The prize-winners are:

• Professor Manoel Barral-Netto (Brazil), Head of Research and Director of the Centro de Pesquisas Goncalo Moniz-FIOCRUZ-BA. He has dedicated most of his career to the study of Leishmaniasis and Malaria and has contributed to the development of science and control tools in the area of transmissible diseases and the neglected diseases of poverty.
• Professor Balram Bhargava (India), Professor of Cardiology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. He is a cardiologist specializing in biomedical innovation, public health and medical education. His contribution in developing innovative, effective and affordable tools for the management of cardiovascular diseases has had a huge social impact in resource-poor environments.
• Dr. Amadou Alpha Sall (Senegal), Head of the WHO collaborating Centre on Arboviruses and Hemorrhagic Fever Viruses in Dakar. He has made cutting-edge contributions in developing and disseminating diagnostic and control tools for viral diseases like Ebola, Chikungunya, Dengue and other vector borne diseases with potential global impact.

Each of the three laureates will receive their prize during an Award Ceremony  at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France on 14 November*.  In line with UNESCO’s goals to encourage research, mobilize science knowledge and policy for sustainable development and foster capacity-building in science and innovation, the Prize rewards life science research projects conducted by individuals, institutions, or other entities with a view to improving the quality of human life. This is the 3^rd edition of the Prize. Recommendations for the Prize-winners were made by an international jury of renowned experts in the life sciences, including:

·         Prof. Wagida Anwar, Director of the Ain Shams University Center for Molecular Biology, Biotechnology and Genomics, Cairo, Egypt;

·         Prof. Indrani Karunasagar, Director of the UNESCO MIRCEN for Marine Biotechnology, Mangalore, India;

·         Dr. Constantinos Phanis, Specialist in Biological and Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Education and Culture, Cyprus;

·         Prof. Vincent Titanji Vice-Chancellor & CEO Cameroon Christian University, TWAS Professor of Biotechnology and Vice President of the African Academy of Sciences for Central African Region and

·         Prof. Pathmanathan Umaharan, Director, Cocoa Research Centre, University of the West Indies, Trinidad.

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• More information

• Media contact: George Papagiannis, UNESCO Media Services,  +33 (0)  1 45 68 17 06, g.papagiannis(at)unesco.org

 * The ceremony was postponed until 10 October 2016.