BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

Chima Ariel Onoka graduated with MBBS degree from University of Port-Harcourt Nigeria in 2000 and obtained a Master of Science degree in Health Policy Planning and Financing from the University of London (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and London School of Economics and Political Science) and a PhD in health systems economics from the University of London. He also has MPH degree from the University of Nigeria, Enugu, and is a fellow of the West African College of Physicians (Community Medicine) where he also serves as examiner. He is a Senior Lecturer in the health systems, policy and management unit of the Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria and a Consultant Public Health Physician with the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital. As a community physician, he also specially focuses on the policy and management systems for provision and delivery of various disease control programmes and health interventions. As operational head for research for several years with the Health Policy Research Group, College of Medicine University of Nigeria Enugu campus, he led the field component of several small to large scale studies focused on healthcare financing and equity, funded by local and international organisations including the World Health Organisation and the UK Department for International Development. He has served as consultant to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (health financing unit), Federal Ministry of Health (department of planning, research and statistics), PATHS2 (Abt Associates) and Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria (HERFON). He also served for 2 years as country researcher for IHP+ Results. He managed the field work for the evaluation of the Axios supply chain management systems in 2010 and was the lead consultant for the Joint Annual Review of the health sector for Lagos State Nigeria in 2012. He has also served as principal investigator for studies funded by the Wellcome Trust UK (Economics of IPTp for malaria Coverage), and the WHO Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (Analysing Efforts towards Universal Coverage Reforms in Nigeria). He has recently researched the policy development processes of the National Health Insurance Scheme in Nigeria and the role of the private sector in national health financing systems, and was one of the theme speakers at the 57th National Council on Health, which is the highest policy advisory body for the health sector in Nigeria.