Marleen TEMMERMAN (°1953)
Profession: Gynaecologist, professor
Nationality: Belgian
Why an honorary doctorate?
In May 2011, VUB-rector Paul De Knop hands an honorary doctorate to Marleen Temmerman.
A matter of dignity
Her scientific contributions and books on mostly women's issues represent valuable material in both a social and academic sense. VUB loves in-depth research into social themes that often remain unjustly in the dark. She promotes the fight for integrity that places human dignity at the centre and leaves honour and fame blindly in its wake. Temmerman embodies and connects science and commitment in a way that shows humble grandeur.
Modest and without much urge for public worship: Marleen Temmerman sets her sights on her goal. She knows her strength, she hopes for impact. A woman who fights for the rights and health of women and the weak all over the world, who stands up to the oppression and violence that is a bitter reality for many of them. What lies in the wake of her actions is part of this. Her involvement inspires; her struggle is her own, but it concerns everyone in the whole world.
"I don't feel like a world improver, I choose things I can do something about, and I do them."
About her career
Expertise where it is needed.
In 2015, Marleen becomes the director of the obstetrics department at Aga Khan hospital in Kenya.
1994. Establishment of the International Centre for Reproductive Health (ICRH)
1995: First Belgian female professor of gynaecology
2012: Head of the Department for Reproductive Health and Research at the WHO
A woman for women.
1986 – 1992. Marleen Temmerman leaves Belgium to live and work in Kenya for four years It is 1992 when she returns to work as a gynaecologist at UZ Ghent. During her career, she has helped more than 18,000 women bring their babies into the world, even far beyond our national borders.
Later, in 1994, Marleen Temmerman co-founds the International Centre for Reproductive Health (ICRH). The ICRH has departments in Kenya, Mozambique and Belgium and invests in projects in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Europe. The multidisciplinary centre conducts research on reproductive and sexual health and rights.
In 1995 Temmerman is appointed full professor at the University of Ghent. In doing this, she snatches up the status of first female Belgian professor of gynaecology. She has authored and co-authored more than 300 books and scientific publications on women's health.
She also wants to make social contributions from a political perspective. In 2001, she sits on the Lokeren town council for Agalev, but she switches to the SP.a. in 2004. After the 2007 elections, she wins a seat in the Senate for the party. She becomes Senate Chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee and in 2011 succeeds Johan Vande Lanotte as group leader.
Temmerman's political narrative fades after she takes on the role of head of the World Health Organisation's Department of Reproductive Health and Research in the autumn of 2012. She works tirelessly to unite policymakers, scientists, healthcare providers, and women's organisations with the aim of improving women's health around the world.
In 2015, she leaves the World Health Organisation to work for the Aga Khan Development Network in Kenya. She heads the department of gynaecology and obstetrics at the Aga Khan University Hospital and is also the director of the Centre of Excellence in Women & Child Health attached to the same university.
October 2018, Prof. Dr. Marleen Temmerman draws a line under her academic career at Ghent University during the celebration of her emeritate.
What is an honorary doctorate?
VUB has awarded honorary doctorates every year since 1978 to personalities from the most diverse backgrounds who have made a remarkable contribution to their field and to society. From this solemn moment of recognition, they bear the honorary title of Doctor Honoris Causa of VUB.