one2one

Prof. Akin Abayomi became one of the most recognisable public-health voices in Nigeria during the COVID-19 pandemic. But beyond crisis management lies an even bigger question. What does it actually take to build a healthcare system capable of serving millions? In Part 2 of this conversation on ONE2ONE, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health reflects on:• lessons from COVID-19 and governance• heal...

In Part 2 of this wide-ranging conversation, Kunle Soname reflects on what it means to build businesses, institutions, and systems in some of Nigeria’s most difficult operating environments. From betting and aviation to football and infrastructure, he discusses risk, regulation, institutional weakness, and the societal consequences and trade-offs involved in building within complex systems. The co...

In Part 1 of this wide-ranging conversation on politics, football, and institution-building in Nigeria, Kunle Soname reflects on his accidental entry into grassroots politics and what local government leadership taught him about power, governance, and the modest expectations many ordinary Nigerians have of the state. He discusses the importance of placing the “best brains” at local government leve...

Prof. Akin Abayomi became one of the most recognisable public-health voices in Nigeria during the COVID-19 pandemic. But beyond the daily briefings and policy decisions was a deeper story — one of pressure, uncertainty, sleepless nights, and the challenge of leading Lagos through an unprecedented global crisis. In Part 1 of this conversation on ONE2ONE, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health refl...

In Part 2 of this insightful ONE2ONE conversation, Dr Richardson Ajayi — healthcare entrepreneur, fertility specialist, and founder of Bridge Clinic — reflects on the future of healthcare systems in Nigeria, the ethics and realities of IVF treatment, and the institutional reforms required to improve medical standards across Africa. Drawing from decades of experience building one of West Africa’s l...

In Part 2 of this insightful ONE2ONE conversation, Steve Babaeko — creative leader, entrepreneur, and global voice for African storytelling — discusses why Africa must tell its own stories. We go deeper into his early struggles and pivot away from television to building a multi-country creative network, Steve shares powerful insights on:• Why Africa must tell its own stories — authentically• The g...

Dr Hammed Ninalowo joins ONE2ONE for a conversation on what it means to practise advanced medicine in an environment where systems are still forming — and where, at times, there is no fallback. From his early decision to pursue interventional radiology to returning to Nigeria to build capability in a field that was once unavailable locally, he reflects on the demands of working at the edge of care...

Can Nigerian universities truly compete on the global stage? In Part 3 of this ONE2ONE conversation, Professor Folasade Ogunsola examines the structural realities shaping African universities — from governance and funding to research priorities, innovation, and global rankings. She argues that the challenge is not just about competing globally, but about building institutions that solve local prob...

How does a medical institution survive — and sustain itself across generations — under pressure? A conversation with Dr. Ebun Bamgboye, Clinical Director at St. Nicholas Hospital, on what it takes to sustain dialysis and kidney transplant care in Nigeria. Over more than two decades, Dr. Bamgboye has helped build and sustain one of Nigeria’s most significant renal care and transplant programmes. He...

If global power is shifting, what determines which countries can act—and which remain reactive? In this conversation, Professor Eghosa Osaghae examines what it means for African states to act strategically in a changing global system—and whether Nigeria is positioned to do so. Building on an earlier discussion, the conversation shifts from global structure to internal capability: exploring the fou...

As the global order fragments and power shifts across regions, what role remains for Nigeria—and does it still have the capacity to lead? In this first part of a two-part conversation, Professor Eghosa Osaghae returns to examine how the global system has evolved—and what those changes mean for Africa and for Nigeria’s position within it. From the war in Ukraine to instability in the Middle East an...

What does it take to build a world-class healthcare institution in a system that wasn’t designed for it? In this episode of One2One, Dr. Adekunle Hassan — Founder and Chairman of Eye Foundation Hospital — shares the principles behind one of Nigeria’s most respected specialist medical institutions. From leaving a successful career abroad to confronting systemic gaps at home, Dr. Hassan explains how...

