Prof Rose Leke voted 2023 Woman of The Year.

Prof Leke was awarded the prestigious The Guardian Post 2023 Woman of The Year Award on Saturday February 17. 

The recognition which came on the approval of millions of readers of The Guardian Post across the globe, was handed over to the celebrated scientist during the 21^st edition of The Guardian Post Achievements Award in Ebolowa, South Region.

Prof Leke, who is still leaving in the honours of having bagged the 2023 Virchow Prize for Global Health, thus walked to the podium in Ebolowa, for continuously holding the forth in the health sector.

According to the award jury, the professor of immunology and parasitology, garnered millions of votes to emerge the Cameroonian female mover and shaker for 2023.

This, the jury indicated, is for Prof Leke’s “inspiring, consistent and frontline research role in the fight against infectious diseases and malaria in Cameroon, Africa and the World”.

God-fearing and compassionate, Prof Leke who has remained an inspiration to millions across the world attended the ceremony in the company of her husband of 53 years, Robert Leke; friends and mentees. 

Among them were Prof Augustina Fongod, Senator Regina Mundi and her peers of different groupings such as the Catholic Women Association, CWA, Higher Women Consortium Cameroon where she is founder and the civil society organisation, Nkumu Fed Fed.

‘Grateful, unwavering in supporting women, advancing science’

Basking in the honour of her recognition, Prof Leke who is also chairperson of the Global Vaccine Alliance, GAVI, Independent Review Committee, thanked readers of The Guardian Post for singling out her works.

She, however, was particular that, giving pride of place to science, research and the academia in a society where other fields have been projected to the fore oftentimes, remains impressing.

“I am very grateful that for once I hear in these awards, something in science, academia, and research. Just think of it; all the awards you have gave today, its political, its economic but behind all of this is the academia, its research, its science; you don’t hear about it,” the famous scientist stated.

The Woman of The Year thanked The Guardian Post “for remembering those institutions that are so important to our country that are sometimes not talked about it”.

She dedicated her recognition to the course of supporting and inspiring women to raise the bar in their careers. This, she said, is so “that they can be better than us”.

Hails The Guardian Post

Prof Leke saluted The Guardian Post for doing extensive research and given its brand of journalism a unique place in society. 

“When I read what The Guardian Post wrote, I was like this people, they really do in-depth research,” she said. 

She talked of having stopped, “buying newspapers because sometimes what they say is not true but when people go on and do the kind of research you did to come up about what you wrote about me, I say kudos. You are doing a great job and we want to say congratulations. Keep up the work that you are doing at The Guardian Post”.

‘Women continue shinning’

Restating her interest in women always holding their own in different fields, Prof Leke predicted better days ahead for her folk. 

“Women are coming up in this country and next time you will have more of the award. It is for the development of the society and country,” she stated.

Prof Leke, towering figure with an impressive legacy

Prof Rose Leke is a malariologist and Professor Emeritus of Immunology and Parasitology at the University of Yaounde I. She is a Fellow of the Cameroon Academy of Sciences. 

Until March 2013, she was the Head of Department of Medicine in the Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in the University of Yaounde I, and Director of the Biotechnology Centre. 

She had once been Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the National Medical Research Institute, IMPM; Vice President Scientific Committee of Chantal Biya International Research Centre, CIRCB. 

In 2014, she was invited by the Aggrey-Fraser-Guggisberg Memorial Lecturers of the University of Ghana where she was awarded the Doctor Honoris Causa.

She was among the few ladies that received the African Union Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Award for Women, for her excellence in the domain of science.

On November 23, 2018, she was crowned Queen Mother of the Cameroonian medical community by the Cameroon Medical Council.

She has served as Executive Director of the Cameroon Coalition against Malaria and Chairperson of the Multilateral Initiative in Malaria as well as President of the Federation of African Immunological Societies. She still serves as the World Health Organisation, WHO, Consultant in several domains.

Prof Leke studied in universities across the United States and Canada, bagging a doctor of Philosophy, PhD certificate in 1975. She was born on February 13, 1947, in Kumbo, Bui Division of the North West Region. 

She is also the founder of the Cameroon Coalition Against Malaria.  From 1997 to 2001, she was president of the Federation of African Immunological Societies. The Guardian Post 2023 Woman of The Year was also a Council member of the International Union of Immunological Societies. This was from 1998 to 2004.