Arunma Oteh elected chairperson of Royal Africa Society

Arunma Oteh, former treasurer and vice-president of the World Bank, has been elected chairperson of Royal Africa Society.

Oteh made the announcement on Tuesday via a post on LinkedIn.

Royal Africa Society is an organisation committed to facilitating mutual understanding and dialogue between people in the UK, Africa and the rest of the world.

The organisation, established 120 years ago, engages in amplifying African voices and interests in academia, business, politics, the arts and education, fostering more informed and equitable relations between Africa and the UK.

Oteh said she is honoured to have been elected into the new position, adding that the efforts of her predecessors will be built on.

“Honoured to have been elected Chairperson of the Royal Africa Society, an organisation that has served #Africa for 120 years. I look forward to building on the great work of my predecessors Zeinab Badawi BBC News and Mark Malloch-Brown, President of Open Society’s Foundations, Council colleagues and staff led by the Director Nick Westcott and Deputy Director Desta Haile,” she said.

In 2019, Ecobank Group appointed Oteh to its board of directors as a non-executive director.

Prior to the appointment, Oteh joined Oxford University as an academic scholar at St. Antony’s College and an executive-in-residence at SAID Business School.

She was Treasurer of the World Bank from 2015 to 2018 where she led a team that managed the World Bank’s $200 billion debt portfolio as well as an asset portfolio of $200 billion for the World Bank and 65 central banks and other public sector clients.

She was also responsible for an extensive public sector financial advisory business and back office operations, administering payments of over $7 trillion.

Prior to joining the World Bank, Oteh was director general of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Nigeria from 2010 to 2015.

During this period, she led the rebuilding of the Nigerian capital markets after the global financial crisis and served on Nigeria’s economic management team.

Prior to her appointment as SEC DG, Oteh worked at the Africa Development Bank for 17 years in a variety of roles including group vice-president, corporate services (2006 to 2009) and group treasurer (2001 to 2006).