Iqbal Parker is founding director of the ICGEB Cape Town Component (2007 - 2016); General Secretary of the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2021 - present); founder sec. gen. of the Federation of African Societies for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (1996 - 2012); vice President of Acad. Science of SA (2010 - 2016); Vice President of the African Academy of Sciences (2020 - present). He obtained his PhD from UCT in 1979. He and his team have identified a novel transcription factor responsible for transcriptional modulation of collagen gene expression and identified several genetic polymorphisms that are important in gene-environment interaction in the aetiology of oesophageal cancer. His awards include: DST/NRF research chair in cancer biology, an MRC funded Oesophageal Cancer Research Group; Outstanding Scientist Award by the Natl. Science and Technology Forum; Gold Medal from the South African Soc. for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Oettle Memorial Medal from the Cancer Association of SA. He is founding member of ASSAf and member of Islamic World Academy of Sciences.

Abdool Karim, is a leading South African infectious diseases epidemiologist whose seminal contributions spanning over three decades have shaped the global HIV prevention landscape, notably in prevention technologies for women. She demonstrated that ARVs prevent sexually transmitted HIV that laid the foundation for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); and has provided insights in Africa and globally on the impact of Covid-19 on HIV and in the evaluation of Covid-19 vaccines and therapeutics. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine (USA); and Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences, Royal Society of South Africa, Academy of Science of South Africa and the African Academy of Science. Her research contributions have been recognized nationally and internationally with over 30 honours including the 2014 TWAS-Lenovo Prize; the John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award; the 2020 Christophe Mérieux Prize; and the 4th Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize for Medical Research. She is the Associate Scientific Director of CAPRISA; Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, Columbia University, and Pro-Vice Chancellor for African Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.