NBA, NIMR Partner to Reform Health Laws on Surrogacy, Organ Transplant.

The Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) and the Nigerian Bar Association’s (NBA) Health and Pharmaceutical Committee are exploring a partnership to develop laws and policies that will improve healthcare delivery in the country.
During a courtesy visit to NIMR in Lagos, Chairman of the NBA’s Health and Pharmaceutical Committee, Mr. Dayo Adu, said the collaboration would focus on critical areas such as surrogacy, organ transplantation, stem cell research, and the regulation of biological tissues. The committee, he explained, also aims to provide legal advisory services to NIMR and help raise public awareness about its activities and programmes.
Adu disclosed plans to host a medico-legal conference early next year, urging NIMR to participate actively and make presentations relevant to its research and public health mandate.
Welcoming the NBA team, NIMR’s Director-General, Prof. Oladapo Obafunwa, described the initiative as an opportunity to address gaps in legislation affecting the health sector. He said the Institute would be glad to work with the NBA on capacity-building programmes, training, and webinars, adding that the collaboration would deepen understanding of NIMR’s work.

Obafunwa highlighted the need for stronger laws on surrogacy and organ transplantation, as well as a review of the Coroners’ Laws and advocacy against child marriage. He also called for legal reinforcement of patients’ rights to receive treatment before payment, noting that some practitioners operate outside their fields of competence—a gap medico-legal engagement could address.
The DG revealed that NIMR is set to build a new laboratory complex in 2025, with one floor dedicated to medico-legal practice and potentially a section reserved for the NBA committee. He also disclosed that NIMR’s Biobank will henceforth retain all samples for in-country research and production, warning that anomalies in current operations would soon be corrected.
Earlier, NIMR’s Director of Research, Prof. Oliver Ezechi, welcomed the inter-professional collaboration, stressing the need for a comprehensive law to regulate surrogacy and for better compliance with the National Health Act’s provisions on material transfer. He also called for improved public sensitisation on data protection and urged the NBA to push for the inclusion of forensic medicine in Nigerian legal education.
The meeting ended with both sides agreeing to work out the modalities for the partnership, with the NBA promising to revert to NIMR on the way forward.