Buhari Appoints Two Executive Directors to NSIA Board

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli and Aminu Umar-Sadiq as Executive Directors of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

NSIA spokesman Titilope Olubiyi announced the appointments in a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja.

According to the statement, Ojekwe-Onyejeli was reappointed for a second term as Executive Director, while Umar-Sadiq, who previously served as Deputy Head of Direct Investments at the Authority, was appointed to the executive position for the first time.

Olubiyi said the appointments were expected to strengthen NSIA’s executive management team and support the Authority’s role in Nigeria’s economic development.

He added that the appointments were also consistent with NSIA’s strategy of increasing investment in critical domestic infrastructure.

The Authority has focused its infrastructure investments on key sectors including roads, agriculture, healthcare, power and education.

Olubiyi said recent NSIA initiatives demonstrated its growing focus on domestic infrastructure, particularly through the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund, which was established to accelerate the completion of major national projects.

Among the projects being supported through the fund are the Abuja-Kano Road, Second Niger Bridge, East-West Road, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project.

The NSIA has also expanded its investments in healthcare, including the development of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital Cancer Treatment Centre and advanced diagnostic centres at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital in Kano and the Federal Medical Centre in Umuahia.

Olubiyi reiterated the Authority’s commitment to supporting strategic infrastructure projects across Nigeria while also providing financial stability during periods of economic difficulty.

Chairman of the NSIA Board of Directors, Jide Zeitlin, described both appointees as experienced professionals who had played important roles in the development of the Authority.

He said their appointments would strengthen the executive team and support NSIA’s objective of maintaining a diverse and highly skilled leadership structure.

Ojekwe-Onyejeli was first appointed Executive Director in October 2012 and initially served as Chief Risk Officer of the NSIA.

Her responsibilities were expanded in 2017 when she became Chief Operating Officer.

Before joining NSIA, she worked at Barclays as Director and Head of Operational Risk and Control, overseeing operations across 15 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

She holds a degree in Chemistry from the University of Lagos and a Master of Business Administration from Cranfield School of Management in the United Kingdom.

Umar-Sadiq has experience in investment banking, private equity and public finance.

Before his appointment as Executive Director, he served as Senior Vice-President and Deputy Head of Infrastructure at NSIA.

He is a former Bauchi State academic scholar and holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Engineering Sciences from the University of Oxford.