African Development Bank has appointed Dr. Eric Kehinde Ogunleye, a seasoned macroeconomist, as Director of the African Development Institute, effective June 1, 2024.

Ogunleye, a Nigerian national, has nearly 20 years of experience in macro and development economics, capacity development, public governance and regulatory reform, monitoring and evaluation, and policy advisory.

His career includes designing and leading innovative, context-specific capacity development and policy advisory initiatives at the highest levels of national governance, achieving significant global partnerships and impactful results.

He previously served as the Officer in Charge of the African Development Institute and Manager of the Institute’s Policy Management Division.

He was also previously an Advisor to the Chief Economist and Vice President of the Economic Governance and Knowledge Management Complex.

He played a crucial role in developing and implementing the Bank Group’s Capacity Development Strategy (2021-2025) and related initiatives, such as the Public Finance Management Academy for Africa and the Macroeconomic Management Academy for Africa.

Ogunleye has significantly enhanced the Institutional Capacity Building and Fiduciary Clinics, which now consistently cover 20 country portfolios annually, improving the quality of the Bank’s operations and portfolios in Regional Member Countries.

In December 2022, Ogunleye successfully launched the Public Finance Management Academy for Africa, featuring an 18-month structured training program across the entire public financial and debt management cycle. This initiative has trained over 145 public officials from 45 African countries as Public Finance Management experts.

He currently leads multiple technical assistance projects, including macroeconomic modelling and policy dialogues, to address entrenched and emerging development challenges in African countries.

He has also forged numerous partnerships at global, continental, regional, national, and sub-national levels to support these initiatives.

Before joining the Bank, he was Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on International Trade and Finance and later as Special Advisor to the Chief Economic Advisor to the President.

He played a pivotal role in policy research, institutional capacity development, and monitoring and evaluation of socio-economic policies.

He contributed to Nigeria’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, which lifted the country out of recession. Additionally, he served as a long-term consultant (Country Macroeconomist) in the Nigeria Country Department of the Bank Group, coordinating macroeconomic analysis in Nigeria and supporting the Bank’s diverse development projects portfolio.

Ogunleye’s previous roles also include Research Fellow at the African Center for Economic Transformation, Doctoral Researcher at the United Nations University’s World Institute for Development Economics Research, Doctoral Research Intern at the World Trade Organization, and International Research Consultant at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. He has also taught and conducted research as a Lecturer at the University of Calabar, Nigeria.

He holds a PhD and MSc in Economics from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, a BSc degree in Economics from the University of Calabar, Nigeria, a Cambridge Certificate in Advanced Program on Rethinking Development Economics in Africa, and an Executive Certificate in Public Policy from Harvard University.

Expressing his gratitude for the appointment, Dr. Ogunleye said, “I am truly humbled, honoured, and pleased by the confidence reposed in me by President Akinwumi A. Adesina for this appointment. I am deeply fascinated and appreciate his consistent penchant for excellence and recognition of talent.

“I use this opportunity to renew my commitment to the Bank, its leadership, and regional member countries in deepening my support for strengthening institutional capacities in all forms in regional member countries.”

Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group, commented: “I am pleased to appoint Dr. Eric Kehinde Ogunleye as Director of the African Development Institute. Eric is a focused and strategic leader with first-class expertise in key areas of institutional capacity development support to regional member countries.

“I am confident that he will continue to leverage his vast experience and global partnership across all spheres of capacity development for delivery at scale for our regional member countries.”

9 Payment Service Bank (9PSB), Nigeria’s digital payment service bank, focused on financial inclusion, has echoed the impressive progress demonstrated by the female professionals and entrepreneurs in the fintech sector, and Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (SMEs) at this year’s Digital Pay Expo and Exhibition held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The year’s event themed, ‘Redefining Payment,’ focused and analyzed the payment habits of the Millennials and Gen Z, the largest generation groups. It spotlighted the crucial effects of the group on the payment world to continue to develop solutions that will gain their loyalty and that of the total market.

Speaking at the session, Women in Fintech, themed, Inclusive Finance for SMEs, designed to mentor participating female undergraduates across institutions of higher learning in Lagos State, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, 9 Payment Service Bank (9PSB), Branka Mracajac, emphasized that women are making significant breakthroughs in the fintech sector and in Smal and Medium Scale Enterprises in recent years compared to what was obtainable in the past.

Although, women are still contending with the male counterparts for positions, it is evident that many women are assuming key executive positions in the finance and fintech sector, as well as other areas of human endeavours. The fintech industry is striving to improve the situations occasioned by gender disparity, inclusivity, and financial inclusion to ensure equal growth and opportunities.

In her words, ‘’Women are founding many business entities and SMEs, it is important to have the right mindset, work hard and put in more efforts to educate yourselves, acquire the right expertise and skills, network and find someone who will inspire you and the opportunities would present itself. We need more prominent professional women leaders in fintech to inspire young girls. We did not have this in my time, but the dynamics have changed. Women should stay focused, connected, and look for opportunities to kick-start their careers’’.

Other female Chief Executive Officers in the fintech sector who also formed part of the session are Ronke Kuye, (Shared Agent Network Expansion Facilities Limited, SANEF Nigeria); Dr. Markie Idowu (Xpress Payment Solutions Limited); Kemi Okunsanya (Hydrogen, Nigeria), and Yemi Keri (Heckerbella Limited).

They also shared pieces of advice to the young undergraduates on the need to have mentors who have attained progressive stages of career growth; build good rapport; have improved social capital, utilize the social media as a means of communication; and communicate their capability, competencies, and experience.

In addition, they advised them to offer their best and be ready to add value to prospective organizations they will be employed in. Furthermore, the youngsters were also implored to build and keep relationships with colleagues and ensure leave on a good note whenever they meet people, because the future is unpredictable.

Digital Pay Expo is a yearly event designed to bring together industry regulators, fintech top executives, and innovators in the fintech and payment solution space to collaborate and move the industry forward.

The platform provides a unique opportunity for industry players to discover new innovative cases and technologies that will accelerate the much-needed growth in the fintech ecosystem.

OPay, a leading financial technology company, wishes to reaffirm its strict prohibition of cryptocurrency and virtual asset trading on its platform. As a compliant organization committed to upholding legal, constitutional, and regulatory duties, OPay prioritizes the safety, strength, and integrity of the financial system.

OPay does not permit trading in any form of cryptocurrency or virtual currency on its platform. Additionally, OPay accounts and wallets must not be used in connection with such activities.

To ensure compliance with this directive, OPay conducts daily scans of its platform to detect any unauthorized cryptocurrency or virtual currency trading. Any account or wallet found in breach of this policy will be closed immediately, with details reported to the relevant regulatory authorities.

According to the Mr. Gotring Wuritka Dauda, CEO, OPay Nigeria, he stated that, for absolute clarity, OPay has never condoned, nor will it permit, the trading of cryptocurrency or virtual assets on its platform.

He continued by urging all customers to ensure their OPay wallets and accounts are not involved in cryptocurrency or virtual currency transactions. Non-compliance with this policy will result in account closure.

He appreciated all customers for their continued trust and support as they work together to maintain a secure and compliant financial environment.