Quarraisha ABDOOL KARIM

• John C Martin Chair in Global Health & Associate Scientific Director: CAPRISA 
• Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York
• UNAIDS Special Ambassador for Adolescents and HIV
• Pro Vice-Chancellor, Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal
• President of The World Academy of Sciences
• Fellow of The Royal Society; African Academy of Sciences; International Science Council; International Centre of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS);  Academy of Science of South Africa and the Royal Society of Science for South Africa
• Member: National Academy of Medicine (USA) and American academy for Arts and Sciences

Professor Quarraisha Abdool Karim, FRS, President of The World academy of sciences is a South African infectious diseases epidemiologist and co-founder of the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), where she is the John C. Martin Chair in Global Health and Associate Scientific Director. She is also Professor of Clinical Epidemiology at Columbia University and Pro Vice-Chancellor of the College of Health Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Over the past three decades, she has been instrumental in shaping global HIV prevention strategies, with a particular focus on empowering women through science-based interventions. She led the groundbreaking CAPRISA 004 trial, which was the first to demonstrate that antiretroviral drugs, specifically tenofovir gel, can prevent the sexual transmission of HIV. This landmark study laid the scientific foundation for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a major advancement in HIV prevention. Her work has also significantly advanced understanding of HIV and tuberculosis (TB) co-infection, as well as the implications of COVID-19 for individuals living with HIV. Abdool Karim has authored over 300 peer-reviewed publications and co-edited several influential global health textbooks, including the 6th and 7th editions of the Oxford Textbook of Global Public Health. She has mentored and trained more than 600 scientists across Africa, helping to build and nurture a robust pipeline of public health leaders on the continent. 

Building resilient research institutions: Experiences from South Africa