Olikoye Ransome-Kuti
Encyclopedia
Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, a paediatrician, activist, was a health minister
in his native Nigeria
.
in 1927, in present day Ogun State
, Nigeria. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti
, was a prominent political campaigner and women's rights
activist, and his father Reverend Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, a Protestant minister and school principal, was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. His brother Fela
would grow up to be a popular musician and a founder of Afrobeat
, while another brother, Beko
, would become an interntionally-known doctor and political activist. Ransome-Kuti attended Abeokuta
Grammar School, University of Ibadan
and Trinity College Dublin (1948-1954). He worked as senior house officer at Great Ormond Street Hospital
, London and as a locum
in Hammersmith
Hospital in the 1960s.
In the 1980s, he joined the government of General Ibrahim Babangida
as the health minister. In 1986, he announced Nigeria's first AIDS
Victim, a 14 year old girl has been diagnosed with HIV
. He was minister until 1992, when he joined the World Health Organisation as its Deputy Director-General.
He held various teaching positions, including a recent visiting professorship at Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University
's school of hygiene and public health. He wrote extensively for medical journals and publications.
He won both the Leon Bernard Foundation Prize and the Maurice Pate
Award, in 1986 and in 1990 respectively.
Health minister
A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services....
in his native Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.
Early life
He was born in Ijebu OdeIjebu Ode
Ijebu Ode is a Local Government Area and city located in south-western Nigeria, close to the A121 highway. The city is located 110 km by road north-east of Lagos; it is within 100 km of the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern part of Ogun State and possesses a warm tropical climate.With an...
in 1927, in present day Ogun State
Ogun State
Ogun State is a state in South-western Nigeria. It borders Lagos State to the South, Oyo and Osun states to the North, Ondo State to the east and the republic of Benin to the west. Abeokuta is the capital and largest city in the state...
, Nigeria. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti
Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti
Funmilayo Ransome Kuti ,, born Francis Abigail Olufunmilayo Thomas to Daniel Olumeyuwa Thomas and Lucretia Phyllis Omoyeni Adeosolu, was a teacher, political campaigner, Women's rights activist and traditional aristocrat...
, was a prominent political campaigner and women's rights
Women's rights
Women's rights are entitlements and freedoms claimed for women and girls of all ages in many societies.In some places these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom, and behaviour, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed...
activist, and his father Reverend Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, a Protestant minister and school principal, was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. His brother Fela
Fela Kuti
Fela Anikulapo Kuti , or simply Fela , was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rights activist, and political maverick.-Biography:...
would grow up to be a popular musician and a founder of Afrobeat
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a combination of traditional Yoruba music, jazz, highlife, funk and chanted vocals, fused with percussion and vocal styles, popularised in Africa in the 1970s. Its main creator was the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who gave it its name, who used it to...
, while another brother, Beko
Beko Ransome-Kuti
Dr. Bekolari Ransome-Kuti was a Nigerian medical doctor known for his work as a human rights activist.-Early life:...
, would become an interntionally-known doctor and political activist. Ransome-Kuti attended Abeokuta
Abeokuta
Abeokuta is the largest city and capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria and is situated at , on the Ogun River; 64 miles north of Lagos by railway, or 81 miles by water. As of 2005, Abeokuta and the surrounding area had a population of 593,140....
Grammar School, University of Ibadan
University of Ibadan
The University of Ibadan is the oldest Nigerian university, and is located five miles from the centre of the major city of Ibadan in Western Nigeria...
and Trinity College Dublin (1948-1954). He worked as senior house officer at Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children is a children's hospital located in London, United Kingdom...
, London and as a locum
Locum
Locum, short for the Latin phrase locum tenens , is a person who temporarily fulfills the duties of another. For example, a locum doctor is a doctor who works in the place of the regular doctor when that doctor is absent, or when a hospital/practice is short-staffed...
in Hammersmith
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London, England, in the United Kingdom, approximately five miles west of Charing Cross on the north bank of the River Thames...
Hospital in the 1960s.
In the 1980s, he joined the government of General Ibrahim Babangida
Ibrahim Babangida
General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida CFR DSS mni , popularly known as IBB, was a Nigerian Army officer and military ruler of Nigeria...
as the health minister. In 1986, he announced Nigeria's first AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
Victim, a 14 year old girl has been diagnosed with HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
. He was minister until 1992, when he joined the World Health Organisation as its Deputy Director-General.
He held various teaching positions, including a recent visiting professorship at Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
's school of hygiene and public health. He wrote extensively for medical journals and publications.
He won both the Leon Bernard Foundation Prize and the Maurice Pate
Maurice Pate
Maurice Pate was an American humanitarian and businessman. With Herbert Hoover, Pate co-founded the United Nations Children's Fund in 1947 and served as its first executive director from 1947 until his death in 1965.Talking about the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, its second Secretary-General,...
Award, in 1986 and in 1990 respectively.