Honors and Awards
Numerous faculty, staff, alumni and trustees have earned honours, awards and prestigious appointments in recent months from institutions such as the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, the University of Alberta, the American Academy of Neurology, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education International, the Media Council of Kenya and the College of Physicians & Surgeons Pakistan.
November 2024 - March 2025
President Sulaiman Shahabuddin was awarded the Sitara-i-Imtiaz by the President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari on Pakistan Day in recognition of his significant contributions to the country's education and health sectors.
Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada, one of the country's highest honours, in recognition of his achievements as “one of the world's foremost authorities on maternal and child health." Both Dr Bhutta and Assistant Professor Jai Das were named to Clarivate's list of highly cited researchers. Only 1 in every 1,000 scientists and social scientists worldwide is named to the list.
Dean Lukoye Atwoli was honoured as the top-ranked researcher in medicine in Kenya, based on the number of his publications, by the Kenya Education Network Trust, which utilized data from SciVal.
Professor Fyezah Jehan was named a Distinguished International Fellow of the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene. The designation “recognizes individuals who have made eminent contributions to a particular aspect of tropical medicine and global health." She is one of only two recipients from Pakistan to have received the award since 1963. The other is AKU Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta.
Professor Emeritus Yasmin Amarsi is the subject of a new book, Game Changer: The Story of Yasmin Amarsi and the Profession of Nursing in Pakistan.
Dean Adil Haider was named to the Board of Directors of the Consortium of Universities for Global Health, a Washington, DC-based organization that brings together more than 190 academic and other institutions from around the world.
Professor Sarah Saleem was appointed to the International Advisory Board of The Lancet Global Health, perhaps the world's leading global health journal.
Professor Hussein Kidanto was awarded an honorary doctorate from Uppsala University in Sweden, which called him “a pioneer in his focus on improving care for vulnerable women and newborns."
AKU Examination Board CEO Naveed Yousuf was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the International Association for Educational Assessment.
Professor Shehnaz Ibrahim received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Child Neurology Society of Pakistan at the 16th Pediatric Neurology Conference in Peshawar.
Assistant Professor Riaz Hussain, the Head of the Institute for Educational Development’s Professional Development Centre in Chitral, received an award from the District Education Office for Lower Chitral “for his valuable services in promoting quality education.”
Melaine D'Cruze, Director of the Research Office (Pakistan), received the Future of the Field award from the Society of Research Administrators International. The award “aims to highlight the 'up-and-comers' of research administration." Of the two dozen recipients, she was the only one from a lower-income country.
July - October 2024
President Asif Ali Zardari announced that President Shahabuddin will receive the Sitara-i-Imtiaz, Pakistan’s third-highest civilian award, which honours individuals who have made a significant contribution to the country in various fields.
Assistant Professor Zahra Hoodbhoy was named one of 10 “Goalkeepers Champions” by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for “driving innovative solutions for maternal and child health in low-resource settings.”
Vice Provost Anjum Halai was appointed to serve on Pakistan’s National Accreditation Council for Teacher Education, whose mission is to promote excellence in teaching through the accreditation of the nation’s teacher education programmes.
Dean Lukoye Atwoli was inducted into the U.S. National Academy of Medicine in recognition of his contributions to mental healthcare, policy, education, and epidemiology globally. In addition, Dean Atwoli was appointed to Kenya's National Academy of Sciences.
Vice President, Finance and CFO Shagufta Hassan was appointed a member of the Securities and Exchange Policy Board of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan.
Global CIO Shaukat Ali Khan received the Global Champion award from the Global CIO Forum.
Professor Marleen Temmermen will receive the title of Commander in the Order of Leopold from His Majesty King Philippe of Belgium, one of the highest honours bestowed by the Kingdom of Belgium. Professor Temmerman was also appointed by the Governor of Mombasa to lead the Board of the Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital.
Assistant Professor Sanaa Alimia of AKU's Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (ISMC) won the Bloomsbury Pakistan Book Prize for Refugee Cities: How Afghans Changed Urban Pakistan (University of Pennsylvania Press). ISMC graduate Omar Kasmani was also awarded the prize for Queer Companions: Religion, Public Intimacy, and Saintly Affects in Pakistan (Duke University Press).
AKUH Daycare Oncology Head Nurse Amber Hussian became the first nurse from Pakistan to receive the Nurse Leader Award from the U.S.-based Daisy Foundation.
Assistant Professor Miriam Mutebi spoke at the White House Africa Cancer Care Forum in Washington, D.C., which brought together leaders from 10 African countries to discuss cancer care priorities for the continent.
Assistant professors Catherine Gathu and Elizabeth Kagotho of the Medical College, East Africa were named to Business Daily’s list of the “Top 40 Under 40 Women” in Kenya.
Aniqa Bano of Baltistan, a graduate of AKU's Institute for Educational Development, was awarded the President of Pakistan's Pride of Performance Award for education and public service.
January - July 2024
Professor Nancy Booker, Dean at the Graduate School of Media and Communications, was appointed to the Board of Directors at Nation Media Group.
Trustee Afaf Meleis received the National Humanism in Medicine Medal from the U.S.-based Arnold P. Gold Foundation.
Research.com's list of the best scientists in medicine ranked Dr Zulfiqar Bhutta #1 in Pakistan and #146 globally.
Nizar Somji, until recently AKU's Director General of Global Campus Development and Operations, was elected Chancellor of the University of Alberta.
Professor Rafat Jan was appointed President of the Midwifery Association of Pakistan.
Dr Erick Njenga was elected President of the Kenya Association of Physicians.
Dr Mohammad Wasay received the Kenneth M. Viste, Jr., MD, Patient Advocate of the Year Award from the American Academy of Neurology.
Dr Miriam Mutebi received the American Society of Clinical Oncology's Humanitarian Award.
Dr Fyezah Jehan received the Paul Harris Award from Rotary International for her work to help thousands of women and children at risk of malnutrition.
Dr Shahzadi Resham won the International Society of Paediatric Oncology's Rising Star Award.
Two of the three 2024 awards presented by the U.S.-based Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education International went to AKU faculty. Muhammad Rizwan Khan won the Physician Leader Award and Novera Ghayoor Chughtai won the Physician Educator Award.
AKU graduates received three of the nine gold medals awarded at the Convocation of the College of Physicians & Surgeons Pakistan. Dr Maryyam Hanif, Dr Alka Rani and Dr Rameesha Khalid received the highest marks in anaesthesiology, histopathology and pulmonology, respectively.
Four alumni of the Graduate School of Media and Communications received awards at the Media Council of Kenya's Annual Journalism Excellence Awards. So did seven journalists who completed a four-month training programme at GSMC.
