Africa Health Research Institute

20/01/2026

💡 A reminder that research is a team effort!

This short video reflects on AHRI’s first employee recognition programme awards, which honour colleagues and teams who live our values and go above and beyond to advance our vision and mission.

Congratulations 🎊 to Zizile Sikhosana & Khanyisile Mthembu (AHRI values award); Zaza Ndhlovu (Exceptional faculty award); Kavidha Reddy (Exceptional manager award); Theresa Smit & team (Exceptional research unit award) and Munyadziwa Rabambi & team (Exceptional business unit award)

This video reflects on AHRI’s first employee recognition programme awards, where we honoured colleagues and teams who embody our values and advance AHRI’s vi...

13/01/2026

A performance for the books for KZN! 🎉

Congratulations to the KZN Class of 2025 on achieving a 90.6% National Senior Certificate pass rate. Special shout-out to the uMkhanyakude matrics - who ranked second in the country with an outstanding 93.63% pass rate!

15/12/2025

We are incredibly proud to share that AHRI postdoctoral fellow Dr Afrah Khairallah has been selected as one of 30 young talents in the 2025 L'Oréal Paris-UNESCO For Women in Science Young Talents Awards.

The awards recognise 25 PhD candidates and five postdoctoral researchers from 18 different countries in Africa for their contributions to addressing the continent's pressing challenges through innovative research.

Afrah’s work focuses on a rare group of people living with HIV who naturally develop antibodies able to fight many different strains of the virus. By combining biological research with computer-based tools, she aims to uncover clues that could guide the design of future HIV vaccines and treatments.

“Being selected as a L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Young Talent is an incredible honour. It affirms the value of my work and strengthens my commitment to advancing research in Africa. This recognition gives me the visibility and support to continue building a scientific career that uplifts the community and inspires young women across the continent. The world needs science, and science needs women, and I am proud to be part of a generation contributing to a healthier, more equitable future,” Afrah said.

The award consists of a €15,000 prize, leadership and scientific communication training, and career development. Additionally, the young talents join a global network of over 4,700 women scientists, establishing connections that promote collaboration and knowledge sharing.

Congratulations, Afrah!

10/12/2025

reflections
This year, we marked the day by coming together to reconnect and recommit to the goal of an HIV-free generation.

✅ Our staff gathered to honour the progress made - and to remind ourselves that ending stigma, strengthening prevention, and supporting treatment remains everyone’s responsibility. We also heard from two of our leading scientists, Prof Thumbi Ndung’u and Prof Nceba Gqaleni, about their work towards a functional HIV cure, and indigenous and natural medicine and HIV.

✅ Out in the community, the energy was even higher. Young people joined us for conversations about protecting their health, learning about PrEP, and hearing how AHRI’s research is helping shape the future of HIV prevention.
A big thank you to NEHAWU, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health and Inkosi Mtubatuba Municipality for partnering with us.

14/11/2025

❓ Could symptom-free people be unknowingly passing TB to others?

✅ A major study has launched in South Africa and Indonesia to try to answer this critical gap in our TB knowledge.

AHRI faculty member & study co-lead Prof Emily Wong explains 📽️

More info 🔗 https://www.ahri.org/could-symptom-free-people-be-unknowingly-passing-tb-to-others-major-study-launches-in-south-africa-and-indonesia/

13/11/2025

An incredible few days spent at Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Programme focused on deepening our partnership and areas for future scientific collaboration.

Wellcome Trust

06/11/2025

👏 This week AHRI’s Centre of Excellence for Spatial Multi-Omics Research in Africa (CESORA) hosted a four-day symposium in Durban.

Themed ‘Advances in spatial multi-omics: navigating technological hurdles to accelerate tissue biology and infectious disease research’, the meeting brought together leaders in the field to share pioneering work, exchange ideas, and strengthen collaborations.

✅ AHRI's CESORA is an interdisciplinary initiative integrating transcriptomics and tissue biology. The centre is committed to accelerating access to cutting-edge spatial omics technology across the continent, fostering collaboration, and driving advancements in the field of spatial genomics.

Find out more here ➡️ https://www.ahri.org/cesora/

30/10/2025

When floods swept through KwaZulu-Natal in 2022, more than 500 lives were lost, and countless others forever changed. The damage was visible, but what about the wounds we can’t see?
The WEMA study, led by AHRI, is uncovering how climate disasters impact mental health across Africa. It’s one of the first multi-country studies to explore how trauma, loss, and climate shocks affect our emotional wellbeing.
“Cultural beliefs often mask mental health issues,” says Prof Collins Iwuji, AHRI faculty member, and study lead. “That’s why understanding these hidden effects is so crucial.”

Watch the full Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism feature to see how researchers are uncovering the untold story of climate trauma, and what early findings reveal about resilience and recovery:

Imagine watching loved ones swept away, land and livestock destroyed, possessions lost within hours. For many, that’s reality as climate disasters wreak havo...

29/10/2025

Ubusuzwile ngezwi lentsha 📢

Uma uhlala eMkhanyakude futhi uneminyaka engu 13-24 kanti unokuthile ongakusho mayelana nempilo yengqondo (mental health) endaweni yangakini.
Leli ithuba lakho lokuveza umbono wakho nephimbo lakho lizwakale.

Funda kabanzi umkhangiso ngezansi ukuze uqonde imigomo nemibandelo yokungenela

Chofoza lapha ukuze ungenele https://bit.ly/ahriyouthvoices

23/10/2025

📢 Could symptom-free people be unknowingly passing TB to others? Major study launches in South Africa and Indonesia.

A groundbreaking new international study will investigate whether people with TB who show no symptoms are unknowingly spreading the disease – potentially changing the way the world tackles TB.

Asymptomatic TB is one of the most complex issues hindering progress in the fight against TB. Evidence suggests that half of all people who have active TB are unaware of their status – because they have no symptoms. It is not yet clearly understood how best to find people with asymptomatic TB and whether this group of people can spread TB to others. The ‘Asymptomatic TB Transmission in Indonesia and South Africa (ATTIS)’ study seeks to address this critical gap in our understanding of TB transmission.

Led by AHRI's Prof Limakatso Lebina, Prof Emily Wong and Universitas Padjadjaran's Prof Bachti Alisjahbana, the study will recruit 90,000 adult volunteers from households with children to take part in community-based TB screening, including chest X-rays, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and West Java, Indonesia.

18/10/2025

🎉 AHRI Week 2025 was one to remember!

This year, we mark 25 years of our health and demographic surveillance system (HDSS) - an incredible milestone for us, for the communities we work with, and for the founders and funders who helped to shape what AHRI is today.

Throughout the week, we hosted activities that strengthened collaboration and connection: a research symposium, poster session with early-career scientists, a feedback session with the KZN Department of Health, a public lecture, media visit, exhibition, and a staff townhall.

It was a privilege to be joined by collaborators, partners, and some of the HDSS founding members as we reflected on the past 25 years - and looked ahead to how the next 25 will be shaped.

10/10/2025

Day 1️⃣ of the AHRI/SANTHE Health Hack: Infectious Diseases Edition is underway!

This 36-hour hackathon brings together early-career researchers, clinicians, data scientists, designers and many more to co-create bold, data-driven ideas for some of South Africa’s most urgent infectious disease challenges.

The energy and creativity in the room are inspiring. Conversations are crossing boundaries, ideas are taking shape, and new collaborations are emerging - exactly the kind of transdisciplinary exchange that drives AHRI’s vision and mission.