Deo’s Story

Deogratias (Deo) Niyizonkiza, VHW's visionary founder, is a leading advocate for the most impoverished people in the world. His compassion, expertise and life experience have made him a key voice in global health and development. 

An American citizen, Deo was born in rural Burundi where he attended grade school and part of medical school. Arriving alone in the US, his incredible courage, determination and ingenuity led him to Columbia University for his undergraduate education. He went on to study at Harvard's School of Public Health and Dartmouth Medical School. 

In 2006, Deo traveled back to Burundi to establish Village Health Works. Deo's passion rallied the southern Burundi community of Kigutu into action. With community-donated land and an army of committed volunteers, the clinic opened in December 2007. Deo's success in building an entirely community-driven health and development organization is unprecedented, and makes Village Health Works unique among NGOs. 

Deo’s extraordinary story is told in Tracy Kidder’s most recent work, Strength in What Remains, a New York Times best seller named one of the best books of the year by the Washington Post, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune. 

A frequent lecturer on global health, Deo is the recipients of multiple awards including the 2011 International Medal Award of St. John’s University and the 2010 Women Refugee Commission’s Voices of Courage Award.