Dr. Obi Adigwe, NPOM, FNAPharm, FAPH, FPCPharm, FPSN
Director-General/Chief Executive Officer,
National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD)
On the 10th of August 2018, Dr. Obi Adigwe was appointed the Fourth Substantive Director General of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD). The current Director-General (DG) of NIPRD has over two decades’ knowledge and experience in healthcare research, policymaking and management, both in Nigeria, and internationally. Prior to his appointment as DG NIPRD, Dr Adigwe was the Executive Secretary of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group (PMG-MAN), where he played a key role in the development and implementation of policy initiatives which made considerable impact on West Africa’s Pharmaceutical Sector. Some of his achievements in PMG-MAN include the prioritisation of the Pharma Industry in the 2016 Fiscal Policy, and the organisation of the Landmark 2017 Pharma Expo. He was also lead contributor to the Medicines’ Security Concept that aims at improving sustainable access to safe, high quality and affordable healthcare, through local production of medicines and commodities.
Dr. Adigwe was the pioneer Head of the Health Policy Research and Development (HPRD) Unit at the Nigerian National Assembly, where he formulated research and development strategies in Health Policy with a view to developing an Evidence-Based approach to Legislation and Policy formulation in Nigeria. He also developed innovative and contextual capacity building modules for Healthcare Professionals, as well as coordinated research that contributed to Health System strengthening. He has a significant number of peer reviewed publications including the first Knowledge Attitudes and Perceptions study on Ebola in Nigeria, as well as a seminal paper on Rational Use of Medicines. While in the United Kingdom, he was the lead author of the article “Rewrite the script for Non-medical Prescribing” which contributed to prescribing policy reforms in the British Parliament. Throughout his career, Adigwe has pioneered a significant number of innovative research and developmental projects. He led teams that secured various high-profile grants including a Clinical Trials Grant from the ECOWAS, an API Grant from AFREXIMBank, a Drug Development Mega Grant from TETFUND and a European Grant supporting Local Production of Vaccines in the Nigerian setting. During the public presentation of the roadmap (2024-2034), the European Union (EU) announced an investment of €18 million to fund vaccine research in Nigeria.
Adigwe’s leadership has repositioned NIPRD in alignment with the Presidential mandate to unlock healthcare’s value chain, especially with respect to developing relevant innovative yet contextual interventions across the entire ecosystem. Ongoing initiatives include projects in Artificial Intelligence, Nanotechnology, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Phytomedicines’ Development, as well as novel strategies for building Africa’s capacity in emergent biotechnologies. Dr. Adigwe has headed/served on numerous Committees and Expert Working Groups at both national and international levels, including the D8, United Nations, World Health Organisation, The African Union and ECOWAS. Adigwe was conferred with the National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM) award by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in recognition of his hard work, productivity and excellence in National Developmental Initiatives. As acknowledgment of his service to the profession, Adigwe has been admitted to several prestigious Fellowships, including the Nigerian Academy of Pharmacy, the West African Institute of Public Health, the West African Postgraduate College of Pharmacists, and the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria.
