Seminar with Dr Tolulope Osayomi: "Epidemics As Reflections of Society"

The Leeds University Centre for African Studies and the Centre for Global Development are proud to co-host Dr Tolulope Osayomi, who will present a paper titled "Epidemics As Reflections of Society: COVID-19 and State Failure in Nigeria."

Dr. Tolulope (‘Tolu) Osayomi is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography at Nigeria’s premier university, the University of Ibadan. He is a medical geographer whose research explores how geography reflects societal interpretations of disease, health, and healthcare in Africa. His interests include disease mapping, the geography of pandemics, medical humanities, and global health.

Dr Osayomi is currently a TORCH International Fellow at the Humanities Division and a Visiting Scholar at the Uehiro Oxford Institute, University of Oxford. Previously, he was an Africa Oxford Initiative (AfOx) Visiting Fellow (2023/2024), and a Visiting Scholar at Oxford’s Centre for the History of Science, Medicine and Technology.

Abstract

This presentation critically examines how the COVID-19 pandemic laid bare Nigeria’s deep-seated public health issues and broader societal fragilities. Drawing on disease maps, newspaper reports, social media narratives, and lived experiences, it demonstrates how the pandemic magnified existing inequalities, exposed systemic inefficiencies, and strained the country’s governance and health infrastructure. Beyond highlighting the uneven geography of risk and response, the study underscores how COVID-19 became a mirror reflecting the state’s relationship with its citizens.