Dr. Friday Kanu Ohuche is currently Senior Policy and Research Consultant Adviser to African Development Bank Group (AfDB). In addition, Dr. Ohuche currently Chairs the Economic Governance Sub- Committee of African Union/ APRM Expert Committee on the development of Governance Index for African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). Before joining African Development Bank Headquarters, Dr. Ohuche served as the Policy Economist for Non- Lending Policy Dialogue for Nigeria. Dr. Ohuche voluntarily retired as Deputy Director in the Monetary Policy Department of the Central Bank of Nigeria in 1918. He was Senior Faculty at the Department of Economics, Ebonyi State University from 1996-2003. He was Nigeria Country Economist for IMF and Technical Assistant to the IMF Resident Representative in Nigeria, 2008-2012. He was Special Assistant to Four Economic Advisers to President of Nigeria, namely, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, Prof. Ode Ojowu, Prof. Osita Ogbu and Ambassador A. Wali. He was Special Adviser to two former Deputy Governors of the Central Bank of Nigeria, namely, Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate and Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability (FSS).

Professor Risikat Oladoyin Dauda is a Professor of Economics of the University of Lagos. She has a wealth of experience in teaching, research and consultancy on issues of African development. Her research interests cut across economics and social development with emphasis on themes relating to education, health and human capital, poverty and inequality, income distribution, human development, gender and development finance among others. She has authored several scientific publications in peer-reviewed internationally ranked journals.

Dr. Yemi Kale is currently Group Managing Director, Research and Trade Intelligence & Group Chief Economist at the African Export-Import Bank. Before this role he was Partner and the Chief Economist/ Head of West African Research at KPMG Financial Services, where he not only led KPMG’s West African Research and Insights team but was also in charge of the Firm’s view on Macroeconomics and enhanced its growth agenda by both supporting and originating engagements involving modelling and econometrics.

Jonathan Adeyemi Aremu, is a Professor of International Economic Relations; and a former Acting Vice Chancellor of the Covenant University (CU), Ota, Nigeria between 2004 and 2005. He is also a Consultant, at ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) on Common Investment Market (ECIM), Abuja. Aremu started a successful career at Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) where he rose from Assistant Economist in 1980 to become the Acting Assistant Director of Research before voluntarily retiring in December 1992; and established Marketlink Consults Ltd in 1998.

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Professor Osita Ogbu is a Professor of Economics and former Director of the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN). He also is the Managing Director/CEO of African Development Solutions International (ADSI), a knowledge-based consulting firm based in Abuja. Professor Ogbu was the Economic Adviser to the President of the Federal of Nigeria and CEO of the National Planning Commission (Minister of National Planning) from 2005 to 2006 and was the Deputy Head of the Economic Team under President Obasanjo. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Governing Council of the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NISER). Professor Ogbu was the Founder and Executive Director/CEO of the African Technology Policy Studies Network (ATPS), headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya from 2001 to 2005, and was a Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC. He is the author of several books on African development, and of a novel, The Moon Also Sets. He obtained M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Economics from Howard University, USA in 1984 and 1988, and a B.Sc. in Economics from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1979. Professor Ogbu holds the Nigerian National Honor of the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON)

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A 1989 doctorate graduate in Economics from Queen Mary College, University of London, Dr. Salami is currently Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of KAINOS Edge Consulting Ltd. - a Management Consulting firm focused on markets research and corporate governance consulting. He has recently returned to this role after completing an 18-month stint as Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) to President Mohammadu Buhari.

In the past three decades, Doyin’s career and activities have spanned academics, consulting, public policymaking, policy advocacy and corporate leadership. His academic career, which accounts for a little over two decades of his professional life, started in 1990 when he was assigned to the economics faculty at the University of Lagos in fulfilment of the requirements of the National Youth Service Scheme. He combined this with working in his family’s trading business – trading automotive spares and subsequently, agricultural commodities. Doyin joined the Lagos Business School (LBS) in 1998 and spent the next twenty years teaching, undertaking research and consulting work. Though he left the full-time faculty of the LBS in 2017, he continues to teach economics as an adjunct member of the faculty. Beyond teaching and consulting, Doyin has also been involved in public policy in different capacities.

In 2009, he was appointed a member of the Federal Government of Nigeria’s Economic Management Team by H.E. President Umar Yar’Adua. The team was led by the then Minister of Finance Alh Mansur Muhtar. Thereafter, he joined the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in January 2010 and successfully served 2 terms of 4 years each. Doyin also served as vice-chair (under the leadership of Alhaji Ahmed Joda) of the Transition Committee for President Muhammadu Buhari’s incoming administration. He was later appointed as the chairman of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), reporting directly to the President, up until January 2022 when he was announced as Chief Economic Advisor to Muhammadu, a position he held until May 2023. Beyond Nigeria, Doyin was also a member of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Advisory Group for Sub-Saharan Africa. He was, until Jan 2022, also involved in various capacities with the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG). In addition to leading KAINOS Edge Consulting Ltd., also served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Prestige Assurance Plc. and ARM-Investment Managers Ltd. He was a non-executive director on the Boards of companies which include Access Pension Fund Custodian Ltd.; African Business Research Limited, UK; First World Communities Ltd; and Investment Securities Ltd.

