Scientist finally finds way home after Cameroon research

All in a day’s work: Dr Zubaidah on the field in Cameroon, collecting blackfly samples to test a diagnostic tool to detect the river blindness disease agent.

PETALING JAYA: As the world tightened its borders at the height of the Covid-19 crisis in March, a Malaysian scientist was left stranded far away from home during her research efforts in Cameroon.

Dr Zubaidah Ya’cob, who is from Universiti Malaya’s Tropical Infectious Diseases Research & Education Centre, had been in the African country since mid-January and was meant to stay there only until May.