Prof. Cheluchi Onyemelukwe, LL.B (Nigeria), B.L (Nigerian Law School), LL.M, J.S.D. (Dalhousie), is a full Professor of Law at Babcock University, Nigeria, where she teaches and researches on health, law, and human rights. She is also the Founder and Executive Director of the Centre for Health Ethics Law and Development (CHELD), a non-profit organization working on sustainable development, the right to health and universal health coverage, the SDGs, child protection, migration, and climate change across Africa at local, regional, and continental levels.

Prof. Onyemelukwe is Managing Partner at Health Ethics and Law Consulting, a law firm advising stakeholders across the health and social sectors. She has advised governments, regulators, and healthcare businesses throughout the value chain. She previously served as Legal Advisor at the International Health Regulations (IHR) Secretariat in Geneva, supporting country implementation of the IHR and the Joint External Evaluation. She has provided expert advisory services to the African Union Commission on health and migration, and to institutions including the World Bank, ECOWAS, and the Commonwealth Foundation.

She represents Nigeria on the Legal Network of Experts on Migration in West and Central Africa (since 2022) and currently chairs Nigeria’s National Taskforce on Decriminalisation of Attempted Suicide. She is the author of Health Research Governance in Africa: Law, Ethics and Regulation (Routledge, 2018), along with numerous journal articles on health, gender, and climate. Her leadership and impact in the field have been widely recognized, including through the Power of 100 Africa awards.