YPG Structure
The Young Pharmacists Group is a network of motivated young pharmacists inside the FIP, each having an equal role within the group. Each year at the FIP World Pharmacy Congress, a business meeting known as the ‘YPG Assembly’ is held where the strategy and budget for the year ahead is approved. Any congress delegates can attend the meeting but only FIP members, who have graduated less then 5 years ago from their first degree in pharmacy or members younger then 35 years of age are eligible to move motions, vote and stand for elections during the Business meeting.
Each year, the Assembly elects a Steering Committee to manage the network and facilitiate the communication. The Steering Committee consists of the Chairperson, Public Relations Officer and Project Coordinator. In recent years, the Steering Committee have also appointed individuals to undertake certain task-specific roles including Newsletter Editor.
The Steering Committee:
- Maintains internal communication between and provides support to the young members of FIP
- Co-ordinate the planning of the activities for young members during the annual FIP Congress
- Appoints coordinators as deemed appropriate
- Manages the financial responsibilities as defined in the current documents
- Attends FIP Congress and other events where possible
Interested in Getting Involved?
Being actively involved in the leadership of YPG is an unforgettable and very rewarding experience. It’s an opportunity to work with new friends from around the world and get a unique insight into the World of FIP and international pharmacy.
It is hard work and Committee members need to be in a position to dedicate at least a few hours each week to YPG. The majority of the group's work is done online, so you will need to have access to the internet. The committee meet twice during the year, once in March (normally at the FIP Secretariat in The Hague, The Netherlands) and once in September before the FIP Congress.
Any young pharmacist who is a member of FIP YPG can run for election. Candidates do not need to be present during the election which takes place during the Annual Assembly of FIP YPG Members at the FIP Congress. Details on how to apply for the 2009/10 YPG Steering Committee will be posted here in early 2010.
Below you’ll find the job descriptions for each of the positions. If you are interested in being appointed to a task specific position such as the Newsletter Editor, please contact the YPG Steering Committee.
Meet the 2009-2010 YPG Steering Committee
Chair: Cairo Toledano (Mexico)
Cairo Toledano from Mexico is a pharmacist who recently obtained his pharmacy doctorship on Pharmaceutical Care services. Currently he works in a second level hospital in Cuernavaca where he develops research and practises with diabetic, hypertensive and HIV/AIDS patients. His work also involves collaborating with the institutional pharmacovigilance programme and the drug information centre.
In 2002 he assumed the Vice-President and Public Relations positions in the International Pharmaceutical Student Federation (IPSF). For the following two years, he was Spanish translator on the Editorial Board. In 2005 he worked with YPG on their membership promotion strategy team, and in 2007 he was Biotechnology Chair of the Mexican Pharmaceutical Association (AFM). After an exciting year working with Sonia & Zhining as the YPG Public Relations Officer, this year, Cairo feels honored to be able to serve to all the young pharmacists as the YPG Chair. He believes that YPG is in great shape to start the development of necessary changes for the progress of the pharmacy profession, and that communication and experience-sharing are desirable attitudes for those who are willing to create pharmacy history all over the world.
The YPG Chair:
• Chairs the committee and co-ordinates its actions
• Represents the YPG at all relevant levels, including FIP's Bureau and Boards
• Organises the annual update of the working plan
• Maintain the financial accounts of the YPG and present them to FIP for auditing purposes
• Organises the YPG program for the FIP Congress
Click on the envelope to email Cairo
Public Relations Officer: Luther Gwaza (Zimbabwe)
Luther Gwaza is a pharmacist from Zimbabwe. He lectures pharmaceutics at the School 
of Pharmacy, University of Zimbabwe. Luther also works as a part time Senior Regulatory Officer with Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ), the national drug regulatory agency in Zimbabwe.
Luther is a previous recipient of the Mike How Award (2008) and the FIP Foundation for
Education and Research Grant for Professional Innovation (2008). He is the Secretary of the Pharmaceutical Society of Zimbabwe (PSZ) Mashonaland / Manicaland Branch since 2006. He is passionate about the development of young pharmacists. He believes young pharmacists should assume more responsibility in the development and growth of the profession. Luther is looking forward to an exciting year working with young pharmacists from around the globe for the advancement of the profession.
The YPG Public Relations Officer:
• Liaises with the FIP members (organisations and individuals) coordinated with the Chairperson
• Promotes active participation in the FIP initiatives to the young FIP members
• Writes / recruits articles, web-site content and press releases promoting the activities of the Group
• Prepares quarterly electronic newsletter and regularly updates the YPG web-site
• Offers articles to external journals
Click on the envelope to email Luther
Project Coordinator: Neveen Abdelghani (USA)
Dr. Neveen Abdelghani was born and raised in Southern California. In 2001, she graduated from UCLA with a double major in Chemistry and Political Science. She attended the USC School of Pharmacy and graduated in 2006 with her Doctor of Pharmacy and Master of Science in Regulatory Sciences. During pharmacy school, she interned with Amnesty International (Summer 2003) and with the World Health Organization (Summer 2004).
While attending pharmacy school, Neveen was appointed to a 2-year National Officer position for the American Pharmacists Association (2004-06). She represented the USA on the international level in Germany and Australia at the International Pharmaceutical Students' Federation (IPSF) World Congresses in 2005 and 2006, respectively. Neveen was elected as the IPSF Chairperson of Public Relations in August 2007 at the IPSF World Congress in Taipei, Taiwan.
Neveen recently completed a 2-year post-doctoral fellowship in infectious disease, HIV/AIDS clinical research, and regulatory affairs at Childrens Hospital, Los Angeles (CHLA). At this time, she is serving as the Special Projects Coordinator for a non-profit organization in Southern California, uniting her love for human/civil rights and grassroots advocacy with her desire to serve the local community.
The YPG Project Coordinator:
- Manages the contacts with the FIP sections/working groups coordinated with the Chair
- Organises the logistical support for projects initiated by young FIP members
- Organises the updates of the YPG resources for young pharmacists
- Coordinates projects of interest to the young pharmacists as decided appropriate