The Open Society Initiative for West Africa is happy to announce the appointment of Ayisha Osori as the new Executive Director of the Foundation.
Ms. Osori is a lawyer, development consultant and communication strategist with 18 years experience in the public and private sectors. She is an advocate for women’s rights in Nigeria and is a non-executive director on the board of the Nigerian Women Trust Fund. She has worked with the World Bank, UNICEF, and the National Democratic Institute on a wide range of projects focusing on women’s economic and political empowerment, gender equality and good governance.
Ms. Osori, an Eisenhower Fellow, graduated from the University of Lagos and Harvard Law School, and was called to the Nigerian and New York State Bar in 1998 and 2000 respectively. In addition, she holds a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.
“I am eager to deepen my engagement with OSIWA’s partners in the sub-region and form new partnerships,” said Osori. “I look forward to building on the ongoing work of the Foundation as we seek to tackle the systemic challenges to sustainable development and find innovative ways of promoting healthier democracies and protecting our human rights.”
Prior to being appointed as Executive Director, Osori served on OSIWA’s board for four years, three of those years as chair. Following this appointment, former vice chair Felwine Sarr takes over as OSIWA’s new board chair. Board member Mariama Anthony-Williams, will assume the role of vice chair.
OSIWA is part of the global network of Open Society Foundations founded and supported by George Soros and who all share the common goal and value of helping promote more open, tolerant and democratic societies. Established in 2000, works in ten countries in West Africa (Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal) and has offices in five (Dakar headquarters, Abuja, Conakry, Freetown and Monrovia). To learn more about the foundation and its work, visit www.osiwa.org.
