Call him the Chief Emergency & Disaster Manager of Lagos State and you won’t be wrong. You will be right because Dr Oluwafemi Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu is the DG & CEO of Lagos State Emergency Agency (LASEMA), which makes him the man who handles all the major emergencies and disasters that may happen anywhere in Lagos State. In his capacity as the CEO of LASEMA, he is saddled with having to lead a team of disaster managers, who usually swing into operation once they receive Distress Calls on the Toll-Free Number of 767 or 112. Many don’t know that the 52-year-old CEO is a Medical Doctor. He has many good qualities going for him.
He is self-motivated, Digitech savvy, confident, experienced and a hardworking medic with a unique touch, with a deep understanding of the management of emergencies and disasters. He is endowed with soft skills of good listening and long-span attention. He works well and makes an excellent team member no matter the diversity of pressure.
He is the pioneer DG of the parastatal and he has achieved a lot since 2016. He is the pioneer Doctor of Ifako Primary Health care in Lagos State. He is a pioneer member of Lagos State Emergency Services. He is the Pioneer Head of Lagos State Ambulance Services. He is the pioneer General Manager/ Disaster Manager for Lagos State. He is the arrow Head of Doctors responsible for the evacuation of Lagos State Government patients for overseas treatment. He was the Disaster manager/ Coordinator of State response during the Ebola outbreak in Lagos State. He was the team leader in Emergency Response to the Bomb blast disaster that occurred in Lagos State in 2001.
Dr. Oke-Osanyintolu has coordinated the State response in managing more than 20000 major and minor disasters in Lagos State and other States i.e Ogun State, Edo State, Oyo State and Borno State such as; Dana Plane Crash, Associate Plane crash, Collapsed building such as Synagogue building collapse, fire disaster in Ijegun in Lagos State, Abule Egba pipeline vandalization fire disaster, flood disaster in Oyo State, three-storey building collapse in Ogun State, road traffic accident in Lagos, Ogun, Borno and flood disaster in Edo State, Oko-Baba fire disaster in Lagos State, major flood disasters and train crash in Lagos State.
He is a Team member in conceptualisation and development of 3-digit- the emergency number in Lagos State. Team member in conceptualisation and development of command control centre in Lagos State.
He is a team member in conceptualisation and development of First Burns Centre in Nigeria that is located at the Gbagada General Hospital in Lagos State.
He is the team member in conceptualisation and development of Relief Camp for victims of disasters in Lagos State.
He was the Chief Camp Commandant for the IDPs that were associated with flood disasters in Lagos State in 2010. 1600 IDPs were camped for more than 11 months. He was a Team member in conceptualisation and development of Lagos State response plan, contingency plan and syllabus for emergency /disaster management in Lagos State. He has been on many ad hoc and standing committees involved in various important emergency/disaster management projects such as the development of National Public health emergency contingency plan.
He is the Best Doctor of Lagos State Emergency Medical Services 2000. He received Commendation for management of disasters by His Excellency the Governor of Lagos State 2002. He is the Best and Most Proactive boss of the State Emergency Management Agency in Nigeria (LASEMA).
He is also a member of many Professional Bodies. He is a member of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, Member of Executive Secretaries of State Emergency Management Agency Forum, Member of International Disaster Managers and Member Emergency Planner .UK
He is also well trained. He had his primary, secondary and university education in Nigeria. He has attended various Professional and Management Courses locally and internationally, traversing medicine, environment, Disaster/Emergency Management and Human Capacity/Resources Management with numerous Honours. He studied Medicine in UNILORIN from 1984 to 1991 for his MBBS.
He has had a rich career, starting from 1991 as a House Officer at the General Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos till 1992, after which he served as a Medical Officer (NYSC) at Agege Local Government (1993-1994) and Medical Officer, at Gbagada General Hospital 1994 to 1998. Between 1998 and 2001, he served as a Senior Medical Officer LASEMS, Ikeja. Between 2001 to 2005. He was head of LASAMBUS. He was responsible for all ambulance service activities in the State, which provide Medical/First Aid attention to patients of emergencies/disasters in Lagos State.
He was made General Manager/CEO of LASEMA between 2005 and 2016. His duty was to formulate policy on all activities relating to Disaster Management in the State and coordinate all plans and programme for effective and efficient response to Disaster at all levels, coordinate and promote research activities relating to Disaster Management at a local level. Monitor the state for preparedness of all organisations or agencies, which may contribute to Disaster Management in the State, Collate data from relevant agencies, so as to enhance forecasting, planning and field operation of Disaster Management. Educate and inform public on prevention and control measures, Co-ordinate and facilitate the provision of necessary research for search and rescue and other types of disaster curtailment activities in response to distress call, Co-ordinate the activities of voluntary organisation engaged in emergency relief operation in every part of the state, Receive financial and technical aid from International Organisation and Non-governmental agencies for purpose of disasters management in the State., Collect emergency relief materials for victims of natural or other disasters and assist in the rehabilitation of the victim where necessary., Liaise with Local emergency management committee established under section 8 of this Act to assess and monitor where necessary, the distribution of relief material to Disaster victims, Process relief assistance to such Local Government as may be determined from time to time, Liaise with the United National Disaster Reduction Organisation or such other International bodies for the reduction of natural and other disasters, Prepare the annual budget for disaster management in the State, Perform such other functions which in the opinions of the Agencies are required for the purpose of achieving its objectives under this act.
In 2017, he got an appointment at the Presidency as a Senior Technical Adviser on Disaster Risk Management. He was also an Adviser at the Presidency from 2016-2017. He has also served as a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Adviser on IDP Programme. His schedule included: Managing of evaluation process, Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing on monitoring and evaluation, Ensuring the implementation of Monitoring and Evaluation policies & strategies of HSCU, Participate in and contribute to the finalisation of Monitoring and Evaluation framework for all funded projects in Humanitarian services by all partners and stakeholders., Update as necessary Monitoring and Evaluation plans, consistent with the national M&E framework, in consultation with the Ministry of Budget and National Planning and HSCU stakeholders liaison unit., Providing technical guidance for the implementation of the M&E plan, through training and other on-site support., Facilitate review of progress on a monthly and quarterly basis and ensure problem-solving through remedial actions., Ensure disparities between planned and actual outputs are addressed.
Assist HSCU in the identification of potential implementation problems and recommend appropriate strategies to address them.
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