The Nobel Prize is an international prize awarded annually for achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, peace and economic sciences.
Africa has received the awards in all five categories with South Africans being in the lead with 11 Nobel prize winners. The 11 Nobel laureates are:
- Max Theiry (1951) was the first South African under the category of physiology or Medicine to ever receive a Nobel prize for his discoveries concerning yellow fever and how to
- Combat it. Albert Luthuli(1960) under the category of peace for his non-violent struggle against apartheid.
- Allan Macleod Cormack(1979) under the category of physiology or medicine for the development of computer-assisted tomography.
- Desmond Tutu (1984) under the category of peace for his role as a unifying leader.
- Nadine Gordimer1991) under the category of literature for her magnificent writing that has been of great benefit to humanity.
- Nelson Mandela and Frederick William de Clerk each received one in 1993 under the category of peace for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic in Africa.
- Sydney Rennet (2002) under the category of physiology or medicine for his discoveries concerning the genetic regulation of organ development.
- John Maxwell (2003) under the category of literature in innumerable guises portrays the surprising involvement of the outsider.
- Michael Levitt (2013) was under the category of chemistry for the development of multi-scale models for complex chemical systems.
- Aaron Klug (1982) was an expatriate, he won one under the category of chemistry for his development of crystallographic electron microscopy.
