Daniel O. Ochiel
Nairobi,Nairobi
Summary
Senior Director of Research and Head of Research Capacity Quantitative and Qualitative Research | Research Training and Capacity Development |Project Evaluation Highly experienced, well-published, with proven track record of planning and directing complex translational health research and trials focusing on disease pathogenesis, vaccine development and therapeutics. In-depth understanding of research goals, and anticipation of technological and resource needs to meet goals, and assess impact. Significant experience and past success with multi-sectoral implementation research and research capacity strengthening; strategic data analysis, and monitoring evaluation and learning. Challenge assumptions; demonstrate highly organized strategic thinking and documentation. Explore innovative approaches, novel options and methodologies. Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders, work cross-functionally to build and strengthen relationships across functions to drive cohesive, strategic operations. Outstanding leadership, communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills. Work well in diverse environments and under pressure.
Overview
16
16
years of post-secondary education
14
14
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Director Research and Head of Research Capacity
INTERNATIONAL AIDS VACCINE INITIATIVE, IAVI
Nairobi, Nairobi
01.2015 - Current
- Global non-profit, public-private partnership working to quickly develop vaccines to prevent HIV infection and AIDS.
- Building thematic area.
- Scientific lead for both translational research on HIV vaccine development.
- Oversee multi-million-dollar research portfolio including training and technology transfer to partner institution in five African countries.
- Leading the capacity building thematic area under the USAID funded IAVI ADVANCE program focusing on biomedical science, clinical trials, community engagement in research, advocacy and policy, and strategic partnerships Directing program that is strengthening regional research capacity 5 African countries to ensure clinical trials, epidemiology studies, ethics and regulatory affairs are of the highest quality.
- Led strategy, planning and implementation of the IAVI HIV vaccine discovery flagship (VISTA) in five African countries in collaboration with institutions in USA, Europe and India (USD 3.4 million annual budget).
- Led the strategic expansion of research programs with considerations for the portfolio size, budgets, staffing and sustainability plans.
- Led training of early and mid-career researchers from multiple African countries within a program that ensures sustainable career pathways and development.
- Led a broad technical team across the organization to implement strategic research capacity strengthening to partner institutions, setting program priorities, defining milestones and key deliverables, monitoring and evaluating projects, and reporting to donors and stakeholders (US$14 million annual budget).
- Led in designing and implementing robust monitoring, evaluation and learning framework for key indicators, and overseen mid-term and full-term appraisals of key projects.
- Serving as a member of the IAVI Influencers Group (15 members) working with the CEO to drive innovations within the organization.
- Served as an integral member of the leadership team working with USAID, providing critical feedback, defining priorities, and assessing the progress and impact of USAID funded ADVANCE Program (USD$160 million) (Funded until 2026).
- Part of 15-member team that led strategic plan development for organization activities from 2021 and beyond which has resulted in new funding commitment from USAID ($160 million).
- Serving in the selected committee for the organization on business strategy, resource mobilization and sustainability.
- Jointly published articles to highlight progress and priorities for research capacity strengthening in Africa: usaid.gov/what-we-do/global-health/hiv-and-aids/information-center/hiv-and-aids-research-corner/paving-the-way-hiv-vaccine | thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/healthcare/248876-as-obama-heads-to-africa-an-entrepreneurial-approach-to.
Program Manager
COLUMBIA GLOBAL CENTERS|AFRICA, CGC|AFRICA
Nairobi, Nairobi
01.2012 - 01.2015
- Regional hub for research and collaboration as part of Columbia University’s strategy to achieve a global presence and links the continent to Columbia’s scientific rigor, technological innovation, and academic leadership.
- Program Manage, ANSRC (The African Nutritional Sciences Research Consortium) Coordinated multi-institutional PhD training program in nutritional sciences in the East Africa Community (EAC) region.
- Created and delivered compelling presentation that received buy-in from stakeholders for implementation of regional consortium on nutritional sciences for PhD candidates.
- Evaluated and mapped resource needs of academic and research institutions in East Africa including program, human and laboratory.
- Planned and effectively managed technical working committees, regional workshops and key stakeholder meetings.
