Vice President for the World Bank Africa Region
Obiageli "Oby" Ezekwesili, a Nigerian national, joined the World Bank, as Vice President of the Africa Region on May 1, 2007. Oby's unique blend of first-hand experiences, especially in the more challenging and complex areas of energy sector reform and education, position her well to deal with the many challenges in Africa. A critical factor in Oby's leadership style is her ability to achieve client "buy-in" no matter how extensive the reform strategy presented. Oby's life is a testament to her dedication to Africa as is the high degree of respect in which she is held by the international community. Oby's passion for and commitment to Africa, her high degree of integrity and her optimism brings strengths to the Region.
Background
Obiageli Ezekwesili, a Nigerian national, joined the World Bank from her most recent position as Minister of Education within the Government of Nigeria. Oby has a rich resume with hands-on experience and accomplishments in a unique mix of private sector, civil society and public sector positions.
Oby subsequently served as Minister of Solid Minerals Development, with emphasis on reforming Nigeria's mining sector to internationally recognized standards, especially in the area of policy transparency, with the purpose of increasing levels of global investment, and investor confidence, in the sector. She provided leadership in the drafting of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, establishing the Nigerian Mining Cadastre Office and opening up Nigeria’s mining sector to private participation. Oby has also served as the Chairperson for the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative since 2004 and pioneered the voluntary sign-on of Nigeria to the EITI Principles, as well as the first ever audit of the oil and gas sector.
Since June 2006, Oby has been the Minister of Education where she was tasked with leading the country's on-going comprehensive reform strategy within the education sector. She has restructured and refocused the ministry for the attainment of EFA targets and MDGs, introduced Public Private Partnership models for service delivery, revamped the Federal Inspectorate Service as an improved quality assurance mechanism and introduced transparency and accountability mechanisms for better governance of the budget. The track record attesting to Oby's innovative success in this area culminated with the Nigerian stock exchange launch of "Adopt-A-Public School Initiative" earlier this year. Oby holds a Masters in International Law & Diplomacy from University of Lagos, along with a Masters of Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard. She is also a chartered accountant.
source: World Bank.org
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