Oumar N'diaye
Program Officer, West Africa
Oumar N’diaye is a program officer based in the foundation’s West Africa office in Lagos, Nigeria. He plays a pivotal role in connecting the Gender, Racial, and Ethnic Justice-International (GREJ-I) and Natural Resources and Climate Justice (NRCC) program areas. His work also focuses on strengthening democracy, civic space, disability rights, youth empowerment, centering gender, and working with government, regional institutions and the private sector.
Oumar is a global leader with a more than 15-year track record of overseeing and negotiating strategic partnerships and investments at country, regional, and continental levels for the UN System, WaterAid UK, Plan International, Alliance for the Green Revolution (AGRA) and Nutrition International. These efforts have led to improvements in social justice, equality through innovation, good governance, access to healthcare, water and sanitation, education, nutrition, human rights, and gender equality for the most vulnerable people. Before joining Ford, he was the global director of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships and assumed the role of acting chief executive officer of African Initiatives for Relief and Development (AIRD), one of the largest African-based and home-grown development organizations. He oversaw the organization’s development, outreach, and operational management.
Originally from Mali, Oumar has extensive experience in policy development and brokering strategic partnerships between governments, CSOs, and the private sector in the West Africa region. Oumar holds a MSc in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, an MBA, an MA in International Relations and Diplomacy Studies, and a MA in Finance Engineering. He is fluent in Bambara, English and French, and he loves to cook, mind the kids, and play tennis.