Adar Poonawalla
Quick Facts
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Biography
Adar Poonawalla(born 14 January 1981) is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Serum Institute of India. Founded in 1966 by his father, Cyrus Poonawalla, it is the world's largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced.
Education
Adar Poonawalla was educated at The Bishop's School (Pune), St Edmund's School Canterbury followed by the University of Westminster.
Career
Poonawalla joined the Serum Institute of India in 2001 after graduating from university. Then exporting its products to 35 countries, Poonawalla concentrated on the company's international market, new products license and getting pre-qualified by the World Health Organization for supply to United Nations Agencies including UNICEF and PAHO. As of 2015, he has helped the company export its products to over 140 countries; 85 percent of its revenues are from overseas.
In 2011, he became the CEO. In 2012, he played a major role in the acquisition of Bilthoven Biologicals, a Netherlands-based government vaccine manufacturing company. Poonawalla is a board member of the GAVI Alliance, the global vaccine alliance.
He initiated and launched in 2014; Serum Institute's oral polio vaccine, which became a bestseller for the company. It was reported that he planned to expand the product portfolio to include vaccines for dengue, flu and cervical cancer during the same year. Presently he is the CEO of Serum Institute of India.
Awards
- In 2016, he was listed by GQ Magazine and awarded Philanthropist of the year.
- In 2017, he received Humanitarian Endeavour Award In Hall of Fame Awards 2017 and was also awarded as Indian of the Year in CSR Business Category on CNN-News18
- In 2018, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis presented the ET Edge Maharashtra Achievers Awards of Business Leader of the Year to Poonawala, he further received CNBC Asia's award for Corporate Social Responsibility in the same year
- In 2020, Adar was included in a Fortune magazine's '40 Under 40' listing in the healthcare category.
- In March 2021, Adar has been adjudged Entrepreneur of the Year by Economic Times for unparalleled contribution in fighting Covid-19 by successfully supplying huge quantities of Covishield in India and globally, a vaccine developed by Oxford-AstraZeneca and produced in India by Serum Institute.
- On 28th April 2021, the Ministry of Home Affairs of India has issued orders to provide Y category security on an all India basis to Serum Institute's Adar Poonawalla.
