President Muhammadu Buhari  Friday approved the appointment of new Directors-General for five key institutions in the Ministry of Health.

The President’s Personal Assistant on New Media, Bashir Ahmad, announced this via his Twitter account. All the appointments are with immediate effect.

The agencies include: the Centre for Disease Control, CDC, National Agency for the Control of Aids, NACA, the Nigerian Institute for Medical Research, NIMR, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and National Health Insurance Scheme, NPHCDA, as well as the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS.

The new appointees are:

NIMR – Prof Babatunde Salami

NACA – Dr Sani Aliyu

NHIS – Prof Usman Yusuf

NPHCDA – Prof Echezona Ezeanolue

CDC – Dr Chikwe Andreas Ihekweazu

According to the tweets, “The head of the CDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, was the managing partner at EpiAfric, a public health consultancy firm that focuses on Africa.

“The head of the NIMR, Prof. Babatunde Salako was the Provost, College of Medicine at the University of Ibadan before his new appointment.

“The head of the NACA, Dr Sani Aliyu was a consultant in Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at Cambridge University, UK.

“The head of the NPHCDA, Echezona Ezeanolue was a professor of Paediatrics and Public Health at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA.

“The head of the NHIS, Prof. Usman Yusuf, was a professor of Paediatrics at St. Jude Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.”