TheCable

Ubon Udoh has been appointed as the chief executive officer of the Abdul Samad Rabiu’s Initiative, Africa Fund for Social Research and Development (ASR Africa).

In a statement on Sunday, the organisation said Udoh has an operational track record of programme coordination and results management of international donor funds and loans from multilateral development banks.

He is said to have a “strong monitoring and evaluation background” and over 20 years of international development and project management experience.

He is an alumnus of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and past winner of the prestigious President Nana Akufo Addo presidential award of excellence from the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping and Training Institute.

“Prior to joining the ASR Africa initiative, he was the head of monitoring & evaluation at the North East Development Commission – North East Recovery and Stability Programme which included responsibility for over 1 billion dollars in loans and grants (World Bank, AfDB, Islamic Development Bank) across various projects dedicated to the recovery of north east Nigerian states from the ravages of the Boko Haram knsurgency, and multilateral interventions with national coverage for COVID-19 response,” the statement reads.

“Ubon Udoh was responsible for the overall coordination of M&E of the World Bank supported Multi-Sectoral Crisis Recovery Project – NERSP at the Presidential Committee on North East Initiative – a role he joined from being an M&E consultant to the UN Women in Peace & Security Programme (WSP-UNSCR 1325).”

Commenting on the appointment, Abdulsamad Rabiu, chairman of ASR Africa and founder of BUA group, expressed optimism that Udoh would perform excellently in his new role.

“We are pleased to have Ubon Udoh lead the team at the ASR Africa initiative which has been set up to help bridge the development gap in these key areas of health, education and social development within Africa,” Rabiu said.

“A well respected and proven expert in building systems and processes and managing donor funds and grants, with an exceptional record of tangible results and value for money, Ubon has added immense value to every institution he has been a part of, and we believe he is a perfect fit for the goals and aspirations of ASR.

“He brings with him many years of experience as well as the expertise needed to drive the ASR Africa mandate whilst also engendering sustainable partnerships for development across the African continent.

“ASR Africa is confident that he will bring these to bear in developing a sustainable programme for the initiative’s annual $100million Africa fund for social research & development.”

ASR Africa was established in March 2021 with an annual fund of $100 million dedicated to solving development issues in the areas of health, education and social development on the African continent — $50 million is allocated to Nigeria and the rest to other countries.