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Karim is one of the country’s leading scientists and chairs the ministerial advisory committee on COVID-19.
Professor Salim Abdool Karim, specialist in infectious diseases. Image: @ UKZN / Twitter.
JOHANNESBURG – President Cyril Ramaphosa congratulated epidemiologist professor Salim Abdool Karim on Thursday for receiving this year’s John Maddox Award for championing science during the coronavirus pandemic.
Karim is one of the country’s leading scientists and chairs the ministerial advisory committee on COVID-19.
On Monday he was recognized for going beyond his duty as a government health adviser.
“As an advisor in official forums and as an ambassador for science, Professor Karim has greatly influenced our response to this pandemic and has enabled the public to understand COVID-19 through his clear and endearing communication of the science behind it. global challenge for human health, ”Ramaphosa said in a statement.
Karim shares the award with American physician and immunologist Anthony Fauci, who has served as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.
In a statement released by the charity Sense about Science and the scientific journal Nature earlier this week, the two were celebrated for their contribution to understanding the global pandemic.
“They communicated the complex and changing science of COVID-19 to the public and policymakers, amid international uncertainty and anxiety,” the statement read.
Speaking about Karim, the statement read: “He has a reputation for clear and honest communication, something that has allowed him to build public trust in fast-moving science. Respected for his advocacy of international science, engagement with the media and the public. it has become an integral part of his role as a scientist. “
Now in its ninth year, the John Maddox Prize honors one or two people for championing sound science in public.
This year, during the coronavirus outbreak that has gripped the world, he received more than 100 nominations from 34 countries.
Karim was one of the first scientists to speak out against AIDS denial.
He also guided the public through the science of AIDS during a time when those who disagreed with the government’s position were labeled “enemies of the state.”
The president also congratulated Professor Quarraisha Abdool Karim, the globally acclaimed HIV and AIDS researcher and epidemiologist who is also Karim’s wife, on the shared reception of the Chilean government’s 500 Years of the Strait of Magellan award.
With this award, Chile honors innovators who, through their research or actions, have contributed to providing solutions to global needs.
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