Dara Akala

"Dara is a seasoned socio-economist with over 30 years’ multi-layered professional experience across national, regional and private voluntary institutions within the agricultural and rural sectors of Nigeria. Specializing in agricultural and enterprise development as well as monitoring and evaluation, his expertise spans the interrelated fields of governance, poverty reduction and sustainable development. Prior to PIND, Dara worked with Living Earth Foundation (LEF) in the United Kingdom where he provided support to African programs and established the Nigerian affiliate of LEF, the EC/FGN funded micro projects program in 3 states (MPP3) of the Niger Delta. He was also a Program Manager at TechnoServe/Nigeria where he was responsible for managing a program of assistance to increase the productivity and income of agribusinesses in the Southern region of Nigeria, as well as capacity building assistance to Community Development Associations. He has deep knowledge of agricultural policies and programs in Nigeria as well as leveraging funding from bilateral and multilateral development assistance agencies through his work at the Agricultural & Rural Management Training Institute and the Benin-Owena River Basin Development Authority. A flexible and resourceful team player, he has a passion for creating and nurturing tri-sector partnerships between government, business, and civil society to foster sustainable development initiatives."

• Executive Director, Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta ‎