Malaria Expert Joins Fight to Save Lives Across Africa

A veteran disease fighter who has spent more than ten years battling malaria across three continents is now leading technical innovation at one of the world's most effective health organizations.

Dr. Rose Zulliger has joined Malaria Consortium as Director of Technical Services and Innovation, bringing expertise that could help accelerate life-saving work across Africa. She'll guide the organization's technical strategies and push for innovations that create lasting impact in communities fighting malaria.

Rose's career reads like a global mission against one disease. She spent a decade with the President's Malaria Initiative, including six years on the ground in Mozambique as a CDC advisor. She later served at USAID headquarters, where she led technical work on groundbreaking tools like the malaria vaccine.

Her expertise spans the full range of malaria control, from chemoprevention programs that protect children to developing optimized operational plans that stretch every dollar further. She's also worked on drug resistance challenges and country programs in Cambodia, Ghana, and Kenya.

Most recently, Rose consulted with GiveWell, the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, and the WHO African Regional Office. Her academic credentials match her field experience: degrees from Johns Hopkins and the University of Cape Town, plus over 50 published research articles.

The Ripple Effect

Rose's appointment matters beyond one organization. Malaria Consortium runs some of the most cost-effective health programs in the world, delivering interventions that directly save children's lives. The organization has earned top ratings from charity evaluators for combining large-scale implementation with rigorous evidence generation.

"Malaria Consortium has an unparalleled reputation for combining large-scale implementation of life-saving interventions and the generation of the evidence to drive impact," Rose said about her new role. She emphasized the organization's commitment to helping countries maximize intervention effectiveness, especially during uncertain times.

Chief Executive James Tibenderana highlighted how Rose's field experience arrives at a pivotal moment in the organization's strategic evolution. Her understanding of what works in complex settings will help drive innovation where it matters most: in communities that need it.

Rose brings multilingual skills too, speaking English, Portuguese, and Spanish after living and working in Mozambique, South Africa, and Bolivia. She'll lead from the United States while supporting programs across Africa and beyond.

The fight against malaria continues to save lives through a combination of proven tools and new innovations, and now it has another experienced leader at the helm.