Dr Titilola Banjoko joins IRC UK as Chair of the Board of Trustees

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has announced the appointment of Dr Titilola Banjoko as Chair of the Board of Trustees in the UK.

Dr Banjoko will take up the role in October 2020, succeeding current Chair Sir John Holmes who completes his term in office after nine years of service.

With a clinical background, and currently an Executive Managing Director in the NHS, Dr Banjoko brings with her extensive knowledge of Global Health issues – particularly relevant as the IRC adapts and responds to the COVID-19 pandemic across the 40 countries where it works.

Earlier in her career Dr Banjoko successfully pioneered the formation of AfricaRecruit and FindaJobinAfrica.com aimed at harnessing human resources and social capacity in Africa.

Welcoming her appointment, Laura Kyrke-Smith, Executive Director of the IRC in the UK said:

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr Banjoko to the IRC. She brings with her a wealth of skills, knowledge and experience, and her mix of professional expertise and personal interest in the issues that matter to the IRC – including forced migration, gender-based violence and mental health – will make her an invaluable asset to the organization.

Dr Titilola Banjoko said:

“I am delighted to be joining the board of such an important and innovative organisation at such a crucial time. We are in the midst of a pandemic, with displacement numbers higher than ever before, and impending economic turbulence the world over; these are uncharted times and the pressures on humanitarian aid are acute. I am passionate about supporting people at their most vulnerable, giving a voice to the voiceless and helping people to rebuild their lives and livelihoods, so I am excited about making a contribution to IRC’s humanitarian work.”

Dr Banjoko’s other non-executive positions include serving on the council of the Royal African Society, as a Trustee of Tropical Health and Education Trust (THET) and as Chair of the board for the Foundation for Women’s Health Research and Development (FORWARD). She is a Fellow of the Nigerian Leadership Initiative and the co-convener of the Better Health for Africa Initiative.

Extending her thanks to outgoing Chair Sir John Holmes, Laura Kyrke-Smith said:

“We are enormously grateful to Sir John for his time and contributions in the near decade he has been with us, helping to steer IRC as it navigated responses to many desperate humanitarian crises – including conflicts in Syria and Yemen, the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the 2015/6 refugee crisis here in Europe. During John’s tenure the IRC in the UK has more than doubled its annual income, enabling us to do more, and better, for our beneficiaries across continents. Sir John has brought a wealth of expertise and compassion that will be sorely missed.”