- Developed framework for accreditation of PhD programs in conjunction with East African Universities, IUCEA (the Inter-University Council of East Africa), TWAS (The World Academy of Sciences) and AAS (the African Academy of Sciences) senior staff.
- Developed and implemented curriculum, including e-learning modules, for nutritional sciences doctoral training.
- Collaborated with EAC Secretariat to obtain political good will and support from governments of the EAC partner countries.
- Managed the relationships with the key government ministries across the partner countries for sustained support of the training program.
- Met with project stakeholders on regular basis to assess progress and make adjustments.
- Scheduled and supervised staff meetings to discuss new ideas and update participants on program details and milestones.
Research Fellow
CONSORTIUM FOR NATIONAL HEALTH RESEARCH, CNHR
Nairobi, Nairobi
01.2012 - 01.2015
- International not-for profit, non-political, non-sectarian and non-partisan organization that brings together key players in health research concerned with health research.
- Awarded US$137,000 to undertake project entitled: Immune predictors of efficacy and resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Western Kenya with Walter Reed Army Research Project in Western Kenya.
- Awarded US$160,000 to undertake project entitled: Profiling antibody immune responses in infants and children vaccinated with RTS,S/AS01E malaria vaccine in Kisumu, Western Kenya.
- Conducted and published research on the immune correlates of ACT.
- Successfully supervised four post-graduate students at Maseno University, Kenya.
Research Fellow
HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE HARVARD-BOTSWANA AIDS INSTITUTE
Boston, MA
01.2010 - 01.2012
- Boston, USA, and Gaborone, Botswana Collaborative research and training initiative between the Government of Botswana and HAI.
- Conducted immunology and virology of HIV-1 (subtype C) research.
- Coordinated training activities for TanZamBo (Tanzania, Zambia and Botswana) Regional HIV Training Network.
- Researched role of in vitro replication capacity of HIV-1 as determinant of viral load in primary infection (Molecular biology, multi-color flow cytometry and cell culture).
- Prepared training curriculum, identified facilitators, prepared workshop evaluation and reports for East and Southern African regional training in laboratory monitoring of HIV-1 drug resistance.
- Integral part of coordinating team for EDCTP-funded TanZambo Regional Network on HIV Capacity Development comprised of three institutions in Africa and two northern partner institutions.
- Coordinated technical training with partner institutions.
- Organized workshops and annual meetings.
- Created and delivered progress updates to partner institutions.
Education
Post-Doctoral Fellow - Translational Research (immunology And Virology)
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Boston 08.2010 - 01.2012
PhD - Molecular Immunology
Dartmouth College
Master of Science - Infectious Diseases and Microbiology
Graduate School of Public Health
University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 01.2003 - 04.2005
Master of Science (MSc) - Immunology and Virology
University of Nairobi
Nairobi 01.1998 - 05.2004
Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) - Veterinary Medicine
University of Nairobi
Nairobi 08.1990 - 12.1996
Skills
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Accomplishments
- Highly successful securing large grant proposals for the International Aids Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) that are designed to support scientific research and training programs in Africa.
- Integral member of leadership team that created the successful IAVI-ADVANCE Program grant awarded in 2016 by USAID in the amount of US$160 million.
- Successfully led the implementation of HIV R&D program (VISTA) since 2015, leading to establishment of centers of excellence in Africa for immunology, virology, systems biology and bioinformatics and creating platforms to sustain infectious diseases and NCDs research across over 10 partner centers in East and Southern Africa.
- Led or contributed to key strategic plans and programmatic achievements serving in various IAVI senior Leadership teams including African Management Team, USAID Leadership Team, Scientific Steering Committee for Immunology Program, India-Africa Partnership Technical Group.
- At Columbia Global Centers, successfully managed the launch and implementation of AfDB-funded nutritional sciences doctoral training program in 18 partner universities and research centers across 5 East African countries.
- Competitively received funding for Mid-career fellowship from Wellcome Trust-funded Consortium for National Health Research (CNHR, US$150,000), and led the research evaluating the interaction of pre-existing immunity and efficacy of artemisinin based combination therapy (ACT) for malaria in Western Kenya.
- Supervised and mentored 15+ early and mid-career African scientists across multiple biomedical research disciplines.
