The Harold Griffith Lecture
The Harold Griffith Lecture is the only named plenary at the World Congress of Anaesthesiologists.
It honours the first President of WFSA, Dr Harold Griffith from Canada, who served from 1955 to 1960, taking office at the first WCA held in Scheveningen, Netherlands in 1955.
Dr Denis Mukwege – Harold Griffith Lecturer, WCA2026
We are honoured to announce that Dr Denis Mukwege, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and world-renowned gynecologist, will deliver the Harold Griffith Lecture at WCA2026 in Marrakech, Morocco.
Dr Mukwege is a Congolese physician and human rights advocate who has dedicated his life to caring for women affected by sexual violence and complex gynecological trauma in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In 1999, he founded the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, a globally recognized institution that provides holistic treatment to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. Over the past two decades, Dr Mukwege has personally cared for thousands of women suffering from complex gynecological injuries, often the result of brutal conflict-related violence.
In addition to his clinical work, Dr Mukwege is a leading voice for justice and survivor rights. He co-founded the Global Survivors’ Fund in 2019 and continues to campaign internationally for the end of impunity for sexual violence in conflict. His achievements have been recognized with numerous accolades, including:
- Nobel Peace Prize (2018)
- Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (2014)
- United Nations Human Rights Prize (2008)
Born in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, in 1955, he studied medicine in Burundi and France, specialising in obstetrics and gynecology. He earned a PhD in medical sciences from the Université Libre de Bruxelles, in Belgium, where he is also a professor.
His profound impact on global health, human rights, and gender-based violence advocacy makes him an inspiring voice for the global anaesthesiology community. His lecture at WCA2026 will be a defining moment of the Congress.
Previous Harold Griffith Lecturers have included:
- Tore Laerdal and Atul Gawande (2016, Hong Kong)
- Christina Maslach and Edna Adan Ismail (2021, Virtual Congress)
- Jannicke Mellin-Olsen and Kevin Fong (2024, Singapore)
The Harold Griffith Lecture is a highlight of every World Congress and a moment of reflection and inspiration for the global anaesthesiology community. It celebrates visionary figures whose work resonates beyond medicine to influence society and global health.