APA-Pretoria (South Africa) South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has paid homage to one of the country’s leading academics and scientists, Hoosen Mahomed Coovadia who has died at the age of 83 at his home in Durban.
“Our nation’s loss will be felt globally,” the president said on Thursday.
He added: “But we can take pride at and comfort from the emergence of a giant of science and an icon of compassion and resilience from our country.”
Ramaphosa described Coovadia, who wore many hats in his field, as a health policy innovator, an outstanding scientist, and as a committed anti-apartheid campaigner who dedicated himself to the liberation struggle.
A world-renowned scientist, Coovadia dedicated himself to the physical well-being and social inclusion of people all over the world through his enterprising mission as a scientist and architect of public health policies, the president said.
“His pioneering, and globally acclaimed research into mother-to-child transmission of HIV, has rendered an immeasurable legacy to humanity in terms of which persons living with HIV can live long and healthy lives subject to early detection and access to treatment,” he said.
Despite facing numerous obstacles in apartheid South Africa, Coovadia established himself as a top paediatrician and became an international authority on HIV and AIDS, earning numerous awards and accolades throughout his career.
Those who have been paying their tribute have described his passing as a great loss to the scientific community and remarked that his contribution would always be remembered.
The president paid his deepest condolences to Coovadia’s wife, Zubeida Hamed, his son Imraan Coovadia, and daughter Anuschka Coovadia on behalf of government and the nation.
NM/jn/APA