Professor Ummu Ahmed Jalingo, a distinguished economist and academic, has made significant contributions to the field of economics and education in Nigeria. Hailing from Gombi Local Government Area of Adamawa State, she is celebrated as the first female Professor of Economics from Northern Nigeria. Prof. Jalingo's academic journey commenced with her early education in Gombi, followed by a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from Bayero University, Kano, and a PhD in Economics from Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto. She also attended several trainings and courses at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, USA, Institute for Management Development (IMD) Lausanne, Switzerland and the prestigious Harvard University, Boston, USA.

Professor Ummu's commitment to academia is evident in her over three decades of service at Bayero University, Kano, where she has published numerous books and articles in esteemed journals. Professor Jalingo has contributed immensely to scholarship in Bayero University, not only in terms of teaching, but also in terms of research and community service. She has successfully supervised research works of hundreds of undergraduate and postgraduate students including six completed PhDs. At various times, she served as a member of various standing and Ad-Hoc Committees of the University among which is the Chairperson Bayero University Kano Dress Code Committee (April 2013 – 2015), Chairperson on the Establishment of Centre for Social and Economic Research in Bayero University Kano (May 2013 – 2014), Member Code of Ethics of Bayero University Kano (April 2013 – 2015) and Member Governing Board of Bayero University Staff Model Primary School (2010 – 2016).

She has proudly flown the flag of Bayero University Kano during stints of academic activities at the Federal University Dutse Jigawa State between 2015 and 2017 as a visiting and full Professor, which led to her appointments as the pioneer Director of the Centre for Social and Economic Research and Head of Department of Economics and Development Studies. She has served as external examiner for both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in many universities including Yobe State University, Damaturu, Al-Qalam University, Katsina, Bauchi State University, Gadau and Federal Polytechnic Bauchi.

In recognition of her exceptional contributions to the field of Aviation Economics, Prof Ummu was endowed with a Professorial Chair in Aviation Economics by the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO Aviance Plc) where her unparalleled expertise, knowledge of the complexities of Aviation economics, research output, and recommendations contributed significantly to the company’s revenue growth and improved efficiency over the period 2014 to 2020. This has led to rekindled interest in research among Post Graduate Students towards Aviation Economics in particular and Transport Economics in general. Additionally, cross cutting research among the South- South countries was also embarked upon by Professor Ummu Ahmed Jalingo and her colleagues from Bayero University, Kano, Kaduna State University and Yobe State University with St. Mary University in the Philippines thereby leading to and driving research outcomes in the areas of Agri business and economic value chain among the two countries. Between 2006 to 2008, Professor Ummu Ahmed Jalingo helped in driving policy documents of Local Government Economic Empowerment and Development Strategies (LEEDS) policy documents in all the 27 local government areas of Jigawa State. Professor Jalingo is a regular face at scientific conferences, workshops, seminars in addition to being a well published economist as evident by her numerous articles in peer reviewed journals, monograms, conference proceedings and chapters in books. Professor Ummu Jalingo has distinguished herself as a beacon of academic and professional excellence in the field of economics. Her tenure as President of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES) from September 2021 to 2023 was marked by visionary leadership and significant contributions to economic discourse and policy formulation in Nigeria. Under her presidency, the society saw unprecedented growth in membership, a series of impactful conferences, and the establishment of robust platforms for research and dialogue on economic issues.

Owing to her vast knowledge and expertise of academic and extra-curricular subjects, she has contributed to national development by serving as a member of the National Universities Commission’s panels to accredit undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Economics across the country. Her expertise extends beyond academia, having also served on the Board of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting (NSPM) Plc representing the Northeast geopolitical zone over the period 2018 - 2023. During her tenure at the Apex Bank, she held the position of Chairman for the Standing Board Committee on Remuneration, Ethics, and AntiCorruption from September 2018 to 2023. Additionally, she was a committee member for Audit and Risk Management, Pension Fund Management, and Financial System Stability, all within the Central Bank of Nigeria during the same period. She also contributed as a member of the Finance and General-Purpose Sub-Committee at the Nigerian Securities Printing and Minting Plc from September 2018 to 2023. Professor Ummu Jalingo stands as a pillar in the academic community, having dedicatedly nurtured the minds of thirty-five cohorts of future leaders in the field of economics at Bayero University Kano. Her personal life is as fulfilling as her professional journey, being a proud matriarch of a family that includes five children and eight grandchildren.