Dr. Olusola Aruna, a Fellow of the UK Faculty of Public Health, earned her medical degree from the University of Ife in 1984 and an MPH with distinction from the University of Leeds as a Chevening Scholar. With prior experience in Child Health and Paediatrics across Nigeria and the Caribbean, she became a Consultant in Public Health Medicine in the UK NHS in 2007. She later led the UK Health Security Agency’s IHR Strengthening Programme in West Africa (2018–2025) and now serves on the Pandemic Fund’s Technical Advisory Panel. She enjoys gardening and dancing.

Mr Yakubu Yakubu Abdullahi is the Senior Special Adviser to the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare on HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria. Formerly Director of Human Resources and Administration at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), he has over 30 years of experience in public health and governance. He previously served as Commissioner in three ministries, chaired Bauchi State’s SURE-P, and advised the Federal Ministry of Health. He contributed to establishing the ECOWAS Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control and the NCDC Act, and is recognised for his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.