President Bola Tinubu has appointed Prof. John Obafunwa as Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), with effect from 24 July 2024.
According to a statement on Monday by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuri Ngelale, Obafunwa succeeds Prof. Babatunde Salako, whose tenure expires on Tuesday.
The President also extended his appreciation to the outgoing Director-General for his service to the nation and wished him well in his future endeavours.
The statement added” “The President expects the new DG 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.
“The President expects him to develop 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”.
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-specialised in Forensic Pathology in Scotland in 1991 and obtained a law degree from England in 2004. He has a number of other academic qualifications and holds membership in various professional bodies in the United Kingdom, United States of America, and Nigeria.
Obafunwa had worked in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, and the UK before returning to Nigeria in November 2004 to take up an appointment as a Professor of Forensic Pathology at the Lagos State University College of Medicine.
He is a former Provost of Lagos State University College of Medicine; Chief Medical Examiner for Lagos State; and former Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University. Before his appointment, Obafunwa 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.
