Dr. Samia is Senior Advisor to the CEO and Strategic Lead for Climate and Health at the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). Previously Samia was Executive Director of Resource Mobilisation & Investor Relations responsible for the strategic engagement with sovereign governments, philanthropic foundations, multi-lateral development banks and a wide range of other stakeholders to ensure CEPI’s sustainability. Prior to taking on her roles at CEPI, Samia was the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) representative on the CEPI Investor Council and observer to the Board.

During the previous seven years, Samia developed and lead BMGF’s Global Health R&D and Epidemic Preparedness Policy, Advocacy and Communications strategy. Prior to that, Samia spent many years as a technical advisor to EU donor governments and multi-lateral health agencies, defining science and research priorities and conducting policy analysis for better access to medicines and vaccines in low-income countries.

Samia has also worked as a medicines policy analyst at the WHO in Geneva and Cairo and as Strategy Manager at the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) where she led initiatives that focused on securing an enabling research policy and financing environment in the EU, fostering global bioscience partnerships and developing research & innovation strategies. Samia holds a BSc. (Honours) in Biochemistry from Imperial College, London and an MSc. in International Health Policy & Health Economics from the London School of Economics & Political Science and spent several years as biomedical researcher conducting doctoral studies at King’s College London and post doctoral studies Harvard Medical School.