The Life And Times Of Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin

Executive Director of the United Nations Populations Fund, UNFPA, Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin, is dead. He died on June 4 2017 at aged 68 in New York, United States while watching television alone in his home in on Sunday. Before his dead, Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin serviced as a former health minister and former head of Nigeria’s aids agency, NACA. As more and more tribute pours out the once former minister health, we write to highlight the Life And Times Of Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin as a tribute for his exemplary life.

Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin

He was born on February 6, 1949, in Ogun State where he attended Igbobi College between 1966 and 1971. Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin later attended the University of Ibadan before moving to the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, in 1979 where he obtained his doctorate degree in medicine. 

Career: 

The earlier career service of Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin stated back in 1980 as a Professor of Clinical Pathology, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan after his return from the United Kingdom, in 1979. His later became a Provost of the College of Medicine at the University where his serviced in between 1990-1994. In between 1995-2005 he serviced in various capacities some of which included

Coordinator, the Social Sciences and Reproductive Health Research Network, Ibadan, Nigeria 

Member, Global Steering Committee on Universal Access

Member, Policy and Strategy Committee, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

Chairman, Committee of Presidential Advisers of AIDS Watch Africa

Vice-President, 14th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA), 2005

In between 2003–2008 Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin serviced as the Chairman, Project Governing Board, Joint Regional HIV/AIDS Project in the Abidjan–Lagos Transport Corridor. Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin also worked as a Project Manager, on HIV/AIDS Programme Development Project a World Bank-Assisted project to Nigeria. For his at standing call to duty, Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin was honour with a Officer of the Order of the Niger,(OON) in December 2005 by the former Nigerian president Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan. In between July 2002 – March 2007, he was serviced as Chairman, National Action Committee on AIDS, Nigeria. In March 2007, he was named Director-General, Nigerian National Agency for the Control of AIDS a position he hold until December 2008 before moving to became African Spokesperson, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Minister of Health, Nigeria, where serviced till March 2010. On the 19 November 2010, Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin was appointed as the Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund a position he held before his dead.

In a statement released by the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) mourning his death, the chairman Dr Sani Aliyu decribed Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin as the brain behind the successfully transformed the organisation from committee to a federal government agency. According to him, he wrote;

“NACA is saddened by the death of a distinguished scholar, researcher and former director general of the agency, Prof Babatunde Osotimehin, who passed away early this morning in New York.
“During his period as DG NACA, he successfully transformed the organisation from a committee to a federal government agency,. He will be fondly remembered for his outstanding contributions to the HIV/AIDS response in Nigeria.
“As we mourn this huge loss to Nigeria, the management and staff of NACA and the entire HIV/AIDS advocates join the family in mourning a departed icon in the country.”

Mr. Babatunde Osotimehin will be fondly remembered as an outstanding and a strong advocate on the right to education of the girl and female child and also for his devotion to youth health care in the country. He survived by his wife and five children. May his soul rest in peace.