UCL Dean elected as a member of German National Academy of Sciences

Professor Abubakar, a world-leading scholar in the field of infectious disease and epidemiology, joins the Global Health section of the Academy and is one of two UK-based members to be elected this term, in a total crop of 15 new members. Election to the Academy is considered one of Europe’s highest honours in health sciences.

According to the Academy, Professor Abubakar was chosen based on strict standards of scientific excellence, and Leopoldina relies on its members being actively involved in their frontier research. Elected scientists have distinguished themselves through outstanding academic achievement.

Professor Abubakar is a Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at UCL and has been instrumental in the development of health initiatives for tuberculosis (TB) and COVID-19. Prior to his appointment as Dean of UCL Population Health Sciences, he was the director of the UCL Institute for Global Health.

In 2023, he was announced as UCL’s first Pro-Provost (Health), providing additional senior academic leadership for UCL’s work with its health partners. Earlier that year, Professor Abubakar was also awarded the 2023 Roux Prize for his dedication to improving health outcomes over the last three decades.

During his tenure at UCL, he has also led the UCL Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and was a senior investigator at the MRC Clinical Trials Unit.

On his election, Professor Abubakar said: “I am delighted and honoured to be elected to the prestigious Leopoldina Academy. I look forward to contributing to the Academy’s global health discourse to help achieve more equitable and inclusive health outcomes for all.”

Originally founded in 1652, Leopoldina has over 1,700 members from almost all branches of science and strives to be a free society of scholars working towards scientific progress in the interest of the common good. Around three quarters of its members come from the Academy’s home countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), while one quarter are from other countries around the world.

The Academy is based in Halle, Germany, and has two major objectives: providing scientific advice to policymakers and the public, and representing the German scientific community on committees in which predominantly national academies are active.

As a member of Leopoldina, Professor Abubakar will contribute to achieving these goals and be involved in electing new members, launching and organising scientific events, and participating in working groups for scientific advice on societal questions. His election was announced in the latest edition of Leopoldina’s newsletter.

Links

• Professor Ibrahim Abubakar's academic profile
• UCL Faculty of Population Health Sciences
• German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
• Leopoldina newsletter October 2024

Media contact

Tom Cramp

E: t.cramp@ucl.ac.uk