Announcing the 2025 Atai Omoruto Scholarship Award Recipients

Announcing the 2025 Atai Omoruto Scholarship Award Recipients

WONCA is honoured to announce the 2025 recipients of the Dr Atai Anne Deborah Omoruto Scholarship Award: Dr Lydia Wangui Ngigi of Kenya and Dr Adedotun Oluwaseun Ajelabi of Nigeria. These two outstanding early-career doctors were selected from a competitive pool of 26 applicants across 10 African countries.

The Atai Omoruto Scholarship was established to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr Atai Omoruto, a Ugandan physician known for her clinical courage, commitment to underserved communities, and determination to elevate women in family medicine. As the former head of the Family Medicine Department at Makerere University, and a frontline leader during the Ebola crisis in Liberia, Dr Atai left a lasting impact on the profession. She was a founding member of the WONCA Working Party on Women and Family Medicine and received the 2016 WONCA Global Five Star Doctor Award shortly before her death.

The scholarship recognises young African women family doctors who demonstrate clinical excellence, leadership potential, and a strong commitment to community service. With generous support from the WONCA community, USD $2,000 in funding was available this year, allowing the selection committee to award two equally high-scoring applicants with USD $1,000 each. These funds will support their participation in the WONCA World Conference in Lisbon, including travel and registration expenses.

Dr Elizabeth Reji, Chair of the WONCA Working Party on Women and Family Medicine, expressed thanks to all who contributed: "Your support has kept Atai’s spirit of service alive. We are grateful for this global community that believes in lifting each other up and advancing women’s leadership in family medicine."

This year marks the first time we received applications from Kenya, and the growing reach of the programme is an encouraging sign of its regional impact.

2025 Awardees

Dr Lydia Wangui Ngigi – Kenya

Dr Ngigi is a family physician and Associate Faculty at Kabarak University, working in partnership with Tenwek Hospital in rural Kenya. Her work spans clinical care, mentorship, and advocacy for women in medicine. She co-founded Nitibu Network Africa, a grassroots initiative supporting early-career female doctors and organising free outreach clinics in underserved communities.

Her application stood out for its strategic vision and commitment to health equity. She described how, during residency, she performed three emergency C-sections overnight before returning home at dawn to care for her family. Experiences like these motivated her to create supportive structures for women physicians.

In her own words:
“This scholarship would help me carry [Atai’s] torch forward, adapting her legacy to the challenges we face in Kenya today… I envision a mentorship program that pairs female residents with established women physicians, and a network of family doctors serving vulnerable populations.”

Dr Adedotun Oluwaseun Ajelabi – Nigeria

Dr Ajelabi is a Senior Registrar in Family Medicine at a public hospital in Lagos. She leads the busy Care of Older Persons clinic, mentors junior registrars, and serves as Financial Secretary of the Nigerian Society of Travel Medicine. Her essay reflected a deep alignment with Dr Atai’s values: from advocating gender equality in medicine to working in underserved communities.

She impressed the selection committee with her community engagement and leadership. From organising first aid workshops in schools and churches to coordinating International Day of Older Persons events, Dr Ajelabi has demonstrated practical, grassroots impact.

“To change the narrative, I have pushed myself to become a specialist doctor even when I had the easier option of practicing without further training. I constantly encourage women around me who are playing small to aim for greater heights.”

Looking Ahead

Both awardees will attend the WONCA Working Party on Women and Family Medicine Pre-Conference in Lisbon on 16 September 2025, a condition of the award. They will also participate in the full WONCA World Conference and provide a written report to be shared with Atai’s family and the broader WONCA network. Each will be formally recognised during the award ceremony on 20 September 2025 at 17:15.

Congratulations once again to Dr Ngigi and Dr Ajelabi. Their dedication and vision are a testament to the values that Dr Atai championed; service, courage, equity, and leadership in family medicine.

The previous awardees were:

2017 Pretoria (WONCA Africa Region Conference):
• Dr Lillian Nabukeera Mukisa (Uganda)
• Dr Olajumoke Azeezat Ibrahim (Nigeria)

2019 Uganda (WONCA Africa Region Conference):
• Dr Jessi Mbamba (Malawi)
• Dr Moyosore Makinde (Nigeria)

2023 Sydney (WONCA World Conference):
• Dr. Wongani M Kumwenda (Malawi)

Some of the awardees are active members of the African WWPWFM group and were present in the preconferences and various activities of the group both internationally and nationally. Dr Jessie Mbamba was the Young Doctors' Representative and Dr Moyosore Makinde was the secretary of the African group from 2021-2023. We hope that our new awardees will also show their leadership skills in the Working Party.

To support the Atai Omoruto Scholarship Fund and help future leaders attend international WONCA events, please consider making a donation here.