Skip to main content

Winners emerge in Al-Sumait Prize for African Development

Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah

Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah

The winners of the Kuwait-sponsored, Al-Sumait 2015 Health Award and 2016 Food Security Award have been announced by the Board of Trustees at a meeting in Kuwait City

Monday’s Board of Trustees meeting of the Al-Sumait Prize for African Development (http://ift.tt/1TzMAVa) honoured ground-breaking research on tackling childhood malaria and addressing undernourishment through Africa, which both impact the lives of ten millions of children across the continent.

The Board awarded the 2015 Al-Sumait Prize for Health to Professor Kevin Marsh, from the University of Oxford and African Academy of Sciences, Kenya, for his sustained efforts to control and eradicate malaria, which impacts the health of tens of millions of African children.

The 2016 Al-Sumait Prize for Food Security honored two organizations-The Sweet Potato for Nutrition Team International Potato Centre, Peru, in advancing the contribution of sweet potato to African farmers and households to address Vitamin A deficiency, one of the most pernicious forms of undernourishment, and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Nigeria, for its work in improving the yields and nutritional quality of major staple food crops, such as cassava, banana and maize.

Al-Sumait’s Board is chaired by H.E. Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Kuwait’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Other board members include Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr. Donald Kaberuka, Former President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Kwaku Aning, Former Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mr. Abdulatif Alhamad, Director General and Chairman of the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Mr Tareq Al-Mutawa, Executive Member of the Board of Public Gathering Charity Committee and others.

Dr. Adnan Shihab-Eldin, Director General of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), which administers the awards, said the Board of Trustees is ‘proud to award the prizes to all three recipients who have made major contributions to improving the lives of millions of people throughout Africa.

“We are deeply humbled by the efforts demonstrated by Al-Sumait prize laureates in the pursuit of scientific discoveries to meet the challenges of disease, nutrition, food production and climate change,” he said. He added that all the laureates were in the frontline of Africa’s challenges, yet have succeeded despite limited resources.

Al-Sumait Prizes honour individuals or institutions who help advance economic and social development, human resources development and infrastructure in Africa through their sustained research and or innovative projects that result in major impact on the lives and welfare of the people of Africa especially the poor and underprivileged. The awards were instigated on the initiative of His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- Sabah, the Amir of the State of Kuwait.

With each award worth one million dollars and a gold medal, Al-Sumait awards are administered by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS) and a Board of Trustees who oversee the selection of the recipients. The awards acknowledge the work of the late Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Sumait, a Kuwaiti doctor who dedicated his life to addressing the development challenges confronting Africa and established the Direct Aid humanitarian organization.

The winning laureates will receive their awards from the Amir of the State of Kuwait and the President of Equatorial Guinea during a ceremony at the Fourth Arab African Summit in Equatorial Guinea on November 22, 2016.

“Each of the winners represent innovative, exciting initiatives being done to address the challenges facing Africa,” said Dr. Adnan Shihab-Eldin.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Houthis Claim Attack on Central Israel in Response to Gaza ‘Massacres’

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has taken a concerning regional turn as the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for an attack on central Israel. The group announced this as part of their escalating response to what they describe as "massacres" in Gaza amid the Israeli military’s operations in the strip. Details of the Attack The Houthis, a Shiite militant group with ties to Iran, declared that they launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel. While the exact impact of these attacks remains unclear, reports suggest that Israel’s defense systems intercepted several threats over its airspace. This marks a significant escalation as the Houthis widen their involvement in the conflict beyond their typical operations within Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. The Houthis’ Justification In their statement, the Houthis framed the attack as retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which they characterized as indiscriminate bombings resultin...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fire: UniJos Senate convenes emergency meeting on Monday

Fire at the University of Jos Library University of Jos is to convene an emergency senate meeting on Monday to review the level of damage done to the institution by the Saturday night inferno. The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sebastian Maimako, disclosed this on Sunday after inspecting areas affected by the incident. The fire, which lasted for more than six hours, destroyed the Library Complex that equally houses the faculties of management and social sciences. The fire also destroyed examination scripts, books and very crucial materials. Consequently, the vice-chancellor said “the Senate will meet tomorrow (Monday) to take a decision about the unmarked examination scripts that were burnt.” On the cause of the inferno, Maimako said investigation had commenced, adding that “nothing has been confirmed yet. We are still investigating.” The vice chancellor said the school was already working with federal authorities toward establishing a main fire station since the mini fire station in t...
Post a Comment
Read more

NDLEA arrests 252 suspects, seizes 3,073 kg Indian hemp

NDLEA operatives The NDLEA in Niger on Monday said that it had arrested 252 suspects and seized 3,073.9 kilogramme of Indian hemp(cannabis sativa) in the state. The NDLEA Commander in the state, Mr Joseph Iweajunwa, who disclosed this in Minna, said that the operations were carried out between January and September. “Our operations in Niger State from January to September 2016 led to the arrest of 252 suspects and seizure of 3,073.997 kilogramme of cannabis sativa,’’ he said. Iweajunwa said that within the period, the agency also seized 1, 530 litres of liquid drugs, especially cough syrup with codeine. He said the NDLEA also counselled and rehabilitated 90 drug addicts in the state within the period under review. The agency, he added, secured convictions of only nine of the suspects because the judge at the Federal High Court, Minna, went on leave. “ Now that the judge has resumed more suspects will be tried,’’ he said. He advised motorists, especially commercial vehicle dri...
Post a Comment
Read more