By 
Minister of State for Health commends excellence as 31 winners emerge across categories, including FCMB, LASHMA, and Fidson Healthcare Plc.
The finest institutions, professionals, and innovators in Nigeria’s healthcare sector were celebrated on Friday night as the Nigerian Healthcare Excellence Awards (NHEA) 2026 honoured outstanding achievements across the healthcare value chain at a colourful ceremony held in Lagos.
RELATED: NHEA 2026 announces lifetime achievement award winners, honours Nigeria’s healthcare icons
The event, attended by healthcare leaders, policymakers, regulators, development partners, healthcare professionals, and industry stakeholders, also recognised distinguished individuals whose lifelong contributions have shaped healthcare delivery, education, financing, and medical innovation in Nigeria.
Minister Commends Awardees
The Honourable Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, who graced the occasion as the Special Guest of Honour, commended all the award recipients and nominees for their outstanding contributions to strengthening Nigeria’s healthcare system. The Minister described the nominees and winners as ambassadors of excellence whose dedication continues to inspire confidence in Nigeria’s health sector.
He encouraged the organisers to sustain the awards, noting that recognising excellence remains an important catalyst for improved quality, innovation, and accountability in healthcare delivery. Dr. Salako further reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to building a stronger, more resilient, and accessible healthcare system through ongoing reforms, strategic investments, partnerships, and policies aimed at improving health outcomes for all Nigerians.
Advisory Board Chairman Speaks
Speaking at the ceremony, Chairman of the NHEA Advisory Board, Dr. Anthony Omolola, congratulated all nominees, noting that being shortlisted from more than 120 nominations was itself a remarkable achievement. He described the awards as a celebration of resilience, innovation, leadership, and service by individuals and organisations working tirelessly to strengthen healthcare delivery across the country.
He also reaffirmed NHEA’s commitment to maintaining a transparent, merit-based process founded on public nominations, voting, independent verification, extensive research, and rigorous assessment by an independent Jury and Advisory Board.
Theme: Innovation, Local Manufacturing and Digital Transformation
The 2026 edition, themed “Innovation, Local Manufacturing and Digital Transformation,” highlighted the growing role of technology, indigenous capacity, research, and collaboration in advancing healthcare delivery and achieving sustainable health system transformation.
Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
One of the highlights of the evening was the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Awards to three distinguished healthcare icons:
- Dr. Ladi Awosika – for his pioneering contributions to healthcare financing and health system development.
- Sir Ike Onyechi – for his exceptional leadership in pharmacy practice and healthcare entrepreneurship.
- Emeritus Professor Samuel Chukwunonyerem Ohaegbulam – for his outstanding contributions to neurosurgery, medical education, and specialist healthcare.
Special Recognition Awards
Special Recognition Awards were also presented to:
- Professor Kingsley Ekwueme – who received the Diaspora Excellence Award for pioneering leadership in robotic and minimally invasive surgery.
- Professor Mildred Edet John – honoured for her exceptional contributions to nursing leadership, education, and professional development.
Full List of Winners
A total of 31 winners emerged across diverse categories such as healthcare delivery, pharmaceuticals, laboratory medicine, biomedical technology, health insurance, media, innovation, and healthcare administration. The rigorous process involved public nominations, public voting, independent verification, auditing, industry research, and evaluation by the NHEA Independent Jury and Advisory Board.
Among the winners were:
- FCMB – Outstanding Healthcare Financial Institution of the Year
- Lagos State Health Management Agency (LASHMA) – State Government Health Insurance of the Year
- University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital – Public Tertiary Healthcare Facility of the Year
- Iwosan Lagoon Hospitals – Private Tertiary Healthcare Facility of the Year
- Leadway Health Limited – Health Maintenance Organization of the Year
- Gabbi Health – Innovative Healthcare Service Provider of the Year
- Fidson Healthcare Plc – Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company of the Year
- Codix Pharma Limited – Technology-Driven Pharmaceutical Distributor of the Year
Commitment
The organisers expressed appreciation to the Advisory Board, Independent Jury, nominees, partners, sponsors, and stakeholders for their continued confidence in the integrity of the awards process, which has become the benchmark for recognising excellence in Nigeria’s healthcare sector.
