KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 — Datuk Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman was today conferred with the Merdeka Award for the category of Health, Science and Technology, in recognition of her contribution toward the mitigation of infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS in Malaysia.
“I am deeply humbled by this recognition and want to first offer tribute to all healthcare frontliners in Malaysia who in the last two and a half years have worked tirelessly to overcome the horrors of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I would naturally like to dedicate this award to my colleagues at the Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya; Centre of Excellence for Research in AIDS (Ceria) Universiti Malaya; Malaysian AIDS Foundation and Council; and colleagues at the International AIDS Society, for without their dedication, hard work and support, this would not have been possible,” said Dr Adeeba in a statement.
Dr Adeeba, who is trained in internal medicine and infectious diseases, is responsible for the establishment of the Infectious Diseases Unit at the UM Medical Centre and later Ceria — one of the few dedicated HIV research centres in Southeast Asia.
She has also served as an adviser to numerous World Health Organisation (WHO) committees on HIV/AIDS, and is a member of the UNAIDS Scientific Expert Panel on HIV, and last year was the first Asian to serve as president of the International AIDS Society (IAS).
Additionally, she was part of the investigating team that brought under control the late 1990s outbreak of the fatal Nipah virus in Malaysia.
There were six categories for this year’s Merdeka award.
Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Siti Zuraina Abdul Majid received the award for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement, while Datuk Dr Annabel Teh Gallop won for Outstanding Contribution to the People of Malaysia.
Organisations, Teach for Malaysia and Global Environment Centre respectively received awards for the categories of Education and Community, and Environment).
Samuel Isaiah received the new Anugerah Harapan Merdeka for improving and uplifting the standard of education among the Orang Asli children.
Sultan of Perak, Sultan Nazrin Shah presented the awards.
The Merdeka Award Trust was established by Petronas and Shell in August 2007, to recognise and reward excellent individuals and organisations whose works and achievements have not only contributed to the nation’s growth but have also inspired greatness in the people of Malaysia.
