WONCA Launches First Young Family Doctors NCD Fellowship Cohort
The World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) is proud to announce the launch of the first cohort of the WONCA Young Family Doctors NCD Fellowship — a 10-month capacity-building programme designed to strengthen the leadership, clinical skills, and community impact of early-career family doctors in the prevention and management of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in primary care.
The fellowship is made possible through an independent educational grant from AstraZeneca.
Seven fellows have been selected from across six WONCA regions — Africa, Asia Pacific, East Mediterranean, Europe, Iberoamerica, and South Asia — each paired with an experienced family medicine mentor.
Fellows
- Angie Echavarría — Argentina
- Ibrahim Abubakar — Nigeria
- Jiun Hoong Ng — Malaysia
- Mohammed Dawoud — Kuwait
- Nilka Arosemena Sandoval — Panama
- Parami Abeyrathna — Sri Lanka
- Elif Sıdal Gültekin — Turkey
Mentors
- Klaus von Pressentin — South Africa (Lead Mentor)
- Wong Ping Foo — Malaysia
- Koki Kato — Japan
- Tabinda Ashfaq — Pakistan
- Macarena Moral López — Chile
- Tamar Gabunia — Georgia
- Sandro Batista — Brazil
Together, they will design and implement locally-grounded quality improvement projects, participate in monthly educational workshops, and engage in structured mentorship throughout the programme. Two of the six workshops will be open to the broader primary care community worldwide.
Group photo from the orientation session held on 25 June 2026.
The first cohort held its orientation session on 25 June 2026, bringing together fellows, mentors, and WONCA leadership for the first time. Workshops begin in July 2026, with projects running through to January 2027 and final presentations planned for early 2027.
WONCA looks forward to sharing the learning, insights, and impact generated by this extraordinary group of emerging NCD leaders in primary care.
See also: NCD Fellowship Announcement