Prof. Mohammed Nasir Sambo is the Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA). Before his appointment, he was the Provost, College of Medicine, Kaduna State University.
Prof. Sambo, a Professor of Health Policy and Management, has an enviable academic and operational background in Health Care Financing. He graduated with an MBBS from the University of Jos in 1993, and a distinguished Fellow of the West African College of Physicians (2003), where he was the Best Candidate in the Final Fellowship examination.
In the academic wing of his illustrious public service career, Professor Sambo held the positions of Deputy Dean, Faculty of Medicine, and Head, Department of Community Medicine, both at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Prof. Sambo was also prominent in the formative years of the NHIA, having served in the Authority and attained the level of Assistant Director/Zonal Coordinator in the South West Zone of the Authority. He was also the Assistant General Manager and Head of HMO Division at the NHIA Headquarters, in Abuja. He was seconded to the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), where he was Assistant Director/Zonal Coordinator, North West Zone of the Agency.
He served as a Member of the Ministerial Technical Working Group that developed the National Healthcare Financing Policy, a framework that largely facilitated the formal flag off of NHIA in June 2005 by President Olusegun Obasanjo. He was also a member of the Ministerial Technical Working Groups for the Public Private Partnership Policy on Health, the National Health Strategic Development Plan, and on National Health Policy.
Professor Sambo’s scholarly distinction attracted national and international institutions, which engaged him as Consultant or Resource Person for strategic activities, such as the Health Sector Reform Agenda of the Federal Ministry of Health, Blueprint for Accelerating PHC Implementation in Nigeria, National Strategic Framework Development Committee of NACA and the National Health Council of Nigeria.
He also worked on several projects with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Department for International Development (DFID), British Council, and German Technical Corporation Agency (GTZ).
An Examiner, former Head of Quality Assurance, Faculty of Community Health and member of the Accreditation Team of the West African College of Physicians, Professor Sambo also holds the impressive distinction of being a Visiting Scholar at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom.
Under the wings of his academic mentorship, the Executive Secretary of NHIA has nurtured into full bloom several candidates for Fellowships, Post Graduate qualifications in Public Health and Field Epidemiology and Ph.D.
A recipient of the Vice Chancellor’s Award at ABU, Zaria, he also holds a Masters degree in International Affairs and Diplomacy.
Professor Sambo remarkable scholarship has resulted in the publication of over 70 of his scholarly articles in reputable Peer Review Journals, nationally and internationally.
He is happily married with children.