Acclaimed American epidemiologist Dr. Seth Berkley has received Makerere University’s Honorary Doctorate of Letters (Honoris Causa) Award, the highest honor Makerere can confer upon one for their distinguished service.
The Makerere University doctorate award citation hails Dr. Berkeley, a former faculty and a decade-long CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance for tremendous contribution to the staff capacity building in training and research, and student training at the Makerere School of Public Health. Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze, the Dean Makerere School of Public Health, was the orator of Honorary Doctor of Science to Dr. Seth Franklin Berkley.
The citation also notes Dr. Berkeley was instrumental in starting the Public Health Schools Without Walls to create a cadre of Public Health workers who are trained from the community. The first three programs in Africa were established in Zimbabwe, Ghana, and Uganda.
The honoris causa of Makerere University is the latest honor for Dr. Berkeley in a career full of distinctions. He has been a recipient of many prestigious awards for his work particularly in GAVI and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and was early this month named among the Fortune World’s 50 Greatest Leaders.
Dr. Seth Berkley is a widely published scientist with over 250 scientific publications and has done several TED talks. Prior to joining GAVI, Dr. Seth Berkley was the founder of the IAVI and was the IAVI CEO for 15 years. Prior to this, he worked with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Task Force for Child Survival of the Carter Presidential Center. During his work at the Task Force, he was assigned to work under the Ministry of Health in Uganda in 1987 and was appointed Honorary Lecturer at Makerere University during this period.
Globally, as a founder member of IAVI and its CEO, Dr. Seth Berkley led the efforts for the establishment of the global structures and systems as well as advocacy to expand HIV vaccine initiatives. He also managed public health programs in 30 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America while he was in the Rockefeller Foundation. He was instrumental in initiating the International Clinical Epidemiology Network that established Clinical Epidemiology training programs across 35 Medical Schools in 20 countries, including Uganda
“As the CEO of GAVI, Dr. Seth Berkley significantly expanded the reach of the GAVI services globally especially to the low and middle-income countries (LMIC), and reduced vaccine-preventable diseases by 70%, with resultant reduction in mortality and morbidity,” reads in part the citation.
The citation also notes Dr. Seth Berkeley’s instrumental role while at the helm of GAVI when the vaccine alliance partnered with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other Global entities to form the COVAX facility to make COVID-19 vaccines available to 92 LMICs, the majority of these in Africa.
“This facility has taken the center stage in ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines globally. As Dr. Berkley says, “We are only safe if we are all safe,” reads the citation.
The award was conferred at Makerere University’s 71st Graduation Ceremony of Makerere University on Monday 17th May 2021 by Chancellor Professor Ezra Suruma.
Prof. Suruma extended special congratulations to Dr. Berkeley for the distinguished work he is doing in the world of public health.
“We are delighted to recognize [your] excellence and distinction in [your] service to the world. Thank you for serving humanity with such great love and sacrifice,” said Prof. Suruma.
In equal measure, Makerere University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe warmly congratulated Dr. Seith Berkely upon this achievement and welcomed him to Makerere University Convocation, an alumni and staff association.
“I congratulate Dr. Seth Berkeley of GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance upon receiving honorary degrees of Mak. Thank you for the great work you do for Makerere and humanity,” said Prof. Nawangwe.
Dr. Berkeley received the award virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions.
“I cannot tell you what a huge honor it is to receive this award which is particularly heartfelt given my personal history with Makerere University as a former faculty member and because of the deep connection that I still feel with Uganda even now after many years of working there,” Dr. Berkeley said, upon receiving the award.
He recollects the situation in the late 1980s when Uganda was grappling with a terrible new disease HIV/AIDs.
“Through my work as an Epidemiologist and the Ministry of Health as a practicing physician at Mulago, I saw first-hand the terrible impact this disease was having, but the work we did together during the first Nationwide survey in establishing surveillance network across 33 districts at the time not only helped establish Uganda’s National AIDs Control program but helped pass the global spotlight on the true scale of the epidemic in Africa and validated the definition for Africa laying a pathway for other countries to follow,” recalls Dr. Berkeley.
He said he was proud to associate with Makerere, the first University in East Africa to offer degrees in Public Health and a leading institution, and continues that great work.
“As I join you today Uganda is sadly experiencing another challenging period along with the rest of the world battling to stop the spread of the Corona Virus but Uganda today is in a very different place. Back then only about 40% of children were receiving routine immunization than today. I am extremely proud to be CEO of GAVI and vaccine alliance that has helped Uganda get there,” he said.
In 2019, Uganda also had a world-leading Ebola program in addition to childhood vaccination programs and vaccines were made available to allow Ugandans to vaccinate 5,000 frontline health workers during that critical period.
“With COVID 19, as co-leader of COVAX facility, GAVI is working to ensure equitable access doing its best to provide vaccines for high-risk people such as frontline workers the elderly, and other vulnerable people so far more than 800,000 vaccines have been delivered of the 15 of 2,000,000 doses, we hope to provide this year,” said Dr. Berkeley.
He notes that; “Uganda is a country close to my heart so I am very pleased to continue to play the role in its journey through the School of Public Health, GAVI, and COVAX. I am extremely honored to receive this honorary doctorate and delighted to join the rest of the graduates to be into the ranks of this esteemed institution.”
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the WHO congratulated Dr. Berkeley on ‘this so well-deserved recognition.’
“Thanks for all you are doing for global health and to ensure vaccines work for all, especially the most vulnerable,” Dr. Tedros said in a tweet.
This 71st graduation ceremony saw a total of 12,550 students receive degree and diploma awards of Makerere University in various disciplines. Of these, a record 108 received PhDs. Of these, 38 graduands were female, representing 35% of the total.
A total of 1160 graduands received Masters Degrees. Of these, 434 were female, representing 37% of the total. Of all the 12,550 graduands, 51% were female and 49% were male.
By Davidson Ndyabahika & Melody Kukundakwe
The writer is the communications officer at Makerere School of Public Health. For more information Email: dndyabahika@musph.ac.ug
