1. HEALTHY HEART AFRICA
AstraZeneca’s HEALTHY HEART AFRICA is an innovative programme committed to tackling hypertension and
the increasing burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) across Africa.
HEALTHY HEART AFRICA aspires to reach 10 million hypertensive patients across Sub-Saharan Africa by 2025,
supporting the World Health Organization’s global hypertension target (25% reduction by 2025).
Working with local and global partners, HEALTHY HEART AFRICA will:
 Educate and raise awareness around lifestyle choices and CVD risk factors.
 Increase hypertension screening rates.
 Build health system capacity and drive the provision of hypertension treatment to lower levels of care.
 Facilitate access to low-cost, high quality anti-hypertensives.
 Develop a roadmap of proven strategies to address the burden of hypertension across Africa.
Meet the AstraZeneca HEALTHY HEART AFRICA Team
Samer Al Hallaq
Samer Al Hallaq is Country President for Gulf States and the Vice-President of the HEALTHY HEART
AFRICA Program. Since 2012, Samer has built a strong senior management team to help him deliver on
a plan of strategic growth for the Gulf region that has resulted in consistent growth two years in a row.
As a result of this strategic growth, the team now consists of 191 employees, across 18 nationalities, in
six countries and has been recognized internationally for excellence and innovation. Samer has played
a vital role with fostering strong relationships with the government and other key stakeholders which
helped create a strong market access for AstraZeneca in the Gulf. He has also overseen several
successful launches in the Gulf and ensured access for all public sector institutions. As Vice Chairman
of PhRMAG – Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association, Gulf – Samer has played a
leading role in representing AstraZeneca in health policy issues. One of Samer’s accomplishments has
been the launch of the Africa Partnership Program on February 2014. Samer’s goal is to leverage the
Africa Partnership to position AstraZeneca as a key strategic partner in non-communicable diseases to
governments in Africa. By 2025, his ambition is to reach ten million patients with cardiovascular
disease who have hypertension risk factors.He brings over 20 years of experience through a variety of
roles, first at MSD and later at AstraZeneca, in the pharmaceutical industry across the Middle East and
North Africa. Samer holds a BSc in Pharmacy from the University of Science and Technology in Jordan
and an MBA in International Business from the American University
Samer lives in Dubai with his wife and three children and enjoys cycling in his free time.
Alec Van Gelder
Alec van Gelder is Director, Access and Affordability. He has been working at AstraZeneca
for over four years in Global Corporate Affairs and International.
Alec has been a leader in the development and implementation of the Africa Partnership
Programme and has also supported AstraZeneca’s implementation and strategic external
engagement to support the company’s emerging affordability capability, which is a
fundamental component of how the company will continue to expand its share in emerging
markets. Previously to AstraZeneca, Alec worked for International Policy Network, an
economic development think-tank based in London, where he developed and led advocacy
campaigns and thought leaders across developing countries.
Alec holds a B.S. in Finance from the Lehigh University in the US and a Master’s Degree in
Economics from the Université de Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium.
Ian MacTavish
Ian MacTavish is the Senior Programme Director of HEALTHY HEART AFRICA. Ian has a
Geography MA from Cambridge University in the UK and completed his dissertation at the
Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Nigeria. In 1992 Ian was a founding volunteer of Harvard
University's World Teach programme in South Africa (SCORE) teaching children sport.
Ian trained as an Accountant and has had a 20 year career in Unilever and AstraZeneca
including being Finance Director for Unilever's tea business and Head of Reporting for
AstraZeneca globally. Ian is one of AstraZeneca’s Senior Finance leaders. He is very
experienced at managing large Programmes and is a passionate advocate for AstraZeneca's
new African strategy.