Our Team in Nigeria

Mr. Mohamed M. Malick Fall of Senegal is the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria.
Mr. Fall has more than 20 years of experience in development, humanitarian, and peacebuilding. Prior to his appointment, he served as the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, where he provided oversight and guidance to 21 UNICEF Countries Offices, including on the formulation and implementation of the Country Programme Documents, the UN Reform process, and the engagement with the Regional and Economic Commission and African Union and the private sector. Furthermore, he has led the response to multiples and complex crisis with massive humanitarian needs and high security challenges, and managed the strategic review of the country documents, research and knowledge-management related activities, ensuring that the results are used to inform programme and policies.
Before that, he served as Unicef representative in Nigeria (2016-2019), Central African Republic (2014-2016) and Mongolia (2012-2014), as their Senior Education Adviser in Haiti (2010-2012), and as Chief of Education in Indonesia (2006-2010) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (2003-2006). He was also temporarily assigned as Education Officer (2001-2003).
Mr Mohamed M. Malick Fall has a master’s degree in Demography from Université de Paris I Panthéon Sorbonne – France and a B.A. Degree in History (Licence d'Histoire) from Université de Dakar – Sénégal.

Ms. Beatrice Eyong, a Cameroonian national, is the UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria. She has over 35 years professional working experience in promoting gender equality and Women’s Empowerment. Prior to her current appointment, she was the Resident Representative of UN Women, Mali (office with the biggest UN Women’s portfolio in West and Central Africa); Head of UNWOMEN Office in Niger; and she established the Eastern DRC Office in Bukavu. Beatrice has also worked with the Canadian Cooperation Support Office in Cameroon, as a Gender Specialist/Adviser and with UNDP as an agronomist working with the Africa 2000 Network, a UNDP micro-programme in Cameroon. She holds a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Extension from the University of Reading, United Kingdom; a Diploma in Women, Extension workers and Agriculture from the Larenstein International Agricultural college – Deventer, the Netherlands; and a Diploma in Integrated Rural Development, from the Pan African Institute for Development West Africa, Buea – Cameroon.

Before his current assignment, Gomez was the Deputy Director of the Department of Water Resources and Permanent Representative of The Gambia with WMO. His current portfolio involves working with regional institutions and development partners to strengthen the capacity and capabilities of National Hydrological and Meteorological Services in 27 countries. This involves providing support towards timely exchange of data and the provision of weather, climate and water resources information services, to stakeholders in climate-sensitive sectors. He holds a MSc. in Applied and Agricultural Meteorology. He is married with children and his hobbies include reading, swimming and keeping abreast with current affairs.

Cheikh Ousmane Toure is the Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to Nigeria. Cheikh brings over two decades of experience in combating crime, corruption, and supporting drug control efforts globally. His appointment marks an important phase in the UNODC’s collaboration with Nigeria, enhancing its mission to promote security, justice, and development His extensive experience across diverse nations, including Chad, South Sudan, DRC, Palestine, Lao PDR, Gabon, Nigeria, and Cote d'Ivoire, has been instrumental in fortifying legal frameworks, bolstering law enforcement capabilities including in border management, and fostering community resilience. He holds a bachelor's degree from Institut Superieur de Management in Dakar and a master's in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, equipping him to tackle complex global challenges. His leadership is expected to introduce innovative strategies for drug control, anti-corruption, and criminal justice reforms, aligning Nigeria’s efforts with broader regional goals in West and Central Africa. Cheikh's extensive background positions him as a transformative leader capable of driving meaningful change in international development and criminal justice.

David, a Canadian national fluent in English and French, is the Representative and Country Director of the United Nations World Food Programme in Nigeria. He holds a master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration (MPA) from Queen’s University, Kingston Canada (1991-1992) and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Latin American Studies from the University of Calgary. He was the Executive Director of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) from 2017 to 2022. Prior to this, he served as Managing Director of Africa Initiatives and Special Advisor at the Howard G. Buffett Foundation (2013-2017) and was a Board Member and Chair of the Global Fund Strategy, Impact, and Investment Committee (2010-2016). From 2010 to 2014, he was Director General for Health, Nutrition, and Education at DFATD, Canada. From 2008 to 2010, he served as the Senior Director of Policy, Planning and Strategy with World Food Programme (WFP), Italy, where he reported directly to the Executive Director, led WFP’s shift “from food aid to food assistance “ in WFP’s 82 country offices, implemented change management to foster buy-in from WFP executives and managed high-level partnerships. He also previously held roles at WFP in Zambia and Rwanda (2004-2007, 2000-2004) and various operations in Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda and Lesotho from 1992 to 2000.

