30 March 2023, Switzerland. Michael Joos will hand over the leadership of Vestergaard at the end of March after three years of sustained business growth and accelerated progress in the fight against malaria. He will be succeeded as Chief Executive Officer by Amar Ali, who most recently served as President, Africa, of DSM, effective April 1.

Under Michael’s leadership, Vestergaard has made significant progress in product innovation and development, fortified its position as a reliable partner to the malaria community, and established the vital role of post-market surveillance of long-lasting insecticidal nets. He has also championed the conversations towards improving the strategic supply chain in vector control.

The company has accelerated product development to achieve “speed to impact” to combat malaria, culminating in the launch and WHO Pre-Qualification (PQ) status of PermaNet Dual, with further advanced Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) in the pipeline.

Today, Vestergaard is the first company with a comprehensive portfolio of long-lasting insecticidal nets for malaria prevention. It is recognised for its commitment to delivering quality products on time to support national malaria programme campaigns.

Under his tenure, the company also explored and invested in digital health by linking the LLIN and the company’s brand of PermaNet, used by 300m people every night, with health services delivered through mobile platforms and sensor technology.

In the field of food security, Vestergaard invested in ZeroFly and GROR. The company has taken a significant equity position in GROR.io, which combines innovative storage technology, planning and partnerships to enable regenerative farming practices in Sub-Saharan Africa, with the potential to relieve hundreds of thousands of farmers from poverty while providing a vital contribution to combat climate change.

Michael Joos said, “I can honestly say that working with the team at Vestergaard has been one of the greatest privileges in my life. Their passion for public health is legendary, and their commitment and dedication are truly inspiring. Thank you all for your hard work and for everything we have achieved together. I am grateful to Mikkel Vestergaard for the opportunity to be the first non-family CEO and for The Board, who has given me ongoing support since informing them of my intention to pursue personal projects almost a year ago. I’d also like to add a special thank you to the chairman, Bill Burns, for his guidance over the past few years.”

“We would like to thank Michael for his contribution to Vestergaard, its advancement of public health and the fight against malaria,” said Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen, Founder of Vestergaard.  

ENDS