Chioma Oduenyi, Project Director for MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership in Nigeria, has been awarded a prestigious Heroines of Health award.

Ms. Oduenyi was presented with her award at the 2022 Heroines of Health Awards event, hosted by Women in Global Health on the sidelines of this year’s World Health Summit. She was one of 17 women from around the globe to receive the award at a ceremony held in the Meistersaal Concert Hall in Central Berlin on October 17th.

“I am honored to be recognized as a Heroine for Health after several years of passionate work in health development. This award is both gratifying and quite humbling for me and has undoubtedly energized me to work even harder to keep breaking barriers for women in Nigeria and all over the world,” said Ms. Oduenyi. “Women’s extraordinary contributions in global health must be compensated with visible actions to end all forms of discrimination against women and achieve a more equal world.”

In Nigeria, Ms. Oduenyi leads MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership’s efforts to address major contributors to maternal mortality and morbidity. The project helps prevent and mitigate the consequences of violence against women and girls, address possible drivers of child and early forced marriages, and supports early adoption of family planning. Using her decades of expertise and experience combatting gender-based violence, Ms. Oduenyi supports local organizations to provide their communities with information and knowledge to act to transform discriminatory gender and social norms.

She has pioneered gender integration and mainstreaming through her work in Nigeria for Jhpiego, an international non-profit health organization affiliated with Johns Hopkins University that leads the MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership project. Read a full profile of Ms. Oduenyi here.

Women are the leaders and drivers of health in their communities, but far too often their life-saving contributions go unrecognized and their inspiring stories stay untold. “Heroines of Health” seeks to highlight women’s significant contribution to health care by recognizing female leaders in global health. Learn more about the awards and Women in Global Health here.