Quarraisha Abdool Karim is a leading infectious diseases epidemiologist whose seminal contributions spanning over three decades have shaped the global HIV prevention landscape, notably in prevention technologies for women. She demonstrated that ARVs prevent sexually transmitted HIV that laid the foundation for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); and has provided insights in Africa and globally on the impact of Covid-19 on HIV and in the evaluation of Covid-19 vaccines and therapeutics.
She is the Associate Scientific Director of CAPRISA; Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, Columbia University, and Pro-Vice Chancellor for African Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and President of The World Academy of Science (TWAS). She is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine (USA); and Fellow of the African Academy of Science, the Royal Society of South Africa, and the Academy of Science of South Africa.
Her research contributions have been recognized nationally and internationally with over 30 honours including the TWAS-Lenovo Prize; the Order of Mapungubwe from the President of South Africa; Christophe Mérieux Prize from the French Academies of Science; Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize for Medical Research and the Gairdner Global Health Award. She co-chairs the UN 10 Member Technology Facilitation Mechanism.
In 2024, Prof Abdool Karim was honoured with a prestigious Lasker~Bloomberg Public Service Award for illuminating key drivers of heterosexual HIV transmission and introducing life-saving approaches to prevent and treat HIV.
This page has been updated in September 2024.
