The prize will be presented to them on November 6

Bangladeshi microbiologist Prof Dr Samir Saha has been named for Unesco Carlos J Finlay Prize in Microbiology in 2017.

Pakistani microbiologist Shahida Hasnain will also receive the award, said a statement issued by the Unesco on October 17.

According to the statement, the Prize will be presented to them during Unesco’s 39th session of the General Conference November on November 6.

The conference will bring together the Organisation’s 195 Member State from October 30 to 14 November.

The Carlos J Finlay Prize for Microbiology has an endowment of $10,000, which will be divided between the two laureates.

He was also awarded the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Award for Research in Clinical Microbiology in 2017.

The award was created by Unesco in 1977, on the initiative of the Government of Cuba, and is given to scientists with research and work that signify an important contribution to the field of microbiology.

Dr Samir Saha is the head of the Microbiology Department of the Dhaka Shishu Hospital for children. He is also the executive director of The Child Health Research Foundation at the Bangladesh Institute of Child Health.

As leading researcher in paediatrics, he played a key role in introducing to Bangladesh vaccines against two bacteria that cause meningitis, which had a direct positive impact on the health of children in the country. He has also led research into the resistance to treatment of some pneumococcal diseases.


_{Source: dhakatribune.com}