PhD student Waleed Al-Salem, studying in LSTM’s Department of Parasitology, has been honoured for his achievements this week, after being declared one of the top five Saudi students studying in the UK.
Waleed was invited to attend a ceremony to mark Saudi Arabian National Day at the Saudi embassy in London this week where he was award a certificate to mark his achievement by His Highness Prince Mohammed Bin Nawaf, Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the UK. He was delighted to have been honoured in this way, and selected from among the 13500 Saudi students currently studying in the UK.
This is not the first time that he has been honoured for his work, Waleed was recently one of six winners, three of whom were from LSTM, who were selected to deliver a presentation to the All Party Parliamentary Group from Malaria and NTDs (APPMG), following an open competition. His presentation: A Public Health Approach to Leishmaniasis Control, was very well received by the group. His research covers various aspects, including a new approach to leishmaniasis control; a new epidemiology map of Saudi Arabia to track the different forms of leishmaniasis; a study of the relevant parasite species and leishmaniasis vectors (sandflies); as well as an analysis of drugs used for treatment. In addition, he has developed new methods for detecting cutaneous leishmaniasis in the laboratory using glycoprotein component.
Waleed was delighted to have been so highly honoured among his peers: “I feel privileged to have been selected from among so many other students and I really enjoyed receiving the award. I hope that the work I am carrying out will have a positive impact on leishmaniasis control in Saudi Arabia and beyond.”