Dr. Baz Semo  is a highly accomplished global health leader, physician, and strategist with a proven track record of designing, managing, and scaling impactful public health programs worldwide. She currently serves as a senior technical consultant at IntraHealth International, where she leads strategy development, business growth, and technical support across a diverse portfolio of global health initiatives.

Previously, Baz was the managing director of global health programs at Chemonics International, overseeing high-impact initiatives that strengthened health systems and improved health outcomes globally. She has also provided expert consultancy for the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), contributing to major global health policies and initiatives.

At FHI 360, Baz directed the Program Sciences and Technical Support Department, where she led seven divisions covering the full research-to-practice spectrum, including health services research, research utilization, health systems strengthening, technical assistance, social behavior change, strategic information/monitoring and evaluation, and laboratory sciences.

Her career spans leadership roles at the University of Washington and Columbia University, where she drove HIV/AIDS and health systems strengthening (HSS) projects. Her expertise in human resources for health (HRH) has been instrumental in developing and implementing innovative training models, task-shifting strategies, and secondment solutions, as well as leading national HRH evaluations.

A seasoned physician, Baz practiced primary care from 1990 to 2004 in multiple sub-Saharan African countries. Her global health and clinical expertise extends to Bangladesh, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Panama, the Philippines, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Vietnam, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Academically, Baz holds a Doctor of Medicine from Addis Ababa University and a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She further specialized at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, earning a Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene from the Royal College of Physicians of London. She also holds a Diploma in Health Economics and an MSc in Economic Evaluations for Health Technology Assessment from the University of York in the United Kingdom.

She is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of Washington’s Department of Global Health, a published researcher with over 25 peer-reviewed articles, and an academic editor for PLOS ONE and Frontiers in Public Health. Additionally, she serves on the board of directors for The Addis Clinic, a nonprofit based in Nashville, Tennessee.

Fluent in English, Arabic, and Amharic, with intermediate proficiency in French, Baz is a globally recognized expert known for her strategic vision, technical excellence, and results-driven leadership in strengthening health systems and advancing public health impact worldwide.