Professor Bontle Mbongwe, is an associate professor in the Department of Environmental Health under the Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of Botswana. She holds a PhD in Environmental Health from the University of Pretoria and an MSc in Biology, specializing in Chemical and Environmental Toxicology from the University of Ottawa in Canada.
She has conducted research on diverse issues related to pesticides and toxic heavy metal exposures, smoking and health, health care waste management, HIV and Non-communicable Diseases.
Professor Mbongwe is a recipient of a number of awards including the prestigious WHO Director General’s Award on Leadership in Global Tobacco Control which she received in 2003 due to her stellar work at the negotiations of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. She is also a recipient of the International Network of Women Against Tobacco (INWAT) Achievement Award in 2018. In 2021 she was awarded the WHO World No Tobacco Day Award in 2021 for her work and leadership in Tobacco control.
One of her most passionate endeavors has been mentorship of young men and women in the fields of environmental health and tobacco control advocacy.
Professor Mbongwe is the founder and current interim director of the Anti Tobacco Network – an organization that has established its footprint as a leader in matters of tobacco control.
Some of the milestones of the network include campaigns such as the campaign to introduce the tobacco levy in 2014; the “I Don’t Want to be Walking Billboard for the Tobacco Industry Campaign”; the formation of Tobacco Industry Monitoring Teams across the country; and the production of various research reports on tobacco related issues in Botswana.
