07/09/2026
MDCN Registrar, Fatima Kyari, Named Oxford Visiting Fellow
Professor Fatima Kyari, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), has been named the 2026 Aig-Imoukhuede Visiting Fellow at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford.
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โThe Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation disclosed this in a statement on Monday, saying Kyari was selected for the fellowship in recognition of her leadership in healthcare regulation, medical education and public-sector reform.
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โAccording to the foundation, the Aig-Imoukhuede Visiting Fellowship, delivered in partnership with the Blavatnik School of Government, supports exceptional public-sector leaders to deepen their understanding of critical policy challenges and develop practical solutions for strengthening public institutions.
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โThe foundation said Kyari would commence the six-month fellowship in September 2026, during which she would engage with leading scholars and practitioners while developing policy insights that could be applied to her work in Nigeria.
It said she would join a distinguished group of public-sector leaders who have previously held the fellowship, including former Independent National Electoral Commission chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega; former Chief Justice of Ghana, Justice Georgina Wood; former chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru; and Dr Funke Adepoju.
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โThe foundation said Kyariโs fellowship research would focus on how Nigeria could expand medical education as a strategic public-sector reform while maintaining quality, strengthening health workforce capacity and responding to changes in the healthcare labour market.
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โIt added that her research would seek to produce practical recommendations for improving governance, regulatory stewardship and implementation of large-scale reforms in health and medical education.
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โKyari, a clinician and academic, has worked across healthcare delivery, medical research, health policy, medical education, professional regulation and institutional reform.
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โAt the MDCN, she is leading efforts to strengthen medical education and professional regulation as Nigeria seeks to expand its healthcare workforce amid persistent workforce and migration challenges.
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โCommenting on her selection, Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede, Executive Vice Chair of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, described Kyari as an example of the type of public-sector leadership the foundation seeks to promote.
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โโProfessor Fatima Kyari represents the kind of public sector leadership we want to see more of in Nigeria: leaders who see a problem, ask difficult questions and work to build institutions that can deliver better outcomes,โ she said.
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โAig-Imoukhuede said Kyariโs work at the MDCN placed her at the centre of important questions concerning the future of Nigeriaโs healthcare workforce.
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โโWe are pleased to support her Fellowship at Oxford and look forward to the practical ideas that will emerge from her work,โ she added.
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โKyari said the fellowship would provide an opportunity to examine Nigeriaโs medical education and health workforce systems from a broader perspective.
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โโI am honoured to be selected as the 2026 Aig-Imoukhuede Visiting Fellow,โ she said.
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โโThe Fellowship gives me the opportunity to step back from the day-to-day demands of regulation and take a broader look at how Nigeria can build the medical education and health workforce systems needed for the future.โ
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โShe said she would use the experience and perspectives gained at Oxford to develop practical ideas capable of strengthening health workforce governance, medical education and public-sector reform in Nigeria.
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โThe Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation said it remains focused on strengthening public-sector institutions by developing leaders who can translate evidence and ideas into effective policy, implementation and improved public services.
โโProfessor Fatima Kyari, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), has been named the 2026 Aig-Imoukhuede...
