WHO Chief Awards Global Health Honors to PM of Barbados and Scientists

“Professors Karikó and Weissman played a key role in alleviating the burden of COVID-19 and saved lives during the pandemic,” said Dr. Tedros.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus presented his Award for Global Health to the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, and scientists Professor Katalin Karikó and Professor Drew Weissman for their significant contributions to global health at the Seventy-seventh World Health Assembly.

The Director-General’s Award for Global Health, established in 2019, was awarded to Her Excellency Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados, for her leadership in climate action and health, and her work as the Chair of the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance.

"Prime Minister Mottley's exemplary leadership in fighting for a more equitable, just, and sustainable world is inspiring. WHO considers climate change to be the greatest health threat facing humanity. Her tireless efforts for climate action help protect the health of all peoples, now and in the future," said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Prime Minister Mottley received the award on May 26, in the lead-up to the World Health Assembly.

Professor Katalin Karikó and Professor Drew Weissman of the University of Pennsylvania were also honored for their groundbreaking contributions to the development of mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 at the opening of the World Health Assembly on May 27.

“Professors Karikó and Weissman played a key role in alleviating the burden of COVID-19 and saved lives during the pandemic,” said Dr. Tedros. “Their leadership in this field has the potential to play a critical role in improving health worldwide.”

Prime Minister Mia Mottley, the eighth Prime Minister of Barbados, became the first woman to occupy the high office in 2018, achieving the largest majority in the country’s history. She was re-elected in 2022, winning all 30 seats in the House of Assembly for a second time. In addition to her role as Prime Minister, Mottley serves as Minister of Finance, Economic Affairs, and Investment. She also chairs the World Health Organization’s Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance and has been recognized globally for her advocacy for sustainable policies in the context of climate change and other global challenges.

Professors Karikó and Weissman were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2023. Their discovery “fundamentally changed our understanding of how mRNA interacts with our immune system,” according to the Nobel Prize panel.

Professor Karikó is a professor at the University of Szeged in Hungary and an adjunct professor of neurosurgery at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. She is a former senior vice president at BioNTech SE, Mainz, Germany, where she worked from 2013 to 2022. Her research has focused on RNA-mediated mechanisms with the goal of developing in vitro-transcribed mRNA for protein therapy over the past four decades.

Professor Drew Weissman is the Roberts Family Professor in Vaccine Research and Director of the Penn Institute for RNA Innovation. He is also a Professor in the Department of Medicine and Director of Vaccine Research in the Infectious Diseases Division at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. As a physician, scientist, and pioneer in immunology, Professor Weissman, along with Professor Karikó, discovered a novel nucleoside-modified mRNA platform that avoids adverse immunologic responses.