Dr Dipesalema Joel is the current President of the Union of National African Paediatric Societies and Associations (UNAPSA), Chairman of Botswana Paediatric Association and the current Academic Head of the Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Health at the University of Botswana in Gaborone, Botswana. Dr Dipesalema Joel graduated from the National University of Ireland in the Republic of Ireland with a Bachelor of Medicine (MB), Bachelor of Surgery (BCh), Bachelor of Arts in Obstetrics (BAO), and Bachelor of Medical Science (B Med Sc) in June 2002. He did his specialty training in Paediatrics in the Republic of Ireland, and he is a Member of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (MRCPI). He did sub-specialty training in the Paediatric Endocrinology Training Centre for Africa (PETCA) in Nairobi, Kenya, and graduated with distinction, top of his class in March 2011.

Dr Dipesalema Joel has served as the President of the African Society for Paediatric and Adolescent Endocrinology (ASPAE) from 2018 – 2020. He also served as the Chairman of Diabetes Association of Botswana for 10 years from 2011 – 2021.

Dr Dipesalema Joel has published 108 pieces of research – (book chapters, peer-reviewed journals, conference abstracts, oral and poster presentations). His scholarly work has 1160 citations in Google Scholar and an H index of 9 in Scopus.

As a Leader, Dr Dipesalema Joel believes in a strong team, inspired by the ancient African proverb that “If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together”.