THE BILLIONAIRE BETTING BIG ON AFRICA'S HIV RESEARCH

WITH STRATEGIC COLLABORATIONS, TARGETED FUNDING, AND GROWING INVESTMENT IN SCIENCE, AFRICA HOLDS IMMENSE POTENTIAL IN SPEARHEADING THE FUTURE OF GLOBAL HEALTHCARE. AMONG THOSE TAKING THE LEAD TO DEVELOP A CURE FOR HIV, THROUGH THESE PARTNERSHIPS, AND WITH MILLIONS IN INVESTMENT, IS AN AMERICAN BILLIONAIRE NAMED WHO WE GET A RARE AUDIENCE WITH. HE SPEAKS ABOUT HIS BELIEF IN AFRICAN-LED SCIENCE AND WHY A BREAKTHROUGH IS WITHIN REACH.

- PHILLIP 'TERRY' RAGON

In a lab in the heart of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, a quiet revolution in HIV research is underway. Over 8,000 miles away in Massachusetts in the United States (U.S.), philanthropist and billionaire-entrepreneur, Phillip ‘Terry’ Ragon, is reflecting on why the work in Africa is so important, not just for him, but for the future of global health.

Through scientific coalitions and collaborations, Ragon is helping unlock answers in a region with the heaviest incidence of AIDS, while empowering local researchers to lead the charge toward a cure.

“If you achieve a vaccine for HIV, you'll be able to really transform lives, save millions of people. It would be pretty special if you could accomplish that,” Ragon says simply, on a Zoom call with FORBES AFRICA in late April. “We were taking on the very hardest infectious disease by far; and I knew that we wouldn't just get lucky. We were going to have to develop new science, engineering, technologies and, if we were successful at finding a vaccine, then, most likely, we would be able to solve a range of other diseases at the same time.”

Ragon has dedicated his life to healthcare. Not one to bask in the spotlight, he is candid about the respect he has for his team and business partners on the ground in Africa, all of whom have adopted a common goal to tackle one of the most debilitating viruses on earth. And this is why he is focused on the continent.

Health research in Africa is at a critical juncture. And while stakeholders weigh up the costs of cuts in funding, including the ‘dismantling’ of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)—which has already seen several projects grind to a halt-the continent's potential as well as its collaborative efforts must come to the fore.

One such collaboration is between the African Health Research Institute (AHRI) and Ragon’s U.S.-based Ragon Institute, resulting in the first HIV cure trial in Africa.