Prof. Stanley Okolo, a Nigerian, is the new Director General of the West African Health Organization (WAHO)
Prof Stanley Okolo has assumed duty as the new Director General of the West African Health Organization (WAHO), he is taking over from the immediate past DG, Dr Xavier Crespin.
On Friday March 2, a send-off ceremony was conducted for the outgoing management, Dr Xavier Crespin and Dr Laurent Assogba. The ceremony was also an opportunity to welcome the new DG.
“We thank Dr Xavier Crespin, the outgoing DG and Dr Laurent Assogba the outgoing Deputy DG for their vision, commitment and leadership in improving health outcomes in ECOWAS region. Their contributions are immense and they are champions for women and children,” said Innovating for Maternal and Child Health in Africa (IMCHA).
The organisation also congratulated Dr Okolo while looking forward to the continued collaboration and partnership with WAHO.
One of the several achievements of the outgoing management of the WAHO was the receipt of a building to the to house the ECOWAS Regional Center for Disease Control (RCDC) which was then inaugurated on February 21.
It also decided to build state-of-the-art health facilities at the Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone borders. The three countries were chosen because of the Ebola crisis that affected them.
WAHO is the specialized institution of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responsible for health issues. Its mission is to attain the highest possible standard and protection of health of the peoples in the sub-region through the harmonization of the policies of the Member States, pooling of resources, and cooperation with one another and with others for a collective and strategic fight against the health problems of the sub-region.
Stanley Okolo, a Nigerian, holds postgraduate degree in Obstetrics & Gynaecology from the United Kingdom. He has a PhD in Endocrinology from the University College London (UCL). He also holds professorships at City University and Middlesex University, all in London, and is a fellow of both the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) in the UK.
Professor Okolo has over 35 years’ experience of medical practice and training in Nigeria, UK and Canada.
He has numerous scientific publications to his name. He has conducted examinations for the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists in the UK, Africa and the Middle East, and has been invited to speak at scientific meetings and seminars in Africa, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean.
The new DG is an experienced leader. He was UCL clinical undergraduate Sub-Dean for 5 years, and the first black Executive Medical Director of an acute University Hospital in London (North Middlesex University Hospital Trust).
He was able to provide executive clinical leadership which helped transform the Trust to a most improved organization, increase the annual turnover by over £100 million, and execute a £200 million modern rebuild of the hospital.
He had major leadership roles in academic regional partnerships in healthcare such as north Thames’ Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research (CLAHRC). He established an acclaimed and innovative public health partnership project – “Health on the Move” – that was a finalist in the UK’s Hospital Services Journal (HSJ) National Awards 2014.
Prior to his appointment as WAHO Director General, Prof. Okolo served from September 1995 to February 2018 as a Professor & Consultant Gynaecologist at North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust in London, UK.
Between 2015 and 2017, he has served on several boards, working parties and committees in Europe and Africa and his leadership skills have been recognized with national and international awards by diverse organizations such as the mInstitute of Directors of Nigeria, UK Government Clinical Excellence Advisory Committee, the HSJ Black & Minority Ethnic Leadership Award, and the Centenary award by the Nigerian community in the UK.
Professor Okolo is passionate about improvement of healthcare services through global collaborations aimed at development of efficient health systems, and the upskilling of healthcare professionals with an unrelenting focus on clinical quality.
He believes that to improve population health, healthcare provision in developing countries should address the wider issues of health and well-being as well as illness and disease.
Professor Okolo is Nigerian and is married with children.