Zwelethu Bashman’s career in the pharmaceutical industry spans 15 years during which he held different roles, starting as a sales representative at Schering-Plough in 2006 before its merger with MSD, and going on to Adcock Ingram where he was Business Unit Manager for HIV and vaccines and later head of sales before moving to Tanzania where he worked for Cipla as head of key accounts, setting up the company’s value chain across Sub-Saharan African. Returning to South Africa, he joined Merck Biopharma as head of marketing for English and Portuguese speaking countries before his appointment first as business unit director for HIV and vaccines and on 1 February as MD of MSD’s operations in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.