Precious Matsoso
Director General, Dept Health South Africa
Ms Malebona Precious Matsoso is the Director General of the National Department of Health. Ms Matsoso holds a degree in Pharmacy from the University of Western Cape, a Postgraduate Diploma in Health Management from the University of Cape Town, and a Masters degree in Law and Ethics (LLM) from the University of Dundee. As a pharmacist she has worked in both the public and private sector at management level. She was a Director in Public Health Innovation and Intellectual Property (PHI) in the office of the Director General, of the World Health Organisation (WHO) serving as WHO Secretariat on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property. Her career within the field of medicine control have included posts as Head of Medicines Control Council (MCC), member of the National Research Ethics Council of South Africa, and the Director of the Essential Drugs and Traditional Medicines Programme for the South African Health Department as well as being a member of various advisory panels with an emphasis on improving access to medicines and antiretrovirals. Prior to this she was the Registrar of Medicines of the National Drug Regulatory Authority in South Africa and has produced over 40 technical guidelines. She has been a member of various advisory panels locally and internationally, mainly tasked with improving access to medicines.