We believe Africa
will revolutionize the
global genomics market"

Aminu Yakubu has over 18 years experience in health policy and health research governance in the Nigerian health system. He also has more than 12 years progressive experience in research ethics and human subject protections from local and international perspectives.

Prior to 54gene, Aminu was most recently a Science Program Specialist with Nigeria country office of the US Centers for Disease Control where he worked to ensure technical coherence and alignment with extant human subject protection policies of protocols for studies being conducted or supported by the agency. He also worked with the Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria where he supported the National Health Research Ethics Committee in reviewing protocols for nationally representative studies, provided guidance to researchers on the application of the National Code for Health Research Ethics, and was involved in the development of several policies for human subject protections in Nigeria. Mr Yakubu also chaired the H3Africa Ethics and Regulatory Affairs Working Group previously in 2016/2018.

Aminu holds a Bachelors Degree in Biochemistry from Bayero University Kano, Master of Public Health Degree from University of Birmingham, UK; and has received postgraduate training in Bioethics from the Berman Institute of Bioethics, Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. His research interests are in research ethics governance related to genomics research and research ethics committees, health systems research ethics as well as ethics of research during disease outbreaks.

Born in Nigeria, Abasi Ene-Obong is the founder and CEO of 54gene and has extensive experience operating in the US, UK and Nigerian healthcare industries. Prior to 54gene, Abasi worked with leading healthcare organisations, including Fortune 100 pharmaceutical companies, academic and research institutions, and governments as a management consultant with PwC and IQVIA (formerly QuintilesIMS).

Previously, Abasi worked as a cancer researcher and published a seminal paper on pancreatic cancer immunology in the journal, Gastroenterology. He holds a PhD in Cancer Biology from University of London, a masters in human molecular genetics from the Imperial College London and a masters in business management from the Claremont Colleges, California.

Delali joins 54gene with over 15 years of experience in the pharmaceutical sector ranging from logistics and supply chain management to commercial marketing and managed care. Prior to 54gene, Delali was most recently the Head of Market Access for East Africa within Roche Pharmaceuticals (F. Hoffmann La-Roche AG) as well as held former roles of increasing responsibility within Genentech (a US subsidiary of the Roche group).

A significant portion of her career and personal passion has focused, and continues to focus, on better affordability and accessibility of diagnostics and treatments for patients within healthcare systems.

In addition to her diverse work background, Delali holds a Bachelors of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Rochester; a Masters in Biotechnology (MB) from the University of Pennsylvania; a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Babson College, F.W. Olin School of Business; and received a Certificate in Health Economics and Outcomes Research from the University of Washington.

Jessica has more than 18 years of experience in development, deployment, and execution of commercial strategy in genomics. She has worked in the US and Canada genomics markets including healthcare, consumer genomics, research, human identification and agriculture.

She was previously an executive specialist at Illumina, Inc. and member of a team that developed and executed strategies to turn around a several hundred-million-dollar declining product portfolio, achieving double digit growth for three consecutive years. Jessica has been recognized for her achievements and received a “Value’s Award” from Illumina. She also developed pricing, marketing, and partnership strategy for Merck Millipore distribution channels, managing more than 75 distributors.

Jessica has extensive experience managing strategic accounts with a proven ability to solve client’s complex business problems and growing accounts that comprise >20% of corporate revenue. She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and certificate of management studies from the University of Rochester, and attended Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation. Jessica enjoys lending her time and talents to support non-profit organizations and is currently serving on the Board of Directors for Blue Ocean Society or Marine Conservation.

Dr. Zara Modibbo is a Consultant Clinical Microbiologist and a Fellow of the West African College of Physicians who has worked for over a decade in African health care and medical research.

In 2010, Dr Modibbo, received the Future Nigerian awards for excellence in public service. In the last few years, she has worked closely with international research groups in implementing antibiotic resistance research across African and South East Asian countries. She received her medical training at the University of Maiduguri, Borno in Nigeria and has received training in Global Health and Epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health Boston MA.

