Mr. Nuhu Ribadu was a key member of the Economic Mangement Team, from 2003 to 2008, who initiated and drove wide-ranging public sector reforms, which laid the foundations for the socioeconomic rejuvenation of Nigeria. He graduated from the Nigerian Law School and was called to the bar in 1984, before joining the Nigeria Police, where he rose to become head of the Legal and Prosecution Department at the police headquarters in Abuja. His 18-year service in the Nigeria Police culminated in his appointment as Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in April 2003.

Mr. Ribadu’s achievements in EFCC most notably included, the delisting of Nigeria from the Financial Action Task Force’s List of Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories, admission into the prestigious Egmont Group, and the withdrawal of the U.S. Treasury advisory on Nigeria by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to help make the EFCC a reference law enforcement agency on the continent. The bold investigation, prosecution, and conviction of Nigeria’s previously untouchable politicians and businessmen earned him an international reputation as a respected anti-corruption crusader.

He recently completed an L.L.M. degree thesis on the jurisprudence of corruption in Nigeria from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. Two years ago at Harvard Business School, he completed a program in the strategic management of law enforcement agencies. Mr. Ribadu is a fellow at St. Anthony’s College, Oxford University, as well as a visiting fellow at the Center for Global Development, Washington, D.C.

Leadership