Since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) has been responsive to change, leading research and dialogue on the pandemic. It also continued with pioneering cutting-edge medical innovations and programmes to support the South African Government’s response to the pandemic and improve the quality of life and health status of people in South Africa.

The Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership (GARDP) is very pleased to announce renewed funding by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) to tackle drug-resistant infections.

Non-communicable diseases contribute significantly to the disease burden within South Africa. In the most unequal of societies in the world, poverty and socio-economic disparity are amongst the greatest obstacles facing South Africans, impacting heavily on health care.

While South Africa remains severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the country is also experiencing an upsurge in gender-based violence (GBV). Even so, the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) continues to reiterate its indelible mark in the country’s ongoing fight against the scourge of GBV.

Dr Caradee Wright and Ms. Bianca Wernecke from the SAMRC’s Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU) are contributing authors in the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)’s First Synthesis Report.