The Chief Executive Officer of ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, accompanied by the Chief of Party (COP), Dr. Adeoye Adegboye and Deputy Chief of Party (DCOP), Dr. Toyo Otoyo and ECEWS ACE-5 Project State leadership on the 11^th of February 2026, paid a strategic courtesy visit to the Director General of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Prof. John Obafunwa. The visit aimed to reinforce the longstanding partnership between both institutions and advance collaborative initiatives that position NIMR as a cornerstone of Nigeria’s healthcare research and service delivery landscape.

During the engagement, the CEO commended NIMR as an apex institution for quality assurance within Nigeria’s health sector. He reaffirmed that closer collaboration between United State Government (USG) partners and NIMR would translate into sustained and meaningful institutional support. Describing NIMR as Nigeria’s equivalent of the National Institutes of Health, he emphasized that the partnership inspires greater commitment to strengthening both the institution and the country’s health systems. A key highlight of the visit was the upcoming solar power installation, facilitated through ECEWS support, which will fully power NIMR’s laboratory operations while significantly reducing energy costs. The CEO expressed optimism that installation would be completed within the month, with commissioning targeted for the second week of March. In addition, ECEWS announced plans to upgrade NIMR’s server infrastructure to enhance integration between LAMISPlus and other Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems, a move expected to improve data flow and enable real-time reporting across supported facilities.

Prof. Obafunwa expressed deep appreciation for ECEWS’ continued support, noting that several critical institutional milestones would not have been possible without the partnership. The visit concluded with a renewed commitment to strengthening capacity building and infrastructure development, as the CEO reaffirmed ECEWS’ dedication to promoting NIMR’s strategic importance to the Department of State and prospective investors. In his closing remarks, he captured the shared vision of both institutions: “We have big dreams for NIMR.”