About Professor Tanko
Scholar. Leader. Changemaker. Building Africa’s future through evidence, empathy, and action.
Executive Profile.
Professor Nana Tanko is a development leader and scholar whose work has shaped governance civil society and gender justice across West and Central Africa for more than three decades. Her career spans senior leadership in academia philanthropy and national policy. She served as Dean of the College of Law Management and Social Sciences at the University of Abuja and chaired the National Task Force on Vesico Vaginal Fistula advancing women’s health rights at scale. As Executive Director of OSIWA she strengthened civic engagement across 18 West African countries and pioneered the West Africa Civil Society Institute in Accra along with West Africa Democracy Radio in Dakar building regional platforms for democracy and open societies.
Her leadership later guided major post conflict reconstruction interventions as Executive Director of the Nigeria Victims Support Fund where she led humanitarian recovery education protection and the COVID 19 national response supporting communities affected by terrorism. She has contributed to high level advocacy research and social policy reform throughout the continent. She currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of the African Policy Research Institute providing strategic guidance and driving evidence based policymaking that promotes inclusive development across Africa.
Guiding Philosophy.
Evidence-Driven
Every policy recommendation, program design and strategic decision must be anchored in rigorous research and empirical reality.
People-Centered
Development is not about statistics, it’s about real people, real communities, and real transformation. Scholarship without humanity is hollow.
Pan-African Vision
Africa’s challenges are interconnected, and so must be our solutions. Regional cooperation and knowledge-sharing are not optional, they’re essential.
Guiding Philosophy.
Evidence-Driven
Every policy recommendation, program design and strategic decision must be anchored in rigorous research and empirical reality.
People-Centered
Development is not about statistics, it’s about real people, real communities, and real transformation. Scholarship without humanity is hollow.
Pan-African Vision
Africa’s challenges are interconnected, and so must be our solutions. Regional cooperation and knowledge-sharing are not optional, they’re essential.
Professional Experience.
Professional Experience.
Chief Executive Officer
African Policy Research Institute (APRI)
Abuja, Nigeria | 2025 – Present
Executive Director
Victims Support Fund (VSF)
Abuja, Nigeria | 2020 – 2025
Director of Programmes
Victims Support Fund (VSF)
Abuja, Nigeria | 2015 – 2020
Prof. Demography & Development
Bingham University
Abuja, Nigeria | 2014 – Present
Fellow (Sabbatical)
UN Africa Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP)
Dakar, Senegal | 2011
Executive Director
Open Society Initiative for
West Africa (OSIWA)
Dakar, Senegal | 2004 – 2010
Country Coordinator
Open Society Initiative for
West Africa (OSIWA)
Abuja, Nigeria | 2001 – 2003
Dean, College of Law, Management and Social Sciences
University of Abuja
Abuja, Nigeria | 1993 – 2001
Academic Credentials.
Ph.D., Demography
University of East Anglia
Norwich, United Kingdom, 1988
M.Sc. (Demography)
London School of Economics
London, United Kingdom, 1981
B.Sc. (Sociology)
Ahmadu Bello University
Zaria, Nigeria, 1979
Executive Education
INSEAD Business School — France — Strategic Leadership and Organisational Transformation
University of British Columbia (Sauder School of Business) — Canada — Leading High-Performance Teams
York University (Schulich School of Business) — Canada — Facilitative Leadership
Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management) — United States — Non-Profit Executive Management