Biden to name African-born doctor to lead HIV/AIDS response

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Monday that he intends to nominate Dr. John N. Nkengasong to coordinate the U.S. response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic worldwide.

Nkengasong, a U.S. citizen born in Cameroon, would be the first person of African descent to hold the position. The Senate must approve his eventual nomination.

If confirmed, Nkengasong would become an ambassador-at-large at the State Department, overseeing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR . The position most recently was held by Dr. Deborah Birx, who in 2020 became coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force under then-President Donald Trump. Birx left government after Biden took office.

Nkengasong, a virologist, currently directs the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, a specialized technical institution of the African Union based in Ethiopia.

Through PEPFAR, which was created by President George W. Bush in 2003, the U.S. has invested more than $85 billion in the global response to HIV/AIDS, the largest commitment by any nation to a single disease. The State Department credits the initiative with saving over 20 million lives and preventing millions of HIV infections.