Mrs. Dede Ahoefa EKOUE, the new Country Director/Representative for IFAD in Nigeria, has over 20 years of experience in management and leadership positions with UNDP, UN-WOMEN, including interim leadership positions with FAO and UNIDO.
From 2018 until January 2022, she was the UN-Women Country Representative in Haiti. From 2007 to 2010, Mrs. Ekoue was Deputy Resident Representative Program and Operations for UNDP in Cameroon. Between 1996 and 2007, she served as Africa Relationship Manager of Women’s World Banking in New York, USA. She assumed several international leadership functions including co-Chair for the International Development Association (IDA-World Bank)‘s 18th Replenishment and Chair of the Organizing Committee of the 16th United States– sub Sahara African Trade and Economic Cooperation (AGOA) Forum. Mrs. Ekoue was a three-time Minister in the Republic of Togo between 2010 and 2015.
She holds a Bachelor degree in Economics with major in Business Management in 1986, at the University of Benin in Togo, a Graduate Degree in International Finance and Taxation in 1987 at the University of Lille, France, and a Master’s in Business Administration in 1993 at the Jackson State University, USA.

Mr. Edwin Faigmane is the Chief of the Mine Action Programme, representing UNMAS in Nigeria. He joined UNMAS in 2011 as the Senior Programme Officer in Afghanistan and has deployed to various peacekeeping missions. Before Nigeria, he was the Head of Project Unit in the UNMAS programme in MINURSO, the Territory of Western Sahara, where he also acted as the CMAP for almost half a year. Edwin joined mine action in 2005 with UNDP in Lao PDR as a programme advisor and was more recently, the Chief Technical Adviser of the UNDP mine action programme in Cambodia. Edwin has assisted the Royal Thai Government and the Royal Cambodian Government in developing their respective national mine action strategies as well as Cambodia's extension request under Article 5 of the AP Mine Ban Convention. For the services he rendered to Cambodia, he was awarded the Royal Order of Sahametrei by the Cambodian Prime Minister. He holds a master’s degree in Business Administration.

Dr. Hussein Gadain, a national of Sudan, holds a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. in Water Resources Engineering from the University of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, and a B.Sc. in Civil and Hydraulic Engineering from the University of Science and Technology, Khartoum, Sudan.
Dr. Gadain began his career in 1990 as a Civil Engineer with the AGIB Group & Howard Humphreys Joint Venture in Khartoum. In 1991, he joined the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources in Wad Medani, Sudan, as a Research Irrigation Engineer. Between 1994 and 1998, he worked with the Water Resources Engineering Programme (WREP) at the University of Dar-es-Salaam as a Research Assistant, and later as a Researcher from 1998 to 2001.

From 2001 to 2006, Dr. Gadain served as a Water Resources Specialist, Regional Hydrologist, and Senior Scientist under the United States Geological Survey (USGS)/Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS), supporting the USAID FEWS NET Project. His work focused on agrometeorological hazards across 10 countries in the Greater Horn of Africa and their impact on regional food security.

Dr. Gadain joined the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 2006 as Water Coordinator for the Somalia Water and Land Information Management (SWALIM) project, based in Nairobi, Kenya. From 2013 to 2016, he served as Chief Technical Advisor for the same project. He was appointed FAO Representative in Egypt from 2016 to June 2019 and subsequently served as FAO Representative in Yemen from July 2019 until July 2025. On 8 July 2025, he was appointed FAO Representative in Nigeria by the FAO Director-General.

