President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Professor John Okidapo Obafunwa, as the new Director General of the Nigerian Medical Research Institute, following the expiration of the tenure of Prof Babatunde Salako, on July, 23, 2024. Obafunwa’s appointment takes effect from July, 24, 2024.
This was contained in a release signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuru Ngelale and made available to the press.
According to the release, dated July, 22, “Professor Obafunwa qualified in medicine from the University of Lagos in 1980, following which he specialized in Anatomic Pathology (morphological study of diseases), graduating in May 1987. He later sub-specialized in Forensic Pathology in Scotland (1991) and obtained a law degree from England in 2004. He has a number of other academic qualifications and holds membership of various professional bodies in the UK, USA, and Nigeria.
Obafunwa, also worked in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, and the UK before returning to Nigeria in November 2004 to take up appointment as Professor of Forensic Pathology at the Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM). He is a former Provost of LASUCOM, Chief Medical Examiner for Lagos State, and former Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University. Before his appointment, he was the International Regional Advisor of the Royal College of Pathologists (UK) for Sub-Saharan Africa.
He has authored several scientific publications and contributed chapters to textbooks. His research spans anatomic and forensic pathology, and he is currently involved in research in forensic entomology and taphonomy at the University of Nebraska, USA.
The President expects the new Director-General to bring his immense wealth of experience and qualifications to bear in this role to further drive the NIMR’s objective of leading research into diseases of public health importance in Nigeria and developing structures for the dissemination of research findings while providing the enabling environment and facilities for health research and training in cooperation with the federal and state ministries of health”.
