Dr Nahla Gafer, a clinical oncologist from Sudan, has been named the first recipient of the Dr Anne Merriman Award for Excellence in Palliative Care in Africa. The announcement was made on 9 October 2026 at a national Palliative Care Symposium in Windhoek, Namibia, held to mark World Hospice and Palliative Care Day.
About the award
The Government of Ireland established the award in 2025 to honour the life and legacy of Dr Anne Merriman, the Irish humanitarian who founded Hospice Africa Uganda in 1993 and spent her life making pain relief, dignity and compassionate care available to people with life-limiting illness. Dr Merriman died in May 2025, aged 90.
The award is funded through Irish Aid and administered by the African Palliative Care Association (APCA). It is presented every two years, carries a prize of €20,000, and recognises individuals or organisations whose leadership, innovation, research, care and long-term commitment have advanced palliative care in Africa.
How the winner was chosen
APCA opened a continent-wide call for nominations in June 2026 and received more than 60 nominations from 18 African countries. An independent panel of judges from Africa and beyond assessed every nomination against four criteria:
- Innovation
- Person-centred care
- Quality of life for patients and families
- Collaboration and partnership
Dr Nahla Gafer, inaugural winner
Dr Gafer's palliative care journey began with training at Hospice Africa Uganda in 2009. A year later she set up Sudan's first comprehensive palliative care service at Khartoum Oncology Hospital. Since then she has led care for more than 6,000 patients, started home-based palliative care programmes, trained multidisciplinary teams, and pushed for palliative care to become a standard part of oncology services. Her influence now reaches across Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean region.
Sudan's ongoing conflict has not stopped her work. She has kept caring for displaced patients through telehealth, community networks and home visits, while continuing to mentor colleagues across the region. The judges saw in her the compassion, resilience and leadership that defined Dr Merriman's own life and her belief that everyone should be able to get good palliative care when they need it.
Read Dr Gafer's own reflections in her APCA blog, Palliative Care in Humanitarian Settings.
Honourable mentions and finalists
Individual category: Dr Michelle Meiring of South Africa received an honourable mention as first runner-up for her contribution to palliative care development in South Africa and across the continent. The other finalists were Ms Witness Chilenga of Tanzania and Mr Ephrem Abathun of Ethiopia.
Organisational category: PatchSA of South Africa received an honourable mention for its work in children's palliative care and its support to programmes across Africa. The other finalists were the Hamba Nawe Project, PaedsPal and Umduduzi Hospice Care for Children, all from South Africa.
The announcement
The winner was announced at the World Hospice and Palliative Care Day symposium convened by Namibia's Ministry of Health and Social Services in partnership with Hope Home Based Care and APCA. Mr Neale Richmond, Ireland's Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, congratulated Dr Gafer on behalf of Irish Aid and restated Ireland's commitment to dignity and compassion in health care.
APCA congratulates Dr Gafer, the honourable mentions and every finalist, and thanks all who submitted nominations, the judging panel, and the Government of Ireland for its support.
This announcement was also published by ehospice Africa.
