World Economic Forum appoints Jamaican

This is the second time the WEF has appointed Dr. Walcott to a global network of thought leaders.

Dr. Walcott, founder and managing partner of global health innovation company NovaMed is currently co-chair of the COVID steering committee of the World Economic Forum's global shapers community.

On this occasion, Dr. Walcott has been appointed to the distinguished global future council (GFC). As a member of the GFC, Dr. Walcott will promote innovative thinking which is expected to shape a sustainable and inclusive future for all. His appointment took effect on October 1, 2020.

The council convenes knowledgeable expertise from academia, government, business and civil society. It is an invitation-only community, and members are nominated for a one-year period.

As a Jamaican-born medical doctor and entrepreneur with over five years experience, as a founder, operator and consultant to several businesses in the Caribbean, Dr. Walcott is committed to attracting world class healthcare resources into the Caribbean.

With that experience and background under his belt, the Jamaican businessman and Rhodes Scholar intends to pioneer and champion problem-solving around global issues concerning healthy ageing and longevity.

“It is a pleasure to contribute to the body of knowledge and force of action surrounding healthy ageing. COVID-19 has reminded us that health is a global priority, and the decisions we make today will affect both the life in our years and the years in our lives,” said Dr. Walcott.

He is joined by industry leaders including senior professors from Harvard and Columbia universities, as well as senior advisors at healthcare organisations like the World Health Organisation (WHO), United Health, ACCESS Health and the massive insurance conglomerate Swissre.

“I hope to bring a critical voice to the WEF Global Future Councils and build on the voices from the many distinguished heads in the room to promote a more holistic approach to healthcare that considers our longevity,” Dr. Walcott added.

The GFC involves senior representation from leading consulting firms Accenture and Deloitte, as well as senior advisors to ministries of health in the United Arab Emirates and Japan.

Dr. Walcott leads NovaMed, in partnership with entrepreneur Kirk-Anthony Hamilton. NovaMed is a holdings company with a mandate to bring first world healthcare solutions to emerging markets. The company has been actively problem-solving within the Caribbean. Its relationships span academic organizations, governmental authorities and industries in over 40 different countries. NovaMed has also collated best practices and global insights that are action through its portfolio companies which span healthcare, advisory, consulting, medical education and health technology services.

So far, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, NovaMed acquired a personal protective equipment (PPE) production line in China and donated some 500,000 surgical-grade masks to help fill the PPE gap for Jamaica and other Caribbean countries challenged by the global demand. The company has also partnered with the University Hospital of the West Indies (UWHI) to investigate COVID-19 pool testing as a new, innovative high-throughput and cost-effective testing approach to significantly increase Jamaica’s testing capacity. This was on the background of convening an international task force of innovators, entrepreneurs from the global shapers community in over 80 countries around the world working on COVID-19 projects.