Drogheda professor honoured for work
DROGHEDA man Prof Kevin McGuigan has been presented with an international prize for his role in saving thousands if not millions of lives worldwide.
Along with Professor Cato Laurencin (USA) and Professor Youyou Tu (China). he is one of the three winners of the 2019 UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences.
The prize rewards outstanding scientific research projects in the life sciences that have led to an improvement in the quality of human life.
Prof McGuigan of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland-(RCSI) was rewarded for his cutting-edge research on the development and implementation of solar water disinfection technology (SODIS) to combat diseases among people without access to safe drinking water in Africa and Asia.
DROGHEDA man Prof Kevin McGuigan has been presented with an international prize for his role in saving thousands if not millions of lives worldwide.
Along with Professor Cato Laurencin (USA) and Professor Youyou Tu (China). he is one of the three winners of the 2019 UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences.
The prize rewards outstanding scientific research projects in the life sciences that have led to an improvement in the quality of human life.
Prof McGuigan of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland-(RCSI) was rewarded for his cutting-edge research on the development and implementation of solar water disinfection technology (SODIS) to combat waterborne diseases among people without access to safe drinking water in Africa and Asia.
His approach to this research is unique and pioneering, not only in the laboratory, but especially in the field, among the communities most exposed to waterborne diseases in developing countries. His research group demonstrated the impact using SODIS on childhood diarrhoea in 1996 and then on dysentery. SODIS has since demonstrated its effectiveness against all major waterborne pathogens.
The former St Patrick’s, Bothar Brugha, St Joseph’s NS and St Joseph’s Secondary School student - where Des Clinton was one of his great mentors - holds the title of Associate Professor of Medical Physics in the RCSI, Department of Physiology & Medical Physics.
He admits he gets ‘great satisfaction’ from the role he does and that people have benefited from his work, that now spans 27 years.
Kevin was presented with his award at a ceremony at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during the African Union Heads of State Summit last week.
Kevin shared the speakers stage with Mrs Audrey Azoulay, Director General UNESCO, H.E. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of Rep. of South Africa & President of African Union and H.E. Obiang Nguema Mbasogo President of Rep. of Equatorial Guinea.