Maxwell Otim Onapa

Dr Maxwell Otim Onapa is a Veterinary Surgeon, researcher and a distinguished Fellow of the Uganda National Academy of Sciences (FUNAS) who has specialized in biomedical sciences; Science, Technology, Research and Innovation Development and Management; a space he has worked in for the last 29 years.

Dr Otim has held various public offices including serving as Director Science, Research and Innovation at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MoSTI) where he served and provided impeccable leadership until June 2021. He currently serving as an Associate visiting Professor at the Department of Public Health, Busitema, a public University. Prior to joining MoSTI Dr Otim worked as Deputy Executive Secretary of Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) where he provided strategic guidance on Science, Research and Innovation. His work at UNCST has profoundly impacted the national research and innovation ecosystem in Uganda.

Among other roles, Dr Otim has been responsible for leading the development of policies in the science, technology, and innovation space in close collaboration various ministries, departments and agencies in Uganda. In this regard, he championed the development of the biosafety and biosafety policy, which are in advanced stages of being processed into policy and legal instruments.

As a researcher, Dr Otim conducted extensive research in the area of immunodiagnostics, virology, veterinary epidemiology, and infectious zoonotic diseases where among other approaches; he employed molecular techniques and bioinformatics to study the Newcastle disease virus, an avulavirus and its epidemiology. He also carried out research on biosafety and biosecurity. One of the outputs of his work was published under the title - The Low Level of Awareness in Biosafety and Biosecurity among Professionals in Uganda with a Potential Risk in the Dual-use Dilemma. This outstanding piece of work led to the establishment of a Select Agent list of pathogens and the National Inventory of Dangerous Pathogens in Uganda.  

On the international scene, Dr Otim served as a member of the international scientific committee of the Annual International Symposium on Biosecurity and Biosafety; Future Trends and Solutions held in Milan in 2008 and 2009 and as a member of the International Committee on Trends in Science and Technology relevant to the Biological Weapons Convention workshop held in November 2010 in Beijing, China. 

He has been active in monitoring and providing guidance on the mitigation of biorisks and advances in the life sciences and related technologies, the governance of dual-use research, and the responsible use of the life sciences. He was one of the key participants at the informal Consultation on Dual Use Research of Concern convened by the WHO in Geneva, in February 2013. He was also one of the key international participants at the Global Biosecurity Dialogue convened by the Washington-based Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) in June 2018, London, UK.

Dr Otim serves as a member of working group of the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) Action Package Prevent-3 Biosafety and Biosecurity (APP3), which aims to advance global biosafety and biosecurity in support of international instruments and agreements, including the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) (1975), and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004).

He is currently serving as a country expert for Uganda in the implementation of the EU Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Initiatives (CBRN) Centres of Excellence Project on strengthening Biosafety and Biosecurity capabilities in East and Central Africa. Under the project, he has carried out a survey on Dual-Use Research of Concern (DURC) among governmental bodies, ministries, and departments involved in One Health security, dual-use technologies, and/or export controls.  

He is currently a member of the consortium that is training postgraduate fellows in masters of infectious disease epidemiology and biostatics at Busitema University with support from the European Developing Countries Clinical Trials partnership (EDCTP).  

Dr Otim’s passion for the responsible use of the life sciences led him to establish the Biosecurity and Biosafety Association of Uganda (BBAU), a not-for-profit professional Association, which he served diligently as president from 2012 to October 2023. Dr Otim is conversant with playing advisory role to entities. In this regard, he has been serving as a member of the International Scientific Advisory Board of the World Bank-supported Pharm- Biotechnology and Traditional Medicine Centre (PHARMBIOTRAC) center of excellence based at Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), a public University since 2015. On the international scene, he served as Uganda’s STI focal point for all matters of international collaboration. He also served as Africa Vice Chair for the Geneva-based Commission of Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) from 2015-2016.  

Besides the above, Dr Otim’s other contributions include serving as: a member of the Governing Council of the Uganda Atomic Energy Council; chairman of the Institutional Research Advisory Board of Uganda Management Institute (UMI); and a member of Doctoral Committees; supervisor and examiner of postgraduate students in different Colleges of Makerere University.

Dr Otim holds a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine Degree from Makerere University, a Master of Science Degree from Free University of Berlin, a Doctorate Degree from University of Copenhagen (KVL), a Master of Business Administration Degree from ESAMI and a Diploma in Leadership Development in ICT from Dublin City University (DCU). He was a Leadership Award from the Eastern and Southern Africa Management Institute (ESAMI) in 2009.

Dr Otim is a transformative leader who is passionate about translating science, innovative ideas, policies and concepts into tangible outputs for the benefit of humanity.