Dr Modibbo is passionate about women’s health and has published several papers on cervical cancer screening in Nigeria including the first Randomised Control Trial in Nigeria on Human Papilloma Virus self-sampling in an attempt to revolutionize uptake of screening across Africa.

Francis has over 10 years software development experience building enterprise solutions for businesses across Nigeria. He has also led teams to build solutions for Visa, DFID, Microsoft, and more.

The products he has built have gotten local and international recognition for innovation and performance. He is an alumni of Fate Foundation and Lagos Business School.

Dr. Jumi Popoola is a multi-disciplinary cancer research scientist that has worked at The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden Cancer Hospital in London, in collaboration with Merck KGaA, Germany. She designed and implemented screening assays, which enabled fast tracking of drugs into clinical trials for patient benefit.

She has also worked in Chevron as well as with Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, to launch the drug Prostatonin into the Nigerian market, for the treatment of enlarged prostate (BPH). She is an active participant in the global drug discovery community.

She graduated from the University of Lagos with a BSc. in Medical Microbiology, as well as from the University of Sheffield, U.K. with both a Masters degree in Molecular and Genomic Medicine and a PhD in Cancer Research.

Estelle has over 10 years of experience in the Health Industry covering various markets. She has worked for Sanofi in France where she led multiple medico-marketing initiatives for blockbuster products including data mining projects, and implemented Biosimilar strategies in Intercontinental countries.

She has extensive experience in pharmaceutical sales and marketing in Sub-Sahara Africa and across different disease areas ranging from Communicable Diseases, Renal Anemia and Cancer. Before joining 54gene, she was Head of Operations for Roche Nigeria where she built the commercial organization from the scratch, remodeled the distribution system, drastically developed the public market for Roche targeted therapies, and transformed the product portfolio mix in order to exceed profitability goals.

Estelle Holds a Masters in Microbiology and Physiology from the Paris 13 University and a Masters in Marketing from the Ionis School of Technology and Management in Paris. She is passionate about learning and development. Her most rewarding achievements have been coaching and mentoring young leaders to achieve organizational growth and outstanding performance.

Dr Ado Wanka graduated from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria with a degree in Medicine in 2008. She also holds a Master’s degree in Cancer from University College London. Having undergone residency training program in Histopathology at the National Hospital Abuja, She obtained her fellowship from the National Postgraduate Medical college of Nigeria (NMPCN) in 2017.

She has attended several programs with emphasis on cancer biology and theranostic and has published papers. She is a member of International Academy of Pathology (IAP)/ West African Division of the International Academy of Pathology (WADIAP).

Yemisi is a Public Health professional with experience in healthcare development and disease management, particularly in resource-poor settings.

She has international experience, working in the UK, US and Nigeria. She was part of a recently published project investigating the low uptake of hypertension care in Lagos, Nigeria

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology and Sociology from Durham University and a Masters in Public Health from Imperial College London.

Ijeoma has over 5 years of experience carrying out Pan-African Business Development work and managing client relationships. She has launched technology products in Nigeria, South Africa and Cameroon and has managed the accounts of the Africas largest Telcos such as MTN and 9Mobile (formerly Etisalat).

She holds a bachelor's degree in Biomedical Technology from the University of Port Harcourt, a diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and a Certificate in Entrepreneurship from Harvard Business School. When she is not working, Ijeoma enjoys fashion designing, travelling and content creation.

Abi is an operations and communications professional with over 8 years of experience coordinating organizational procedures and implementing business strategies.

She has worked as lead on projects related to governance, politics and youth empowerment in Nigeria and is most passionate about helping youth in emerging economies discover dynamic ways to achieve financial security.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Philosophy from Calvin College, Michigan; a master’s in International Development from Eastern University, Pennsylvania and a certificate in Public Relations and Publicity from Fullerton College, California.