The former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo, Professor Adesegun Fatusi, was honoured with the Founders Award at the 13th World Congress on Adolescent Health on Saturday, 8th November 2025. The Congress is a 4-yearly event of the International Association for Adolescent Health. The IAAH Founders Award is an “esteemed recognition of outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of adolescent health.”
The erudite scholar and celebrated professor of community medicine was one of the four winners of the 2025 Founders Award, and the first African to ever be so honoured in the 30 year history of the award.
Fatusi was given the award for his remarkable efforts in advancing adolescent health in Nigeria and beyond. Starting from 1999, when he led the development of Nigeria’s first National Training Manual on Adolescent Health in 1999, Fatusi has been in the forefront of advancing Adolescent Health agenda in Nigeria. Among others, he led the establishment of the Society for Adolescent and Young People’s Health in Nigeria (SAYPHIN), which has positively impacted thousands of young people in Nigeria. He has chaired Nigeria’s National Technical Working on Adolescent Health and Development for over a decade.
Speaking on this development, the current Vice-Chancellor of UNIMED, Professor Ebunoluwa Adejuyigbe congratulated Professor Fatusi on the award, noting that, “This is a feat well deserved. Professor Fatusi is an embodiment of excellence, and this recognition is a reward for excellence. As an institution, we congratulate him”.
The award was to take place physically in Montego Bay, Jamaica but had to be done virtually because of the Hurricane Melissa that devastated the country last week.
