Rate My Professor Azra Ghani

Professor Azra Ghani is the Chair in Infectious Disease Epidemiology in the School of Public Health within the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial College London. She holds joint appointments as Director of the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis and Academic Director of Imperial Global Singapore. Her research integrates mathematical modelling and statistical methods to elucidate the transmission dynamics and control of infectious diseases in humans and animals. Ghani develops compartmental models and complex individual-based simulations to evaluate intervention strategies and guide public health policy. Her work encompasses a broad spectrum of pathogens, including malaria, COVID-19, influenza, SARS, sexually transmitted infections, and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) alongside variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD).

Ghani's contributions have profoundly shaped global infectious disease strategies, underpinning the World Health Organization’s Global Technical Strategy for Malaria and informing the Global Fund’s malaria initiatives. She serves on key international committees, including the WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Group, the Gavi Vaccine Investment Strategy Steering Committee, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) Scientific Advisory Committee. In 2023, she was appointed Director of the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis, securing £3.25 million in funding for three years. Her accolades include the Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) awarded in the 2021 Birthday Honours for services to infectious disease control and epidemiological research, election as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) in 2017, the Chalmers Medal from the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in 2017, and Fellowship of the Royal Statistical Society. Ghani teaches on Imperial College London’s short course in Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases, aimed at public health professionals.