Akbar K. Waljee, MD appointed as new director of Center for Global Health Equity

The Center for Global Health Equity at the University of Michigan is pleased to announce that Lyle C. Roll Professor and Assistant Dean for Global Health Research, Akbar K. Waljee, MD, from the Departments of Learning Health Sciences, Internal Medicine, and Epidemiology, has been newly appointed as the Leslie D. Yamada and Tachi Yamada MD Director of the center. In this expanded leadership role, Waljee will report directly to the Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and the Provost, reflecting the university’s deep commitment to advancing global health initiatives at the highest levels. Waljee's appointment is effective April 1, 2025.

Waljee succeeds Joseph C. Kolars, MD, the inaugural director of the center, whose exceptional leadership laid the foundation for the center’s success. Kolars will be assuming the role of director of strategic development for global initiatives for the U-M Medical School, where he will continue to support the Center for Global Health Equity as well as Michigan Medicine’s Global REACH. Building on Kolars’ legacy, Waljee will further the center’s mission to enable communities worldwide to “live longer and better” through the innovative use of data, collaborative research, and strategic partnerships. 

Originally from Nairobi, Kenya, Waljee has dedicated his career to improving health and healthcare access, quality, and efficiency, particularly in resource-constrained settings. He is widely recognized for leveraging advanced methodological approaches, including artificial intelligence, to inform better decision‐making and to deliver effective, equitable care both locally and globally. His work has been supported by a range of grant funding, including from the Veterans Affairs Health Systems Research, National Institutes of Health, the State of Michigan, and the Department of Defense.

In addition to his medical school roles as a professor of learning health sciences and internal medicine gastroenterology, and as a research scientist at the VA Ann Arbor Center for Clinical Management Research, Waljee has actively fostered research collaborations and led influential initiatives such as the Michigan Integrated Center for Health Analytics and Medical Prediction (MiCHAMP), e-Health and Artificial Intelligence (e-HAIL), the IHPI Data and Methods Hub, and as director of the Data Collaborative at the Center for Global Health Equity. His leadership in these endeavors has demonstrated his capacity to galvanize teams and tackle complex healthcare challenges.

Waljee earned his undergraduate degree in biology and his medical degree from Emory University. He completed his internal medicine residency and gastroenterology/hepatology fellowship at the University of Michigan, joining the U-M Medical School faculty in 2009. In his new position, Waljee will continue to collaborate closely with Kolars and with Global REACH programs to further strengthen research initiatives across the medical school and campus wide global health efforts.

Please join us in congratulating Waljee on his appointment as the Leslie D. Yamada and Tachi Yamada MD Director of the center and in thanking Kolars for his remarkable service. We look forward to Waljee’s leadership as he guides the center toward innovative, data-driven strategies that will help individuals around the world live longer and better.