pharmaceutical Operations, PATH

Jean-Marie Préaud has more than 30 years of experience in veterinary and human vaccines. Prior to joining MVP in March 2003, he served as general manager of the Vaccine Center of Shire Biologics in Sainte-Foy, Québec, Canada, where he was responsible for material and human resources management, production, engineering, and industrial development. Other employment includes several positions at Virbac and Rhône Mérieux, two French manufacturers of pharmaceutical and biological products for veterinary use. Jean-Marie Préaud has worked on technology transfer projects in Spain, Poland, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, China, Australia, the United States, and India. He received a DEUG in chemistry and biology and a certificate in structural and metabolic biochemistry from the Faculté des Sciences in Nantes, France. He completed his engineering degree in biology at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Biologie Appliquée à la Nutrition et à l'Alimentation (ENSBANA) at the University of Dijon, France.

Marie-Pierre Préziosi, MD, PhD
Director of Clinical Development, WHO

Marie-Pierre Préziosi joined MVP at PATH in April 2006, and she leads the clinical development of the meningococcal monovalent A conjugate vaccine. She had joined MVP at the WHO in June 2003 when she contributed to documentation of the expected benefits from widespread vaccination with a monovalent A conjugate vaccine. She came from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta, where she conducted research on the effects of pertussis vaccination. A former epidemiologist at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, she spent several years in Senegal conducting pertussis vaccine trials. Her interest in vaccines started with clinical studies of a Hib conjugate vaccine at Pasteur Mérieux (France). Marie-Pierre Préziosi earned her medical degree from Université Claude Bernard in Lyon and her PhD in epidemiology from Université Victor Segalen in Bordeaux. She trained in tropical medicine at the Institut de Médecine Tropicale Prince Léopold in Antwerp (Belgium) and in field epidemiology at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Muriel Socquet, BTS
Project Administrator, PATH

Muriel Socquet joined PATH in November 2001, and she has been the project administrator for pharmaceutical and regulatory activities within MVP since October 2007. Her activities include overseeing the administrative, financial, contractual, and logistical requirements of the project as well as the project strategy coordination and implementation. Muriel Socquet has a background in marketing, market research, and administration and has worked in the private sector both in France and the United States, where she helped develop the business department of a Paris-based international company. She received a BTS in business from the Lycée St Joseph in Sallanches, France, and studied international business and finance at the University of Connecticut.

Gillian Stevens
Project Administrator, PATH

Gillian Stevens joined MVP in 2006 and is an administrator for the project. Her responsibilities include overseeing the administrative, financial, and contractual requirements for communications, clinical serology, and disease surveillance activities. Prior to joining MVP, she worked as a product development manager within the U.K. dairy sector and in New Zealand as operations manager for a food processing manufacturer. In addition she has worked as an English teacher for business clients in Geneva, Switzerland, where she was also responsible for designing English courses. Gillian Stevens holds a Higher National Diploma in food technology and a Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults.

Yuxiao Tang, PhD, MSc
Biostatistician, PATH

Yuxiao (YiJia) Tang joined MVP in August 2007 when she started to work for PATH. She is responsible for reviewing statistical analysis plans, clinical statistical data, and clinical statistical reports. Prior to joining PATH, she was a faculty member and statistician at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois, where she collaborated with a multidisciplinary team of researchers at Rush Institute for Healthy Aging, Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center, and Department of Internal Medicine of Rush Medical College. Before that, she served as a faculty member at Shenyang Architectural and Civil Engineering Institute in China. Yijia Tang received her BSc and MSc in mathematical statistics from Nankai University in Tianjin, China, and she has a PhD in statistics from the Ohio State University, in Columbus, Ohio.

Carol Tevi-Benissan, PhD, MD
Technical Officer for Resource Mobilization, WHO

Carol Tevi-Benisan is MVP's principal focal point within WHO HQ for all questions related to the introduction of the meningococcal A conjugate vaccine. She liaises with WHO AFRO and other regional and country-level partners to facilitate vaccine introduction in Africa, and she leads the resource mobilization efforts on behalf of MVP. In that role, she identifies potential donors, nurtures relationships with current and future donors, and supports country authorities in the meningitis belt in mobilizing resources for the cofinancing of the project. Before joining WHO in 2008 she managed a number of projects strengthening the public health sector in Africa. Prior to that, she was the technical advisor for HIV projects in several African countries. Carol Tevi-Benissan earned her doctor of medicine degree and her PhD in public health from Université Paris VI in France, and she received additional postgraduate training in tropical microbiology and virology at Institut Pasteur and Université Pierre and Marie Curie, respectively. She has worked and lived in France, Gabon, Spain, Switzerland, and the Unites States, while short-term work assignments have taken her to more than 15 countries worldwide. She comes from Togo and speaks English, French, and Mina fluently.

Fabien Veh Kessé Diomandé, MD, MSc
Vaccine Introduction Consultant, WHO

A public health physician with many years of experience working in the public health sector at local, national, and international levels, Fabien Diomandé joined MVP in November 2007 as a consultant for the introduction of the meningococcal A conjugate vaccine. He has experience as an HIV/AIDS specialist and technical advisor for the Global AIDS Program, Côte d’Ivoire; as a medical officer/EPI technical officer for WHO in Nigeria; and as an EPI technical officer for WHO in Niger. Fabien Diomandé has also participated in several exchange fellowships and research programs in the United States, Belgium, and Côte d’Ivoire. He has a doctorate in medicine from the School of Medicine, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, and an MSc in disease control from Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium. In 2006 he won the Stephen R. Preblud "Excellence in Science" Award, and in 2004 he won the Charles C. Shepard Science Award for "Outstanding Scientific Contribution to Public Health."

Simonetta Viviani, MD
Director of Vaccine Development, MVP

Simonetta Viviani has managed the pharmaceutical, clinical, and regulatory activities for MVP since March 2005. She brings extensive experience in public health, clinical research, and vaccine development to the project after having served as clinical research and medical affairs manager for combined pediatric vaccines at Berna Biotech in Bern, Switzerland, and as medical director at Etna Biotech (Berna Biotech Group) in Catania, Italy. From 1997 to 2002, she was associate director of the clinical research department at Chiron Vaccines in Siena, Italy, where she was in charge of Hib, Hib combined, and meningococcal conjugate vaccines. From 1995 to 1997 she worked for the International Agency for Research on Cancer (a WHO project) as an epidemiologist attached to The Gambia Hepatitis Intervention Study. She has been a consultant in public health and epidemiology for the Department of Public Health in Florence, Italy, and has collaborated with the Istituto Superiore di Sanità on surveillance of communicable diseases. Simonetta Viviani received a medicine and surgery degree from Siena University as well as postgraduate degrees in public health and laboratory science. She also holds a two-year postgraduate training degree in field epidemiology from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Istituto Superiore di Sanità. She has published several articles in the field of epidemiology and vaccinology.