The person behind the numbers
Who I am, how I got here, and what I'm working on now.
Hello, I'm Abimbola
I'm a biostatistician. In plain words, I use statistics to answer health questions. I also build disease models and set up data systems, so the people running health programmes can make better decisions.
I studied statistics at Yaba College of Technology, and in 1999 I joined the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) in Lagos. I stayed for 26 years. I managed and analysed data for more than 25 studies, on everything from HIV and tuberculosis to cholera, COVID-19 and child deaths.
I never stopped learning. I went back for a degree in statistics, then a master's in biostatistics, then training in disease mapping and modelling in Kenya and Rwanda, much of it sponsored by the Gates Foundation. In 2024 and 2025 I completed the Nigeria Malaria Modelling Fellowship.
Since June 2025 I've led evidence and impact at Grand Challenges Nigeria, where I track the progress of nine health research projects. I'm also working on a PhD in Epidemiology at the University of Port Harcourt.
How I got here
From a diploma in statistics in 1993 to a fellowship of the Royal Statistical Society. Scroll down to follow along.
- 1993Where it started
National Diploma in Statistics at Yaba College of Technology, Lagos.
- 1999Joining NIMR
Finished my Higher National Diploma and joined the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research as a statistician.
- 2002Out in the field
Monitored polio vaccination with a World Health Organization team, and collected data for a national study on violence against women.
- 2005Learning to code
Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Science at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.
- 2014Kebbi survey
Supervised data collection and analysis for a UNICEF-supported survey on mother and child health.
- 2017Back to school
BSc in Statistics from the University of Ibadan.
- 2020COVID-19
Designed the REDCap data collection tools for Nigeria's national COVID-19 antibody study.
- 2023A master's, and a model
MSc in Biostatistics from the University of Ibadan. Presented my blackfly prediction model in Nairobi.
- 2024Modelling fellowship
Yellow fever capstone, Vector Atlas training in Nairobi, and geostatistics training with Prof. Peter Diggle and AIMS Rwanda.
- 2025A new chapter
Joined Grand Challenges Nigeria to lead evidence and impact. Trained 40 new grantees and completed my malaria modelling capstone.
- 2026Fellowship
Elected a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society.
- What's next2029
Finishing my PhD in Epidemiology at the University of Port Harcourt.
Always learning
Five qualifications over three decades, and a PhD on the way.
The tools I use every day
The methods, software and systems I rely on, from regression models to Power BI dashboards.
Statistics and modelling
- Biostatistics
- Epidemiology
- Regression (GLMs)
- Survey analysis
- Geostatistics
- Disease mapping
- Compartment models
- Agent-based models
- Random forest
- XGBoost
Coding and analysis
- R
- Python
- SQL
- Stata
- SPSS
- Excel
Data systems
- DHIS2
- REDCap
- Talend (ETL)
- Oracle databases
- Power BI and DAX
- Tableau
- Git and GitHub
Working with people
- Monitoring, evaluation and learning
- Data quality checks
- Report writing
- Working with stakeholders
- Training and mentoring
A few moments from the field
Workshops, fellowships and training sessions. Tap any photo to see it bigger.
