CRITICAL ROLE OF HEALTH SECURITY IN NIGERIA’S HEALTH SYSTEM IN 2019 In 2016, when I took over the leadership of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) as Director General, our vision at the time was to strengthen the capacity of the agency to prevent, detect and respond to outbreaks…

In May 2015, a few months after my experience as part of the Ebola outbreak response team in Liberia, I shared my reflections on what was a life-changing experience personally and professionally. In that piece, I emphasised my key learning from the response — the role of gaining the trust…

“If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress.” — Barack Obama These words from former US President, President Barack Obama have inspired me since I became the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on the 15th…

On the 11th April 2018, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus visited the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). This was his first visit to Nigeria since assuming the role of Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO). It was the first time the NCDC would be hosting such a high-level…

Events in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have caught the attention of the global health community once again. An outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) was confirmed by the DRC Government on the 8th of May 2018. …

In the year 2017, like never before, Nigeria was faced with several outbreaks — Cerebrospinal Meningitis, Lassa fever, Yellow fever, Cholera and most recently Monkeypox. There was definitely no quiet period for the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) — the national public health agency with the responsibility of preventing…

On the 22nd of September 2017, we received a report from the Bayelsa State Ministry of Health of a suspected case of Monkeypox. This was a different alert compared to other alerts the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) had responded to since its establishment in 2011. …

About a year ago, precisely on the 15th of August 2016, I started as the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), following an appointment by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari. While the appointment came as a surprise, I accepted it with a huge sense of…

The beginning of the month of July started on a high note for us, as we hosted the 2nd Annual NCDC/NFELTP Scientific Conference in Abuja. The theme for this year was “Strengthening One Health through Field Epidemiology Training”. I recall the early days following my appointment as Chief Executive Officer…