Nelson Sewankambo, principal of Makerere University's College of Health Sciences and Dean Emeritus of the School of Medicine in Uganda, will be the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of the Public Health’s 2013 convocation speaker. Sewankambo is an instrumental figure in the field of global health, as he and his colleagues were among the first to recognize the spread of HIV in Uganda. In 1985, they published the first paper on “Slim Disease” in East Africa. He also co-founded the Rakai Health Sciences Program, which has conducted some of the most important HIV/AIDS research since the epidemic’s discovery.
“Dr. Sewankambo is a true hero of public health and it is a great honor to have him participate in this year’s ceremony,” said Michael J. Klag, MD, MPH, dean of the Bloomberg School of Public Health.
In addition to giving the Bloomberg School’s convocation address, Sewankambo will receive an honorary degree from Johns Hopkins University as part of this year’s commencement ceremony.
The Bloomberg School Convocation ceremony will be held on May 21 at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore, Md.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health media contact: Tim Parsons at 410-955-7619 or tmparson@jhsph.edu.
