Mohamed mourns death of Dr Nabil Aziz
- 25 May 2021
Gulf Today, Staff Reporter
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, on Monday mourned the death of Dr Nabil Aziz Awad Alla.
"Together with @CarterCenter we honour the life and work of our friend, Dr. Nabil Aziz Awad Alla. His courage and leadership to end Guinea Worm in his home country, often at great personal risk, continue to inspire us to rid the world of neglected tropical diseases," tweeted Sheikh Mohamed.
Dr. Nabil Aziz Awad Alla passed away after a life full of human and health achievements, particularly in the field of supporting efforts to eradicate the Guinea Worm.
Despite the risks that he was facing, his determination did not diminish and he carried on, clinging to hope, which was his greatest motivation towards achieving his goal.
Winner of the Courage Award of the Recognizing Excellence Around Champions of Health (REACH), Awad Alla led the Guinea worm eradication programme in Sudan between 1994 and 2002.
He was born in Omdurman and studied medicine in the Republic of Poland.
Then he returned to Sudan and worked in Khartoum as a general practitioner until 1976. Later, he was sent to the Kingdom of the Netherlands to obtain a Masters in public health, which he obtained from the Royal Tropical Institute in 1977.
He then returned to work in Khartoum and later in eastern Sudan until 1989. He also worked as a medical adviser at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for three years. After that, he returned to work in the Ministry of Health, where he took up the post of director of health services in the states of Eastern Sudan and from there he went to the United States and later to the United Kingdom.
Then he returned to work in the department of infectious and federal diseases of the National Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP). In November 2017, Dr. Nabil won the UAE REACH’s Courage Award. Awad Alla then expressed his pride in being honoured by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, during the World Health Forum (Reaching the Last Mile Forum.. working together to eliminate infectious diseases). His Highness Sheikh Mohamed is leading the whole world to reach the last mile in combating infectious diseases, Dr. Nabil said, noting that his initiatives to combat infectious diseases in the world have led to pioneering health achievements and contributed to saving the lives of thousands of innocent people.