Prof. Pedro L. Alonso, M.D., Ph.D., joined BioNTech in 2023 as Senior Vice President Science and Medicine and Head of the Global Health Office (GHO). Together with his team, he catalyzes and supports BioNTech’s efforts to apply innovative science in vaccinology to address some of the largest unmet global public health needs, particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. The vision of the GHO is to achieve impact and promote health equity.
Pedro Alonso is a Professor of Global Health at the Faculty of Medicine and Hospital Clinic at the University of Barcelona. Prior to joining BioNTech, he was Director of the Global Malaria Programme at the World Health Organization’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. He was the founding director of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGLOBAL) in 2010 and of the Manhica Health Research Centre (CISM) in Mozambique in 1996.
Pedro Alonso is a physician and infectious disease epidemiologist with over 30 years experience in global health and has lived and worked in West-, East-, and Southern Africa, aiming to strengthen research capacities and conducting research into the continent’s leading causes of disease and death. He has helped develop improved diagnostic, treatment, and prevention strategies, including vaccines. Additionally, he has overseen more than 20 Ph.D. theses and published over 500 papers in international journals.
He has received several awards including the Ross Medal (University of London) and the Carlos IV award (Spanish Royal Academy of Medicine). Pedro Alonso is an international Honorary Fellow of the ASTMH (The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene) and of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine.