Chen Wei, the military scientist who became the face of China’s rapid response to the COVID-19 pandemic, has been appointed Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE). This move, recently confirmed by the academy’s official leadership roster, marks a significant political and administrative promotion for the 58-year-old Major General. Beyond her new role as Vice President, she also joins the academy’s influential Party leadership group.
Known widely as China’s "Vaccine Queen," Chen has spent decades at the intersection of military defense and public health. Her portfolio includes pioneering work on the Ebola vaccine and leading the development of the country’s first adenovirus vector COVID-19 vaccine. In 2020, President Xi Jinping personally awarded her the title of "People’s Hero," the nation’s highest honor for service during the pandemic, cementing her status as a symbol of scientific resilience.
Her elevation to the CAE leadership reflects Beijing’s strategic emphasis on biosecurity as a core component of national security. As a high-ranking officer in the Academy of Military Medical Sciences, her new role bridges the gap between the People’s Liberation Army’s research capabilities and the country’s broader civilian engineering and technological goals. This appointment underscores the continued priority placed on military-civilian fusion in the field of biotechnology.
This appointment comes as China seeks to bolster its self-reliance in high-end medical infrastructure and indigenous scientific innovation. By placing a trusted military figure with a proven track record of crisis management at the helm of the CAE, the central leadership ensures that scientific research remains closely aligned with state security priorities. It also serves as a potent signal that those who deliver tangible results during national emergencies will be rewarded with long-term policy-making influence.