Professor Stanley Okolo Friday, assumed duty as Director General of the West African Health Organization (WAHO), succeeding Dr Xavier Crespin and his deputy, Dr Laurent Assogba, both who held office since February 3, 2014.
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.
