FG, Ogun commence health fellows interviews as state moves to renovate 150 schools, implement promotions

The Federal Government, in collaboration with the Ogun State Government, has commenced final interviews for young professionals from Ogun selected under the National Health Fellows 2.0 programme, as the state government also announced plans to renovate additional public schools and sustain teacher promotion exercises.

The final interview exercise, organised under the National Health Fellows 2.0 initiative, will produce fellows to represent the 20 local government areas of Ogun State. The organisers said the process followed an earlier announcement by the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) Office of the Federal Ministry of Health that a total of 774 health fellows would be interviewed nationwide between January 12 and 16.

Speaking during the interview session at the Ogun State Ministry of Health, Abeokuta, the state SWAp Desk Officer, Dr Olamide Agunbiade, said the initiative was conceived by the Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare to provide young Nigerians interested in public health with opportunities to contribute meaningfully to strengthening health service delivery.

Dr Agunbiade explained that the programme was designed to equip unemployed and underemployed youths with foundational public health knowledge, while enabling them to identify health challenges within their communities and develop practical solutions.

He added that successful fellows would undergo structured virtual and physical training on health systems strengthening, be attached to experienced mentors and participate in hands-on engagements, including fieldwork, technical meetings and other operational activities within the state health sector.

According to him, fellows from the first cohort played key roles in major state health interventions, including contributions to the 2026 Annual Operational Plan, support for the launch of the MAMII initiative and technical engagements with the Primary Healthcare Development Board.

“I can confidently say that the initiative has largely achieved its objectives,” Dr Agunbiade said.

Also speaking, the Chairman of Odeda Local Government Area and Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Ogun State Chapter, Hon. Afolasade Adeyemo, commended the performance of the first batch of fellows, particularly for their grassroots impact. She described the initiative as a laudable Federal Government intervention that has strengthened health delivery at the local level.

Hon. Adeyemo noted that the ongoing interview process was thorough, digitalised and merit-driven, with panel members drawn from relevant sectors, adding that she was impressed by the quality of candidates shortlisted for the final stage.

In their separate remarks, shortlisted candidates, Oluwasegun Shotunde and Paulina Ademola, described the interview as rigorous but transparent, expressing optimism that the programme would enhance their skills and enable them to contribute to sustainable healthcare development in their communities.

Meanwhile, the Ogun State Government has also announced plans to renovate and rehabilitate an additional 150 public schools across the three senatorial districts of the state through the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).

The Chairman of SUBEB, Evangelist Olalekan Ifede, disclosed this during a Yoruba radio programme, Oju ABE, saying priority would be given to the most dilapidated school buildings, with renovation work set to commence soon.

Evangelist Ifede further revealed that the present administration has implemented eight promotion exercises for public school teachers in the last six years, urging teachers to remain committed and dedicated to their duties.

He also called on OgunTeach interns to promptly resume at their duty posts, assuring them that the state government would consider them for permanent employment before the end of Governor Dapo Abiodun’s tenure.

According to him, the current administration has rehabilitated a total of 1,067 public schools in the last five years through interventions executed by Ogun SUBEB, describing the governor as a morally upright leader who has repositioned the state among its peers nationwide.