Healthcare systems do not scale on sentiment. They scale when capital discipline, governance, and long-term stewardship are aligned. In this extended conversation, Fola Laoye, Co-Founder and CEO of Iwosan Health Systems, joins Tokunbo Shitta-Bey to examine what it really takes to build durable healthcare platforms in Nigeria and across Africa. Drawing on nearly three decades of experience across h...

What truly exploits weak institutions? In Part 2 of this ONE2ONE conversation with Professor Folasade Ogunsola, 13th Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, she examines the forces that undermine institutions — people, politics, emotion, religion, and the absence of accountability. Drawing from her experience as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, she reflects on governance, university...

Universities are among the most enduring institutions in any society. They shape knowledge, train leadership, and influence national development — often quietly, sometimes under strain. In this first episode of a three-part ONE2ONE conversation, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola — Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos — reflects on leadership, evidence, and the institutional culture she inherited when...

What happens when science, politics, and power collide in a global crisis? In this extended edition of the ONE2ONE conversation with Chikwe Ihekweazu, we reflect on leadership under pressure — from building Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control to leading the Health Emergencies Programme at the World Health Organization. This is more than a COVID-19 retrospective. At its core, this is a conversatio...

In this episode, Tunde Mimiko, Managing Director & CEO of SanlamAllianz Life Insurance Nigeria, joins Tokunbo Shitta-Bey for a structured conversation on life insurance as “confidence infrastructure” — the long-duration promises that stabilise households, capital markets, and long-term national planning. Topics include: • Why Nigeria’s insurance penetration remains under 1% of GDP • Trust, cla...

In this episode of ONE2ONE, Tokunbo Shitta-Bey discusses with Chuka Mordi, Managing Director & CEO of Ellah Lakes PLC, in a candid exploration of why Nigeria’s macroeconomic environment sets the ceiling for business scale. With a background spanning equities research in London, infrastructure financing in Lagos, corporate turnarounds, and private equity mandates exceeding $2bn in aggregate val...

Most societies do not collapse dramatically. They decline — slowly — through forgetting. In this Civilisational Conversation on ONE2ONE, Tunde Kelani — internationally acclaimed cinematographer, filmmaker, and cultural archivist — reflects on the foundations of his life’s work, and on why language, cultural memory, and storytelling matter long after films are made. He reflects on the origins of Af...

In this Season 4 broadcast episode of ONE2ONE, Dayo Adedayo reflects on photography not as art, but as record — as a form of institutional memory. Drawing on decades of work documenting Nigeria's monuments, landscapes, and lived realities across all 774 local government areas, the conversation examines why societies that endure learn to document themselves early; why culture functions as infra...

Why technology isn’t a luxury in weak health systems - and how interventional radiology helps deliver high-quality care when resources are limited. In many parts of the world, healthcare operates under severe constraints: limited funding, weak governance, poor infrastructure, and fragile systems. In such environments, technology is often misunderstood as a luxury rather than a necessity. In this O...

What does independence really mean in a world where health crises cross borders faster than politics can respond — and what happens when health systems fail, and who pays the price? In this episode of ONE2ONE, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu — Executive Director of the World Health Organization’s Health Emergencies Programme and former founding Director-General of Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control — reflec...

What do pandemics reveal about power - and why do institutions matter most when everything is under strain? In this ONE2ONE conversation with Tokunbo Shitta-Bey, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu - Executive Director of the World Health Organization’s Health Emergencies Programme and former Director-General of Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control — reflects on the foundations of Nigeria’s epidemic preparedness...

In this two-part ONE2ONE broadcast, Tokunbo Shitta-Bey speaks with Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu — Executive Director of the World Health Organization’s Health Emergencies Programme and former founding Director-General of Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control — in a reflective conversation on leadership, health systems, and what crises reveal about societies. Together, they explore how pandemics expose deepe...

Why technology isn’t a luxury in weak health systems - and how interventional radiology helps deliver high-quality care when resources are limited. In many parts of the world, healthcare operates under severe constraints: limited funding, weak governance, poor infrastructure, and fragile systems. In such environments, technology is often misunderstood as a luxury rather than a necessity. In this e...