Published: September 11, 2025
MONROVIA — Dr. Dougbeh Christopher Nyan, one of Liberia’s foremost biomedical scientists, has received the prestigious African Genius Award 2025 for his groundbreaking contributions to science, medicine, and technology.
Nyan is among 16 honorees selected from more than 100 nominees across Africa. The awardees, representing countries including Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria, were recognized for achievements spanning medicine, science, and the humanities.
“We want to celebrate African achievers. So many of them are talented and it is unbelievable,” said Dr. Mmusi Maimane, host of this year’s awards ceremony. “We would like you to support us in celebrating exceptional Africans.”
In his acceptance speech, Nyan described the award as a testament to African pride and perseverance. “It is an honor to be awarded the African Genius Award 2025 and to be counted among several innovative Africans,” he said. “I received this award as a symbol of our African ancestral pride, resilience, determination, and courage.”
Nyan, the Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), is internationally acclaimed as the inventor of the Rapid Multiplex Isothermal Diagnostic Test (NYAN-TEST), which can detect multiple infectious diseases in less than an hour. The low-cost, easy-to-use device holds three United States patents.
Most recently, Nyan led a team of scientists in identifying the Mpox Clade IIa in Liberia, the first such discovery since monkeypox was initially detected in the country in 1970.
Founded in South Africa, the African Genius Award honors Africans whose work advances self-determination, dignity, and excellence on the continent. Institutional partners include the University of Johannesburg, Plus-94 Research, Charlotte Mannya Maxeke Institute, The African Dream, and Brandhill Africa.
“We are honored to recognize your work, and we celebrate the brilliance, innovation, and leadership you represent,” the AGA nomination letter to Nyan stated.
Under Nyan’s leadership, NPHIL has been recognized as a Regional Center of Excellence by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This latest recognition adds to his long list of honors, including the African Innovation Award (2017), the Ward Lifetime Achievement Award in Science and Medicine, and Liberia’s Humane Order of African Redemption.
Discussion about this post