Dr Leslie Ramsammy was appointed as the Minister of Agriculture of Guyana on December 5, 2011. Prior to this appointment, he was the longest standing health minister in the world and is recognized as a global leader in health. He is the current Chair of the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Caribbean Public Health Agency; current Chair of Affordable Medicines for Malaria, an entity operated by the Global Fund to provide medicines for malaria to countries around the world; and member of the Advisory Committee of the Non-Communicable Disease Network, a global advisory board to promote greater attention and focus on the chronic diseases.

He is past president of the World Health Organization’s 61st World Health Assembly (2008-2009) and Past President of the Pan American Health Organization’s 47th Directing Council (2006–2008). Dr Ramsammy has served as the Member on the Board of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, representing the Caribbean and Latin America (2008–2009), and is presently the Alternate Board Member representing Latin America and the Caribbean on The Global Fund Board. He served during 2008 and 2009 as a member representing Latin America and the Caribbean on the Policy and Strategy Committee.

He returned to Guyana in the late 1990s during a time of political transition and has been a Member of Parliament since 1997. He is chair of numerous National Oversight Committees including, the National Health Thematic Group; the National TB Program; the National Malaria Program; the National Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission Program; the National Blood Transfusion Program; many Special Select Committees of Parliament and the Reforms of the Standing Orders of Parliament and National Fiduciary.

In addition, he has played critical leadership roles on numerous government sub-committees (Health, Education, Housing and Water, Social Security and Human Services, Natural Resources and Environment, Parliamentary Affairs, Local Government, and Amerindian Affairs), commissions, and special standing committees of Parliament, including the Constitutional Commission and the Public Accounts Committee.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in Microbiology from Pace University in New York, a master’s degree in Biology from St. John’s University, and a Medical degree and Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry from St. John’s University. He completed post-doctoral training in Neurochemistry at the New York Institute of Developmental Disabilities. In 1984, he served as an assistant professor of Medicine at the State University of New York and Research Physiologist at the Veterans Hospital in North Port, New York.