The Abdul Samad Rabiu Initiative for Africa (ASR Africa), on Sunday named Ubon Udoh its pioneer Managing Director/Chief Executive, effective immediately.

The initiative was established last month by philanthropist and Founder of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, with an annual fund of US$100m dedicated to solving development issues in health, education, and social development on the Continent, with $US$50m earmarked for Nigeria and the rest of Africa respectively.

A statement by the initiative described Udoh as a consummate International Development and M&E expert, quoting Rabiu, chairman of ASR Africa as saying the appointment signals the seriousness with which the initiative intends to carry out its mandate by focusing on systems, programme development and deployment, monitoring and evaluation as well as sustainability.

ASR Africa initiative, he said, was set up to help bridge the development gap in the key areas within Africa, hence the appointment of the “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.”

Udoh, he continued, “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 ASRi. 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.”

Udoh, the statement continues, comes with over 20 years of international development and project management experience, as well as a strong monitoring and evaluation background, besides an operational track record of programme coordination and results management of international donor funds and loans from Multilateral development banks.

He joins ASR Africa Initiative from his role as Head of Monitoring & Evaluation at the North East Development Commission – North East Recovery and Stability Programme, which included responsibility for over US$1bn in loans and grants from the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB), and Islamic Development Bank. In that role, he supervised various projects dedicated to the recovery of North East Nigerian states from the ravages of the Boko Haram Insurgency, and multilateral interventions with national coverage for COVID 19 response.

Over the years also, Udoh has provided expertise and support in several capacities with multiple agencies like The World Bank (North-East Nigeria Multi-sectoral Crisis Recovery Project), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), African Development Bank (Nigeria Inclusive Basic Services Development Programme), GIZ, UN Women Peace and Security Programme, Presidential Committee on the North-East Initiative (PCNI), North East Development Commission, North East Recovery and Stability Programme (NERSP) and several state governments in Nigeria.

The new CEO 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).

Before then, he worked at the German Agency for Technical Cooperation & Development (later GIZ) where he held several roles in the GTZ/FGN Multisectoral Women Empowerment Projects in NE Nigeria and the GIZ/FGN Gender & Good Governance Projects in Plateau and Borno States, Nigeria in project development, strategy, and coordinating Monitoring and Evaluation.

An Alumnus of Ahmadu Bello University, Udoh has also supported the coordination of interventions in the lake Chad region with the countries of Chad, Niger, and Cameroon as part of the World bank PROLAC intervention.

His experience cuts across multiple sectors like capacity development; water, sanitation and health; infrastructure; peace building and social cohesion; IDP management & durable solutions; education, health & governance, and has completed a diverse spread of gender mainstreaming, management, monitoring and conflict prevention courses.

He is a past winner of the prestigious President Nana Akufo Ado Presidential Award of Excellence from the Kofi Anan International Peacekeeping and Training Institute.