Mr. Trond Jensen, a Norwegian national, was until recently the Head of OCHA in Turkey. He was previously the Head of Office in Yemen for more than three years, as well as the Deputy Head of OCHA in Sudan. Mr. Jensen has also had short-term ad interim assignments as the Senior Deputy Director for UNRWA in Gaza, as the Head of OCHA’s Regional Office for the Syria Crisis in addition to a stint as the Head of OCHA in Somalia. Mr. Jensen has more than 25 years of experience in humanitarian and development work. He has worked for more than 15 years in the United Nations system, including for the Department of Peace Keeping Operations (DPKO) with the mission in Liberia. Mr. Jensen has also been Country Director for Save the Children and the Norwegian Refugee Council. He is also a former Senior Associate and Representative with the Peace Research Institute in Oslo (PRIO). Mr. Jensen holds degrees in management, policy and planning and environmental economics from the Universities of Bristol, Bath and the London School of Economics. He is married with three children. He enjoys the outdoors, hiking, as well as reading.

Ms. Dimanche Sharon assumed her role as the Chief of Mission of IOM Nigeria in April 2025. With a career spanning over 20 years, Ms. Dimanche brings to Nigeria with her a wealth of experience and an outstanding record of accomplishment in strategic leadership, migration management, humanitarian operations, and advocacy.
Throughout her distinguished career, Ms. Dimanche has held several senior positions within IOM, including Deputy Chief of Mission in Dhaka, Bangladesh. In this role, she restructured the mission to improve efficiency and led the establishment of the UN Network for Migration and the Bangladesh GCM Plan of Action, the first such initiatives in the world. Ms. Dimanche has also managed large-scale projects across multiple countries, including Myanmar, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and Uganda, and played a key role in opening IOM offices in Mandera, in the northeast of Kenya.
Prior to joining IOM Nigeria, Ms. Dimanche held the position of Chief of Mission in Kenya.
Ms. Dimanche holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomatic Studies and a Bachelor’s degree in Laws from Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, among other qualifications.

Ms. Elsie G. Attafuah is the UNDP Resident Representative for the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Prior to this, she served as UNDP Resident Representative for Uganda from 2019-2023 where she led from the front and navigated the COVID-19 pandemic, Ebola outbreak and other development challenges of national and global significance.
Ms. Elsie G. Attafuah is a senior level United Nations executive and results-oriented development practitioner with over 25 years of global experience. She has led multicultural and multidisciplinary teams in Africa, Europe and America, engaging Governments, bilateral and multilateral organizations, civil society, private sector and research institutions at the highest levels across countries, particularly in Africa.
Her professional experience spans years of working with UNDP, the Global Mechanism of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), Government Ministries, private sector, and civil society.

Ms. Elsie G. Attafuah holds a Masters Degree in International Affairs from the University of Ghana, a Bachelor of Arts and Diploma in Education from the University of Cape-Coast. She is a certified partnership broker.

Ms. Vanessa Phala, a South African national was recently appointed Country Director of the ILO Country Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Prior to this appointment, she worked as a Senior Specialist (Employers’ Activities) at the ILO Office for the Caribbean, in Port of Spain. Before that, she undertook several leading roles in the public and private sectors from 2004 to 2016. She was the Executive Director in charge of Social and Transformation Policy at Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), a non-profit company representing organised business in South Africa. She also served as the Director of the Ethics and Integrity Management Unit and Special Anti-corruption Unit of the South African Department of Public Service and Administration. Her professional career began in 2004, as an Assistant Director in the Policy Research and Analysis Unit of the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
Ms. Phala graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand in 2004 where she obtained a Master’s Degree in International Relations and from the University of the West Indies in 2021 where she obtained an Executive Master of Business Administration. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration.

Ronald David Kayanja, a Ugandan national, is the Director of the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) for Nigeria. He has been Director of the Centre since 2015. Mr. Kayanja has worked for the UN since 1996 and has worked with the UN Peacekeeping operations in Timor-Leste, where he served as Governance Advisor working specifically on media and civil society; and UNESCO as Advisor for Communication and Information in West Africa based initially in Accra and subsequently in Abuja. He has also worked on projects with UNFPA, FAO and started his UN career as a national officer with UNDP in Uganda. Mr. Kayanja studied at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda where he obtained a BA in Mass Communication, went to the University of Cardiff, UK for an MA in Journalism Studies and the University of Malmo, Sweden where he studied Communication and Development at master’s degree level. He has also served as Director, Panos Global AIDS Programme (August 2005 to June 2007) in Lusaka, Zambia.