Professor Gita Ramjee, who recently returned from a trip to London, and was admitted to hospital with pneumonia has died in an Umhlanga hospital, in South Africa on Tuesday from COVID-19 related complications.
She was Chief Scientific Officer at the Aurum Institute and former chief specialist scientist and director of the South African Medical Research Council’s (SAMRC) HIV Prevention Research Unit. Professor Glenda Gray, president and CEO of the SAMRC, informed staff in an email of Ramjee’s “tragic passing” due to “Covid-19 related complications”.
The Aurum Institute said it was deeply saddened by the death of Ramjee whom they described as a “world-renowned scientist, who worked tirelessly to find HIV prevention solutions for women”.
“The world has lost a bold and compassionate leader in the response to HIV,” said Professor Gavin Churchyard, Group CEO of the Aurum Institute. “Gita Ramjee firmly believed in health as a fundamental human right. Her ground-breaking research in HIV prevention contributed to the global response to HIV and AIDS. Our thoughts during this difficult time are with her family, colleagues and the many people her life and work touched,” he added.
Scientist, spent her life focused on finding HIV prevention methods.
