Waimar Tun

Waimar Tun is an epidemiologist and social and behavioral scientist whose research over the last 20 years has focused on improving the lives of vulnerable, underserved, and historically marginalized groups in Africa, Asia, and the US through her research on strategies to overcome barriers to HIV and sexual health services. She leads studies to develop community-based interventions and other innovations (e.g., digital chatbot) to increase HIV prevention (e.g., HIV self-testing, PrEP) and treatment uptake including among female sex workers and sexual and gender minorities in sub-Saharan Africa and Black/African-American communities in the US. She also co-leads an evaluation of a program to prevent and protect victims/survivors of sex trafficking in Senegal.

Before joining the Council in 2006, Tun worked for Family Health International, where she was responsible for program monitoring and evaluation and HIV/STI biological and behavioral surveillance. Prior to that, she served in the US Public Health Service at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer. She is part of the WomenLift Health 2024 North America Leadership Cohort.

Tun received her PhD and MHS in epidemiology from Johns Hopkins University.