Health Minister Zweli Mkhize's top coronavirus adviser, Salim Abdool Karim, has announced that he is stepping down from the Ministerial advisory Commitee.  

Karim says he wants to devote his undivided attention to his HIV research and other academic commitments.Karim is the  head of the Centre for the Aids Programme of Research in South Africa at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

In a statement  karim said “As the one-year anniversary of my term nears, the time has come for me to return to my HIV research and academic commitments. I am therefore stepping down from the MAC on COVID-19 (and consequently from the MAC on Vaccines as well), having served for a year, with my last day being 23 March 2021.”