Brief info
Dr. Said Abdallah Jongo, MD, MSc, PhD, is an internal medicine physician-scientist, clinical epidemiologist, and clinical trial leader with more than 15 years of experience conducting and overseeing early- to late-phase clinical trials across sub-Saharan Africa. He currently serves as Deputy Head of the Biomedical Research and Clinical Trials Department at the Ifakara Health Institute (IHI), Tanzania, where he provides scientific and operational leadership for large-scale clinical research programs evaluating vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics, and other health interventions for infectious diseases of public health importance.
Dr. Jongo has extensive expertise in the design, implementation, and oversight of clinical trials, with particular experience in evaluating the safety, efficacy, immunogenicity, and effectiveness of novel health interventions in African populations. He has led and contributed to clinical trials involving healthy adults, children, infants, and people living with HIV, generating evidence that has informed the development and evaluation of interventions against malaria, arboviral diseases, and other emerging infectious diseases. His work has contributed to advancing understanding of intervention safety, performance, and immune responses in HIV-positive individuals receiving antiretroviral therapy, helping address critical evidence gaps in vulnerable populations.
As a Principal Investigator and clinical trials leader, Dr. Jongo has overseen complex multicentre studies across diverse settings in Africa. His research is driven by a commitment to accelerating the development, evaluation, and equitable access to evidence-based health interventions in Africa. Dr. Jongo has played key roles in landmark clinical trials published in leading international journals. He has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed publications and has contributed significantly to strengthening clinical research capacity in Africa through mentorship, training, and institutional leadership. His work has supported the development of multidisciplinary teams capable of delivering internationally recognised clinical trials to the highest scientific, ethical, and regulatory standards.