Túlio de Oliveira

I am the Director of the Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation (CERI) at Stellenbosch University and the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). Pro-Vice Chancellor: Industry, Business and Foundation Partnerships at Stellenbosch University. Deputy director of the Genomic Surveillance Unit (Wellcome Sanger Institute) between 2024-2025. I collaborate with global partners to monitor and respond to infectious disease outbreaks using cutting-edge genomic technologies. With over 20 years of experience in viral evolution and epidemiology, I have contributed to the discovery and characterization of novel variants of HIV/AIDS, TB, Hepatitis, Chikungunya, Dengue, Zika, Yellow Fever, and SARS-CoV-2, including the Omicron variant that emerged in South Africa in 2021. I am also a full Professor of Bioinformatics at Stellenbosch University, a Research Professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and an Associate Professor at the University of Washington. I have published more than 300 papers in top scientific journals and have received multiple honors and awards, including being named one of the TIME100 Most Influential People of 2022 and TIME100 Health 2024 by TIME Magazine. My mission is to advance the field of genomic surveillance and improve the health and well-being of people around the world. The 2025 Clarivate highly cited among the top 1% of cited researchers worldwide. The EDCTP Scientific Leadership Prize 2025. Elected Fellow of the Africa Leadership Initiative (ALI SA) 2025. The 2026 Order of Mapungubwe (Gold) from President Cyril Ramaphosa for groundbreaking work in genomics and bioinformatics, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic.