TRAILBLAZER TIME magazine acknowledges local scientist
Named in TIME100 annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
You will remember Dr. Sikhulile Moyo, the modern-day African hero, who together with his team sounded the crucial alert about the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron in November 2021.
Well, he has now been named in TIME100 annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Dr. Moyo who has served as Co-Scientific Scientist to the Botswana Presidential COVID-19 Task Force, working closely with the National Public Health Laboratory and Ministry of Health on the COVID-19 response, is quick to acknowledge that all wisdom and help comes from God.
He also chooses to highlight that an achievement of this magnitude does not happen in a vacuum and therefore values the team of people that have contributed in his journey.
“No man can be successful on his own.
With all humility, I acknowledge our team and many medical scientists that have made it possible from both the public and private sectors, with all gratitude for the support from the National Public Health Laboratory which pioneered SARS-COV-2 testing in the country in strong collaboration with BHP,” Dr. Moyo says.
Scientific Advisor at the Presidential COVID 19 Task Team, Dr Mogomotsi Matshaba told The Midweek Sun that it is always a great development when home grown scientists get recognised on the international stage for the work that helped to save the nation and the world.
“It teaches our young people that opportunities in science and research exist and can be used in developing our country,” he said, adding that he is very proud to know and work with the humble Dr Moyo. Some of the people who pushed him include his colleague Dr Simani Gaseitsiwe, a Virologist/Research Associate at Botswana Harvard Partnership (BHP). Dr Moyo, who is currently the Research Laboratory Director at the BHP, says Botswana’s strategy of deliberately implementing the genomic surveillance of SARS-COV-2 must be applauded and this recognition is a testament to the resolve to invest in public health response. “The District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) and private laboratories quickly embraced genomic surveillance as a defined vaccine deployment plan and a pre-defined pillar in a coordinated response,” he says. Dr. Moyo together with Professor Tulio de Oliviera from Stellenbosch University and the University of KwaZulu-Natal are jointly credited with the discovery of the B.1.1.529 SARS-CoV-2 variant that was later named Omicron by the World Health Organisation.
Omicron and its sub variants have become the dominant SARS-CoV-2 variants causing COVID-19 globally. For his part, BHP CEO, Dr Joseph Makhema said, “This discovery demonstrates the potential to leverage existing local human and infrastructural capacity to participate in cutting-edge scientific pursuits for the benefit of local, regional, and global scientific public health advances.”
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Grace Muzila said they regard Dr Moyo’s recognition as a vote of confidence in the quality of scientific expertise in Botswana. “It is a true demonstration that Botswana can be counted amongst a league of countries that have developed the requisite scientific knowledge and infrastructure that can help us and the world, to respond to current and future health challenges,” Muzila said. Associate Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases at HSPH and Chair of the Board of Directors of BHP, Dr. Rogers Shapiro said Dr. Moyo provided an early warning to the world about Omicron.
“We all owe a debt to him and to his team of dedicated scientists in Botswana. It is gratifying to see the scientific contribution made by Dr. Moyo recognised in this manner.” Dr Moyo is a devout Christian, gospel music writer and singer and is currently working on his third album with local producers and his family church, Bible Life Ministries. He and his wife Leabaneng Moyo are passionate about taking care of orphans. The TIME100 list, now in its nineteenth year, recognises the impact, innovation, and achievement of the world’s most influential individuals.