2026 NEW YEAR ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT PAEDIATRIC ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (PAN)
Dear Distinguished Members, Partners, and Friends of PAN,
On behalf of the PAN Executive Council, I thank God for giving us a fruitful 2025 and bringing us to a new year.
Happy New Year and welcome to 2026.
As we begin a new year, I extend my warmest greetings to every member and friend of the Paediatric Association of Nigeria and sincerely thank you for your dedication, resilience, and commitment throughout 2025.
The year we have just concluded was a remarkable one for our Association. Despite the challenges facing the health sector, PAN recorded significant progress in strengthening our institution, expanding our advocacy, and advancing child health at national and international levels.
In 2025, PAN successfully hosted a historic maiden hybrid Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference in Gombe, welcomed new members into our fold, and strengthened engagement across subspecialty societies. We also achieved a major institutional milestone with the acquisition and commissioning of our New PAN Office in Abuja, reinforcing PAN’s stability, visibility, and long-term sustainability.
Our governance framework was further strengthened with the revision of the PAN Constitution, the development of key policy documents and a five-year Strategic Plan (2025–2029) to guide our work. This had led to the streamlining of the financial resources of the Association and efficient utilization of same. In addition, we have updated our membership database, and this will be presented at PANConf 2026.
Advocacy remained central to our mission. PAN played a visible and respected role in national discussions on immunization, newborn care, maternal and child survival, air quality, school health, and pharmaceutical regulation. Through press statements, stakeholder engagements, and public education, we consistently spoke up for the rights and wellbeing of Nigerian children.
Our collaborations flourished in 2025. Working with Ministry of Health, Partners such as the International Paediatric Association (IPA), Gates Foundation, WHO, UNICEF, Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health (RCPCH), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and National agencies such as National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), PAN contributed to impactful projects including the PAN/IPA Immunization Champions initiative (HPV and other childhood vaccines advocacy), clean air advocacy, innovative newborn care training, and community outreach programmes across all geopolitical zones.
Capacity building and education remained a priority through our regular webinars, committee activities, and subspecialty engagements, ensuring continuous professional development for our members.
The Editorial Board of the Nigerian Journal of Paediatrics, our official publication, has continued to work hard to sustain the high standard the journal is known for. In addition to continuing publishing, the journal is also getting international recognition as it got indexed in the Scopus in March 2025. Efforts are ongoing to get the journal indexed in more major international databases in the coming year.
We also celebrated the achievements, promotions, appointments, awards, and milestones of our members, while maintaining our tradition of welfare visits and support for our elders—reminding us that PAN is not only a professional body, but a family.
As we step into 2026, we do so with confidence, clarity, and renewed purpose. The foundation laid in 2025 positions us to deepen our impact, strengthen partnerships, and continue advocating for policies and practices that place children at the centre of national development.
Our annual flagship activity – the 57th PANConf GATEWAY 2026 is a couple of weeks away. The Registration so far looks good, but we need more people to register. I look forward to seeing you all in Abeokuta where our activities will enhance paediatric care, research, training, and advocacy.
On behalf of the leadership of PAN, I wish you and your families a New Year filled with good health, peace, professional fulfilment, and personal joy.
Thank you for your service to children and for your unwavering commitment to the Paediatric Association of Nigeria.
Long live the Paediatric Association of Nigeria.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Dr Ekanem Ekure
President, Paediatric Association of Nigeria (2024-2026)
