President Joe Biden has awarded three Nigerian scientists the esteemed Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) for their substantial contributions to healthcare research and development.

The recognition, established by former President Bill Clinton in 1996, is the highest honour bestowed by the United States government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers.

President Joe Biden announced this year’s awardees on Tuesday, who are affiliated with 14 U.S. government agencies.

The Nigerian honorees are Azeez Butali, the Gilbert Lilly Endowed Professor of Diagnostic Sciences at the University of Iowa’s College of Dentistry; Ijeoma Opara, an Associate Professor of Public Health at Yale School of Public Health, Yale University; and Abidemi Ajiboye, the executive vice chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Case School of Engineering, Case Western Reserve University.

On Thursday, President Bola Tinubu praised them for their impressive accomplishments, emphasizing that their extraordinary skills highlight Nigerians’ potential to succeed locally and internationally.

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Here is more about the honorees.

Azeez Butali

Butali was recognised for his research on understanding the genetic factors that contribute to cleft lip and palate by studying the genomes of people with these conditions, particularly within African populations, where he is the world’s foremost expert.

“It is an honour to be recognised by President Biden and the White House with this award,” says Butali, “It truly takes a village, and I cannot thank those enough at the University of Iowa who have supported me and sacrificed to further our research mission. This award is an impetus to do more.”

Through numerous National Institutes of Health and foundation grants, his work has advanced scientific understanding of cleft lip and palate and significantly affected the lives of families by improving access to care and addressing cultural and mental health challenges.

Cleft lip and palate are prevalent birth defects impacting millions globally. They can lead to various issues, such as eating, speaking, and hearing challenges. While no definitive cure exists for these conditions, they can be managed through surgery and other treatments.

Butali began his tenure at the University of Iowa in 2008 and has earned various awards and honors, such as the University’s Inventor Award and the Leadership in Research Award. Additionally, he was featured in Iowa’s 2017 Dare to Discover campaign.

He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Academy of Medical Specialties of Nigeria, and the International College of Dentists. In 2023, he was named the college’s 23rd endowed professor.

Ijeoma Opara

Opara is an associate professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Yale School of Public Health and serves as the director of The SASH Lab. Her research centres on employing strengths-based methods to prevent substance misuse and enhance sexual health outcomes for youth of colour. Additionally, she concentrates on creating race and gender-specific prevention strategies for Black adolescent girls that integrate empowerment and ethnic identity principles.

Opara has received many awards for her work, including her latest grant, the 2023 NIDA Racial Equity Initiative Visionary Award, the 2020 NIH Director’s Early Independence Award, which is given to exceptional, creative early-career scientists who are conducting high-impact research, the John D. Slade Memorial Advocacy Award from the American Public Health Association, AcademyHealth Population Health Scholar, and was named the Top 100 Women by POZ Magazine to end the HIV epidemic.

Opara received a PhD in Family Science and Human Development from Montclair State University, a Master of Social Work from Silver School of Social Work at New York University, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from New Jersey City University and an Associate of Arts in Psychology from Union County College in New Jersey.

During her doctoral training at Montclair, Opara received a training grant from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) as a pre-doctoral fellow in the Behavioral Sciences Training in Drug Abuse program at New York University to fund her doctoral training and dissertation study. Opara’s dissertation entitled, “Exploring the Role of Social Support, Ethnic Identity, and Psychological Empowerment on Drug Use and Sexual Risk Behavior among Urban Black and Hispanic Female Adolescents” used empowerment theory and intersectionality theory as frameworks to highlight protective factors for girls of colour while also acknowledging the unique social locations that Black and Hispanic girls belong to.

In 2018, she shared the initial results of her dissertation research at the International AIDS Society conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Her work received the John L. and Harriette P. McAdoo Dissertation Award for emphasizing strengths in Black and Hispanic families, girls, and communities, shifting away from the deficit perspective commonly seen in prevention research.

Abidemi Ajiboye

Ajiboye is the executive vice chair of the Case School of Engineering, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University.

Biomedical engineering is a field that combines engineering and biology to create medical devices and technologies. Biomedical engineers use their knowledge to improve healthcare and human health.

Biomedical engineers design, test, and implement medical solutions that are ultimately valuable for clinicians, surgeons, and patients. They work in various settings, including industry, academia, entrepreneurship, medicine, and law.