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Dr. Josea Rono

Co-founder and Managing Partner, E&K Consulting Firm

Dr. Rono is a Co-founder and Managing Partner at E&K Consulting Firm a pan-African advisory and investment firm providing turnkey solutions in the healthcare, finance and technology sectors. Through E&K Consulting Firm, Dr. Rono has advised on healthcare transactions worth over US$ 20 Billion in the global pharmaceutical industry; developed strategies for healthcare businesses worth over US$160 Million; and led several health programs on behalf of over 100 unique clients in over 20 countries in Africa, Europe and the Americas. Dr. Rono’s work experience and advisory work spans the public, private, not-for-profit, international development and academic sectors in Anglophone and Francophone Africa, Europe and America. Beyond his role at E&K Consulting Firm, Dr. Rono is a co-founder and convenor of The Health Exchange (HealthX) which is a pan-African innovation dialogue platform that convenes stakeholders in the health and technology sectors to surface and discuss emerging and current health topics in the continent. HealthX not only bridges the industry-academia gaps but also brings together investors (e.g. private equity firms) and entreprenuers thus creating a pipeline of investments in the healthcare, finance and technology sector in Africa. Dr. Josea Rono is a Karolinska Institute Global Health PhD graduate, a World Bank Health Financing Consultant, a Wellcome Trust (UK) and a Swedish Institute (Sweden) Fellow. He is a recognized thought leader in Health Financing; Research and Development; Business Development; Investment Mobilization and Management; Capital Placement; and Program Management in Africa. Most recently, he served as a World Bank Advisor on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) to the Cabinet Secretary of Health in the Government of Kenya. His work has attracted several awards and grants. He is a Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Silver Medalist and he has competitively won: a Wellcome Trust PhD Scholarship; an Ian Barthurst Foundation award; two Karolinska Institute Research Awards and four Sullivan Scholarships. He is well published internationally and is a regular speaker at international conferences – most recently in the Devex, Nature Scientific Reports and at the Middle East and Africa (MEA) Business Summit in Stockholm, the Africa Health Business Symposium (AHBS2016) and the Sustainable Inclusive Business conferences in Kenya;  Bill & Melinda Gates funded Keystone Symposium  in the USA; and the Molecular Approaches to Malaria Vaccines conference in Australia. Dr. Rono earned my Ph.D. from Karolinska Institute in Sweden and his Bachelor of Pharmacy Degree from the University of Nairobi where he was one of the Scholars of the Year. He is also an alumnus of the Leadership & Management in Health Program of the University of Washington, USA and holds an Adjunct Faculty Position at Strathmore Business School where he teaches on healthcare business. He is a fellow of the Swedish Institute Management Program (SIMP) and the Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellowship that is co-run by the Saïd Business School at Oxford UniversityHe holds several board appointments including at Merck Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Haltons Pharmacy – an mPharma subsidiary and Living Goods – a global champion of UHC. Dr. Rono is currently working on his first book on global healthcare business and its impact on Africa's renaissance.