Deo B. Ndumu, Biosafety Heroes Award Winner 2018

IFBA Biosafety Heroes

The IFBA has created a Biosafety Heroes program to identify and celebrate extraordinary individuals who make significant contributions to help others in the field of biosafety and biosecurity. IFBA Biosafety Heroes are exceptional and inspiring individuals honored by the global biosafety community as having made a difference for the better. Biosafety Heroes serve as role models, showing others that each individual is important and can contribute to the global fight against infectious diseases.

Who are our Heroes?

Nominees are selected on their uniqueness, the specific accomplishments they achieved that are truly remarkable, and the impact their work has had on others.

Preference is given to individuals who:

• operate in an environment where biosafety funds are limited, and/or where the importance of biosafety is not fully appreciated.
• have not yet been recognized with other biosafety awards.

Since 2011 Dr. Ndumu has served as First Designate Biosafety and Biosecurity officer at the National Veterinary Laboratory of the Ugandan National Animal Disease Diagnostic and Epidemiology Centre, MAAIF, a position he accepted without additional compensation. He has been the coordinator of significant biosafety and biosecurity upgrades at his institution performed under two separate US Government programs, and played a lead role in the implementation of CWA 15793 there. He also coordinated the investigation and rapid response to anthrax outbreaks in several areas of Uganda that killed hundreds of wild and domestic animals. After being trained as a biorisk management trainer himself Dr. Ndumu went on to train others in Uganda, in both the animal and public health sectors, and has also written SOPs and other documents relevant to that. He began these activities at time when current ideas and discipline of biorisk management were little understood and at the very infancy in the Ugandan veterinary sector, but tirelessly worked to change opinions. He is a member of the African Biological Safety Association and the Biosafety and Biosecurity Association – Uganda and has been a member of the American and other biological safety associations. Dr. Ndumu has also donated his time to the IFBA, serving on the Biocontainment Engineering Working Group, and providing assistance to the development of the certification program examinations. He was in the first cohort of Africans to receive IFBA Professional Certification in Biorisk Management, and is also IFBA Certified in Biological Safety Cabinet Selection, Installation, and Safe Use.