The funeral of paediatrician, anti-apartheid activist and HIV/AIDS expert, Professor Jerry Coovadia, will take place at the Riverside Mosque in Durban North on Wednesday afternoon.
The emeritus professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal died on Tuesday night at his La Lucia home in Durban North at the age of 83.
Coovadia received the Dira Sengwe Lifetime Achievement Award at the South African Aids Conference in June this year.
He received recognition for his HIV/AIDS research in 2010 despite former President Thabo Mbeki’s government’s denialist stance at the time.
Coovadia’s friend and fellow activist Judge Dhaya Pillay says, “This year, he received a lifetime achievement award. He attended the function in his wheelchair. At this time his mobility was compromised and his speech was a bit slurred. I asked him how he feels about the award, very slowly, thoughtfully he said: ‘It’s good, it feels good and I’m glad to be alive to receive it’.”
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