- Published 20 articles in high-impact peer reviewed journals.
Affiliations
Received formal training and coaching through The Career Connections (http://careerconnectionsltd.com/), The Leadership Group (www.leadershipgroup.co.ke) and Teach with Strength and the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Leadership (www.cisl.cam.ac.uk) on a variety of executive leadership areas including personal strengths, personal effectiveness, building effective teams, effective communication (written and oral), vision and strategy setting, and stakeholder engagement.
RESEARCH GRANTS (AWARDS OR CONTRIBUTION)
CNHR-Mid Career Fellowship: Awarded US$137K to work collaboratively on Immune predictors of efficacy and resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Western Kenya with Walter Reed Army Research Project in Western Kenya.
ANSRC: Planning phase of East Africa Regional Training PhD program in nutritional sciences was funded in amount of US$5M by African Development Bank (AfDB).
IAVI ADVANCE Grant: US$160M grant funded by USAID, designed to accelerate development of safe and effective HIV vaccine by concentrating on vaccine discovery, epidemiology and clinical studies, community engagement with program dedicated to building sustainable research in Africa.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Bashir Farah, Mercy Mshai, Moureen Maraka, Paramesh Chetty, Linda Murungi, Daniel Ochiel, Jill Gilmour. Strengthening laboratory capacity for HIV vaccine clinical trials and epidemiological studies in Eastern and Southern Africa. (Submitted BMC Public Health, Submitted, June 2020).
Ben Andagalu; Pinyi Lu; Irene Onyango; Elke Bergmann-Leitner; Ruth Wasuna; Prisca Ondu; Geoffrey Odhiambo; Lorna J. Chebon-Bore; Luicer A. Ingasia; Dennis W. Juma; Benjamin Opot; Agnes Cheruiyot; Redemptah Yeda; Charles Okudo; Raphael Okoth; Gladys Chemwor; Joseph Campo; Hoseah M. Akala; Bernhards Ogutu; Daniel Ochiel; Sidhartha Chaudhury; Edwin Kamau: Comparison of artemisinin combination therapy efficacies in high transmission settings of western Kenya: combining patient immune profile with machine learning to assess and predict treatment outcomes (Lancet Global Health Submitted).
Olwal CO, Ang’ienda, PO, Ochiel DO Alternative sigma factor B (σB) and catalase enzyme contributes to Staphylococcus epidermidis biofilms tolerance against physico-chemical disinfection. Scientific Reports-Nature 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-41797, P) - AIDS Vaccine, Microbicide and ARV-Based Prevention Science, Publisher: MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC, Pages: 392-392, ISSN: 0889-2229
Olwal CO, Ang’ienda, PO, Onyango, DM, Ochiel DO Susceptibility patterns and the role of extracellular DNA in Staphylococcus epidermidis biofilm resistance to physico-chemical stress agents BMC Microbiol. 2018 May 2;18(1):40.
Olwal,CO, Ochiel DO. Onyango, DM, Ang’ienda, PO (2017) Bacterial biofilm cells quantitation techniques: where is consensus in over two decades? J Microbiol Biotech Food Sci 2017: 7 (2) 168-173
Timeline
Senior Director Research and Head of Research Capacity
INTERNATIONAL AIDS VACCINE INITIATIVE, IAVI
01.2015 - Current
Program Manager
COLUMBIA GLOBAL CENTERS|AFRICA, CGC|AFRICA
01.2012 - 01.2015
Research Fellow
CONSORTIUM FOR NATIONAL HEALTH RESEARCH, CNHR
01.2012 - 01.2015
Post-Doctoral Fellow - Translational Research (immunology And Virology)
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
08.2010 - 01.2012
Research Fellow
HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE HARVARD-BOTSWANA AIDS INSTITUTE
01.2010 - 01.2012
Master of Science - Infectious Diseases and Microbiology
Graduate School of Public Health
01.2003 - 04.2005
Master of Science (MSc) - Immunology and Virology
University of Nairobi
01.1998 - 05.2004
Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) - Veterinary Medicine
University of Nairobi
08.1990 - 12.1996
PhD - Molecular Immunology
Dartmouth College
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