Yvan Zolo is a Global Surgery Fellow at the University of Cape Town, his work will focuses on the neurosurgical workforce in Africa. He obtained his Doctor of medicine degree from the University of Buea in 2021.

Yvan is passionate about neurosurgery, medical education, research and improving the provision of safe, timely and affordable surgical care. He has nurtured his interests in numerous organizations including the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies’ Global Neurosurgery Junior Committee where he is a member of the advocacy and secretariat teams.

He developed his passion for research, medical education, and global neurosurgery in the Association of Future African Neurosurgeons (AFAN). As an AFAN research fellow, Yvan published more than a dozen papers in peer-reviewed journals and made abstract presentations at international conferences. One of his landmark papers published in the British Journal of Neurosurgery investigated the motivations, needs, and challenges faced by aspiring neurosurgeons. Yvan and his co-authors used their findings to develop opportunities for aspiring neurosurgeons. Yvan co-founded a start-up that was a finalist of the Stanford Global Health Innovation Challenge. His leadership skills have led him to the presidency of AFAN where he has overseen its expansion across Africa.