Annual Review 2024

“2024 marked DTH-Lab’s first full year – and what a year it has been. Building on the momentum of our 2023 launch, we have grown into a trusted convener and thought leader in digital transformations for health.”

Ilona Kickbusch, Director, and Aferdita Bytyqi, Executive Director

DTH-Lab is proud to announce that we have joined the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH), a WHO-managed network.

Read our Annual Review to find out how we:

  • Generated high-quality evidence on topics including digital determinants of health, data solidarity and AI governance – publishing our work in The BMJ, The Lancet and Health Promotion Journal of Australia.

  • Continued to drive innovations in policy and practice to shape equitable digital transformations of health – working with global platforms like G20, supporting regional initiatives with WHO and contributing to national policy discussions.

  • Engaged with national public health officials, international organizations, academia, civil society and the private sector to co-create solutions and build consensus on the digital transformations of health.

  • Strengthened youth as co-creators of equitable digital health systems and built the capacity of future health leaders. Including pivotal support to the WHO Youth Declaration on Creating Healthy Societies launched in October 2024.

Aferdita Bytyqi is the Executive Director of the DTH-Lab ensuring the success of overall project goals and strategic objectives of the DTH-Lab both internally and with key external stakeholders within the global health ecosystem.

Ilona Kickbusch is the Director of the DTH-Lab. She is a visiting professor at the University of Geneva, the founding director, chair and senior distinguished fellow of the Global Health Centre at the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.

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Aferdita Bytyqi

Executive Director, DTH-Lab

Aferdita Bytyqi is the Executive Director of the DTH-Lab ensuring the success of overall project goals and strategic objectives of the DTH-Lab both internally and with key external stakeholders within the global health ecosystem. With a career spanning over 25 years, she brings a wealth of progressive programmatic experience in spearheading international research, development, and regeneration initiatives on behalf of multilateral and bilateral agencies, as well as private donors. Her previous professional contributions include ICS Integrare, MBM, FAO, WHO and the Senior Coordinator of the Lancet and Financial Times Commission. Aferdita has a Dipl. Ing in Architecture and an M.Sc. in Urban Design in Development from UCL.

Ilona Kickbusch

Director, DTH-Lab

Ilona Kickbusch is the Director of the DTH-Lab. She is a visiting professor at the University of Geneva, the founding director, chair and senior distinguished fellow of the Global Health Centre at the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. She is known throughout the world for her expertise and is a sought after senior adviser and key note speaker. Her areas of expertise include the determinants of health, health in all policies, and global health governance. She advises countries on their global health strategies, trains health specialists, and is involved in German G7 and G20 health activities. She publishes widely and serves on various commissions and boards. She has been awarded the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesverdienstkreuz) in recognition of her invaluable contributions to innovation in governance for global health and global health diplomacy. She has also been awarded the WHO Medal in recognition of her contribution to global health.