Stanley Okolo

Professor Okolo is a strong visionary leader and executive coach, motivated by the pursuit of excellence and service to humanity. He has a primary medical degree from the University of Nigeria Enugu Campus, and a PhD from the University of London in addition to postgraduate medical fellowships in Obstetrics and Gynaecology from both the West African College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Obstetrics & Gynaecology in London. Professor Okolo has over 35 years’ experience of medical practice and training in Nigeria, United Kingdom and Canada. Before his appointment as DG of WAHO, he was consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at North Middlesex University Hospital in London with professorships at University College London (UCL), City University, and Middlesex University, all in London. He is also a full clinical professor at St George’s University School of Medicine in Grenada. He was the first black executive medical director of an acute hospital in London, a position he held for nearly 10 years and helped lead a massive positive transformation of the hospital’s infrastructure, clinical outcomes and finances. He had major leadership roles in academic regional partnerships in healthcare, and has served on several Boards, working parties and committees in Europe and Africa. His leadership skills have been recognized with national and international awards by diverse organizations such as the Institute of Directors of Nigeria, UK Government Clinical Excellence Advisory Committee, the Health Services Journal Black & Minority Ethnic Leadership Award, Top 100 Blacks in Britain Powerlist awards, and the Centenary award by the Nigerian community in the UK. Stanley, as he likes to be called, 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 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.