Meet Muhammad Ali Pate; Nigeria health Minister

Muhammad Ali is the current Minister of Health under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led Administration. His appointment surfaced August 15, 2023 alongside names of other Ministers. This article is the complete biography of Muhammad Ali Pate - the current Minister of health in Nigeria

John Stephen
Muhammad Ali Pate

Muhammad Ali is the current Minister of Health under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led Administration. His appointment surfaced August 15, 2023 alongside names of other Ministers. This article is the complete biography of Muhammad_Ali_Pate – the current Minister of health in Nigeria.

Have you been asking who is the current Minister of Health in Nigeria? Or perhaps you have been thinking of who is going to be Minister of Health under president Bola Tinubu and you are thinking who will take over from dr-osagie-emmanuel-ehanire as new Minister of Health? Then, meet the new Minister of Health in Nigeria.

The new Minister of Health in Nigeria is Muhammad Ali Pate CON, was born on 6 September 1968; he is a Nigerian physician and politician who is Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership in the Department of Global Health and Population at Harvard University.

He formerly served as the Global Director for Health, Nutrition and Population and Director of the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF) at the World Bank Group. Pate is also the former Minister of State for Health in Nigeria.

Full NameMuhammad Ali Pate (CON)
Born6 September, 1968 (Age 54)
HomeMisau, Nigeria
Alma materAhmadu Bello University | Duke University | University college London
Current PositionNigeria Minister of Health
Personal profile of Muhammad Ali Pate (CON)

Muhammad Ali Early life and Education

Muhammad Ali Pate was born in the Misau local government Bauchi State in Nigeria and was raised in the north of the country. He is the son of a Fulani herdsman.

The first in his family to complete a secondary school education, Pate graduated from high school to enter the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) medical school in Kaduna State, Nigeria. He graduated from ABU and moved to Gambia where he worked in rural hospitals for a few years. He was then a fellow in infectious diseases at the University of Rochester Medical Center in the United States. He is an American Board-Certified Medical Doctor in both Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, with an MBA (Health Sector Concentration) from Duke University USA. Prior to this, he studied at the University College London. He also has a Masters in Health System Management from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK.

His Appointments and Careers

Earlier in 2019, Pate was appointed Julio Frenk Professor of Public Health Leadership at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. Pate was also the former Minister of Health in Nigeria. His appointment in July 14, 2011 followed his role as the executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency in Abuja. He resigned as Nigeria’s Minister of State for Health effective 23rd July, 2013 to take up the position of Professor in Duke University’s Global Health Institute, USA. He is formerly the chief executive officer of Big Win Philanthropy and an adjunct professor of Global Health of the Duke University Global Health Institute.

On September 1, 2021, Pate returned to Harvard University as a Julio Frenk Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. In February 2023, Muhammad Ali Pate was appointed Chief Executive Officer of GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, which works to provide vaccines in low-income countries.

National honours

On Tuesday, October 11, 2022, Pate, along with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and Amina J. Mohammed were conferred with Nigeria’s national honours. Pate was conferred with Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) – that is the highest honour after GCON.

Personal life

Muhammad Pate is married and has four daughters and two sons. He resides in northern Nigeria . He is a practicing Muslim. Pate holds the equivalent of a knighthood title as “Chigarin Misau” from the village where he was born.

Ministerial nominee


One of the names many Nigerians had guessed right was that of Muhammad Pate, a professor and expert in internal medicine and infectious diseases.

An announcement by the global vaccine alliance, Gavi, on 26 June of Mr Pate’s decision to withdraw his acceptance of appointment as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) gave a strong indication of what was coming.

Mr Pate’s reason for his decision was also a clear pointer. Having earlier been scheduled to assume office as GAVI’s CEO on 3 August, he informed the global organisation that “he has taken an incredibly difficult decision to accept a request to return and contribute to his home country, Nigeria.”

Thus: Muhammad Ali Pate CON is the Minister of Health in Nigeria under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He is taking over from former health Minister – Dr. Osagie Ehanire as Ali Pate will now Chair the Nigeria Ministry of health as Honorable Minister of Health.

Video showing Muhammad Ali Pate during his ministerial screening. Credit: AriseNews

Related: Nigeria-healthcare-major-challenges-and-solutions

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