Aisha Umar

CEO at I-Produce Africa

Speaker

Mrs. Umar is a Legal Practitioner & Notary Public. She was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1988 and has acquired vast experience in the public, private sector and academia. Over the past 33 years, she has amongst other things provided legal and technical advice to Federal and State governments on various projects in the Education, Transportation, Agriculture , Petroleum and Water sectors. Some of these projects have been funded by International Development Agencies including DFID and the World Bank. She obtained a postgraduate diploma in Global Business from Oxford University in 2017 and a Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Trade Studies from the World Trade Institute, University of Bern, Switzerland in 2021. She is currently a Doctorate Student at the University of West Scotland -Centre for Africa Research and Enterprise and Economic Development –CAREED, researching Africa’s engagement with the World Trade Organization (WTO) and strategies for boosting value added Agriculture exports. She has worked in the State House Abuja in 2011 as Senior Special Assistant to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In this capacity she rendered policy advice and technical support to the Government on matters relating to social and political development. Aisha has had several years banking experience at FSB International Bank PLC, Lagos, a commercial bank, (now Fidelity Bank) as the Special Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer & Head of Corporate Affairs in charge of the bank’s communication strategy and managing its corporate brand. Coupled with her law practice in diverse areas and doctoral research, she also manages other roles including agribusiness consultancy and social entrepreneurship. She is the founder of Inara Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organization established to support communities affected by violence in Northeast Nigeria. She is the CEO of iproduce Africa a start-up Agri-business company promoting trade and value addition of agricultural products sourced from communities in northeast Nigeria. Aisha sits on various Boards on including those of Jaiz Bank Nigeria, Berger Paints PLC, NGX Real Estate Limited (A subsidiary of the Nigerian Stock Exchange Group).She is member of the International Bar Association, Member of the Nigerian Bar, Member of the Oxford Business Alumni and the Oxford Union.