Dr Firdausi Qadri, a Bangladeshi scientist won the Ramon Magsaysay Award 2021, which is known as Asia’s Nobel Prize. Dr Firdausi has been honored with this prestigious award due to her magnificent contribution to infectious disease control, immunology, vaccine development, and clinical trials. This article will present a brief about Dr Firdausi Qadri, her journey as a researcher, and her achievement of the Ramon Magsaysay Award.

Who is Dr Firdausi Qadri?

Emeritus Scientist for infectious diseases Dr Firdausi Qadri was born on March 31, 1951. She obtained her BSc in 1975 and MSc in 1977 from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Dhaka. Later she received her Ph.D. in 1980 from the Department of Biochemistry/ Immunology, University of Liverpool, UK.

After completing post-doctoral research from International Centre For Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh’s (icddr,b) Department of Immunology, she joined the same institute in 1988 as an associate scientist. Firdausi was later appointed as a senior scientist and head of the Department of Mucosal Immunology and Vaccinology at the same institution. Currently, Firdausi Qadri is working as Emeritus Scientist at icddr,b.

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In the early years of her career, this Bangladeshi scientist has been working on research related to medicine. She played a leading role in specializing in such research activities. Firdausi has worked on the cholera vaccine development for about 25 years. She also specializes in ETEC, typhoid, Helicobacter pylori, rotavirus, and other infectious diseases.

Qadri has an important contribution to the development of the typhoid vaccine for children and the elderly. Besides these, she contributed to the development of a remedy for this disease for 9-month-old newborns.

Honors and rewards

In 2008, Firdausi was awarded the Gold Medal of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences. In 2002, she won the Christophe Merieux Prize for her research on infectious intestinal diseases in developing countries. In 2013, she received the annual C. N. R. Rao award from the world academy of sciences for her advancements in science in developing countries.

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In 2014, Dr. Firdausi Qadri was appointed as a consultant to a high-level panel to make the UN-proposed technology bank and the systems supporting science and innovation more efficient organizationally. She was the first person in South Asia to receive a Grand Prize from the Christoph and Rudolph Foundation. In 2012, icddr,b recognized Qadri as the best female employee of the year.

She received the L'Oreal-UNESCO Women in Science Award (Asia-Pacific Region) in 2020 for her significant contribution to the identification of infectious diseases in developing countries and the prevention of their spread worldwide.

In 2013, Qadri received Ananya's top 10 awards. Further, in 2021, Asian Scientist Magazines, a Singapore-based science magazine included her in the list of the 100 best scientists in Asia. Ferdousi is also a member of the Academy of Sciences of Bangladesh and the International Ambassador of Bangladesh American Society for Microbiology.

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What is the Ramon Magsaysay Award?

The Ramon Magsaysay Prize was introduced in April 1957. It was introduced by the esteemed trustees of the New York City-based Rockefeller Brothers Fund. The award was introduced in memory of the late Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay. This award is considered Asia’s Nobel Prize.

Each year the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation presents this award to various individuals and organizations in Asia for outstanding contributions and achievements in their respective fields. The awards are given in six categories, which includes Public Service, Emergent Leadership, Community Leadership, Government Service; Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts, Peace and International Understanding.

Dr Firdausi Qadri conferred Ramon Magsaysay Award 2021

Bangladeshi scientist Dr Firdausi Qadri has received the Magsaysay Award due to her contribution to the development of infectious diseases, immunology and vaccine development, and clinical trials. Further, her contribution to controlling Cholera and typhoid also made her eligible to win the Magsaysay Award.

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According to the Ramon Magsaysay Foundation, Dr Firdausi has played an important role in preventing cholera and typhoid. These diseases are a big problem for the people of Bangladesh as well as most of the poor countries in Asia and Africa. These countries lack access to safe water, sanitation, education, and medical services. Firdausi Qadri has made significant contributions to the development of the Cholera Vaccine (OCV).

A large-scale study was conducted in 2011 by a research team at icddr,b on the possibility of a new and affordable oral vaccine called 'Shanchol' to prevent cholera. That team was led by Dr. Ferdousi. Moreover, Microsoft’s founder Bill Gates’ Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation participated in that research.

The study found that the affordable vaccine could be effective for the poor and prevent the spread of cholera in urban areas. The vaccine provides more than 50 percent protection against cholera. The vaccine was later used for public health in Bangladesh, especially for Rohingya refugees.

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In 2017, about 1 million Rohingyas came to Bangladesh from Myanmar. The Rohingya community living in the overpopulated camp areas had raised concerns regarding the Cholera epidemic. However, together with the government, Dr. Qadri has run an immunization program that helped to reduce the prevalence of cholera in the Rohingya refugee camps.

This success created new hope in the race against Cholera. With the help of Dr Qadri's pioneering work, the world is now moving towards this goal and there may be a day when diseases like cholera can really be forgotten. Hence, Qadri was the right person to win the Magsaysay Award. Dr. Firdausi Qadri dedicated her Magsaysay Award to Bangladesh as well as icddr,b.

Final Words

Dr Firdausi Qadri continued her works even in the Covid-19 pandemic. She was involved in coronavirus testing, vaccine trials, and related research activities in Bangladesh. In 2014, she set up a research institute called the Institute for Developing Science and Health Initiative (IDESI). Later IDESI has become a hub for local and foreign scientists as a center for biomedical research, training, and testing. A large part of the genome sequencing of some of the coronavirus samples in the country has been done at this center.

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