Dr Hung Nguyen-Viet appointed ILRI Regional Director for Asia

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) has announced a leadership transition in its Asia regional team. Effective August 1, 2025, Dr Hung Nguyen-Viet will assume the role of Regional Director for Asia, succeeding Dr Fred Unger. The appointment was confirmed by ILRI’s Director General, Appolinaire Djikeng.

Dr. Hung is currently a Senior Principal Scientist at ILRI and serves as One Health Program Leader under the CGIAR Initiative on Sustainable Animal and Aquatic Food Systems (SAAF). His research lies at the intersection of agriculture and health, focusing on food safety, infectious and zoonotic diseases, and applying risk assessments and interventions in traditional and informal markets.

At ILRI and CGIAR, Dr Hung Nguyen-Viet previously served as Health Program Leader (2020-2025) and as Regional Representative for East and Southeast Asia (2017-2020). He has held key research leadership roles across CGIAR, including leading the CGIAR Initiative on One Health, the Food Safety Flagship of the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH), and contributions to the CGIAR COVID-19 Hub.

He is a member of the One Health High-Level Expert Panel (OHHLEP). He was a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO) and was a WHO expert to investigate the origins of SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan, China in 2021.

With over 20 years of professional experience across Asia, Africa, and Europe, Dr. Nguyen combines strong scientific expertise with a proven track record in building institutions and partnerships. Before joining ILRI, Dr Hung Nguyen-Viet worked at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and at Sandec/Eawag in Switzerland.

He co-founded and directed the Center for Public Health and Ecosystem Research (CENPHER) at the Hanoi University of Public Health in Vietnam and coordinated the regional initiative on Ecohealth field-building in Southeast Asia. 

Dr Nguyen is from Vietnam and holds a PhD in Life and Environmental Sciences from France. He has widely published in One Health, food safety, agriculture, and livestock. He has been an Associate Editor and a guest editor of a number of journals.

Dr Fred Unger, who has made many contributions in his role as ILRI Representative in Asia, will retire at the end of 2025. On behalf of the organization, the ILRI Director General expressed his sincere thanks to Mr. Fred for the great contributions he has made in Vietnam as well as the whole region over the past time.