Dr Ruhul Abid, a Bangladeshi-American professor at Brown University Alpert Medical School in USA, and his nonprofit organisation Health and Education for All (HAEFA) got nominated for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize.
A Bangladeshi English daily came up with the information, quoting Jean-Philippe Belleau, professor at the department of anthropology of University of Massachusetts Boston.
Abid is one of 211 individuals nominated for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize.
Dr Abid graduated from Dhaka Medical College, and received his PhD in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from Nagoya University in Japan. He later did a fellowship from Harvard Medical School in 2001. He is also an executive faculty member of Brown Global Health Initiative.
HAEFA has been engaged in providing free healthcare to the underprivileged in Bangladesh. In the last three years, the nonprofit organisation has provided free on-site treatment to more than 30,000 readymade garment workers, supported cervical cancer screening and treatment for more than 9,000 RMG workers and underprivileged women in Bangladesh, and given free healthcare to more than 150,000 Rohingya refugees and host community members in Cox’s Bazar.
They are currently providing competency training for Covid-19 management to contain the spread of coronavirus in two Rohingya refugee camps.
Dr Abid founded HAEFA to provide healthcare for RMG factory workers throughout Bangladesh following the collapse of Rana Plaza in 2013.❐
