President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the creation of the National Health Technology and Data Analytics Office (NHTDAO) and the appointment of Dr Obi Adigwe as the pioneer National Coordinator.
This was disclosed in a statement on Friday by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The agency will be situated in the Office of the Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare.
NHTDAO will serve as a national meta-platform for orchestrating the country’s digital-health agenda.
It will supplement, not replace, the existing statutory functions of the relevant departments and agencies.
It will also align and strengthen the public and private institutions across the health system, define the standards that link them, and operationalise the National Digital Health Architecture, approved by the National Council on Health in November 2025.
The National Coordinator, Dr Adigwe, as Director General of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development, has harnessed the power of science to catalyse efforts in artificial intelligence, translational research and technology transfer.
He coordinated major projects such as the ¥300m Nanotechnology grant and AFREXIMBank grant for Africa’s first API Training Facility. He spearheaded the development of the roadmap that culminated in a €18 million EU grant, the largest in Africa for the thematic area. In the last pandemic, Adigwe made African science a global news by carrying out the first analysis in the world to debunk claims on the Covid Organics preparation.
The Office’s Steering Committee, which provides strategic direction and oversight, is comprised of:
• Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, CON, Minister of Health and Social Welfare (Co-chair)
• Mr Olaniyi Yusuf, Chairman Nigerian Economic Summit Group (Co-chair)
•Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare (Alternate Co-Chairman)
• Ms Kachollom Daju, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
• Mr Idris Alubankudi Saliu, Special Adviser to the President on Technology and Digital Economy
• Dr Muntaqa Umar-Sadiq, National Coordinator, SWAp Coordination Office
• Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator, Presidential Initiative to Unleash the Healthcare Value Chain
• Dr Muyi Aina, Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency
• Dr Kelechi Ohiri Director General, National Health Insurance Scheme
• Director Health Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare
• National Information Technology Development Agency, Delegate
• Six representatives of the State Commissioners of Health, one from each of the six geopolitical zones.
• Industry and Community Stakeholder, Pharm Hamza Buhari
Tinubu said NHTDAO will accelerate Nigeria’s journey to a secure, interoperable and data-driven health system that improves outcomes for all citizens in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of his administration.
